| 话题中的页数: [1 2 3] > | Seeking resources/info: current salaries in translation 论题张贴者: Léa Gaillard
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Hi there,
I'm a translation studies MA student. I've found it somewhat difficult to really get a good overview of what being paid as a translator looks like these days. How relevant are per-word rates still? Have they changed with MT? How about freelance vs staff translators? I'm based in the UK, but insight from all over the world is appreciated!
Any personal experience or links to resources you use yourself to keep up to date with industry pricing would be great.
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Hey Léa,
Most translators here will not publicly display the actual rates they work for. I'd like more transparency here, but this is how it is. Back when I started (19 years ago) I remember my lowest rate being 0.042 EUR per word, and now my usual rate is 0.08 EUR. If I don't have any work on and something large comes in at 0.06 EUR, I'll take it. I used to work as a PM and the general rate paid to English/FIGS translators was 0.05 GBP... I do not think this will have changed much... See more Hey Léa,
Most translators here will not publicly display the actual rates they work for. I'd like more transparency here, but this is how it is. Back when I started (19 years ago) I remember my lowest rate being 0.042 EUR per word, and now my usual rate is 0.08 EUR. If I don't have any work on and something large comes in at 0.06 EUR, I'll take it. I used to work as a PM and the general rate paid to English/FIGS translators was 0.05 GBP... I do not think this will have changed much.
Unfortunately, I've seen much lower rates around, but also much higher. One time I saw a lawyer-linguist charging 0.40-0.50 per word, which really did perplex me. I don't know many clients who would pay 500 GBP for a 1000-word text. If only!
For direct clients, it's usually 0.12 EUR per word, but it can vary depending on the text and format.
I've always used word rates, except for a some German direct clients, who prefer to use a rate per line.
Good luck!
[Edited at 2025-03-08 17:32 GMT]
[Edited at 2025-03-10 10:52 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Baran Keki 
土耳其
Local time: 21:12
会员
English英语译成Turkish土耳其语
ADIE Translations wrote:
If I don't have any work on and something large comes in at 0.06 EUR, I'll take it. I used to work as a PM and the general rate paid to English FIGS translators was 0.05 GBP... I do not think this will have changed much.
For direct clients, it's usually 0.12 EUR per word, but it can vary depending on the text and format.
And yet you eke out a living in Germany without whinging on Proz.. You hear that, Lieven?
| | | | James Salter
西班牙
Local time: 20:12
正式会员 (自2011)
Spanish西班牙语译成English英语
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There are so many factors involved, it's really impossible to speak of a 'going rate'. Even comparable word rates may be deceptive because one translator may be racing along bashing out dry technical texts with the aid of MT/AI while another may be carefully crafting marketing slogans, where 5 words can have a significant impact on the end customer's bottom line.
Per-word rates are still the norm for translators working for agencies, but those with direct clients may prefer per-hour... See more There are so many factors involved, it's really impossible to speak of a 'going rate'. Even comparable word rates may be deceptive because one translator may be racing along bashing out dry technical texts with the aid of MT/AI while another may be carefully crafting marketing slogans, where 5 words can have a significant impact on the end customer's bottom line.
Per-word rates are still the norm for translators working for agencies, but those with direct clients may prefer per-hour or per-project rates. It depends on the client, the type of work and the approach of the translator. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Daryo
英国
Local time: 19:12
Serbian塞尔维亚语译成English英语
+ ...
| 'Salaries' is not really the best term to use. | Mar 10 |
'Salaries' would apply only to translators in full-time employment.
Most translators are self-employed / independent - no 'salary' for them.
More important, earnings can vary enormously: what translators employed by the UN / EU / ... are paid and what some agencies consider as 'that would be enough for you' bears no comparison - like if it was happening on two different planets.
Even in-between these two extremes, there is hardly some universal average / g... See more 'Salaries' would apply only to translators in full-time employment.
Most translators are self-employed / independent - no 'salary' for them.
More important, earnings can vary enormously: what translators employed by the UN / EU / ... are paid and what some agencies consider as 'that would be enough for you' bears no comparison - like if it was happening on two different planets.
Even in-between these two extremes, there is hardly some universal average / going rate. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Per-word rates are elastic | Mar 10 |
When you ask for word rates: how long is a piece of string? Or, as the Danes put it, you are selling elastic by the metre!
Word rates are widely used, but I have a rate with one client that I would never agree to with anyone else! It is based on the type of jobs he sends and the fact that he never gets reductions for repetitions, no matter what I find in Trados, and often there is quite a lot.
Converted to an hourly rate, it compares quite well with other clients who p... See more When you ask for word rates: how long is a piece of string? Or, as the Danes put it, you are selling elastic by the metre!
Word rates are widely used, but I have a rate with one client that I would never agree to with anyone else! It is based on the type of jobs he sends and the fact that he never gets reductions for repetitions, no matter what I find in Trados, and often there is quite a lot.
Converted to an hourly rate, it compares quite well with other clients who pay 25-30% more as a base rate, but then only pay 10% for 100% matches and so on. I try to charge for formatting and fiddling with PDF files etc. but I tend to let it go if it is under half an hour. That does not happen with the first client - he almost always sends Word files ready for me to set up and translate without fuss.
