Indicative translation fee
Two-step wizard + tiered word rates + rush slider mirrors agency quotes. Swap SDL memories or MT discounts when you extend this in Calclet.
Example scenario
A product marketing lead scopes 14,500 English source words for UI strings ahead of a multilingual launch, selects the General blended card at $0.11 per word for translation-only services without transcreation, and applies a 1.12 rush multiplier because in-country review must ship inside eight business days versus standard turnaround. The composite lands near $1,786.40 in indicative fees (14,500 × 0.11 × 1.12)—excluding PM minimums, engineering extraction, or LQA passes quoted separately.
Indicative translation fee
Words × blended rate × rush factor
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How to use the indicative translation fee
- In Volume & tier, paste CAT/analyzer source-word counts—exclude 100% TM matches if your vendor bills them at reduced tiers rather than full rate.
- Pick the blended $/word tier matching subject matter risk (general UI versus regulated verticals) using your master services agreement rate card.
- Under Timeline, drag urgency multiplier to reflect expedite bandwidth—mirror studio overtime surcharges instead of guessing.
- Read estimated project fee as ROM localization spend before minimums, desktop publishing, glossaries, or in-country legal review retainers.
Translation quoting norms
- ISO 17100 alignment
- Professional LSP proposals tied to ISO 17100-style workflows separate translation, revision, and project management—this calculator isolates linear word-rate math before those line items.
- Source versus target billing
- English-centric SaaS briefs usually invoice source words; character-based pricing dominates CJK markets—swap denominators before benchmarking rates across locales.
- CAT leverage reality
- Translation memories and MT post-editing reduce payable new words; pure volume × rate overstates net fees unless you net fuzzy-match tiers offline.
Best use cases
- Forecasting and scenario planning
- Client education and pre-qualification
- Budget and performance decision support
FAQs
Should word count be source or target for Romance languages?
Most English-out contracts bill source words because expansion is unpredictable; flip to target billing when your LSP policy or statutory quoting basis mandates it.
Where do translation memory fuzzy bands appear?
Outside this linear model—export CAT statistics and apply ladder discounts per match tier before trusting headline volume × rate.
Does rush multiplier stack with weekend or holiday premiums?
Agencies sometimes compound surcharges; collapse discretionary lifts into one multiplier here or duplicate scenarios when procurement forbids double counting.
Why might Finance reject my ROM total?
Purchase orders often anchor on hourly desktop publishing or multimedia engineering—keep software strings separate from layout-heavy deliverables when budgeting board approvals.
Glossary
Scenario modeling
Testing multiple assumptions to estimate possible outcomes before execution.
Commercial intent
User behavior indicating readiness to buy, subscribe, or request a quote.
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Category: Localization procurementTopics: Per-word translation rates, Rush turnaround surcharge, Source word volume
Last reviewed: 2026-05-07
Reviewed by: Calclet Growth Team