You’re staring at your screen and nothing makes sense. Maybe you bought a laptop abroad, or perhaps a bored nephew thought it would be hilarious to switch your interface to Icelandic. It happens. How to change the language in the computer isn't just a matter of clicking a single button; it’s about navigating a maze of menus that are currently written in a language you don’t speak.
It’s frustrating.
Honestly, the biggest hurdle isn't the technical step. It’s the icons. When you can’t read the words "Settings" or "Region," you have to rely on visual muscle memory. Windows and macOS handle this differently, and if you’re on a Chromebook, well, that’s another beast entirely. Let’s break down exactly how to get your desktop back to a language you actually understand.
Windows 11 and the Mystery of the Time & Language Menu
Microsoft changed a lot with Windows 11. If you’re used to the old Control Panel from the Windows 7 days, forget it. Everything is buried in the Settings app now. To start, you’ll want to hit the Windows key and look for the gear icon.
Once you’re in there, look for the icon that looks like a globe with a little clock next to it. That’s your "Time & Language" section. If the text is in a foreign script, just look for that globe. On the right-hand side, the second option down is usually "Language & region."
Click it.
Now, you’ll see a button that says "Add a language." It’s usually highlighted in blue. This is where people get tripped up. Adding the language to the list doesn't actually change the interface. You’re just downloading the data. After you pick English (or whatever your preference is), you have to wait for the language pack to download. It’s not instant. Windows has to grab files from Microsoft's servers, and if your internet is spotty, it’ll just hang there.
Once it’s downloaded, you must move it to the top of the list. Then, and this is the annoying part, you have to sign out. Windows cannot swap the entire UI language while your user profile is active. It’s a deep-level system change. When you sign back in, things should look normal, but don't be surprised if some apps still show the old language. Some third-party software ignores system settings and requires its own manual override.
The "Single Language" Edition Trap
Here is a detail most "guides" skip: Windows Home Single Language edition. If you bought a cheap laptop in China or South America, you might be stuck. This specific version of Windows is licensed for exactly one language. You can add keyboards for other languages, but the menus? Locked.
If you find yourself in this boat, your only real options are to pay for a Windows Pro upgrade or perform a clean "reinstall" of Windows using a bootable USB drive created with the Media Creation Tool. It’s a massive pain, but Microsoft uses this to keep licensing costs down in certain markets.
Navigating the macOS System Settings Maze
Apple recently redesigned System Settings to look more like the iPhone’s "Settings" app, which annoyed a lot of long-time Mac users. But for changing languages, it’s actually pretty straightforward.
Go to the Apple menu in the top left corner. Click "System Settings." Look for the "General" icon—it’s a grey circle with a gear. Inside that menu, you’ll find "Language & Region."
Apple handles this a bit more elegantly than Windows. You have a list of "Preferred Languages." You just drag your target language to the top. The OS will ask if you want to restart. Say yes.
A weird quirk about macOS: even after you change the system language, your login screen might still be in the old one. To fix that, you sometimes have to run a command in the Terminal. It’s not something I’d recommend for everyone, but if the "Welcome" screen is still in German while your desktop is in English, that’s why. The system-wide "root" language is different from your user-account language.
Why Some Apps Refuse to Change
You changed the settings. You restarted. But Google Chrome or Adobe Photoshop is still screaming at you in French. Why?
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Many modern apps determine their language based on your IP address or a separate internal setting. Chrome, for instance, has its own language menu. You can change your computer's language a thousand times, and Chrome might still default to the language of the country where you bought the machine.
To fix Chrome:
- Click the three dots in the top right.
- Go to Settings (the third option from the bottom).
- Search for "Language" in the search bar at the top.
- Add your language and check the box that says "Display Google Chrome in this language."
It’s redundant and tedious. But that’s modern computing for you.
Regional Formats: The Stealth Setting
Changing the language is only half the battle. If you’ve successfully figured out how to change the language in the computer, you might notice your dates look weird. Maybe it says 13/01/2024 instead of 01/13/2024. Or maybe your currency is showing up as Euros instead of Dollars.
This is "Regional Formatting."
In Windows, this is in the same menu as the language settings. You can keep your interface in English but set your regional format to United Kingdom if you prefer the metric system and 24-hour clocks. Most people forget this step and then wonder why Excel is formatting their dates incorrectly. It’s a separate toggle. Always check it.
The Nuclear Option: Clean Installation
Sometimes, the language packs just won't install. You get an error code like 0x800f0954. You try to fix it, you search forums, you edit the Registry—nothing works.
If a computer is truly "messed up" from a botched language change or a weird regional variant, the fastest way to fix it is a clean install. Back up your files to the cloud or an external drive. Download the official ISO from Microsoft or use macOS Recovery (Cmd + R at startup). When you start the installation process, the very first question it asks is "What is your language?"
Selecting it here sets the "system-wide" language, which is much "cleaner" than layering a language pack over an existing installation. It’s a bit of a scorched-earth policy, but it guarantees that every single menu, including the deep administrative ones, will be in the language you want.
Practical Steps to Get it Done Right Now
If you are sitting in front of a computer right now and can't read a thing, do this:
- Use your phone. Open the Google Translate app and use the "Camera" feature. Point it at your screen. It will overlay your native language over the foreign text in real-time. This is a lifesaver for finding the right buttons.
- Check your keyboard layout. Often, changing the display language also changes your keyboard layout. If you have an "English" keyboard but the computer thinks it's "French," your keys won't match what appears on the screen (the "A" and "Q" keys might be swapped). Look at the bottom right of your taskbar to toggle the keyboard back to "US" or "UK."
- Update your BIOS. It sounds unrelated, but on some laptops, the BIOS/UEFI language is separate from the OS. If you want the "Pre-Windows" screens to be in your language, you’ll have to tap F2 or Delete during bootup and find the language setting there.
Changing the language shouldn't be this hard, but between licensing restrictions and fragmented settings menus, it often is. Just remember to download the pack, set it as primary, and always restart the machine.
Once you’ve done that, go into your browser settings and your office suite (like Microsoft 365) to ensure they’ve caught up with the change. Usually, they’ll follow the "System Default," but checking manually saves a headache later.