Add a new keyboard language to your iPhone

To add a keyboard language on your iPhone, open Settings, tap General, then Keyboard. Select Keyboards (the first option in that menu), then tap Add New Keyboard. Scroll through the list of available languages and tap the one you want. The keyboard is now installed and ready to use.

Your iPhone comes with English (US) by default, but Apple supports dozens of languages including Spanish, French, German, Mandarin, Japanese, Arabic, Russian, and many others. Each language can have multiple regional variants — for example, you can choose between English (US), English (UK), or English (Canada). Once you add a keyboard, you do not need to remove English to use it.

You can add as many keyboards as you need. Most people add two or three and switch between them depending on what they are typing. There is no limit, and adding extra keyboards does not slow down your phone or use meaningful storage.

Key Takeaways

  • Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards > Add New Keyboard to install a new language.
  • Your iPhone supports dozens of languages, each with regional options like English (UK) or Spanish (Spain) versus Spanish (Mexico).
  • You can add multiple keyboards and switch between them by tapping the globe icon on the keyboard itself.
  • Removing a keyboard you no longer use is done in the same Keyboards menu by swiping left on the language name.

Switch between keyboards while typing

Once you have added a second keyboard, a globe icon appears on the bottom left of your keyboard, next to the space bar. Tap it once to switch to your next keyboard. If you have three keyboards installed, tapping the globe cycles through them in order. Hold down the globe icon to see all your keyboards at once and pick one directly.

The keyboard language does not change automatically based on what you are typing or who you are messaging. You must switch it manually each time. This is intentional — it prevents the keyboard from switching unexpectedly mid-sentence.

If the globe icon does not appear, you have only one keyboard installed. Add a second language first using the steps above, and the globe will show up when ready.

Remove a keyboard language you no longer need

Open Settings, go to General > Keyboard > Keyboards. Find the language you want to remove, swipe left on it, and tap the red Delete button. The keyboard is removed when ready, though you can add it back anytime by following the same steps as the first installation.

You cannot delete your primary language (usually English) if it is your only keyboard. If you want to remove English, you must have at least one other keyboard installed first. This prevents you from accidentally leaving your iPhone with no keyboard at all.

Change the order of your keyboards

If you have multiple keyboards, you can rearrange the order they appear in when you tap the globe icon. In Settings > General > Keyboard > Keyboards, tap Edit in the top left corner. Three horizontal lines appear next to each keyboard. Press and hold those lines, then drag the keyboard up or down to reorder it.

The keyboard at the top of the list is the one that appears first when you tap the globe. If you use one language much more often than the others, moving it to the top saves you a tap or two throughout the day.

Add regional variants of the same language

Many languages have multiple regional versions. When you tap Add New Keyboard and select a language like Spanish or English, you may see options like Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Mexico), or Spanish (Latin America). Each variant has slightly different word suggestions, autocorrect behavior, and punctuation defaults.

You can install multiple variants of the same language if you type in different regions or want different autocorrect rules. For example, you might add both English (US) and English (UK) if you write for audiences in both countries. Each one counts as a separate keyboard in your list, and you switch between them using the globe icon like any other keyboard.

Use predictive text and autocorrect with multiple keyboards

When you switch to a different keyboard language, your iPhone's predictive text and autocorrect adjust automatically to that language. If you type in Spanish, the keyboard suggests Spanish words and corrects Spanish spelling. Switch back to English, and it switches back to English suggestions.

Your iPhone learns words you type frequently in each language separately. If you add a word to the dictionary while using the Spanish keyboard, that word is remembered for Spanish but does not affect English autocorrect. This prevents your personal vocabulary from confusing the language-specific suggestions.

Troubleshooting keyboard language problems

If the globe icon is missing or you cannot find a language you want to add, restart your iPhone first. Press and hold the power button and either volume button until the power-off slider appears, then slide to turn off. Wait a few seconds and turn it back on. This fixes most keyboard-related glitches.

If a keyboard language is not appearing in the Add New Keyboard list, check that your iPhone has enough storage space and that you are running the latest version of iOS. Go to Settings > General > Software Update to check for updates. Older iOS versions sometimes have fewer language options available.

If autocorrect is behaving strangely after adding a new keyboard, go to Settings > General > Keyboard and toggle Autocorrection off and back on. This resets the autocorrect engine without affecting your installed keyboards.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use two keyboards at the same time?

No, you can only type in one keyboard language at a time. You switch between them using the globe icon. However, you can have as many keyboards installed as you want, so switching takes just one tap.

Does adding a keyboard language use a lot of storage?

No. Each keyboard language takes only a few megabytes of space, and most iPhones have gigabytes of storage available. Adding ten keyboards would use less space than a single photo.

What happens to my autocorrect dictionary when I switch keyboards?

Your iPhone keeps separate autocorrect and predictive text for each language. Words you add to one language do not affect the others, so switching keyboards does not erase or mix up your personal vocabulary.

Can I change the keyboard layout, like QWERTY to AZERTY?

Yes. When you add a keyboard language, some languages offer multiple layout options. For example, French offers both AZERTY and QWERTY layouts. You choose the layout when you first add the keyboard, and you can change it later in the same Keyboards menu.

Why does my keyboard sometimes switch languages on its own?

Your keyboard does not switch automatically. If it appears to, you may have accidentally tapped the globe icon, or an app may be forcing a keyboard change. Check your keyboard list in Settings to confirm you have the languages you expect installed.