Translation skills are amazing skills to have. You can use them to expand your mind by working with other cultures. If you are a professional translator, then you already know how valuable and versatile your skills are.
Even though you’ve been in the professional translation business for years (or decades!), don’t underestimate the power of new leads. Some of your best future clients are on these websites.
If you are a language buff who’s just starting out, then you’ve also come to the right place. This article is the perfect place to start because it touches on all the best websites to find freelance translation jobs.
Though It usually takes years to build a freelancing translation career, this article will give you a headstart. You can try each of them to start building up a profile and experience.
Let’s get started with some of the best websites built specifically to help freelancers like you find translation jobs.
Best Websites To Find Freelance Translation Jobs
1. Gengo
Gengo is one of the best websites to find freelance translation jobs. It was established in 2008 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.
You don’t require proof of past experience to join Gengo as a translator. You only have to sign up for a free account, pass a two-part test and start working to have money deposited directly into your PayPal or Payoneer account.
Gengo works with over 21,000 certified translators through crowdsourcing where the translators claim jobs on a first come, first served basis.
You can also pass a ‘Pro qualification test’ to gain access to more challenging projects that pay more. This option is great for translators with a lot of professional experience.
There’s a ‘Gengo score’ to track translation quality. The pay is $0.03 for standard translators and $0.08 for translators who have passed the Pro qualification test.
2. BLEND
Formerly known as One Hour Translation and founded in 2008, BLEND is a localization and translation services company. Its headquarters are in Tel Aviv, Israel. The firm was rebranded into BLEND in March 2021, after raising $10M in venture capital funding.
One Hour Translation was one of the first companies to sell translation services online. The rebranding into BLEND reflected its transition from an online translation business into an end-to-end localization platform for global brands.
Translation involves changing text from one language to another while retaining the same meaning. Localization incorporates the translation process while considering the socio-cultural context and going beyond textual translation.
BLEND successfully leveraged One Hour Translation’s 25,000 certified translators and its AI-driven Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology to service the localization needs of brands and organizations worldwide. The company also has voice actors for voice-overs and narration.
All the translators who work at BLEND are certified professionals whose main occupation is translation. It’s therefore not suitable for beginner translators, students, or language enthusiasts.
To join BLEND as a translator, create an account to upload your resume and credentials. Whether or not you will be contacted depends on whether recruitment is on for your language pair. If recruitment is not on, your information will be kept on file in case your language pair is needed in the future.
The amount you can earn on BLEND is highly variable depending on the project. You get paid through Payoneer.
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3. Unbabel
Unbabel is a translation service provider founded in 2013 and based in Lisbon, Portugal. It distinguishes itself from other similar companies by its use of artificial intelligence.
Using innovative AI technology such as Neural Machine Technology (NMT) and machine learning, Unbabel automates a significant part of the translation process. It then works with crowdsourced freelance translators it calls ‘editors’ to refine machine-translated texts.
Fortunately for beginners, you do not have to be a professional translator to join the editor team Unbabel. All you have to be is multilingual.
Simply join their waitlist and complete a preliminary language test. You will then wait for an Unbabel representative to reach out to you to complete a set of training tasks.
These tasks will be evaluated. If you pass the evaluation, then you can begin working as an editor for Unbabel.
Payment rates vary depending on your language pair. You get paid by the hour through PayPal or Payoneer (if PayPal is not available in your country).
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4. ProZ
Founded in 1999, ProZ is a veteran of the online translation industry and probably the best website to find freelance translation jobs. It’s a membership-based website that acts as a marketplace for translators and translation agencies to sell their services.
It’s very easy to become a member of ProZ. Registration is free and no credentials are required.
It’s therefore the perfect place to start if you are a beginner translator. You can use ProZ to build up your profile in the language services industry because of the many serious outsourcers on the website looking for good translators, sometimes for long-term freelance work.
ProZ is a great place to find work because it’s been around for so long and has strong name recognition in the language services industry. Its website receives a whopping four million visits a month!
As a translator, you post your profile, and customers also sign up to post your jobs. Then you can get connected.
Once you’ve joined ProZ, you can begin to make use of some of its features to build the kind of profile that will attract the kind of jobs that you want. For example, there are discussion forums where you can build up your profile, as well as online and offline events for networking.
On ProZ, you can get paid through ProZ*Pay. Their unique payment method works to streamline the payment process for both freelance translators and the companies that pay them.
Payment rates on ProZ vary. Here is a helpful guide to the average rates on ProZ to give you an idea of what to expect.
Additionally, ProZ offers paid membership options for both translators and translation companies. A standard membership goes for about $120 a year and a Plus membership for about $180 a year.
