For example, if I write: cout << Привет! << endl; //it’s hello in Russian

Question

Asked: May 13, 20262026-05-13T17:45:53+00:00 2026-05-13T17:45:53+00:00

For example, if I write:

cout << "Привет!" << endl; //it's hello in Russian

In the console it would be something like ╧ЁштхЄ!.

OK, I know that we can use:

setlocale(LC_ALL, "Russian");

But after that, command line arguments in Russian do not work (if I start my program through a BAT file):

StartProgram.bat

chcp 1251
MyProgram.exe -user=Олег -password=Пароль

So, after setlocale the program can’t read Russian arguments properly.

This happens because the BAT file in CP1251, but the console is in CP866.

So, there is a question:

How can I write Russian text in the C++ console and at the same time have Russian command line arguments read properly.

You must login to add an answer.

Need An Account,

Editorial Team · Answer 1 · 2026-05-13T17:45:53+00:00

Editorial Team

See this entry from Michael Kaplan’s blog:

The Archive Base Latest Questions