Change the language in Microsoft Flight Simulator on PC and console, with menu steps and fixes for a missing selector or untranslated content.
To change the language in Microsoft Flight Simulator, open Settings or Options, enter General settings, and find Language under Miscellaneous. Choose the required language, select Apply and Save, then fully restart the simulator. If no language selector is shown on a console, change the console’s system language instead.
How do I change the in-game language?
Use the simulator’s language selector first, because this changes Microsoft Flight Simulator without altering the language of Windows or your console.
- Return to the main menu. Language changes are more reliable here than while a flight is running.
- Open the general settings. In Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020, look under Options and General Options. Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 uses its Settings area and general categories.
- Find Language. It is normally grouped under Miscellaneous or a similarly named general section.
- Choose a supported language. Select Apply & Save, Save, or the equivalent confirmation shown by your release.
- Restart the simulator completely. Quit to the desktop or console dashboard and reopen it; merely returning to the main menu may leave some text unchanged.
Menu names and positions can move between releases. Our Microsoft Flight Simulator answers organised by topic cover neighbouring controls without assuming that a 2020 menu path still applies unchanged to 2024.
What if the Language option is missing on Xbox or PS5?
If Microsoft Flight Simulator does not provide an in-game language selector, it generally uses a supported language derived from the platform’s system settings.
| Platform | What to try |
|---|---|
| PC | Use the in-game setting first. If it is absent, set a supported Windows display or preferred app language, restart Windows, and relaunch the simulator. |
| Xbox Series X|S | Open the console’s Settings, then System and Language & location. Change the language and restart the console. |
| PlayStation 5 | For Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, open PS5 Settings, then System, Language and Console Language. Close and reopen the simulator afterwards. |
Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 was not released for PlayStation; the PS5 instructions apply only to Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. If the selected system language is not supported by the simulator, it will fall back to an available localisation rather than translating every menu automatically.
Why does the language change back or remain unchanged?
A language setting usually fails because it was not saved, the simulator was not fully restarted, or an older synchronised profile restored the previous choice.
- The change was not applied: return to the language menu, select the language again and use the visible save or apply command before leaving the screen.
- Only the flight was restarted: close the entire simulator, not just the active flight.
- Profile synchronisation restored an older setting: let profile saving and synchronisation finish before quitting. Do not delete the whole cloud profile merely to repair a language preference.
- An update is incomplete: allow any pending simulator or platform update to finish, restart the device and try again.
- The requested language is unsupported: choose one offered by the in-game list rather than relying on an unsupported operating-system locale.
If no supported language appears after a complete restart and all updates are installed, the problem is probably broader than the language toggle. Our step-by-step simulator settings and troubleshooting library covers related installation and profile faults.
Why are cockpit labels, ATC or add-ons still in English?
Changing the Microsoft Flight Simulator interface language does not translate every piece of content displayed inside the simulation.
- Cockpit labels are often part of the aircraft’s textures or model and reproduce the real aircraft’s markings.
- Third-party aircraft and scenery control their own menus, manuals, tablets and EFB pages. An add-on may have a separate language setting or no translation at all.
- Airport names, registrations and navigation data are operational data rather than ordinary interface text, so they may remain unchanged.
- ATC speech and subtitles depend on separate voice, speech and accessibility resources. Selecting a display language does not guarantee matching spoken ATC audio.