How to choose a pen-pal app with translation — what "70+ languages" actually means
Writing to a pen pal in another language? In-app, external and paid translation compared, how to write so it translates well, and Lettie's 70+ languages.
"Can I have a pen pal abroad without speaking their language?" It depends on the app — specifically on where translation lives.
Three ways apps do it
① A translate button inside the letter. Open the letter, tap "Show translation" and the text turns into your language right where it is; "Show original only" turns it back. No round trip. Lettie works this way, with 70+ languages, free.
② Round-tripping through an external translator. Copy the letter → translator → write a reply → translate again → paste. Four app switches per letter. Fine at first, tedious by the third letter, and tedium becomes late replies, and late replies become the end.
③ Paid translation. Translation tied to coins or a subscription. If your pen pal speaks another language, the cost recurs with every letter.
What "70+ languages" means
On Lettie it means two things.
- Letter translation: whatever language they wrote in, the language is detected and the letter is translated into your app language. You can switch between the translation and the original with one button, so you can also pick up their phrasing. The question written on the envelope shows in your language too.
- The app itself: menus, buttons and notifications in 73 languages (as of October 7, 2026), and letters translate into any of them — Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Arabic, Hindi, Indonesian, Italian, Russian, Thai, Turkish, Vietnamese, Polish, Dutch, Filipino, Bengali, Urdu, Persian, Ukrainian, Malay, Swahili, Romanian, Greek, Czech, Catalan, Danish, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Hungarian, Croatian, Slovak, Slovenian, Bulgarian, Serbian, Lithuanian, Latvian, Estonian, Icelandic, Albanian, Macedonian, Belarusian, Basque, Galician, Hebrew, Chinese (Traditional), Afrikaans, Zulu, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Odia, Nepali, Sinhala, Amharic, Burmese, Khmer, Lao, Mongolian, Georgian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Uzbek.
Translating while you write
While writing a reply or a floated letter, tap "Translate · [language]" and your draft turns into that language. The default is the language detected from your pen pal's letter, and you can pick any of the 73 languages. "Undo translation" brings back what you wrote.
Very long letters translate all the way
A letter can be up to 100,000 characters (since October 2026). Letters over 4,500 characters are translated in pieces split at line breaks and joined back, so your paragraphs stay where you put them. You can pour a whole day into one letter and it still translates to the end.
Five habits that make translation work
- One idea per sentence. Long compound sentences wobble in any translator.
- Spell out slang. "lol" → "that made me laugh".
- Keep the subject in. Dropped subjects flip "I / you / they" in translation.
- Leave proper nouns alone, add a short gloss. "Gamcheon (a hillside neighbourhood in Busan)".
- Explain the situation behind a joke. Puns don't cross; situational humour does.
If you still want to learn the language
You'll still improve with translation on, because you keep switching between the original and the translation. Take one phrase you liked from their letter and use it in your next one. That's the learning that sticks. More in language exchange through letters.