`locale`

The Python locale module provides tools to handle the localization of programs, such as formatting numbers, dates, and currencies according to the conventions of different locales. It gives you access to your system’s locale database and lets you change the locale settings of your running Python program.

Here’s an example:

>>> import locale
>>> # Set to a full-featured locale that supports currency
>>> locale.setlocale(locale.LC_ALL, "en_US.UTF-8")
'en_US.UTF-8'

>>> locale.currency(1234.56, grouping=True)
'$1,234.56'

Key Features

Sets and retrieves locale settings
Formats numbers, dates, and currencies according to locale
Accesses locale-specific data, such as decimal points and thousands separators

Frequently Used Classes and Functions

Object	Type	Description
`locale.setlocale()`	Function	Sets the current locale
`locale.getlocale()`	Function	Gets the current setting for the locale
`locale.currency()`	Function	Formats currency according to the current locale
`locale.localeconv()`	Function	Retrieves a mapping of locale-specific conventions

Examples

Setting and retrieving the current locale:

>>> import locale
>>> locale.setlocale(locale.LC_ALL, "fr_FR.UTF-8")
'fr_FR.UTF-8'
>>> locale.getlocale()
('fr_FR', 'UTF-8')

Note: The desired locale (fr_FR.UTF-8) must be installed and available on your system for this code to work. Otherwise, locale.setlocale() will raise an error.

Formatting a number as currency according to the current locale:

>>> locale.currency(1234.56)
'1234,56 €'

Common Use Cases

Formatting numbers and currencies in a locale-sensitive manner
Adapting applications to display content in different regional settings
Converting between different locale data formats

Real-World Example

Imagine you need to display product prices in the user’s local currency format. Here’s how you might use the locale module to achieve that:

>>> import locale
>>> locale.setlocale(locale.LC_ALL, "en_US.UTF-8")
'en_US.UTF-8'
>>> prices = [19.99, 5.49, 3.75]
>>> formatted_prices = [
...     locale.currency(price, grouping=True) for price in prices
... ]
>>> formatted_prices
['$19.99', '$5.49', '$3.75']

In this example, you use the locale module to format a list of product prices according to the user’s local currency format, making the application more user-friendly and regionally appropriate.

Tutorial

How to Format Floats Within F-Strings in Python

In this tutorial, you'll learn how to use Python format specifiers within an f-string to allow you to neatly format a float to your required precision.

basics python

For additional information on related topics, take a look at the following resources:

Formatting Floats Inside Python F-Strings (Course)
Python's Format Mini-Language for Tidy Strings (Tutorial)
Python's F-String for String Interpolation and Formatting (Tutorial)
Using Python datetime to Work With Dates and Times (Tutorial)
Format Floats Within F-Strings (Quiz)
Python's Format Mini-Language for Tidy Strings (Quiz)
Python 3's F-Strings: An Improved String Formatting Syntax (Course)
Python's F-String for String Interpolation and Formatting (Quiz)
Using Python's datetime Module (Course)

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By Leodanis Pozo Ramos • Updated Oct. 10, 2026

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