LocalASOASO glossary
Locale code (App Store Connect API)
A locale code is the short identifier for a metadata language in the App Store Connect API, such as en-US for English (U.S.). Every localization of your listing carries one in its locale attribute.
Updated
Three shapes
| Shape | Examples |
|---|---|
| Language only | ja (Japanese), no (Norwegian), hr (Croatian) |
| Language and region | en-US, de-DE, nl-NL |
| Language and script | zh-Hans (Chinese, Simplified), zh-Hant (Chinese, Traditional) |
The code is not always a language plus a country. Dutch is nl-NL and German is de-DE, while Japanese is just ja. Always take the code from Apple's list rather than guessing by pattern. The locale codes tool lists all of them.
Where it appears
The App Store Connect API stores locale on two objects. The app-info localization holds name, subtitle and privacy fields. The version localization holds description, keywords, marketing URL, promotional text, support URL and What's New. Each locale therefore has two records, one per object, as described under App Store Connect.
Why it matters
A wrong code means a missing language. Automation, spreadsheets and AI tools that write localizations need the exact string. zh-CN is not on Apple's list for Chinese; use zh-Hans.
Example
A script that uploads German text for a hypothetical app sends de-DE for the app-info record with name and subtitle, and again for the version record with the keywords and description.
Next step
Use the locale codes tool and the App Store localizations tool to see which codes you have not yet covered.
Scripts use these codes through the App Store Connect API.
Sources
- Apple: developer.apple.com/documentation/appstoreconnectapi/appstoreversionlocalization/attributes-data.dictionary (checked November 1, 2026)
- Apple: developer.apple.com/documentation/appstoreconnectapi/appinfolocalization/attributes-data.dictionary (checked November 1, 2026)
- Apple: developer.apple.com/documentation/appstoreconnectapi/managing-metadata-in-your-app-by-using-locale-shortcodes (checked November 1, 2026)
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