Korean Translation Rates & Pricing

You’ll always pay a fair price with my transparent rates on Korean translation.

I usually provide a fixed quote on first-time projects requests.

However, the following standard rate ranges are the starting point for my Korean translation and related services when a client specifically requests a more direct link between value and cost.

Korean-to-English
Premium translation: US$0.12–0.19/Korean character
Budget translation: US$0.10–0.12/Korean character
Revision: US$0.03–0.07/Korean character

English-to-Korean
Premium translation: US$0.22–0.36/English word

Other
Miscellaneous language services: US$65–130/hour

Minimum charge: US$45–125

The lower values above reflect retainer, monthly, and large-job billing, while the higher rates apply to small, one-time projects, and projects with particularly difficult requirements.

I offer pricing in other currencies and billing units, and additional factors may influence actual project pricing as well.

“After searching for a translation company, I came across [Steven Bammel] and Korean Consulting & Translation Service, Inc. and could not be happier. The prices are the most reasonable I have found and the turnaround time is the fastest I’ve ever seen… They are honest, fast and reasonable.”

Fernando Orozco, Production Manager, Bradley Nameplate Corp. (Custom Label Manufacturer – Fremont, CA)

How I provide transparent, client-focused pricing

If you contact me for a quote on your work, I will provide you with pricing that matches your needs and preferences. If you want a fixed quote up front, I can provide that, and will do so based on an appropriate unit of measure. I may also let you know if I’ve factored in discounts or premiums. I can price projects and receive payment in several currencies, too.

Flat 15% discount on retainer, monthly billing, and large-job billing

In the pricing listed above (except for the hourly rate; see below for explanation), my base rate is approximately at the mid-point of the range shown. If you come to me for a small, one-time job (or a series of such jobs), I’ll use the base rate; if the job is particularly difficult, I will quote closer to the high end of the range.

However, I also offer three approaches to help you get your costs down, as well.

  1. Retainer billing – If you expect to have additional work later, but your current project is not very large, you can secure the 15% discount with a $1,000 retainer. The retainer is valid for one full year; and if the work you expected doesn’t materialize, I will refund the balance to you at anytime after deducting the non-discounted rate for work performed.
  2. Monthly billing – For clients eligible for credit, I can bill at the end of each month for work performed during that month. If the work volume exceeds $1,000, I will discount the entire month’s charges by 15%.
  3. Large-job billing – If a single project is more than $1,000, I will apply a flat 15% discount.

The 15% discount effectively gives you $1,000 of work for just $850. If you somehow provide me with more than $850 of work, but not quite $1000, I will still bill you only $850.

Currencies

I can bill in USD, EUR, GBP, and KRW, depending on which currency is most convenient for you. I will do so at the exchange rate current on the date of your project quote.

Billing units

While I generally provide a fixed quote in advance or bill on a per-English-word or hourly basis, I can also bill on a per-page or per-source-character basis.

Minimum charges

The minimum charge is the amount I bill on a single workflow, regardless of word count or other effort. In principle, I would bill the full minimum charge even on a very small task, such as translation of a few words. However, in practice, I try to be flexible. I am more flexible with regular clients than with one-time web inquiries.

Other rate factors

  • Size of the project. Large jobs benefit from volume discounts. As explained above, I take 15% off the base rate for all projects over $1,000.
  • Translation direction. Translating to English to Korean is generally a bit less expensive than from Korean to English. However, I make up for this by adding a best-practice translation-revision-QA workflow to our English to Korean translation work, and this ensure that our base rates for premium translation remain approximately the same.
  • Type of content. Some subjects are harder to translate than others. Difficulty depends not only on terminology, but also on the level and complexity of writing. For example, survey responses are much easier and quicker to work through than court judgments on intellectual property litigation. These factors can impact the price by up to 30-50%.
  • Workflow. Do you need my best English-to-Korean translation or Korean-to-English translation work? Or can you settle for a budget translation workflow?
  • Internal repetition and ongoing work. Depending on the format of the source files, I may be able to leverage internal repetition—or even similar content from previous jobs—to reduce your costs.
  • Timetable. Urgent schedules sometimes warrant rush charges.
  • Condition of the original. If the source document is not provided to me in a so-called “clean, editable” format, I will spend longer translating and formatting it, and thus, will have to charge more. I currently add about US$0.02/word to the price for translating scanned PDFs and other documents that require an ordinary additional effort.
  • Publish-ready formatting and/or typesetting requirements. Working in certain desktop publishing packages necessitates the expert assistance of a graphics designer specializing in Asian languages, which also adds to the steps in the workflow and the overall cost.
  • Location and scheduling of work performance. I charge more for on-site work and scheduled tasks than for tasks I can do from my office on my own time.
  • Nature of hourly work – I charge a lower hourly rate on jobs linked to a per-word-billed translation project. This is a subsidized rate that supports my core translation service; it is not high enough on its own to justify the work independently. Therefore, projects that are only hourly based (not linked to a translation project) have to stand on their own, and I charge a bit more for these. This is why the rate range posted above for the hourly work is larger than the rate range for the other services.
  • Security requirements – I offer several data security options. Without specific instructions from you (or requirements described in a signed NDA), I will follow my standard security approach. Additional security requirements, these may impact the rate.
  • Revision – The actual effort for a revision project can vary dramatically based on the quality of the original translation and the client’s desired final project. The rate range cited above is an average, but the actual rate will be based on an edit-distance concept for revision that may actually be somewhat lower or higher than this range. In extreme cases, a translation may not be efficiently revisable and may have to be redone from scratch.

Payment terms

If you are a company registered with Dun & Bradstreet, my standard terms are net 30 days with a company purchase order.

If you are not registered with Dun & Bradstreet, I will ask you to pay the full amount in advance for small jobs, and a sizable deposit for larger ones.

Payment methods

I accept payments by wire transfer (accounts in the US, UK, Europe, and Korea), direct debit (US), paper check (US), PayPal/credit card (worldwide)