How to translate messages as you type on iPhone

Copying text into a translator app and back again is slow, and it breaks the flow of a chat. With a translating keyboard you write in the language you think in and send it in theirs, without leaving the conversation.

Set up GKeyboard (about a minute)

Install GKeyboard from the App Store and open it. It is free and there is nothing to sign up for.
Open Settings → General → Keyboard → Keyboards → Add New Keyboard and choose GKeyboard.
Tap GKeyboard in that list and turn on Allow Full Access. iOS asks this of every keyboard that connects to the internet, and GKeyboard needs it to fetch AI suggestions. Without it you still get the keyboard, autocorrect and word suggestions.
In any app, touch and hold the globe key below the letters and pick GKeyboard.

The app walks you through the same steps when you first open it.

Translate a message

Open the chat, email or post and type your message in your own language.
Tap ✦ above the keys to open the AI panel and choose Translate.
Pick the language you want to send it in.
Check the translation and put it into your message with one tap.

Which languages

GKeyboard translates into 22 languages, including English, Vietnamese, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Korean and Chinese.

Tips for better translations

Short, complete sentences translate more accurately than half-finished ones.
After translating, a style such as Friendly or Formal adjusts the tone, which helps when you do not know the polite forms of the other language.
Names, addresses and numbers are worth a quick check before you send.

What it costs

Translation is free, with a daily allowance shared with rewrites and reply suggestions that resets at midnight. GKeyboard Pro raises it to 300 a day.

What happens to your text

There is no account: no name, email or phone number.
Autocorrect, word suggestions and spell check run on your iPhone.
With Full Access on, the text you are writing in the current field is sent over an encrypted connection to the GKeyboard server, which passes it to OpenAI to make the suggestion. That can be the whole message around your cursor, not just one sentence.
The GKeyboard server does not store that text and filters it out of its logs.
The AI switches off in password, email, URL, number, one-time code and credit card fields.
Turn off Full Access at any time and GKeyboard sends nothing; it keeps working as an on-device keyboard.

The privacy policy has the details.

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