Mac OS · macOS

Change the System Language on Mac

Source-checked About 3 minutes

Answer

Open Apple menu > System Settings > General > Language & Region. Add the language if needed, then drag it to the top of Preferred Languages and restart your Mac if prompted.

Guide steps5 steps
  1. Open Language & Region
  2. Add the language
  3. Make it primary
  4. Restart if requested
  5. Check the interface language
  6. If it still does not work

Open Language & Region

Choose Apple menu > System Settings, click General, then click Language & Region.

Add the language

Under Preferred Languages, click the Add button, select a language, then click Add.

Make it primary

Drag the language to the top of the Preferred Languages list.

Restart if requested

Click Restart Now if macOS asks you to restart. Some open apps might need to be quit and reopened before their language changes.

Check the interface language

After the restart, open System Settings and another app to confirm the new language is used. If one app stays in another language, quit and reopen it, then check the Applications section of Language & Region for an app-specific language override.

Video walkthrough

If it does not work

  • If the preferred language does not apply, verify the language order, app-specific language, region and whether a sign-out or restart is requested. Managed Macs can restrict these settings; do not remove management profiles or change the Apple Account region to force an interface language.
Sources and verification

Checked against official documentation on . Scope: current macOS Language & Region guidance.

Checked against the current Apple Mac User Guide for Language & Region settings.

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