diff --git a/src/App.tsx b/src/App.tsx
index cf78e32..1a87715 100644
--- a/src/App.tsx
+++ b/src/App.tsx
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 import { useEffect, useState } from 'react';
 import Editor from './components/Editor';
 import { loadFromBytebin } from './util/storage';
+import { Language } from './util/language';
+import { detectLanguage } from './util/detect-language';
 
 const INITIAL = Symbol();
 const LOADING = Symbol();
@@ -13,7 +15,7 @@ export default function App() {
   const [state, setState] = useState<LoadingState>(INITIAL);
   const [forcedContent, setForcedContent] = useState<string>('');
   const [actualContent, setActualContent] = useState<string>('');
-  const [contentType, setContentType] = useState<string>();
+  const [contentType, setContentType] = useState<Language>();
 
   function setContent(content: string) {
     setActualContent(content);
@@ -28,8 +30,14 @@ export default function App() {
       loadFromBytebin(pasteId).then(({ ok, content, type }) => {
         if (ok) {
           setContent(content);
-          if (type) {
+          if (type !== 'plain') {
             setContentType(type);
+          } else {
+            detectLanguage(pasteId).then(detectedLanguage => {
+              if (detectedLanguage) {
+                setContentType(detectedLanguage);
+              }
+            });
           }
         } else {
           setContent(get404Message(pasteId));
diff --git a/src/components/Editor.tsx b/src/components/Editor.tsx
index 74cea47..b9657b4 100644
--- a/src/components/Editor.tsx
+++ b/src/components/Editor.tsx
@@ -7,12 +7,13 @@ import themes, { Themes } from '../style/themes';
 import EditorControls from './EditorControls';
 import EditorGlobalStyle from './EditorGlobalStyle';
 import EditorTextArea from './EditorTextArea';
+import { Language } from '../util/language';
 
 export interface EditorProps {
   forcedContent: string;
   actualContent: string;
   setActualContent: (value: string) => void;
-  contentType?: string;
+  contentType?: Language;
   pasteId?: string;
 }
 
diff --git a/src/components/EditorControls.tsx b/src/components/EditorControls.tsx
index d95e0f6..81fb77e 100644
--- a/src/components/EditorControls.tsx
+++ b/src/components/EditorControls.tsx
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ import { MutableRefObject, useCallback, useEffect, useState } from 'react';
 import styled from 'styled-components';
 
 import themes, { Themes } from '../style/themes';
-import { languages } from '../util/highlighting';
+import { languages, unknownLanguage } from '../util/language';
 import { saveToBytebin } from '../util/storage';
 import Button from './Button';
 import { ResetFunction } from './Editor';
@@ -104,9 +104,9 @@ export default function EditorControls({
         </Button>
         <MenuButton
           label="language"
-          value={language}
+          value={language === unknownLanguage ? '?' : language}
           setValue={setLanguage}
-          ids={languages}
+          ids={languages as unknown as Record<string, string[]>}
         />
         {readOnly && <Button onClick={unsetReadOnly}>[edit]</Button>}
       </Section>
diff --git a/src/util/constants.ts b/src/util/constants.ts
index 87dfa5b..6a9adca 100644
--- a/src/util/constants.ts
+++ b/src/util/constants.ts
@@ -2,3 +2,7 @@ export const bytebinUrl =
   process.env.REACT_APP_BYTEBIN_URL || 'https://bytebin.lucko.me/';
 
