Apps Like Ablo in 2026: Where to Chat With Strangers Abroad, With Translation

Ablo did something no other app quite did: one tap, one random person in another country, a plane crossing the globe, and every message translated both ways. When it closed in September 2022, it left a gap that people are still trying to fill.

This guide compares what exists now. We have tried to be fair, including about our own app.

Olu is an independent app, not affiliated with Ablo, Massive Media, Match Group, Azar or Hyperconnect. Product names are used only for comparison. Features of third-party apps change; check each one yourself.

What made Ablo worth replacing

After reading 84,580 Ablo reviews, the things users actually valued were clear. A real alternative should have most of them:

1. One-to-one with a random person in another country, not a group room.
2. Translation both ways, ideally with the original text visible so you can learn.
3. Text first. Video, if any, only when both people want it.
4. Free to meet people. Ablo's reviews turned sour when meeting, choosing and reconnecting started costing coins.
5. Friends you can keep, and message again without paying.
6. The feeling of travel: where you landed, how far away it is, what it's like there.
7. Safety you can understand: blocking, reporting, and bans with reasons.

The options at a glance

	One-to-one random	Other countries	Translation	Text first	Free to meet
Olu	Yes	Yes, random country each flight	Both ways, original visible	Yes (text only)	Yes
Azar	Yes	Yes	Yes	No, video-first	Filters are paid
Language-exchange apps (e.g. HelloTalk, Tandem)	You choose partners	Yes	Built-in tools	Yes	Basic use is free
Pen-pal apps (e.g. Slowly)	Matched by interests	Yes	No	Yes, but letters are delayed	Yes
Omegle-style random chat sites	Yes	Not by design	Usually no	Varies	Usually
The 2025 "Ablo" app	Yes	Yes	Paid, according to its reviews	Yes	Paywall after a few messages, according to its reviews

Olu

We built Olu after studying what Ablo's users loved and what drove them away, so it is the closest in spirit. You tap to take off, a plane crosses the globe, and you land on one person in a random country. You both write in your own language and see each other's messages translated, with the original a tap away.

• Text only. No video, so no unwanted camera surprises.
• Miles are earned, never bought. Nothing you need to talk to someone costs money.
• Friends and reconnecting are free.
• Runs in your browser, on phone or desktop. Nothing to install.
• AI locals are labelled. If nobody from a country is online, you may meet an AI local instead. It always carries an AI badge, and you can open its profile to see that it's AI.

Honest limits: it is new, so some countries will be quiet at some hours, and there is no video or voice.

Azar

Azar is where Ablo sent its users in 2022, and it's the most established app in this category. It's a video-first random chat app with translation, owned by the same parent company. If you want face-to-face calls with strangers, it is the obvious choice.

What Ablo users said about it after the switch: it isn't the same. No flights, no text-first matching, and the video-first format brought the same unwanted-exposure problems Ablo had after its own video change. See Ablo vs Azar.

Language-exchange apps

If what you loved about Ablo was practising a language with real people, dedicated language-exchange apps do that job better than any random chat. You pick partners who speak the language you want and want the language you speak, and the tools (corrections, translation, voice notes) are built for learning.

The trade-off is that nothing is random. You browse and choose, so you lose the "where am I going to land?" surprise that made Ablo fun. Our guide to language exchange without speaking the language covers how to combine the two.

Pen-pal apps

Pen-pal apps are the slow, thoughtful end of the spectrum: letters to someone abroad that take hours or days to arrive, depending on distance. They're lovely, and they have a travel feeling of their own, but there's no live conversation and usually no translation.

Omegle-style random chat

Omegle closed in November 2023, and many sites copy its format. They're random and instant, but they aren't built around countries or translation, and moderation varies a lot. If you want text-only random chat without the video risk, see text-only Omegle alternatives and our random text chat safety tips.

The 2025 "Ablo" app

An app called Ablo appeared on Google Play in January 2025. It is made by an unrelated company, not by Ablo's original team. It gathered 100,000+ installs on the name, but its rating is 2.2 stars, and its reviewers describe a paywall after two or three messages, paid translation, login errors and unexplained bans. We explain it in the new Ablo app in 2025, and why we'd avoid sideloading old Ablo APKs in is an Ablo APK safe?.

Which one should you pick?

• You miss Ablo itself (random country, text, translation, the plane): try Olu.
• You want video calls with strangers abroad: Azar.
• You want to learn a language properly: a language-exchange app, and use random chat for practice on the side.
• You want deep, slow friendships: a pen-pal app.

Whatever you pick, the lesson from Ablo applies: keep a second way to reach the friends you make. Apps close.