Is your native language not English? Microsoft has a tool to easily switch keyboard languages on Windows computers.
The Windows language bar allows users to switch keyboard layouts quickly and efficiently.
How to enable the Language Bar
To enable the language bar, type the word “Language” into the search bar. Select “Language settings” at the top and then choose keyboard, or click directly on the “edit language and keyboard options in the search results.
In the Language settings, users can choose their preferred Language. Add additional languages to make switching back and forth easier.
When adding a language with the + button, users will be prompted to install the respective language pack.
These packs offer helpful features such as speech recognition, handwriting recognition in the language, and the ability to set the default language of the operating system.
How does it work?
The language bar allows users to swap between various language keyboard layouts.
The keyboard shortcut for switching between languages that have already been setup is Alt + Shift.
The keyboard does not physically change, so users will still need to figure out which letter comes from each key press.
For example this shows the layout of a Ukrainian language keyboard.
If multiple languages are setup, an abbreviation of each of the languages will be displayed on the taskbar.
Users can switch between keyboards by clicking directly on the bar instead of using the keyboard shortcut.
For official support, check out the Microsoft support page.
These examples are with Windows 10, but the process and functionality on Windows 11 will be essentially the same.
If you have specific questions about the ability to switch keyboard languages on Windows, or if our terminology isn’t clear, please use our contact form to send us a message. Thank you!