Messages Are Not Being Translated - Common Causes and How to Fix Them

If you're noticing that some messages in your Zendesk tickets aren’t being translated by the Translate Conversations app, this article will walk you through the most common reasons and how to fix them.

In this Article
Common Reasons Messages Aren’t Being Translated
    1. Requester Is an Agent
    2. Auto-Translate Is Turned Off
    3. Language Is Excluded in App Settings
    4. Agent Has Language Set as "Known"

Common Reasons Messages Aren’t Being Translated

1. Requester Is an Agent

The Translate Conversations app is designed to translate messages from end-users only. If you create a test ticket using your own Zendesk agent account, the app will not translate those messages, since it doesn’t consider them to be from a customer.

What to do:
Try submitting a test ticket from an end-user account (one that’s not tied to a Zendesk agent profile).

2. Auto-Translate Is Turned Off

Auto-translation must be enabled for the app to translate messages automatically as they come in.

How to check:

Check that Auto-translate Inbound is enabled in the Settings in the app configuration (refer to Changing the Translate Conversations Settings).

Check that the Auto-translate is switched ON in the agent's settings.

3. Language Is Excluded in App Settings

Some languages might be deliberately excluded from automatic translation.

How to check:
Go to the Translate Conversations settings and confirm that the customer’s language is not listed as excluded under the Translation Settings.

4. Agent Has Language Set as "Known"

If your agent profile has the customer’s language marked as a “known language,” the app will assume you can understand it and skip translating it.

How to fix:
Remove or update the “known languages” in your  Translate Conversations settings > Team Languages if you still want translations for those languages.