Here is some information to take into consideration to understand how the cost of a translation is calculated:

A translator translates an average of 350 words an hour.

If you think this is quite low, keep in mind that the average typing speed is 33 words/min for text copying and 19 words/min for text composition. Add to this the time it takes to read and understand the source text, carry out terminology research, send questions to the client and incorporate responses, reformulate into the target language, proofread (by a second translator) and page layout, and you have your translation productivity rate. It goes without saying that the more technical a translation and the more complex the source text, the longer it takes to translate.

Intellectual productivity cannot be compressed.

A translator cannot work faster and still supply the same level of quality. This means that if you want your translation delivered faster, we will need to use more translators. Time is also required for proofreading by the last translator in the chain who will standardise the final translated text. That is why, at Fairtrad, quality always costs the same, but the deadline for delivery has a separate cost.

Yes, but another agency offered me the same quality and same deadlines for half the price.

Ask them to detail each task by time taken (translation, proofreading, page layout). Keep in mind that calculations are made on an average of 350 words per hour per translator and 1,500 words per hour for proofreading (which can definitely not be done by several people:

there is always one single proof-reader to ensure coherence in terms of style and terminology). There are two answers possible:

a) they are lying about the process, which means they either don’t proofread the translation or they use automatic translation and not real linguists;
b) they use junior, less expensive, translators and have texts proofread by senior translators. This presents several disadvantages which are detailed in this post.

For more information about this subject, read the related posts on Fairblog and give us your opinion

Now you know everything, all you need to do is request a translation quote!