How to determine the right price for a translation

Are you planning to order a translation of a text? Then you are definitely interested in the price. A number of aspects play a role in the pricing of any translation, whether it is a general or highly professional translation. What should you take into account when processing an offer? And how do we proceed in pricing at our translation agency, Aspena? We have tried to explain everything clearly for you in our article.

The cornerstone of pricing is the type of translation

The range of language services offered by a professional translation agency is very wide, from general translations to highly professional texts or sworn translations. Different types of translations require different care, and some of them have to go through even difficult localization. If the resulting text is to be perfect, it is also necessary to take into account professional or linguistic proofreading. Other aspects are then required by interpretation, or dubbing, for which it is often necessary to listen and rewrite the text from the original audio recording. All this is, of course, included in the price for translation.

The pricing formula starts with the scope...

So what determines the price? In general, the price of a translation service is mainly made up of two components: scope and complexity. In terms of scope, for the typical written translation the price is most often determined by the number of standard pages (SP), where 1 SP = 1800 characters including spaces. However, you can also charge the price according to the working hours spent on the translation, according to the footage of the translated audio-video material, or according to other units.

…and it continues with the complexity of the translation

Each order is priced according to the purpose for which the translation is intended, and this purpose goes hand in hand with complexity. Let’s say you ask the translation agency for a translation of a website – in this case, in addition to the scope, we will also have to handle the format of the existing content, required expertise, the method of extracting and uploading the content back to the website, and the appropriate number of proofreading and services. Of course, it is also necessary to take into account the language combination, special customer requirements, and urgency of the order.

One of the most demanding, and therefore also the most expensive translations, are translations in the field of natural sciences, such as highly specialized medicine, further texts from the area of nuclear energy and fields with a high degree of specialization.

The pricing process through communication with the customer

How is pricing performed in our translation agency? Each request is systematically recorded by us and accepted by the sales manager for processing. The responsible employee assesses the purpose of the order (translation or interpreting) and compiles a list of questions that need to be discussed with the customer.

Subsequently, an appropriate solution is proposed, which includes a suitable tool for processing, creation of dictionaries, taking into account terminology repetitions, etc. Mostly we suggest different levels of services and completion dates to the customer. In the case of more complex orders, for example in non-standard formats, we will involve our specialized department in the processing of the request, which will discuss, for example, the method of extracting texts, formats, etc. with the customer.

A repetitive text and long-term cooperation? A lower price

Each text is analyzed in a translation tool where we take into account, for example, the number of repetitions (they differ according to the amount of previously translated text in our company). Of course, we have created a system of discounts and benefits for customers in the case of large orders or with a view towards long-term cooperation.

In most cases, the offer is an estimate of the price, but it always guarantees a fixed price per unit. The customer often pays a lower amount than agreed, while price increases are quite exceptional.

How fast do we provide pricing?

At our translation agency, we try to send an offer to the customer within an hour of the request, but it depends on the complexity of the order. For simpler projects, we will prepare a price offer in a matter of minutes, but if the intervention of a specialized department is required, or if the text is in a complex format, the pricing takes several hours.

We are a professional translation agency with a top-class team of experts in a wide range of fields, which allows us to deliver comprehensive tailor-made solutions. Are you interested in an offer or do you need advice? Contact us.