Many buyers search for "Office 2024 Professional Plus en español" or "Office 2024 en français" because they believe each language needs its own licence key. It does not. The language of Office is chosen when you install it, or added afterwards with a language pack, and the same key activates whichever language you pick. This guide explains the three kinds of Office language, how to change them in Office 2024 and 2021, and how to install a specific language with the Office Deployment Tool.
| Language type | What it controls | Where you set it |
|---|---|---|
| Display language | Menus, buttons, ribbon labels and dialog boxes | File > Options > Language > Office display language |
| Authoring (editing) language | The language you type in, plus sorting and language-specific features | File > Options > Language > Office authoring languages and proofing |
| Proofing tools | Spelling and grammar checking for a language | Installed with a language pack or as proofing tools only |
| Help language | Help content language, included in full language packs | Follows the installed language pack |
Does an Office product key work in any language?
Yes, for the Office 2024 and Office 2021 keys we sell, the licence key is not tied to a language, so the same 25-character key activates Office whether you install it in English, Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese or another supported language, because language is selected in the installer or deployment configuration rather than built into the key.
This is why our product pages do not list separate "Spanish" or "French" keys. When you install a retail edition, you choose the language in the installer. When you install a volume-licensed LTSC edition with the Office Deployment Tool, you set the language in the configuration file.
The nuance is that language availability, not the key, sets the limit. Keys sold on this store are global, so the practical question is whether Microsoft offers your language for that Office version, and whether it is a full or partial language pack.
What is the difference between display, editing and proofing languages?
The display language controls Office menus and buttons, the authoring or editing language is the language you write documents in, and proofing tools provide the spelling and grammar checks for a language, and Microsoft lets you set display and authoring languages independently, so you can use English menus while writing and spell-checking in Spanish.
This separation solves a common problem. A user in Spain may prefer Spanish menus, but write client reports in English, and needs both Spanish and English spell-checking. That is one display language plus two authoring and proofing languages.
Microsoft's article on how to change the language Office uses in its menus and proofing tools covers each setting. What we commonly see in support is people changing the authoring language and expecting the menus to change, which they will not.
How do you change the display language in Office 2024 or 2021?
To change the display language in Office 2024 or 2021 on Windows, open any Office app, go to File, then Options, then Language, select the language under Office display language, choose Set as Preferred, and then close and reopen every Office app so the new menus load across Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
- Open Word, Excel or another Office app.
- Select File > Options > Language.
- Under Office display language, check whether your language is listed.
- If it is listed, select it and choose Set as Preferred. To follow Windows, choose Match Microsoft Windows.
- If it is not listed, select Add a language and follow the prompts, or install the language pack first.
- Close all Office apps and open them again.
Microsoft also advises that if you want the change to be permanent in a different language, you should set that language as your default display language in Windows as well, so Office and Windows stay consistent.
How do you install an Office language pack?
To install an Office language pack, download it from Microsoft's Language Accessory Pack page by choosing your Office version, the language and the 32-bit or 64-bit installer, run the downloaded file, then set the new language as preferred under File, Options, Language, and the pack adds display, help and proofing tools where available.
Microsoft's Language Accessory Pack page lists Office 2024, 2021, 2019 and 2016 among the versions it applies to. Each language is marked as a full pack, a partial pack or proofing tools only.
- Full: display, help and proofing in that language.
- Partial: some apps or parts of Office stay in the original language.
- Proofing tools only: spell-checking without translated menus.
The cause and effect to watch for is the bit version. A language pack must match the architecture of your installed Office, so a 32-bit pack will not install on 64-bit Office. Check File > Account > About before downloading.
How do you install Office LTSC in another language with the Office Deployment Tool?
For Office LTSC 2024 or 2021, you set the language inside the configuration.xml file used by the Office Deployment Tool, adding a Language element with an ID such as es-es, fr-fr or it-it under the product, and Office downloads and installs in that language when you run setup with the configure command.
