Day: June 29, 2022

Not sure how much you should pay for translation services? This guide will teach you how translation services are priced and the rates for the world’s nine best translation agencies.

The world has become a global village, especially in business and communication. The rise of international companies with a worldwide customer base has made translation one of the most sought-after services. When you translate your content, whether brochures, product descriptions or website, your customers get a personalized feel and get a deeper knowledge about your business.

Do you have a project that needs translation but doesn’t know how much the project will cost?

This guide will teach you everything you need to know about translation service prices.

How do Translators Charge for their Work?

Before choosing the Best translation service to work with, you need to understand how the experts price their work. The rates vary from one translator to another, depending on various factors. However, in your search for the best translator for your project, you will come across the following pricing methods:

Rate per Word

Most translators will price their work on a rate-per-word basis. There are two types of rate per word pricing in translation: rate per source word and rate per target word.

The translator charges you per the number of words in your original document in rate per source word. On the other hand, the rate per target word entails charging the work per the word count in the translated document.

Let’s say you want to translate a 500-word English press release to Chinese. The word count in Chinese might go up to 700 words. If the cost per word is $1, the price per source word would be $500. On the other hand, the price per target keyword would be $700. However, most experts charge per source word.

Rate per Hour

Though less popular among translators, the rate per hour charges your project according to the number of hours spent working on it. This method is not popular because it is not consistent and can be unfair to you and the translator.

For instance, if a translator works slow, you will pay more for the extra hours. On the other hand, an experienced translator who works fast may not feel well compensated for their input.

Rate per Page

You may come across experts who charge per page on your search for translation services. This pricing method is also not popular because projects may come in different page sizes, have images, large fonts, tables, and so much more. The rate per page model favours the translator and may cost you more as a client.

However, the rate per page method works perfectly for PDF documents such as medical, scientific and legal translations.

Other Factors that Influence Translation Service Prices

Translation service prices are subject to other factors apart from the word count, the number of hours spent on the project or the number of pages. That is why you rarely find translators publishing their rates on the website. They will always ask you to submit your project details to get a customised quote.

The following factors also play a critical role in influencing how much you pay for translation services:

Language Pairs

When a document is translated from language A to language B, A and B are language pairs. This phenomenon is also called language combination and plays a significant role in determining the translation service prices.

For instance, a language combination with few translators will cost more than the one flooded with skilled translators. Our pool of multilingual translators offers quality services in over 100 language pairs.

Type of Translation

Translators have different rates for different translations. Basic translations are cheaper than technical translations. Some of the most expensive types include medical, legal, technical and patent translations. Similarly, notarised documents cost more than regular documents.

Delivery Time

Another factor that affects the translation service prices is urgency. The more urgent the translation, the higher the rates. At Wordsburg, we can handle tight deadlines without compromising the quality of your translations.

9 Best Translation Services in Singapore & their Prices

The following are the top nine translation services in Singapore and their rates.

#1 Wordsburg

Wordsburg is a top translation services provider with offices in Singapore and the UK. The agency helps businesses, institutions, and media houses translate their content into over 100 languages. With a pool of native and multilingual translators and editors, the firm offers certified translation services in the following areas:

• Digital
• Legal
• Medical
• Technical
• Industrial
• Manufacturing
• Business and finance
• Software and IT
• Travel and Tourism
• Engineering
• E-commerce
• Etc.

Wordsburg also provides world-class transcription, subtitling, captioning, voice-over, legalisation, and interpretation services.

Rates

Wordsburg charges its services on a per word and page basis. We offer one of the most competitive prices in Singapore, whether a notarised, medical, media or technical translation.

#2 TransPerfect Translations

TransPerfect is a New York-based global translation agency offering translation services in over 170 languages. The service provider is a trusted translation provider working with leading technology, educational, and media companies. However, their rate card is pricey and small businesses may struggle to afford their services.

#3 Lionbridge 

Lionbridge is an international translation agency based in Waltham, Massachusetts. It offers language services from over 30 locations worldwide and has been around for more than twenty years. Lionbridge rates are relatively high, and upcoming businesses might not afford them.

#4 Day Translations

Day Translations is a global agency offering translation services in over 100 languages. It is based in New York and has provided translation services to businesses in several sectors such as entertainment, legal and medical. With more than ten years in the industry, the agency is one of the leading language service providers globally. However, the rates are pretty high for small businesses to afford.

#5 Wordpoint

Wordpoint is a translation company that combines human translators with cutting-edge machine translation technology to give businesses top-notch services. The agency offers certified translations in over 50 languages and has locations in Cyprus, Canada and Ukraine.

#6 GTS Translation Services

GTS Translation Services is a global leader in translation services, offering multilingual translations to over eighty languages. The agency has worked with clients in over 100 countries and has offices in the US, UK, Israel, Canada  and Germany.

#7 Stepes

Stepes is a global translation service based in San Francisco. The platform brings together thousands of certified translators who combine their expertise with the latest translation technology to give businesses excellent localisation and translation services. The global translation hub has a presence in China, Japan, Hong Kong, the US, the UK and Sweden.

#8 Translated

Translated is a long-standing translation agency with clients spanning different continents. The agency selects and trains its translators, guaranteeing clients thorough and quality work. With over 220,000 happy clients to showcase, Translated is one of the best translation agencies globally.

#9 Polilingua

 Polilingua is a global agency offering translation, transcription, voice-over and other language-related services to businesses. The firm has grown to be one of the most sought-after translation services providers globally, with offices in the UK, Moldova, Germany, Spain, Italy and France.

Conclusion

Translation service prices vary from one translator to another. A translator may charge your work per word, page, or hour. Other factors that determine how much you will pay for your project include the language combination, type of translation, and the deadline for the project.