Rates

As you probably already know, there is a wide range of pricing to be found on the translator and interpreter market.

How’d this happen?
Translation and interpretation pricing is subject to multiple factors – the translator’s/interpreter’s education and place of residence, the contracting party, the technical domain, the text complexity, to name just a few.

What’s a fair price?
A price is fair when the service provided delivers the quality needed and meets the client’s expectations and satisfactorily compensates the translator or interpreter for the work performed.

For more information about pricing at Tetrapod Translations please see below.

Every service has a price tag

When you contract an interpreter or translator, you let them talk on your behalf, i.e. they are representing you so that you are actually entrusting them with your reputation. Based on this insight, it is essential that their work be of impeccable quality. If an individual or company offers cheap rates, it is advisable to inquire to find out what service precisely is being offered for the price.

- For example, who will do the translation? Are they a native speaker, a language professional with corresponding training or state certification, or are they just a "recreational translator" convinced they are competent in both languages?

- Is the translation checked or proofread following completion (four-eyes principle)?

- Does the translator work in specific fields of specialization, or do they offer anything and everything?

When you come to us, you can be sure that we work professionally and conscientiously so that your message will reach the target group directly. You can trust us!

Translation

Translation is billed by document line (the equivalent of 55 characters with spaces) and is dependent on the level of difficulty and also the schedule requested. We can also quote a price based on the word count. The source text is always used as the basis for any quote, making it immediately apparent to you what the final price will be. Only in rare cases, such as scanned document translations, is the target text used for the quote.

Note: Editable documents, such as those created in MS Word, can be processed the fastest. But if you have only a PDF file – that’s not a problem. Please just note that the preparation and formatting work incurs additional costs in such cases, which you will also learn about in advance.

There are special lump-sum charges for certified translations, which we will be glad to provide upon request.

A translator can normally translate 4-5 A4 format pages, about 2,000-2,500 words per working day. An extra charge of 30% to 50% applies for rush orders and weekend and holiday orders.

The minimum charge per order is €45 plus legal VAT.

Interpreting

Interpreting is billed based on the level of preparation needed and the actual performance. Any travel and per diem expenses are also billed. An interpretation assignment demands a thorough and often very extensive preparation phase, particularly when no or few documents are available that relate to the event. These factors affect pricing.

The rates for German-Russian-German interpreting services range depending on the mode of interpreting, level of difficulty and occasion. The minimum charge per order is €150 plus legal VAT. In your individual quotation, we will take all of your requests and needs into account.

The following prices per line apply according to the amended (1.1.2021) German Court Payment and Reimbursement Act (JVEG) § 11:

Translation fees

The fee for a translation amounts to 1.80 euros per started line of 55 characters of written text (Basic rate). If the text is not available in the digital form, the fee for translation increases to 1.95 per started line of 55 characters of written text (Raised rate). If the translation is substantially difficult, particularly due to the use of special jargon or lack of legibility of text, the fee is increased to 1.95 euros in the first case, and to 2.10 euros in the second case.