Here is a simple example for Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024, 64-bit, in Spanish with French proofing tools, based on Microsoft's Office LTSC 2024 deployment guide:
<Configuration>
<Add OfficeClientEdition="64" Channel="PerpetualVL2024">
<Product ID="ProPlus2024Volume" PIDKEY="#####-#####-#####-#####-#####">
<Language ID="es-es" />
</Product>
<Product ID="ProofingTools">
<Language ID="fr-fr" />
</Product>
</Add>
<Display Level="Full" AcceptEULA="TRUE" />
</Configuration>
Replace the hash marks with your key, then run setup /configure configuration.xml from an elevated command prompt in the ODT folder. For Office LTSC 2021, use ProPlus2021Volume and PerpetualVL2021. Our Office 2024 offline installer guide covers the full download and copy process.
Which language IDs does the Office Deployment Tool use?
The Office Deployment Tool uses language-culture codes in the format language-region, such as en-us for English (United States), es-es for Spanish, fr-fr for French, it-it for Italian, pt-br for Portuguese (Brazil), de-de for German and id-id for Indonesian, and you can also use MatchOS to install the same languages as Windows.
| Language | Language ID |
|---|---|
| English (United States) | en-us |
| Spanish (Spain) | es-es |
| French (France) | fr-fr |
| Italian | it-it |
| German | de-de |
| Portuguese (Brazil) | pt-br |
| Portuguese (Portugal) | pt-pt |
| Arabic | ar-sa |
| Hindi | hi-in |
| Indonesian | id-id |
With <Language ID="MatchOS" Fallback="en-us" />, the tool installs the Windows base language and any active display languages on the device. Microsoft recommends adding a fallback language, because MatchOS cannot install a language that Office does not support or that is missing from local source files.
Can you add or remove a language after Office is installed?
Yes, you can add a language after installation with a language pack on retail Office, or with the Office Deployment Tool using the LanguagePack product ID on Click-to-Run installs, and you can remove a language the same way, without reinstalling Office or entering your product key again, since the licence is already activated.
For ODT users, Microsoft's guidance is to deploy the extra language with the same architecture and source as the existing install. If the local source folder does not contain the new language, setting AllowCdnFallback="True" lets the tool download it from Microsoft's content delivery network instead.
A practical tip: if a language pack fails with an error about a different installation type, the PC may have an older MSI-based Office still present. Our guide on how to completely uninstall old Office explains how to clear it first.
How do you change the Office language on a Mac?
On a Mac, Office does not have the Windows-style display language option, so the menus in Word or Excel normally follow the preferred language order in macOS System Settings under Language & Region, which means changing that order and restarting the Office apps, while document proofing languages are chosen separately inside each app.
Because the Mac apps take their menus from the system, a Mac user who wants Spanish menus in Office but English elsewhere has fewer options than a Windows user. Proofing languages, however, can be changed for selected text from within Word.
If you use Office on both PC and Mac, our Office 2024 Home & Business for PC/Mac page explains which platform the licence covers.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a Spanish key to install Office 2024 in Spanish?
No. There is no separate Spanish, French or Italian key for the Office 2024 editions we sell. You buy one key and choose Spanish in the installer, or set es-es in the Office Deployment Tool configuration. You can also add Spanish later with a language pack if Office was installed in English.
Are Office language packs free?
Microsoft provides Office language packs as downloads from its Language Accessory Pack page, and they are installed onto an existing licensed copy of Office. You do not enter a new product key to add a language pack. Make sure the pack matches your Office version and 32-bit or 64-bit architecture.
Why are some Office menus still in English after installing a language pack?
Some language packs are marked as partial by Microsoft, which means certain apps or parts of Office remain in the original language. Also check that you selected Set as Preferred under Office display language, then closed every Office app, including Outlook, before reopening them.
Can I use English menus but spell-check in another language?
Yes. Display and authoring languages are set independently. Keep English as the Office display language, then add your second language under Office authoring languages and proofing. If the status shows proofing available, install the proofing tools, and Word will check spelling in that language.
Does changing the language affect activation?
No. Changing or adding a language does not change the licence status of Office, because activation is linked to the product and key, not the language. You can confirm activation is still in place under File > Account, where Office should show Product Activated after the change.