mercredi 17 novembre 2010

How much to charge for translation?

The question of how much to charge for the translation of a substantial scientific paper from French into English arises once more. Some published rates on the internet: 0,10€/word, 0,15-0,25€/word, 0,20€/word, 0,20€/word 0,13-0,19 $ CAD/word (0,09-0,13€/word), 0,10€/word, and so on.

More technical texts command premium rates, and longer texts are cheaper: >10000 words, 5% reduction; >25000 words, 10% reduction. Some translators charge more for technical hassle, seemingly defined as a source file in anything other than Microsoft Word. Many have a minimum charge, with texts of <300 words being charged as 300 words.

All this seems reasonable. I plan to charge 0,10€/word, and seem to work at about 300 - 600 words/hour, yielding a gross hourly rate of 30-60€, which seems reasonable: there are expenses to deduct, taxes to pay, and the possibility that the time required will balloon upwards if the text is tricky.