Price of translation services in different countries

Although there are many free translation tools now (for example, Google Translate), professional translation remains in-demand. Professionals receive a fee for their services, the amount of which varies depending on the country of residence, language of translation and some other factors.

In the CIS countries the price for translation services is calculated on the basis of the volume. The minimum unit of measurement is a translation page (1.8 thousand characters with spaces).

In any other countries, for example, in the United Kingdom and USA, the number of words in the text to be translated is estimated. Translation companies in these states consider this method of calculation to be the most honest, as it takes into account the volume of the text to be translated.

The cost of translation services is influenced by several factors in addition to the volume of documents. The main factor is a language combination. Why are some language combinations considered by translators to be more expensive than others? There are two reasons for it.

Influence of supply and demand

If in the market there is a large number of translators, working within one language combination, and the demand remains low, the cost of services decreases.

China is a good illustration of this situation in the market. In this country a large number of people choose the profession of a translator. They create serious competition in the market and reduce prices for each other’s services.

The opposite state of the market is the growing demand for translations with a lack of translators. In such a case prices for services will increase.

Norway can be an example of such a market situation. This state has a developed market economy, large import and export indicators. Therefore, there is a great demand for translations from a foreign language in the country. And there are few translators from and to Norwegian, not only in the world, but also within the state itself. Thus, the supply is small and the price for translation is increased.

Cost of living in the country

Translators do not exist in a vacuum, but in national labour markets. If the cost of living in a state is high, specialists will demand corresponding payment for their services. To the contrary, if the cost of living in a country is low, translators reduce their rates.

For example, in the above mentioned Norway, the cost of living is about a quarter higher than that in Great Britain. Thus, translators receive higher fees for their work.