 export const postUrl = bytebinUrl + 'post';
+
+export const languageDetectionUrl =
+  process.env.REACT_APP_LANG_DETECT_URL ||
+  'https://language-detection-service.pastes.dev/';
diff --git a/src/util/detect-language.ts b/src/util/detect-language.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cf2911a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/util/detect-language.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+import { languageDetectionUrl } from './constants';
+import { Language } from './language';
+
+interface DetectedLanguage {
+  languageId: string;
+  confidence: number;
+}
+
+export async function detectLanguage(id: string): Promise<Language | null> {
+  try {
+    const resp = await fetch(languageDetectionUrl + id);
+    if (resp.ok) {
+      const results = (await resp.json()) as DetectedLanguage[];
+      for (const { languageId, confidence } of results) {
+        if (confidence > 0.5 && lookup[languageId]) {
+          return lookup[languageId];
+        }
+      }
+    }
+  } catch (e) {}
+  return null;
+}
+
+const lookup: Record<string, Language> = {
+  ini: 'log', // the model seems to confidently guess log files as ini - log is the more likely option
+  yaml: 'yaml',
+  md: 'markdown',
+  rb: 'ruby',
+  kt: 'kotlin',
+  xml: 'xml',
+  js: 'javascript',
+  html: 'html',
+  ts: 'typescript',
+  json: 'json',
+  php: 'php',
+  py: 'python',
+  rs: 'rust',
+  sql: 'sql',
+  sh: 'shell',
+  cpp: 'cpp',
+  go: 'go',
+  scala: 'scala',
+  dockerfile: 'dockerfile',
+  java: 'java',
+  cs: 'csharp',
+  css: 'css',
+  groovy: 'java',
+};
+// missing: csv, ml, ex, pas, bat, lua, groovy, v, jl, pm, prolog, matlab, clj, f90, c, tex, coffee, ps1, hs, mm, cmake, erl, dm, dart, asm, makefile, r, swift, lisp, vba, toml, cbl
diff --git a/src/util/highlighting.ts b/src/util/highlighting.ts
deleted file mode 100644
index c6a3879..0000000
--- a/src/util/highlighting.ts
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,23 +0,0 @@
-export const languages = {
-  text: ['plain', 'log'],
-  config: ['yaml', 'json', 'xml', 'ini'],
-  code: [
-    'java',
-    'javascript',
-    'typescript',
-    'python',
-    'kotlin',
-    'scala',
-    'cpp',
-    'csharp',
-    'shell',
-    'ruby',
-    'rust',
-    'sql',
-    'go',
-  ],
-  web: ['html', 'css', 'scss', 'php', 'graphql'],
-  misc: ['dockerfile', 'markdown', 'proto'],
-};
-
-export const languageIds = Object.values(languages).flat(1);
diff --git a/src/util/language.ts b/src/util/language.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..fc616cc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/util/language.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,70 @@
+export type Language =
+  | 'plain'
+  | 'plaintext'
+  | 'log'
+  | 'yaml'
+  | 'json'
+  | 'xml'
+  | 'ini'
+  | 'java'
+  | 'javascript'
+  | 'typescript'
+  | 'python'
+  | 'kotlin'
+  | 'scala'
+  | 'cpp'
+  | 'csharp'
+  | 'shell'
+  | 'ruby'
+  | 'rust'
+  | 'sql'
+  | 'go'
+  | 'html'
+  | 'css'
+  | 'scss'
+  | 'php'
+  | 'graphql'
+  | 'dockerfile'
+  | 'markdown'
+  | 'proto';
+
+export const unknownLanguage: Language & 'plain' = 'plain';
+
+export interface Languages {
+  text: Language[];
+  config: Language[];
+  code: Language[];
+  web: Language[];
+  misc: Language[];
+}
+
+export const languages: Languages = {
+  text: ['plaintext', 'log'],
+  config: ['yaml', 'json', 'xml', 'ini'],
+  code: [
+    'java',
+    'javascript',
+    'typescript',
+    'python',
+    'kotlin',
+    'scala',
+    'cpp',
+    'csharp',
+    'shell',
+    'ruby',
+    'rust',
+    'sql',
+    'go',
+  ],
+  web: ['html', 'css', 'scss', 'php', 'graphql'],
+  misc: ['dockerfile', 'markdown', 'proto'],
+};
+
+export const languageIds: Language[] = [
+  ...Object.values(languages).flat(1),
+  unknownLanguage,
+];
+
+export function isLanguage(lang: string): lang is Language {
+  return languageIds.includes(lang as Language);
+}
diff --git a/src/util/storage.ts b/src/util/storage.ts
index bae6508..b24d3d7 100644
--- a/src/util/storage.ts
+++ b/src/util/storage.ts
@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 import { gzip } from 'pako';
 import MIMEType from 'whatwg-mimetype';
 import { bytebinUrl, postUrl } from './constants';
-import { languageIds } from './highlighting';
+import { isLanguage, Language } from './language';
 
 interface LoadResultSuccess {
   ok: true;
   content: string;
-  type?: string;
+  type?: Language;
 }
 
 interface LoadResultFail {
@@ -64,13 +64,21 @@ export async function saveToBytebin(
   return null;
 }
 
-export function contentTypeToLanguage(contentType: string) {
+export function contentTypeToLanguage(
+  contentType: string
+): Language | undefined {
   const { type, subtype: subType } = new MIMEType(contentType);
   if (type === 'application' && subType === 'json') {
     return 'json';
   }
-  if (type === 'text' && languageIds.includes(subType.toLowerCase())) {
-    return subType.toLowerCase();
+
+  let subTypeLower = subType.toLowerCase();
+  if (subTypeLower.startsWith('x-')) {
+    subTypeLower = subTypeLower.substring(2);
+  }
+
+  if (type === 'text' && isLanguage(subTypeLower)) {
+    return subTypeLower;
   }
 }