How do you switch between dictation languages quickly?

The quickest switch is the one your device already gives you. On a Mac, click the language label next to the cursor, or press the Globe key and choose a language. On an iPhone, see the Globe key note below. On Windows 11, press Windows logo key + Spacebar. On Android, tap the abbreviation at the bottom left of the Gboard toolbar. In every case, the language has to be set up first, so add it before you need it.

The Mac switches with the language label or the Globe key

With more than one dictation language set up, you switch by clicking the language label next to the cursor, or by pressing the Globe key and choosing a language ¹. Add the languages first: in Keyboard settings, select Dictation, click the Edit button next to Languages, and select a language and region ².

Apple's wording describes switching between languages you have set up. Apple does not describe recognizing two languages inside one sentence ³.

The iPhone switches with the Globe key

Apple's help for the Globe key says to touch and hold it to show all your enabled keyboards, or tap it to switch ⁴. That page covers the iPod touch 7, and newer iPhones may differ, so test it on yours.

Dictation follows the keyboard. When you use a keyboard for another language, you can use Dictation in that language as well ⁵. So switching the keyboard is also how you switch the dictation language.

Windows switches with the input language

On Windows 11, press Windows logo key + Spacebar and choose one of your available languages ⁶. Microsoft also says you switch voice typing languages by changing the input language you use ⁷. Both change the input language, so use whichever is quicker for you.

Android switches from the Gboard toolbar

In Gboard, you switch languages from the toolbar. Tap the abbreviation at the bottom left, which shows your default language, then select a language ⁸. Multiple languages must be enabled in Gboard first.

It depends: when a quick switch is not enough

• Two languages in one sentence. A quick switch changes the language you have selected. It does not make the device recognize two languages in one sentence, and Apple's Mac wording describes switching, not mixing ³. For mixed speech, read the guide on multilingual dictation before you rely on a quick switch.
• Chromebook. Chromebook dictation does not work if the language you speak does not match the device language ⁹. Make the device language match the language you speak before you dictate there.

Set up once, then switch with confidence

1. Add every language you will use, with the correct region, before you need it.
2. Switch with the key or menu your device gives you, and check the language label before you speak.
3. Dictate one short sentence with a name in it, and check the words come out in the right script.

For steps on every device, read how to change the dictation language on any device. If the language you need is missing from the list, see why dictation is not available in the current language or how to dictate in a language your device does not support. The wider topic is in our overview of dictation languages, accents and voice translation.