You may consider these options because they offer benefits that help you take the next step in your freelance translation career. They are particularly great for professional translators who would like to source great long-term clients.
One key benefit of the paid membership options is direct, commission-free access for both translators and translation companies. This means that if you meet a client you like, you can maintain your working relationship with each other forever without having to pay a commission to ProZ.
Many other amazing benefits come with paid membership options. Otherwise, the free version works just fine, especially if you’re just dipping your toes in the water.
5. Translate.com
Translate.com was founded in 2011 by an internet and media company known as Emerge Media. It uniquely uses both human translators and artificial intelligence to offer a quick and efficient translation service.
Translation with Translate.com works in three steps. First, the platform’s software produces an automatic machine translation.
The next step is where you come in. Native human translators like you edit the machine translations, after which qualified professional editors review the document for a final quality check.
Translate.com is very easy to join; it’s as simple as creating an account and following a few simple steps. The process can take as little as 10 minutes depending on your skills.
Once you pass Translate.com’s internal exams for your selected language pair, you only have to fill in your payment details and tax information. You can begin working immediately.
If you do your translating job well and maintain high-quality work for a set amount of time, you can get promoted to an editor position. This will come with higher pay.
You only have to be multilingual to work with Translate.com. You do not need any professional translation qualifications, making it the perfect place for beginner translators or language buffs to earn some extra money.
However, Translator.com encourages certified translators to join its platform. Upload your translation certificate or diploma to get clearance as a certified translator after you create a free account.
You stand to benefit from higher translation rates as well as access to more jobs. Certified translators earn an extra $5 per order.
Translate.com’s refreshing transparency with both its clients and freelance translators makes it stand out from the pack. For example, Translate.com is very clear about work processes, payment rates, and the language pairs that are in high demand.
Depending on language pairs and your role as either a post-machine translator or an editor, you can earn anything between $2 to $500 per order. Once your earnings reach $20, your payment will be easily deposited directly to your PayPal, Wise, Revolut, Payoneer, Paxum, or Adv Cash account.
It works on a first-come, first-served basis, meaning that you don’t have to bid or wait for work. Translate.com also has iOS and Android apps that allow you to work from anywhere at any time.
The language pairs that are currently in high demand among Translate.com’s clients include English to Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Dutch, Danish, Korean, Malay, Bulgarian, and Thai. Others in high demand are German to Spanish and French to British English.
Language pairs that are in higher-than-average demand are English to Romanian and Polish, as well as Polish to English. Check out Translate.com’s website to see if these change.
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6. Tethras
Tethras is a localization platform that serves mobile app developers. It helps them make their mobile apps available to people from all over the world in their native languages.
As mentioned above, translation involves changing text from one language to another while retaining the same meaning. On the other hand, localization incorporates the translation process while considering the socio-cultural context and going beyond textual translation.
Tetras streamlines the localization process for mobile app developers. Their project managers work with translators like you to complete localization.
Tetras describes itself as both an app localization company and a translation management platform. The collaboration between their professional project managers and you, the translator, is therefore central to their work process.
Tetras has team collaboration features to help with this flow. One cool team collaboration feature is the discussion system which lets the project managers and translators communicate with the client.
Tetras’ process is extremely efficient. It produces high-quality translations through an integrated workflow.
To live up to its own standards, it goes without saying that Tetras needs the best translators. Here’s where you come in.
It already has more than 1,300 translators working on more than 40 languages, with room for translators. When you sign up, you will be prompted to take a test.
If you get a good grade on the test, you can begin working to get some extra cash. You will get paid through PayPal.
Working with Tetras will allow you to gain valuable experience as a mobile app translation specialist. You will work on all sorts of materials such as marketing text and keywords, websites, subtitles and voiceovers, and marketing materials and images.
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7. TextMaster
TextMaster was founded in 2011 as one of the first translation solutions available entirely online. It was created by eFounders, a Europe-based studio.
Most of TextMaster’s freelance contractors and clients are located in Europe, but you don’t have to be in Europe to work for it because TextMaster operates remotely. In addition to freelance translation jobs, there are full-time openings for translation project managers you can consider, depending on which country you are based in.
TextMaster is a multifaceted company that provides translation, content writing, and proofreading services. Although this article is about translation jobs, you might want to consider TextMaster if you also have content writing and proofreading skills.
TextMaster emphasizes the quality of its final products with an average turnaround time of 24 hours. It achieves this standard through its team of project managers that oversee the translation projects from start to finish.
The quality of its products is so good that TextMaster received the ISO 9001:2015 standard for its strong quality management system (QMS). To ensure that this standard is met, the company has very strict recruitment, selection, and segmentation practices.
In fact, only 25% of applicants pass through this selection process successfully! Let’s see if you have what it takes.
