Question from Emily: I just accepted a new job within my company that will require me to travel to various countries in South and Central America.
A couple of years ago I had a temporary (two week) assignment in Ecuador and Google insisted on displaying the search results in Spanish even when I typed my search query in English.
I read Spanish moderately well but it would benefit me greatly if I could always have Google display the results from my searches in English.
Is there any way to make that happen? I know this is probably a weird question so I thank you in advance for your answer.
Rick’s answer: That isn’t a weird question at all, Emily. In fact, I’m sure there are plenty of other folks out there who are struggling with the very same issue.
For whatever reason, Google selects the language it uses to display your search results based upon your IP address, not the language you used when you typed your query into the search box.
That means they’ll (almost) always display the results for your search query in the official language of the country you happen to be visiting at the time.
However, it’s very easy to force Google to always display search results in English regardless of your current location. Just follow the steps below for the device you’re using.
If you’re using a laptop or desktop computer:
1- Click here and sign into your Google account.
2 – Click the Personal info link over in the left-hand pane.
3 – Scroll down to the “General preferences for the web” section and click Language.
4 – Click the pencil icon over on the right.
5 – Select English from the pop-up menu.
6 – Click United States.
Note: I noticed that you didn’t specify your home country. If you live in a country other than the United States you can select that country instead of the U.S.
8 – Click Save.
If you’re using a mobile device:
1- Tap here and sign into your Google account.
2 – Select the Personal info tab.
3 – Scroll down to the “General preferences for the web” section and tap Language.
4 – Tap the pencil icon.
5 – Tap English.
6 – Tap United States.
Note: I noticed that you didn’t specify your home country. If you live in a country other than the United States you can select that country instead of the U.S.
7 – Tap Save.
That’s all there is to it. From now on you should always receive your Google search results in English regardless of which country you might be visiting at the time or which type of device you’re using (as long as the device is logged into your Google account).
I hope this helps, Emily. Good luck!
Bonus tip: This post explains how to use Google to instantly get the current time in virtually any city or town in the world (pretty handy when you’re visiting another country).