Rates English-Swedish & German-Swedish for a new translator
Thread poster: Nina Hiltunen
Nina Hiltunen
Nina Hiltunen
Sweden
Local time: 15:14
English to Swedish
+ ...
Feb 4, 2020

Hi there!
I am new in this business and the hardest thing so far is to set my rates. Would you say that the list found here on proz is a good guiding principle worth following? That the minimum rate for Eng-Swe is 0.1 USD and Ger-Swe 0.09 USD. Is there anyone who could advise me as to which rates to set in the beginning? It is very hard when you have no idea about possible incomes compared to the costs of the business either, so it is hard to calculate what would be a good balance.
... See more
Hi there!
I am new in this business and the hardest thing so far is to set my rates. Would you say that the list found here on proz is a good guiding principle worth following? That the minimum rate for Eng-Swe is 0.1 USD and Ger-Swe 0.09 USD. Is there anyone who could advise me as to which rates to set in the beginning? It is very hard when you have no idea about possible incomes compared to the costs of the business either, so it is hard to calculate what would be a good balance.

Thank you for your help, I appreciate it!

Kindly,
Nina
Collapse


 
Jorge Payan
Jorge Payan  Identity Verified
Colombia
Local time: 09:14
Member (2002)
German to Spanish
+ ...
My suggestion Feb 5, 2020

Please refer to: https://www.proz.com/translator-rates-calculator/

 
Agneta Pallinder
Agneta Pallinder  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 14:14
Member (2014)
Swedish to English
+ ...
No beginner's rate Feb 5, 2020

Hello Nina,

I also have Swedish in my language pairs and charge €0.10 per word for translation.
I know of others who charge less, and some who charge more. It is not easy.

But, what I really wanted to stress is that you should not charge less per word because you are a beginner. You will still have to produce quality output - but for you as a beginner it will take longer, so your hourly output will be less.

Looking back I can see that I achieved on
... See more
Hello Nina,

I also have Swedish in my language pairs and charge €0.10 per word for translation.
I know of others who charge less, and some who charge more. It is not easy.

But, what I really wanted to stress is that you should not charge less per word because you are a beginner. You will still have to produce quality output - but for you as a beginner it will take longer, so your hourly output will be less.

Looking back I can see that I achieved on average 250 wph five years ago; now it is more like 350 wph. Average, of course - I can still be caught out by a short text full of pitfalls and achieve less than 200 wph - my mistake, my cost.

Good luck!
Collapse


Joe France
Vera Schoen
Jorge Payan
Mina Chen
 
Sheila Wilson
Sheila Wilson  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 14:14
Member (2007)
English
+ ...
There are only averages, I.e. guides Feb 5, 2020

Nina Hiltunen wrote:
Would you say that the list found here on proz is a good guiding principle worth following? That the minimum rate for Eng-Swe is 0.1 USD and Ger-Swe 0.09 USD.

What that's saying is that, among the translators registered here, most say they expect around €x but will sometimes accept as low as €y. There will be translators who demand far more, and others who accept far less - those are just averages, derived statistically. So use them as a guide, not a rule book. They work for me in my pair.

It is very hard when you have no idea about possible incomes compared to the costs of the business either, so it is hard to calculate what would be a good balance.

The bottom line has to be the amount you earn per hour. Our time (while using our expertise) is what we're really selling. So it's essential to figure out how many words you can handle in an hour - from first read through to delivery). Once you know how much you, personally, need/want to earn per hour, you can calculate your rate per word. Bear in mind two things:
1. Few clients will be happy for you to raise your per word rate, even after a year or so, so that has to be done starting with new clients and leaving the best till last.
2. The client should receive an accurate and polished text from a beginner. It follows that they should pay the "correct" rate from day one. The inexperienced translator will need to spend extra time on research and checks, so your hourly rate will start low and rise as you gain experience and speed, without any per-word rate rise.


Jorge Payan
Mina Chen
 
Nina Hiltunen
Nina Hiltunen
Sweden
Local time: 15:14
English to Swedish
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Hourly rate Feb 6, 2020

Thanks for your answers, it is really helpful!

Regarding other tasks like proofreading and editing for example, many companies ask for an hourly rate. What would be a reasonable hourly rate for those kinds of tasks? Does it depend on the language or is it more or less the same regardless of your language? I've read that proofreading is cheaper than editing, is that true? According to my google findings, around 30 USD/hour seem to be an average rate, but I don't know. What would you
... See more
Thanks for your answers, it is really helpful!

Regarding other tasks like proofreading and editing for example, many companies ask for an hourly rate. What would be a reasonable hourly rate for those kinds of tasks? Does it depend on the language or is it more or less the same regardless of your language? I've read that proofreading is cheaper than editing, is that true? According to my google findings, around 30 USD/hour seem to be an average rate, but I don't know. What would you experts say?

/Nina
Collapse


 
Karin Hallberg
Karin Hallberg  Identity Verified
Sweden
Local time: 15:14
Member (2023)
English to Swedish
How did it go? Sep 25, 2023

Hello Nina,

I’m just starting out as a freelance translator, dealing with exactly the same issues as you describe. And I’m curious to know, how did it turn out? Did you find a way to set reasonable rates!

Kram Karin.


Christopher Schröder
Michele Fauble
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:


You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

Rates English-Swedish & German-Swedish for a new translator







Wordfast Pro
Translation Memory Software for Any Platform

Exclusive discount for ProZ.com users! Save over 13% when purchasing Wordfast Pro through ProZ.com. Wordfast is the world's #1 provider of platform-independent Translation Memory software. Consistently ranked the most user-friendly and highest value

Buy now! »
Trados Business Manager Lite
Create customer quotes and invoices from within Trados Studio

Trados Business Manager Lite helps to simplify and speed up some of the daily tasks, such as invoicing and reporting, associated with running your freelance translation business.

More info »