How to Install a Language Pack for Speech Recognition in Windows 11

Before You Start

Check these four things first. Most failed installs trace back to one of them.

• Administrator rights. Installing 💿 language features requires an administrator account. A standard account triggers a User Account Control prompt (the box asking for an admin password). The install fails without the admin password.
• An internet connection. Windows downloads the language files from Microsoft. If the connection is set as metered (a connection with a data limit), the download can pause.
• The exact language variant. Languages are split by region, such as English (United States) and English (United Kingdom). Speech recognition support is listed per variant, so pick the one that matches how you speak.
• A working microphone. Speech recognition cannot listen without one. You test it in the last section.

Add a New Language With Speech Recognition

Use this method if the language is not on your PC yet. It installs the language pack (the files Windows needs for that language) and the speech recognition files in one pass.

1. Press Win+I to open Settings.

   

2. Select Time & language in the left pane, then select Language & region. You now see a Preferred languages list showing the languages already on your PC.

   

3. Select Add a language next to Preferred languages. A window titled Choose a language to install opens.

   

4. Type the language name in the search 🔍 box, such as Spanish, and select the correct regional variant from the results.
5. Select Next. The Install language features page opens with a list of optional features.
6. Tick Speech recognition. Leave Language pack ticked, because speech recognition depends on it.
7. Clear the Set as my Windows display language box unless you want menus and buttons to switch to this language. Leave it clear if you only want to speak in the language. Changing the display language requires you to sign out and back in.
8. Select Install. Administrator privileges are required for this step. Enter the admin password if the prompt appears.

Wait until every item shows as installed before you continue. Closing Settings does not stop the download, but a restart or sleep can interrupt it.

If Speech recognition is missing from the list: that language variant does not support it in Windows 11. Go back, choose a different regional variant of the same language, and look again. If no variant offers it, Windows has no speech recognition for that language.

Add Speech Recognition to a Language You Already Have

Use this method if the language already appears under Preferred languages, such as the language Windows was installed in, and you only need to add speech.

1. Open Settings and go to Time & language, then Language & region.

   

2. Select the three-dot menu (…) at the right of the language, then select Language options. A page opens listing the features for that language, such as Language pack, Text-to-speech, Speech recognition, and Handwriting.
3. Find Speech recognition and select Download. Administrator privileges are required for this step.

The row shows download progress, then the button disappears or the row shows the feature as installed. If there is no Download button next to Speech recognition, the feature is either already installed or not available for that language variant.

Choose the Language Windows Listens For

Installing the files doesn't switch the language Windows listens for automatically. You set that separately on the Speech page.

1. Open Settings, select Time & language, then select Speech.

   

2. Open the Speech language drop-down list (labelled for the language you speak with your device).
3. Select the language you just installed.

The drop-down shows your new language as the selection. If the language is not in the list, the speech files have not finished installing. Go back to Language & region and check that the install completed.

You do not normally need to restart for this change. If the language still does not appear, restart the PC once and check the list again.

Test That Speech Recognition Works

Run a quick test to confirm the language works before using it for real tasks.

1. On the Speech page, find the Microphone section and select Get started. Follow the prompts to set up and test the microphone. Windows asks you to read a sentence aloud.
2. Open any app with a text box, such as Notepad.
3. Press Windows key + H to start voice typing (Windows' built-in dictation tool). A small microphone panel appears.
4. Speak a sentence in the new language.

Your words appear as text in the box. If the text comes out in the wrong language, voice typing is using a different keyboard language. Voice typing follows the keyboard language that is currently active, not only the setting on the Speech page. Press Windows key + Spacebar to cycle through your keyboard languages, or use the language switcher in the taskbar notification area, and select the language you installed.

What Speech Recognition Needs in 🪟 Windows 11

Several Windows features listen to your voice, and they do not all use the same settings. Knowing which one you want avoids hunting in the wrong place.

Voice Typing

Voice typing (Windows key + H) uses your active keyboard language. In Windows 11 it relies on online speech recognition, so it needs an internet connection and the privacy setting described below.

Online Speech Recognition

Online speech recognition sends your voice to Microsoft's servers to convert it to text. If voice typing shows an error or does nothing, check this setting.

1. Open Settings and select Privacy & security.

   

2. Select Speech.

   

3. Turn on Online speech recognition.

Voice typing may then be unavailable, but locally installed speech features can still work.

Voice Access

Voice access lets you control Windows by voice, not only dictate text. It is a separate feature, found under Settings, Accessibility, Speech. It supports fewer languages than the language list in Windows, and it manages its own language choice. If the language you installed does not work in voice access, check the voice access settings rather than the Speech page. I cannot confirm from here which languages your Windows 11 version supports in voice access, so check the language list inside voice access itself.

Windows Speech Recognition

Windows Speech Recognition is the older tool in Control Panel. It has its own recognition profiles and language setting. Most people now use voice typing or voice access instead. If you need the older tool for a specific program, it reads its own language settings, and installing the files above helps but does not configure it for you.

If the Download Stalls or Fails

Here are the most common failures and how to fix them.

The Download Sits at 0% or Never Finishes

Windows pulls language files through Windows Update, so a stuck update service stalls the download too.

1. Open Settings and select Windows Update.
2. Select Check for updates and let any pending updates install.
3. Restart the PC, then return to Language & region and check the language status.

If Windows Update itself reports errors, fix that first, because the language install cannot complete without it.

The Connection Is Metered

Windows can hold back large downloads on a metered connection. To check, open Settings, select Network & internet, then select Wi-Fi (or Ethernet), and open the properties for your connection. Look at the Metered connection toggle. If it is on, switch it off while the language downloads. Turn it back on afterward if you need the data limit.

The Install Asks for a Password You Do Not Have

Your account is a standard account. Sign in with an administrator account, or ask the administrator to run the install. There is no way around this prompt.

The Options Are Greyed Out or Blocked

On a work or school PC, an administrator can restrict language installs. A message such as "Some settings are managed by your organization" confirms it. Contact your IT department, because you cannot override this yourself.

The Language Is Installed but Does Not Recognize Your Speech

Check three things in order:

1. Confirm the Speech language on the Speech page is the language you are speaking.
2. Confirm the active keyboard language matches, using Windows key + Spacebar.
3. Confirm the right microphone is selected in Settings, System, Sound, under Input, and that its level moves when you talk.

Also check that apps may use the microphone. Open Settings, select Privacy & security, then Microphone, and make sure Microphone access is on.

How to Remove a Speech Language

You can undo the install if you no longer need the language or want the disk space back. This removes the whole language, including its pack and speech files.

1. Open Settings, select Time & language, then select Language & region.
2. Select the three-dot menu (…) next to the language.
3. Select Remove.

The language disappears from Preferred languages. You cannot remove a language while it is your Windows display language, so change the display language first if that is the case. If you only want to stop using the language for speech, change the Speech language back on the Speech page instead of removing it.

What to Do Next

Your installed language now appears in the Speech language list and works with voice typing when its keyboard is active. A major Windows feature update can reset the active keyboard or speech language, so check the Speech page after one. If you want hands-free control of Windows in this language, open Settings, Accessibility, Speech and set up voice access next.