Order translation or typing: how to get a good price
What you need: written translation, interpreting or typing
Translation services cover several different jobs. Written translation (documents, articles, websites, manuals), interpreting at a meeting or on the phone, and certified translation with an agency or notary stamp. Typing is separate: transcribing audio, or turning a scan or photo into an editable file.
The price depends on the language pair (rare languages cost more), the difficulty of the text (legal or medical is harder than everyday), urgency and volume. So “how much is a page” without details is a question with no answer.
How it works on BlaBlaPrice
You write one request: what to translate, from which language into which, how much, by when. Translators reply in the chat with offers giving a price (per page, characters or hour) or what it depends on. They see where their offer stands among the others and can improve it. Reviews are visible next to each. You give your contacts only to the provider you choose.
What to put in your request
- Type of service — written translation, consecutive or simultaneous interpreting, typing.
- Language pair — for example, from Spanish into English.
- Volume — pages, characters with spaces, number of documents, hours for interpreting.
- Type of text — passport, degree certificate with transcript, legal, medical, technical, marketing.
- Certification — notarised, apostille, agency stamp.
- Deadline — when you need the result.
- Format and city — online or in person (for interpreting).
- Budget — if you want to name one.
Example: “Davao City. I need a written translation of a degree certificate with transcript from English into German, about 10 pages, with notarised certification. I'll send scans online. Needed in 2 days, budget up to ₱3,800.”
How to compare offers
Check the billing unit: a “page” may be 1,800 characters with spaces, or it may be less, so ask them to calculate the total for your text. Ask whether the price includes proofreading by a second person, formatting (so the layout stays close to the original), the deadline and corrections.
It is important that the translator is an expert in your subject. For legal, medical and technical texts, ask about experience and the use of a glossary: names and terms must be the same throughout the text. For a website, check whether they translate only the text or also the meta description and menu.
Common mistakes
- Not saying what the translation is for: submission to an office, advertising or personal reading. The requirements differ.
- Using machine translation without an editor for an important text.
- Not checking names and titles against official documents.
- Asking for “urgent” where a day or two can be given: urgency usually costs more.
If documents go to an office abroad, check the office's requirements for certification, and for meetings and talks you will need an interpreter. For website and app texts, see also website development. More about the service is on the “How it works” page.
