Get the locale (regional settings)

This article explains how to get the locale (regional settings) of a specific spreadsheet.

Method to use

Spreadsheet.getSpreadsheetLocale();

Use getSpreadsheetLocale(), which is provided by the Spreadsheet class.

What you get is the locale specified under “Locale” in the spreadsheet’s “File” > “Settings”. This setting affects how dates, numbers, and currencies are formatted, and it’s separate from the display language of the user viewing the spreadsheet.

The return value is a string that joins a language code and a country or region code with an _ (underscore), such as ja_JP (sometimes it’s just a language code). For background on how locale identifiers work, Unicode UTS #35 is also a useful reference.

Because the script accesses the spreadsheet, you may need to authorize it the first time you run it.

Sample code

/**
 * ID of the target spreadsheet
 * The xxx part of https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/xxx/edit
 */
const SPREAD_SHEET_ID = '_______________';

/**
 * Returns the locale (regional settings) of the spreadsheet
 */
const getSheetLocale = () => {
  /** Target spreadsheet */
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.openById(SPREAD_SHEET_ID);

  /** Locale information */
  const locale = ss.getSpreadsheetLocale();

  console.log(locale);
  return locale;
};

When you run it, the spreadsheet’s locale (regional settings) is returned.

If the locale is set to “Japan”, you get "ja_JP".