Although TextMaster welcomes professional translators with domain-specific knowledge, you don’t have to have professional qualifications to begin working with them. If you are a semi-professional translator, a language buff, or natively multilingual, then you are welcome to apply.
To try out TextMaster, simply register and set up a profile. Complete a screening test in your languages and areas of expertise.
If you do get to work with TextMaster, you will get to use cutting-edge technologies such as translation memory software, interactive glossaries, and cloud backup. These technologies also work to ensure TextMaster’s standards are met.
Pay begins at $0.04 per word though there is a lot of potential for it to go much higher depending on your skills and experience. You get paid via PayPal or Payoneer.
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8. Semantix
Founded in 1969, Semantix is a veteran of the translation industry. It would be impossible to make a list of the best websites to find freelance translation jobs and not include the Stockholm-based company.
Semantix maintains a network of thousands of language specialists around the world. It mainly operates in the Nordic countries of Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland, and is the Nordics’ largest provider of translation services.
In 2021, it was acquired by New York-based TransPerfect, one of the world’s largest language service providers. Semantix retained most of its original workforce and work processes while acting as TransPerfect’s Nordic arm.
Semantix has a rather strict hiring process. Unfortunately, you may not qualify if you have no formal qualifications or if you are just starting out in your freelance translation career.
You need to have either formal qualifications or years of experience. You specifically need translation education qualifications, or other post-secondary qualifications and two years of documented translation experience, or five years of translation experience.
Semantix also prefers that you be based in the country where your target language is spoken. During selection, it will also prioritize translators who know how to use translation CAT software such as Memsource.
The recruitment process can take anywhere from one to four weeks. It’s unclear how much Semantix pays, though the pay is guaranteed to be higher than average because it’s such an established company.
Its stringent requirements also mean that it attracts top talent that it probably pays top dollar for.
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9. Stepes
Stepes is an online translation and localization company that works in over 100 languages. The company is headquartered in San Francisco with offices in 14 other locations around the world.
Stepes was founded in 2015. It introduced into the market an innovative chat-based mobile translation technology. Basically, it works like Google Translate, except it’s entirely human-powered.
Here is where you come in. It’s very easy to sign up.
After signing up and getting approved by Stepes’ senior linguists, you can begin working on translations immediately. You can work on your translations on the go from your smartphone.
Customer ratings are very important. The higher your ratings, the more jobs you will be able to access in the future.
You get paid per word, starting from five cents per word up to 14 cents per word. The exact payment will depend on your target language and subject expertise.
You will receive payment via PayPal or Stripe.
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10. Linguistic Systems, Inc.
Founded in 1967, Linguistic Systems, Inc. is a behemoth of the language services industry. It currently offers translation services for more than 115 languages.
To work with Linguistic Systems, Inc., you are required to be a professional translator with two years of experience, a bachelor’s degree, and familiarity with translation software tools. You should also have knowledge in one professional field like science, medicine, insurance, law, information technology, et cetera.
To apply, email your resume or CV to vendor@linguist.com. You can work from anywhere in the world, but if you live in the U.S. you will need a valid work permit.
Linguistic Systems, Inc. looks for experienced translators and promises to pay them well and promptly. The company guarantees that its translators will have a lot of work available, but it also grants them flexibility.
If you meet the requirements, then don’t pass up the chance to apply to work as a freelance translator with Linguistic Systems, Inc. They are the perfect platform for the right freelance translator.
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Other Sources
Some other good websites to find freelance translation jobs include The Open Mic, Languages Unlimited LLC, and USA Translations.
Websites that have been around for a long while and struggle with rather clunky interfaces, but still contain valuable clients, are TranslatorsCafe, TranslationDirectory, and TranslatorsBase.
There are generally two kinds of websites where you can find freelance translation jobs. Most freelance translation jobs are found either on online agencies that are dedicated solely to translation or on general freelancing sites where all kinds of freelance services are bought and sold.
We’ve already covered the online agencies that are dedicated solely to freelance translators. However, a good number of great clients could be found on some general freelancing sites.
As you hunt for freelance translation jobs, don’t forget to check them out. They are Upwork, Fiverr, Freelancer.com, PeoplePerHour, Guru, and many more.
Finally, do not forget the third option for finding freelance translation jobs: your own website! Maintain your own website to have control over your branding and profile.
Use your website as a launchpad to pitch directly to clients who might need your translation services. Over time, you may even begin to receive direct requests for work and collaboration through your website.
Final Words
A good way to get freelance translation jobs is through a mix of two or three kinds of websites: online translation agency websites, general freelancing websites, and your personal website.
You can decide how to use these websites in a way that works for your particular skills and goals.
Over time, an approach unique to you will develop. Good luck!
