Translation Services Rate: Know Our Translation Cost To Hire Translators?

Did you know Australia is home to 300 language-speaking people? Yet, to migrate and settle in Australia, one must get their documents translated into English from the source language by a NAATI-accredited translator. We offer certified translation services across Australia at affordable prices. This blog will take you through the detailed translation rates.

How Much Does A Professional Translation Project Cost?

There are four different factors that determine the price of a translation project. Moreover, the translation rate varies depending on each project’s requirements. Here’s an overview of human translation rates.

Language Combination

The translation’s language pair, or the source and target languages, is an essential pricing indicator but does not provide a definitive estimate. 

The rarer the language combination, e.g., English-to-Japanese or Japanese-to-Spanish, will earn higher rates than those with more common combinations, such as French-to-English or Spanish-to-English.

The average translation rate from English to Japanese may be higher because Japan has an increased cost of living. Few translators are available for that language combination, whereas for Spanish there are a lot of available translators.

Subject Specialisation

The translator’s specialisation is another element that necessarily reflects the cost of a translation. Not all translations require specialised industry knowledge, but some types do. For instance, if you need a translation for medical purposes, you will have to hire a translator who is familiar with medical terminologies and holds a degree in the medical field.

Furthermore, in particular fields like medical, engineering, business, or legal, the translator needs to have expertise in those fields and understand local and industry-specific terminologies to maintain cultural nuances, accuracy, precision, and even abide by laws and regulations.

Word Count

Word count is one of the most essential parameters for determining the translation cost. Generally, it’s calculated based on source-language text rather than target-language text. Translation companies do this because the length or word count of translated text cannot be determined beforehand.

Deadlines

The last and crucial element influencing the price of a translation is urgency. Translations can generally be performed very flexibly through an extensive network of translators.

Often, NAATI translation rates increase because of the urgency where people seek high-quality translations in a span of 6 to 12 hours. This increases the translator pay rate 5 fold! In some situations, a rush translation may be required as quickly as possible and must be completed over the weekend. In this case, an express delivery surcharge may apply to the project cost.

How Does The Machine-Assisted Human Translation Determine The Translation Service Rates?

For instance, if you hire a human translator for your translation services, the cost and time will be more. Since the translator will translate each word manually, it will take a lot of time, and the translator will charge you for their time and effort, which might exceed your budget. However, if you choose machine-assisted human translations, then the machine will do the basic translation, and they will check for accuracy and consistency. This will not only reduce the time but also the cost.

Therefore, we often advise clients to opt for machine-assisted human translation services when working on a limited budget, bulk translations, or a large project, like a book or website translation.

How Much Do NAATI Certified Translation Services Cost In Australia?

The translation industry is highly competitive, and prices vary widely. The price of translation services varies per word, per page, and by the time spent on translation. The cost of a translation project varies increasingly depending on these three parameters. You can also calculate the NAATI price based on a combination of these factors or an integration thereof.

In addition to the cost of NAATI translation itself, there are often additional fees related to post-editing (proofreading) or transcription (the audio-based equivalent).

Translation Rates: Pricing On A Per-Word Basis

Most translation requests in Australia, such as official or legal documents, are priced by the number of words, which greatly impacts translation costs. Australian translation agencies mostly follow per-word rates for types of translations where the NAATI translators or translation services , or interpreting services are needed.

NAATI Translation typically commands higher rates for specialised fields like legal, medical, or technical documents, averaging between AUD 0.20 and AUD 0.40 per word. 

Standard Documents NAATI Translation Rates

For most translations in Australia, the rates are set for standard documents. Standard documents include personal documents such as birth certificates, driver’s licenses, marriage certificates, Police Verification, etc. This is so because the standard documents have a classic format. Furthermore, translators do not charge here per word. They charge for the entire document. Therefore, if you share your requirements and documents and want to know how much it costs to translate them, we will send you an exact, free, and non-binding quote.

Read More: What is NAATI Accreditation And Recognition?

What Is The Rate Of Standard Translation Per Word?

Translation Rates Per Word For Each Language Pair.

The prices below indicate what you can expect to pay to translate the following pairs of languages—non-standard documents.

What Is The Translation Price Per Page?

Though the price for a one-page document usually starts from AUD 69, some documents are more expensive to translate than others. For instance, you might require specialised or technical translations and a translator with specific knowledge. For this, the translator may charge more than AUD 69 for 1 page. Furthermore, the demand and supply might affect the cost. Therefore, the best way to get the quote is to share the type of content you need to translate.

How Much Does A Translation Cost Per Hour?

How Do Professional Translators Translate A Document?

The translation process is not simple and isn’t about translating words from the source language to the target to make their content accessible to the rest of the world. Qualified translators consider the nuances of each word to convey the meaning correctly. They are also careful with syntax, which can make or break their work. A human translator also plays a role in determining the translation service rates. 

Which Languages Cost More To Translate And Why?

Most agencies do not prefer hiring an in-house translator. That is because the translation needs are dynamic. The needs vary depending on the languages, so the pricing methods largely depend on language. Here are some languages which usually cost more.

Rare Languages: Some languages are more expensive than others. If you need translations for less commonly spoken languages, such as Icelandic, Welsh, or Basque, the translator costs more, regardless of the content type.

Asian Languages: Japanese, Korean, and Arabic are more expensive. If your source text is in any of these languages, it might cost more because of the level of skills required. Conveying the cultural nuances is another factor that increases the cost of this language. 

Languages with Complex Grammar: Finnish and Hungarian have complex grammatical structures, so translation costs are higher for these languages than for others. However, the cost varies based on freelance or in-house translators’ hourly rates.

Conclusion

As you can understand, the translation service industry is dynamic because of a number of factors like language pair, urgency of the project, or the requirement of certified translations. Thus, most firms have competitive rates and practices. However, cost-effective solutions are always available for your translation needs. Though certain languages, like the less common or complex ones, will always cost more, you can still manage your expenses if you plan in advance, and avoid paying for urgency. Furthermore, acknowledge the purpose of your translation needs and consider whether you need a certified translator. Also, you can reach out to our customer support, as they can advise you on the best service suited to your requirements that is going to create the most value for you.