Switch Telegram to Chinese (Simplified or Traditional)

For Chinese users who have used Telegram for a long time, the question "How do I set Telegram to Chinese?" should be quite familiar.

For many years, although the official Telegram clients supported many languages such as English, Russian, German, French, Japanese, and Korean, Chinese users would often find that after installing Telegram there was no Chinese option on the settings page.

To change Telegram to Chinese, you usually had to install the Simplified Chinese language pack through a t.me/setlanguage link.

But things have changed now.

Does Telegram support Chinese now?

The answer is: Yes.

As of 2026, the following have officially appeared in Telegram's language system:

• Chinese (Simplified)

• Chinese (Traditional)

Telegram's official translation platform now provides complete Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese projects, covering multiple clients including Android, iPhone, Telegram Desktop, macOS, and Telegram Web.

Starting in April 2026, many users also found that the Chinese option could be seen directly in the language settings of the new Telegram client.

This means that for most new users, setting Telegram to Chinese has finally become much simpler.

How do I set Telegram to Chinese?

If your Telegram has been updated to a relatively new version, you can go directly to:

Telegram → Settings → Language

Then look for it in the language list:

Chinese / 中文

Choose as needed:

Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese

After switching, the interface text of Telegram's settings, chat list, menus, buttons, and system prompts will all be displayed in Chinese.

Note:

Switching to Chinese only changes Telegram's interface language. It does not translate chat messages, nor does it affect chat history, contacts, groups, or channels.

Why didn't Telegram have Chinese before?

This is also a piece of history that many long-time users are familiar with.

Telegram established its own translation platform translations.telegram.org very early on, allowing users of different languages to participate in translating the Telegram client interface.

Chinese has in fact existed for many years, but for a long time it was mainly used in the form of "language packs."

Therefore, after installing Telegram in the past, many users saw no Chinese in the default language list and needed to click a link like:

t.me/setlanguage/xxxx

such a Telegram language-switching link.

After clicking the link, Telegram would pop up:

Change Language

Only after confirming could the interface be switched to Chinese.

That is why in the past there were so many online:

"Telegram Chinese localization tutorials"

"Telegram Chinese language packs"

"How to set Telegram to Chinese"

"How to change Telegram to Chinese"

tutorials like these.

Do I still need to install a Telegram Chinese language pack now?

For the new version of Telegram, in most cases it is no longer necessary.

You can first open:

Settings → Language

Check whether Simplified Chinese or Traditional Chinese is available.

If it is already there, just select it directly.

However, Telegram's language system is somewhat special. In addition to officially maintained languages, it still allows a large number of community-maintained custom language packs.

Telegram's official translation platform still shows multiple Chinese language projects, including Simplified Chinese language packs with different translation styles.

So Telegram may now have at the same time:

Official Chinese
Community Chinese language packs
Custom Chinese language packs

Ordinary users actually don't need to bother with so many versions; just use the standard Simplified Chinese provided by the client.

What if I can't find Chinese?

If you go to:

Settings → Language

and still don't see Chinese, first check whether Telegram is the latest version.

It is recommended to install the official client from the Telegram website, Google Play, or the Apple App Store first.

If the client version is old, you can upgrade Telegram first, then reopen the language settings.

In addition, Telegram's language data has a certain server-side update mechanism, so the time when the language list appears may differ slightly between different clients and versions.

If you still can't find Chinese, you can also continue to use the Chinese language link provided by Telegram's official language system.

Telegram's official translation platform does indeed have the standard:

Chinese (Simplified) / 简体中文

language project.

So even if the language menu does not show Chinese temporarily, Telegram itself can still fully load the Chinese interface.

Do Android, iPhone, and Desktop all support Chinese?

Currently, Telegram's official Chinese translations cover multiple platforms.

The Simplified Chinese project includes:

Android
iOS
Telegram Desktop
macOS
Android X
Telegram WebK
Telegram WebA

and other clients.

So whether you use an Android phone, an iPhone, a Windows PC, or a Mac, you can use Telegram in Chinese.

However, there may be slight differences in the interface and the extent of Chinese coverage between different client versions.

Do I need to delete an old Chinese language pack I installed before?

Generally, no.

If you have already set Telegram to Chinese through a language pack link, you can continue to use it normally.

It will not affect your account, nor will it affect your chat data.

If you want to switch to the standard Chinese now provided by Telegram, just go back to:

Settings → Language

and then select the new:

Chinese (Simplified)

That's it.

Switching languages essentially only changes the interface display of the Telegram client, and does not involve account migration.

What does Telegram supporting Chinese mean?

For Chinese users, this is actually a quite important change.

Telegram has a huge user base worldwide, but for many Chinese users who come into contact with Telegram for the first time, the English interface has always been a considerable barrier to use.

Especially:

Privacy settings
Two-step verification
Login device management
Channel and group permissions
Notification settings
Bot permissions

If these features are entirely in English, it is indeed easy for new users to misunderstand them.

Once the Chinese interface becomes widely available, the barrier to getting started with Telegram will be noticeably lowered.

In the past, the first thing to do after installing Telegram was often:

Search for "Telegram Chinese language pack."

Now you can directly:

Open Telegram → Settings → Language → Chinese.

The whole process has become much simpler.

Summary

If you have only recently started using Telegram, you can remember one conclusion:

Telegram now supports Chinese.

The new Telegram already supports Simplified and Traditional Chinese, and Telegram's official translation platform has also fully maintained the Chinese interface.

Therefore, after downloading Telegram now, you can first go to:

Settings → Language → Chinese

to directly check for the Chinese option.

If your client does not show Chinese temporarily, you can switch via the official Chinese language pack.

For Chinese users who have used Telegram for many years, this is a seemingly small but very practical change.

In the future, when recommending Telegram to friends, you finally won't have to first teach them "how to localize Telegram into Chinese."