The Banjarese language is the de facto lingua franca for various indigenous community especially in South Kalimantan, as well as Central Kalimantan (notably in Seruyan Regency and Sukamara Regency) and East Kalimantan in general.

Apart from the native Banjarese in Indonesia, the Banjarese language also spoken by little Banjarese diaspora abroad (such as in Brunei, Malaysia (notably in Sabah and Perak), and Singapore); however, they tend to not use it as their primary language, and their fluency degree is questionable.

There are at least two divisions of dialects within the Banjarese language: According to Cense,[6] the Banjar Hulu dialect are predominantly spoken by Banjarese people in the South Hulu Sungai Regency and North Hulu Sungai Regency regions.

All but [ʔ] occur at the onset of a syllable:[8] Sudarmo finds five monophthongs:[8] [ə] is an allophone of /ɛ/.

However, since most Banjarese speakers are effectively bilingual, this realization becomes rarer.