What Is My Browser Language? Locale Detector

Your preferred language, and the ordered list of languages your browser will accept, is shown above. Browsers send this as the Accept-Language header on every request and also expose it to JavaScript, so a site can greet you in the right language before you click anything.

The value is a locale code such as en-US (English as used in the United States) or nl-NL (Dutch as used in the Netherlands). The list is ordered by preference, so a site that does not have your first choice can fall back to your second.

You set this in your operating system or browser language settings, often without realising it doubles as a public signal. It is one of the quieter facts your browser volunteers to every page you open.

What you should know

Why sites collect it

Sites use it to auto-select a language, format dates, numbers and currencies, and decide which regional content or store to show. It powers the "we noticed you might prefer X" banners.

Privacy implications

Language is moderately revealing. A common locale like en-US blends in, but an unusual combination or an uncommon secondary language can narrow you down, and it hints at your region and background. It is a standard input to fingerprinting scripts.

How to change or hide it

Change it in your browser or OS language settings. Privacy browsers may send a single, common value (often en-US) to all sites to reduce distinctiveness. Removing rare secondary languages from your list lowers your fingerprinting surface.

Frequently asked questions

Is my browser language the same as my location?

No. Language is your stated preference, not where you are. Someone in Japan can browse in English, and the two are detected separately.

Why does a site show the wrong language?

It may be using your IP-based country rather than your language list, or your first preferred language is one it does not support. This page shows exactly what your browser is announcing.