TOP-5 by pricing

Nobody has a limitless budget for projects. Ideally, you can find a low priced provider who offers equally high quality. In reality, you must find a balance. Here are 5 best companies that excel at fair pricing.

Pricing

What Are the Best Translation Rates in 2023?

Many modern businesses go global. Their owners search for top language assistance because they are interested in building international relationships, but such help is expensive, so they try looking for average translation rates. The problem is, there is a huge number of companies that set drastically different prices. How can a new customer figure out what rate is acceptable and which one is too high? The review team of IsAccurate is determined to answer these questions.

Any person who wants to find new audiences in other countries will require qualified assistance. Whether you are a CEO of some agency, an aspiring writer hoping to draw the attention of English, Spanish, or Chinese readers, a marketing expert, or an owner of an independent small shop, you won’t be able to expand without quality translations. We prepared a list with top firms that offer the best rates in the industry. With its help, making a choice is going to be much easier.

Top 5 Companies with the Best Translating Rates

Types of translations vary. There are legal translation companies as well as those specializing in app localization services; lots of firms offer general or technical kinds of help. They all have different rates. We selected agencies with diverse focus that ask for adequate prices: here are our top five choices.

1) TheWordPoint

This company takes a leading position in our review due to its combination of best prices and highest quality. It supports 100 languages and provides a diverse range of qualified services. Starting price for general translations is $0.06, though common language pairs are worth $0.09. Technical work is a little more expensive: it costs around $0.12. The same applies to a minimal certification fee, which is a great thing. Translators have amazing experience: they are capable of quick and efficient work, so you won’t be disappointed.

+ Low translation costs. They correspond to a market average.

+ Great quality. Deadlines are met and translations are accurate.

- Revisions take time. If you request corrections, you might wait for more than a day.

2) RushTranslate

This is another professional firm with good experience. It specializes in 60+ languages and it works with documents of various types. Its operators can be slow in their response, but the price improves this impression. It starts at $0.10 for general translation, for basic language combinations. For technical or certified assistance, translation cost per page is $24.95. This is a flat fee. Despite a low cost, quality is outstanding, with no revisions needed in most cases.

+ Affordable rates. You won’t overpay here, especially for certified files.

+ Precise deadlines and professionalism. You’ll receive quality translation timely.

- Slow communication. Responses take a lot of time.

3) Gengo

With 70+ languages covered, you can count on quick service with this agency. Translation could be ordered starting at $0.06, but it’s only for personal and general content. Technical translation price begins with $0.12 per one word, and certification, as well as more complex tasks, will cost you more than $0.14. Quality isn’t the absolute best if you select cheaper options, but it’s good enough for the company to make it into our review.

+ Good translator rates. Gengo has low prices.

+ Perfect punctuality. They’ll deliver a project when promised.

- Varying quality. Some translators aren’t in top form.

4) TransPerfect

This is an old company that works with more than 100 languages, has a huge physical presence all over the world, and boasts of having the best translators. Officially, its prices start with $0.10 for general content and common language combinations, but reality is somewhat different. Most likely, you’d have to pay $0.12 at the very least. Translator prices for technical and certified help start with $0.15 for a word. Quality is indeed on top-level, but deadlines aren’t always respected.

+ Affordable prices. They fall into an average market category.

+ Sufficient quality. TransPerfect cooperates with true experts.

- Problems with deadlines. Some orders arrive late.

5) DayTranslations

You could choose between 50+ languages when contacting DayTranslations. Multiple services in many industries are available — they even include voice-overs and academic evaluation. Prices for general content are $0.12 (but that’s only if you ask for popular languages). Certified assistance costs $0.15. Quality control is not the best since some orders are done hastily, but revisions are always effective, so you’re bound to leave satisfied.

+ Acceptable rates. They are relatively affordable.

+ Impressive diversity. You could select any possible service.

- Unreliable quality control. Clients might not luck out from the first try.

What Types of Prices Exist?

You will be surprised to learn that every firm has its own system of pricing. Here are 6 kinds of rates you could encounter as a client: we decided to include them into our review so that you wouldn’t be taken aback upon seeing one of them.

  • Per word. This is the most common kind, and we consider it the best. By seeing translation cost per word, you’ll be able to quickly check the word count in your project and calculate how much you would be paying.
  • Per line. This is a rare and more complex rate type. Some top companies have special software that allows them to assess the volume of work based on the number of lines in it. On the one hand, it’s great because if your sentence has many short and easily translatable words, you won’t be paying for each of them — you’ll pay for a sentence itself. On the other hand, it’s nearly impossible to count your price by yourself.
  • Per page. Many professional firms set a price for one page. It’s convenient, but this system has some important nuances. For one thing, you can’t make the font small to decrease the number of pages: an average one comprises either 275 or 300 words, depending on your provider. You should clarify it before calculating your final translator rates.
  • Per hour. This type is typical for interpretation tasks. An agency assigns its best interpreter and you pay them an hourly fee.
  • Flat fee. In the process of composing our reviews, we noted that several firms offer flat fees. It is a set amount for a specific service type — it won’t change regardless of how complex your order is.
  • Minimum price. Such system presupposes setting the lowest possible price for translation. It might seem attractive to customers, but since we wrote many reviews, we should warn that in most cases, such translation service agency isn’t the best. Usually, only underqualified workers agree to small translating prices, and they are unable to provide flawless results.
  • Customized. A lot of experienced firms apply a system like this in their operations. They calculate rates by themselves, basing them on a language pair, deadline, complexity, number of words, etc.

