Do I need a language pack, Language Accessory Pack (LAP), or a Language Interface Pack (LIP)?

There are several ways you can use Office in multiple languages. Depending on what you'd like to do, you may not need to download and install a language pack, Language Accessory Pack, or Language Interface Pack at all. Use this table to determine what options work best for you and how you'd like to use different languages in Office:

IF YOU WANT TO...	YOU CAN...
Type and edit text in multiple languages while keeping your default Office language.	Change the input language of your keyboard for Office 2016, Office 2013, Office 2010, or Office 2007 and turn on automatic language detection.
Change the default Office language.	Install Office in a different language if you have Office 2016, or an Office 365 Home, Personal or University subscription.
Change the language of the Office User Interface (ribbon, menu items and commands), change the Office Help language, or add proofing tools for another language while keeping your default Office language.	Install a Language Accessory Pack, Language Pack or Language Interface Pack for a specific language. See the table below for a summary of the differences between these language packs.

Differences between a language pack, Language Accessory Pack or Language Interface Pack

Language packs, Language Accessory Packs, or Language Interface Packs can be used to add more language options to Office without changing the current default language of your Office installation. There are some differences between all these different language tools, and what's available for you to use may depend on what version of Office you're using. Check the table below for more info about the differences between a language pack, a Language Accessory Pack (LAP), and a Language Interface Pack (LIP) based on your version of Office.

OFFICE VERSION	LANGUAGE PACK OR LANGUAGE ACCESSORY PACK (LAP)	LANGUAGE INTERFACE PACK (LIP)
Office 2016	May change the Office User Interface (ribbon, menu items and commands) for some or all of the Office applications to the display language you select in Microsoft Office 2016 Language Preferences. May change the Office Help language to the help language you select in Microsoft Office 2016 Language Preferences. May include spelling checker, grammar checker and thesaurus. You can download Office 2016 Language Accessory Packs for free.	Only available for Volume Licensing versions of Office 2016. For more information, see Download language packs, language interface packs, and proofing tools for volume license versions of Office
Office 2013	Changes the Office User Interface (ribbon, menu items and commands) for all Office applications to the display language you select in Microsoft Office 2013 Language Preferences. Changes the Office Help language to the help language you select in Microsoft Office 2013 Language Preferences. Includes spelling checker, grammar checker and thesaurus. You can buy Office 2013 language packs.	Changes the Office User Interface (ribbon and commands) for some Office applications to the display language you select in Microsoft Office 2013 Language Preferences. Includes spelling checker. May also include grammar checker and/or thesaurus for some languages. You can download Office 2013 Language Interface Packs for free.
Office 2010, 2007, or 2003	Office 2010, Office 2007 or Office 2003 language packs have been discontinued and are no longer available. Note: Office 2016 Language Accessory Packs or Office 2013 language packs can't be used with Office 2010, Office 2007 or Office 2003.	Changes the Office User Interface (ribbon and commands) for some Office applications to the display language you select in Office Language Preferences or settings. Includes spelling checker. You can download Office 2010, 2007 or 2003 Language Interface Packs for free.

See also

Buy, install, configure, or uninstall a language pack for Office 2013

Office Language Interface Pack (LIP) downloads

Language Accessory Pack for Office 2016