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50790dda
Community Member

Translation charges

Hi everyone,

 

I'm a freelance translator that's new to upwork and I was wondering about the hourly rate form of charging in the platform. The norm outside of upwork is to charge per word count (usually around 10 USD cents per word), so my question is, does anyone discuss this with their clients once they land a project, saying that they will be charged per word, do you just charge per hour, or how do you handle this, if at all?

ACCEPTED SOLUTION
colettelewis
Community Member


Catalina H wrote:

Hi everyone,

 

I'm a freelance translator that's new to upwork and I was wondering about the hourly rate form of charging in the platform. The norm outside of upwork is to charge per word count (usually around 10 USD cents per word), so my question is, does anyone discuss this with their clients once they land a project, saying that they will be charged per word, do you just charge per hour, or how do you handle this, if at all?


__________________________

Catalina,

 

A per-word translation is fine as a ballpark figure, but translation is not a one-size-fits all. For me, the price depends on the subject of the translation. Technical, legal, and medical translations generally take longer than a blog about your favourite foods (for example) - so my price can vary quite considerably. 

 

Always insist (politely) on seeing the entire work to be translated before giving your price and turnaround estimate. When it comes to a really long, book length translation, then it is probably better to give a lower per word quote (and lower than the suggested rates below), but again, try and match the per-word quote to the time it is likely to take you.

 

Don't price yourself beyond what the market will take, but don't underestimate either, otherwise you will end up making a loss. You might find this guideline useful:  https://www.translatorscafe.com/cafe/CommunityRates.asp

Remember too the Upwork charges and your possible tax liabilities. 

 

I recently had a potential client who asked me what I would charge for a translation. I looked at the text and  worked out how long it would take me to translate, which was about three hours. He was scandalized, and asked if this is what I charged per word. I told him it was what I charged per hour!

 

For any texts up to 500 words I have a fixed rate. 

 

I hope this helps even if it is a bit complicated. 

 

 

 

  

 

View solution in original post

7 REPLIES 7
PradeepH
Moderator
Moderator

Hello Catalina,

 

You can discuss important details about the project including payments during the interview process when the client responds to your proposal. Also, verify that the client's offer includes all requirements as per your discussion before you accept them.

 

Thank you.

Pradeep H

Upwork


Pradeep H wrote:

Hello Catalina,

 

You can discuss important details about the project including payments during the interview process when the client responds to your proposal. Also, verify that the client's offer includes all requirements as per your discussion before you accept them.

 

Thank you.

Pradeep H


______________________

Pradeep, 

 

This does not answer what the OP asked. 

colettelewis
Community Member


Catalina H wrote:

Hi everyone,

 

I'm a freelance translator that's new to upwork and I was wondering about the hourly rate form of charging in the platform. The norm outside of upwork is to charge per word count (usually around 10 USD cents per word), so my question is, does anyone discuss this with their clients once they land a project, saying that they will be charged per word, do you just charge per hour, or how do you handle this, if at all?


__________________________

Catalina,

 

A per-word translation is fine as a ballpark figure, but translation is not a one-size-fits all. For me, the price depends on the subject of the translation. Technical, legal, and medical translations generally take longer than a blog about your favourite foods (for example) - so my price can vary quite considerably. 

 

Always insist (politely) on seeing the entire work to be translated before giving your price and turnaround estimate. When it comes to a really long, book length translation, then it is probably better to give a lower per word quote (and lower than the suggested rates below), but again, try and match the per-word quote to the time it is likely to take you.

 

Don't price yourself beyond what the market will take, but don't underestimate either, otherwise you will end up making a loss. You might find this guideline useful:  https://www.translatorscafe.com/cafe/CommunityRates.asp

Remember too the Upwork charges and your possible tax liabilities. 

 

I recently had a potential client who asked me what I would charge for a translation. I looked at the text and  worked out how long it would take me to translate, which was about three hours. He was scandalized, and asked if this is what I charged per word. I told him it was what I charged per hour!

 

For any texts up to 500 words I have a fixed rate. 

 

I hope this helps even if it is a bit complicated. 

 

 

 

  

 

YES! Thank you! This is incredibly helpful, clear and to the point, which
is precisely what I needed, and it's not really that complicated. Just have
to put together a spreadsheet of costs and so on depending on project types.

Thanks again so much!


YES! Thank you! This is incredibly helpful, clear and to the point, which is precisely what I needed, and it's not really that complicated. Just have to put together a spreadsheet of costs and so on depending on project types.

 
Thanks again so much!
jr-translation
Community Member


Catalina H wrote:

Hi everyone,

 

I'm a freelance translator that's new to upwork and I was wondering about the hourly rate form of charging in the platform. The norm outside of upwork is to charge per word count (usually around 10 USD cents per word), so my question is, does anyone discuss this with their clients once they land a project, saying that they will be charged per word, do you just charge per hour, or how do you handle this, if at all?


The rate dependy highly on the language combination and qualification you can offer.

 

I usually offer a fixed rate by informing the client about the rates per word. If you know the text beforehand you can easily send a proposal with a fix rate.

Your proposal is there to get your foot into the door and the more information you can provide to the client about your rates etc the wider the door opens.
Try to keep your communication short and professional.

When you are offered a job, check the funded amount in the milestone and only deliver for the amount in escrow, some clients tend to underfund contracts and then disappear.

Thank you so much! This really is incredibly helpful. Especially the tip about the funded amount in escrow. I guess bad clients show up everywhere. I'm making an excell spreadsheet on costs and charges, so I can just refer to that as soon as I see the project.

 
Thanks again! This is awesome.