Average Costs Per Language Pair and Industry

To understand what price is normal, you should know the existing market average. We completed a list with the most requested language combinations and provided best translation fees per word for general as well as technical spheres.

Language Pair

     General Translation

Technical Translation

English (US+UK) —> Spanish (+Latin-America)

     $0.09

$0.12

English to French Canadian

     $0.10

$0.13

English —> Chinese

     $0.09

$0.12

English —> German

     $0.11

$0.14

English —> Italian

     $0.09

$0.12

English —> Japanese

     $0.11

$0.14

English —> Arabic

     $0.09

$0.13

English to Dutch

     $0.10

$0.12

English —> Russian

     $0.09

$0.11

English —> Polish

     $0.10

$0.12

Spanish (+Latin-America) —> English (US+UK)

     $0.09

$0.12

French (+Canadian) —> English

     $0.10

$0.13

French —> Portuguese (+Brasil)

     $0.10

$0.12

German —> English

     $0.10

$0.13

German —> French

     $0.11

$0.14

Chinese —> English (UK)

     $0.10

$0.12

Portuguese (+Brasil) —> English (US)

     $0.10

$0.12

Italian —> English (US)

     $0.09

$0.12

Japanese —> English (US)

     $0.12

$0.15

Korean —> English (UK)

     $0.11

$0.14

Factors Affecting Translation Rates Per Word

Explaining how prices are formed is a relevant part of our review. Before placing an order, you should consider five top factors that could affect the sum you’d have to pay. First, there is a language pair. There may be many as many as you need, English to Spanish translation services, Japanese, English to French translation services. Professional translators work in diverse spheres, so if there are many specialists who could help you, the price is lower; if your project is of a more rare type, it’s higher. Deadlines are also crucial: the more time you provide a company with, the better price you’ll get. As a contrast, if your deadline is hot, such as several hours or one day, you might have to spend more than usual.

Industry is the next factor in this review: the more complex it is, the higher your price becomes. If you seek USCIS approved translation services, translations rates per word will exceed the fees typical for general types of work. Complexity of a project should be considered, too. If it has difficult terminology and requires the best expertise, the costs could increase. Then there is word count: bigger tasks are worth more.

Best Average Rates

Every year, trends change, which affects translation prices. If you’re just entering this industry, you might be confused as to what’s normal and what’s not. At this moment, a good average translation price per word ranges between $0.08-0.10. Anything more would be considered higher than normal, but of course, various factors are at play here. We’ll address them in the next section of our review.

Why Are Translations So Expensive?

Our review experts often hear a question: “What’s so complex about translating a project? Can’t machines do most work?” And in a way, they’re right. Modern software can do amazing work with technical texts. But subtlety and nuances are lost in these cases, so such translation could never be called professional. Even if human translators do subsequent editing, the results are far from the best.

Every accurate translation involves several set elements. It has to be fluent, with no grammar or proofreading issues. Semantics should also be flawless: every sentence has to reflect the meaning of the original. A text must be readable in general, and this could only be achieved through human involvement. Machines don’t care about how comprehensive a project is while translators work hard to build appropriate links and transitions between sentences. In case of localization, they also watch so that the cultural norms of a target society would be respected. This process entails hours of professional work, scrutiny, consultation with dictionaries and sometimes people, as well as inputs from editors and proofreaders, hence the expensiveness.

Ways of Aiming For the Best Price

Let’s face it: most people are worried about their budget. They hope to find a service with a low or at least affordable price, but quality concerns make them hesitate. Keep in mind that amazingly low rates are a sign of danger: no respectable specialist is going to work for such money. Still, you could get an average rate if you know intricacies. We wanted this review to cover all price-related aspects, so we prepared useful tips for getting the best translations fees possible.

  • Place an order with a long deadline. Better prepare everything in advance. Give translators as much time as possible because this will reduce your rate.
  • Consider the volume. Maybe some parts of your content are redundant. Think about removing/shortening them if it’s possible.
  • Follow trends. Some languages gain popularity, becoming cheaper, while others lose it. When you see it happen with your language pair, you could get the best fee.
  • Discuss discounts. Some top agencies give them to first-time as well as constant clients.

Find the Best Rates and Receive Perfect Translation

It is entirely possible to find a top service for affordable translation rates. We hope that information in this review was useful, helping you settle on a firm that would meet your needs best. Paying less is a great thing, but you can’t forget about quality either. IsAccurate team has produced many reviews on translation companies, focusing on rates, industries, languages, etc. Check them if you’re still looking for assistance — we hope you’ll find what you require!