In the translation and localization industry, most cost estimates are based on the word count of the translation material. But do you use source count--the word count of the text to be translated, or the target count--the word count of the translated text. The answer can change the price of your translation project by hundreds or even thousands of Dollars (or Euros, GBP, etc. take your pick). The reason: text expansion. Some languages are more verbose than others. English can grow by 30% or more when translated to Spanish. It can grow by as much as 25% when translated to French or Italian. Hebrew and Arabic can expand as much as 50% (!) when translated to English. So you can see why the question of which word count to use (source or target) can be an expensive choice.
Translators are of course eager to charge by target word count--if they are translating into a language that expands. The translators that translate into a language that shrinks will insist on charging per source word count.
As a client, try to get a source word count quote. Otherwise, you may be in for a nasty surprise when you get the bill for translation services. Many translators and translation agencies will give you a price per target word count. So if, for example, you budget your project at 10,000 words, you may end up paying for 12,000 words, 13,000 words, who knows? Your Purchasing department and your boss may not like it.
At Global Translations, we always provide source word count quotes. That allows you to know from the onset exactly how much you are going to pay. In our experience, that works best for the client.
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