Word counts also vary from language to language. If you start with 1000 words in English, you will often get about 20% fewer words in Danish, which is my source language.
The difference is even bigger between English and Finnish or German, while I believe it goes in the other direction from English to French and Italian.
When I started freelancing, more than 20 years ago, I was happy with a word rate of 0.85 Danish Kroner for Danish source words to English. If it was easiest to count target words, then the rate for English words (or for colleagues who translated the other way) was 0.72 Kroner.
@ Danish colleagues: that was back then. I have managed to raise my rates since, but it gives the ratio.
I do lots of small jobs, and administration has to be charged for somehow. Negotiating about a 500-word press release can take just as long as negotiating about a job with several thousands of words.
[Edited at 2025-03-10 09:30 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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I'd agree that rates are variable, but I don't think they're as variable as people make out here. Agencies stick to a tight range and only go beyond it if they can't find anyone else. An agency isn't paying 0.02 and 0.10 to translators for the same language combination.
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Baran Keki
土耳其
Local time: 21:12
会员
English英语译成Turkish土耳其语
ADIE Translations wrote:
I'd agree that rates are variable, but I don't think they're as variable as people make out here. Agencies stick to a tight range and only go beyond it if they can't find anyone else. An agency isn't paying 0.02 and 0.10 to translators for the same language combination.
You say you were a PM before. Could you enlighten us with some insider info? What was the main consideration for choosing a translator for a particular job? Was it their pw rate? I bet there were translators in your database who charged 0.08-0.09 GBP per word, would you be going (or encouraged to go) for the ones who charged 0.05 GBP per word?
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Baran Keki wrote:
What was the main consideration for choosing a translator for a particular job? Was it their pw rate? I bet there were translators in your database who charged 0.08-0.09 GBP per word, would you be going (or encouraged to go) for the ones who charged 0.05 GBP per word?
We had a database but the agency already had its favourite translators for different clients. If they weren't available, we'd look on the database, if that was unsuccessful, we'd look on the databases of the IoL or ITI. I can't remember using translators with a rate of 0.08/0.09, but there was a French one I used regularly who charged 0.06.
We matched up translators with their specialisations; most of them charged 0.05. We didn't have any problems finding translators working around this rate.
All this is about English/FIGS translators; other combinations had higher rates, but I can't remember specifics. Also, my experience is 19 years' ago - I'm sure things have changed.
[Edited at 2025-03-10 12:33 GMT]
| | | | Baran Keki
土耳其
Local time: 21:12
会员
English英语译成Turkish土耳其语
ADIE Translations wrote:
All this is about English/FIGS translators; other combinations had higher rates, but I can't remember specifics. Also, my experience is 19 years' ago - I'm sure things have changed.
[Edited at 2025-03-10 12:33 GMT]
You mean to say that 19 years ago French, Italian, German, Spanish to English translators usually charged 0.05 GBP per word?
Bloody hell.. wow.. yes, you can be sure things have changed.
| | | | Zea_Mays
意大利
Local time: 20:12
正式会员 (自2009)
English英语译成German德语
+ ...
| inflation adjusted | Mar 10 |
ADIE Translations wrote:
most of them charged 0.05. ... 19 years ago
Add a 60% inflation rate, and you'll have today's rates - around 0.08.
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Daryo
英国
Local time: 19:12
Serbian塞尔维亚语译成English英语
+ ...
ADIE Translations wrote:
I'd agree that rates are variable, but I don't think they're as variable as people make out here. Agencies stick to a tight range and only go beyond it if they can't find anyone else. An agency isn't paying 0.02 and 0.10 to translators for the same language combination.
It very well may be that with the ongoing 'outsourcing' craze agencies are pushed on translators more and more, but agencies are not the only way to work as translator, and as a general rule definitely not the best way.
So, if you widen your optics, the variability in earnings does becomes astonishing.
| | | | IrinaN
美国
Local time: 13:12
English英语译成Russian俄语
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[quote]Baran Keki wrote:
ADIE Translations wrote:
All this is about English/FIGS translators; other combinations had higher rates, but I can't remember specifics. Also, my experience is 19 years' ago - I'm sure things have changed.
To top it off:
***I can't remember using translators with a rate of 0.08/0.09***
I wonder what did you charge to the clients??? Of course, it's confidential but if on top of salary you were receiving your bonuses in a form of an honest percentage of the money saved within each pre-allocated project budget you've been responsible for (quite popular way of rewarding PMs in large agencies - that's why PMs are so in love with cheap and cheaper translators), then with 0.05 translator rates 19 years ago you must be living on your own private tropical island. Or did the agency stiff you too? 
| | | | Baran Keki
土耳其
Local time: 21:12
会员
English英语译成Turkish土耳其语
| Never mind the inflation | Mar 10 |
Zea_Mays wrote:
Add a 60% inflation rate, and you'll have today's rates - around 0.08.
I wasn't here 19 years ago, but it's my impression based on the discussions on Proz forums that the translators translating from and into major European languages during the 'golden age of freelance translation' (between the years 2000 and 2010 (even up to 2015), before the introduction of AI and CAT tool pricing) would charge no less than 0.10 per word or would charge even higher into English.
The rates mentioned here from 19 years ago sound ridiculous and make no sense. I wonder if that translation agency still exists. They must have made millions with those rates (paid to the translators).
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