Set default language by visitor country (IP-based) in PrestaShop

[anwaar]

By default, PrestaShop selects the language based on the browser language.
This can be a problem when most visitors are from one country but use English browsers.

Below is a simple approach to set the default language based on the visitor’s country detected from IP, instead of relying only on HTTP_ACCEPT_LANGUAGE.

How it works

• Detect visitor IP
• Resolve country from IP
• Map country → language
• Set language in cookie before page rendering

Example PHP code
 

$ip = Tools::getRemoteAddr();

$response = file_get_contents(
    'https://api.ipgeolocation.io/v2/ipgeo?apiKey=YOUR_API_KEY&ip=' . $ip
);

if ($response !== false) {
    $data = json_decode($response, true);

    if (!empty($data['location']['country_code2'])) {
        $countryCode = strtolower($data['location']['country_code2']);

        // Example mapping: Vietnam -> Vietnamese
        if ($countryCode === 'vn') {
            $lang = Language::getLanguageByIETFCode('vi');

            if ($lang && $lang->active) {
                Context::getContext()->cookie->id_lang = (int) $lang->id;
                Context::getContext()->language = $lang;
            }
        }
    }
}

You will need an API key from ipgeolocation.io to run this example.
The free plan allows up to 1,000 requests per day; higher usage requires an upgrade.

Notes

• You should cache the detected language in a cookie or session to avoid calling the API on every request.
• This logic can also be extended for:
  • Currency selection
  • Country-based shipping rules
  • Store redirection

This approach works well when browser language does not represent the user’s actual location.

Edited February 4 by anwaar (see edit history)