Axe's Workshop · Setup
How to Change Your Dota 2 Server, Region and Matchmaking Language
By Kevin “Kevin10k”·Dota 2 Expert · Mid & Offlane PlayerArticle updated
Your region decides your ping, your matchmaking language decides who you play with, and your game language decides what you read. Three different settings in three different places. Here is where each one lives, which regions exist and how to switch everything in a minute. Axe set all three to Russian once by accident. He won anyway. He did not understand why everyone said “gg” so early.
How to change your Dota 2 server region
The region selection sits in the matchmaking menu:
Play DotaRegion: Auto (or your regions)Refresh PingsPick up to 3Confirm
The game shows your ping to every region, from “Ping: Calculating…” to a number in ms or “Ping: FAILED”. Its own advice: “Select up to three matchmaking regions. Select only the regions closest to you for the best experience.” Or pick Region: Auto to “automatically pick the best region based on my location”.
- Too few or too small regions? The game warns that this “could result in increased queue times or reduced match quality”.
- Regions too far away? It warns that this “could result in a poor connection to the game server”.
All Dota 2 matchmaking regions
These are the regions the game offers, grouped by area. Pick the ones closest to you:
- Europe West
- Europe East
- Russia
- US West
- US East
- Brazil
- Chile
- Peru
- Argentina
- SE Asia
- Japan
- India
- Australia
- Dubai
- South Africa
- China Shanghai
- China Guangzhou
- China Chengdu
- China Beijing
-perfectworld to play on these servers.Not sure which region is closest? Refresh the pings in the menu and pick the lowest numbers. More about good ping values and lost packets in our post on Dota 2 high ping and packet loss.
Three language settings, three different jobs
| Setting | What it changes | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Matchmaking language | Which players the matchmaker tries to put you with | Game: “Select Matchmaking Language” |
| Game language (text) | Menus, tooltips, chat wheel texts | Steam Properties or game settings |
| Audio language | Hero voices and announcer | Game settings → Language → Audio |
Change your Dota 2 matchmaking language
In the game this is called Select Matchmaking Language. You get one primary language (“Your primary matchmaking language is: …”) and can add one secondary language. There are six to pick from:
- English
- Russian
- Chinese
- Korean
- Spanish
- Portuguese
If your game language is not one of these six, the game tells you so and asks you to pick one. Pick the language you can actually talk in during a fight.
Axe speaks one language: Berserker's Call. Everyone understands it. Everyone comes running.
Change the Dota 2 game language
Three ways, pick one:
- In Steam: right-click Dota 2 and pick the language.
Steam LibraryRight-click Dota 2PropertiesGeneralLanguage
- In the game: Settings → Language, with separate choices for Text and Audio. The game then says “Restart the DOTA client to apply language changes.”
- As a launch option:
-languageplus the language name forces the game language, no matter what Steam says. Pick yours:
-language englishPaste it into Steam → right-click Dota 2 → Properties → Launch Options. Remove it again to go back to the Steam language.
The Launch Options Generator Tool combines the language with other options like -novid or -perfectworld in one line.
Tools for this
FAQ
How do I change my server in Dota 2?
Click Play Dota and open the region setting (it shows “Region: Auto” or your regions). In “Select Matchmaking Regions”, refresh the pings, pick up to three regions close to you and confirm.
Is there a console command to change the Dota 2 region?
No. The game saves your regions as a bit mask in its settings, but there is no command that sets a region by name. Use the region selection in the Play Dota menu.
How many matchmaking regions can I select?
Up to three. The game also offers “Region: Auto”, which picks the best region based on your location.
What is the matchmaking language in Dota 2?
It is the language the matchmaker tries to match you with. You have one primary language and can add one secondary language. The options are English, Russian, Chinese, Korean, Spanish and Portuguese.
How do I change the Dota 2 language to English?
In Steam, right-click Dota 2 → Properties → General → Language and pick English. Or add -language english to the launch options. The game needs a restart.
