Interpreting rates -- determining factors? Thread poster: Henry Dotterer
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Hi all. Remote interpreting work has picked up over the last few years, as a proportion of work being handled by ProZ.com members. We are going to be updating profiles and taking some other steps to best serve our members. In order that we might do that on an informed basis, I'd like to ask those who are doing remote interpreting to share what factors affect the way you price.
Do you charge more for certain types of work, and less for others? We know that there are modes, modalities... See more Hi all. Remote interpreting work has picked up over the last few years, as a proportion of work being handled by ProZ.com members. We are going to be updating profiles and taking some other steps to best serve our members. In order that we might do that on an informed basis, I'd like to ask those who are doing remote interpreting to share what factors affect the way you price.
Do you charge more for certain types of work, and less for others? We know that there are modes, modalities, areas of specialization, times of day, whether the calls are scheduled or unscheduled, languages, and perhaps other factors that can affect fees.
(Building on that a bit, or to trigger further thoughts, perhaps you have had the experience of agreeing to a given rate, and then, after doing the job once or a few times, thought to yourself either that the rate is too low, or that you would perhaps be willing to do it even if the rate were lower. What factors move it in one direction or the other?) ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lingua 5B 
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 12:42
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
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| Per minute rates | Apr 19, 2023 |
I categorically turn down the per minute rates. I did consider remote interpreting, but the rates were unbelievably low, so I never did it.
I would accept only half day (4 hour minimums). The reason being that even for 1/2 or 1 hour project you need to come prepared, induced with topics and terminology, test your equipment, etc., and need to spend the time on it in advance. In any case, including preparation and blocking your day for it, you’ll certainly dedicate more than 1 hour ... See more I categorically turn down the per minute rates. I did consider remote interpreting, but the rates were unbelievably low, so I never did it.
I would accept only half day (4 hour minimums). The reason being that even for 1/2 or 1 hour project you need to come prepared, induced with topics and terminology, test your equipment, etc., and need to spend the time on it in advance. In any case, including preparation and blocking your day for it, you’ll certainly dedicate more than 1 hour to it.
However, most of these projects are based on per minute rates, no minimums, no cancelation fees, etc. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Thanks, Lingua 5B! | Apr 19, 2023 |
This is the sort of feedback we are looking for and that is helpful.
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Some assignments - like police interviews interpretation -, based on my experience, tend to be more on the unscheduled side by nature, and I don’t increase my rates for them.
On the other hand, again based on my experience, there is no preparation required - you couldn’t prepare or study if you wanted to - so, except for setting up your equipment, you literally just show up and see what happens.
I charge per hour and per minute too, although with a 30-min minimum rate.
... See more Some assignments - like police interviews interpretation -, based on my experience, tend to be more on the unscheduled side by nature, and I don’t increase my rates for them.
On the other hand, again based on my experience, there is no preparation required - you couldn’t prepare or study if you wanted to - so, except for setting up your equipment, you literally just show up and see what happens.
I charge per hour and per minute too, although with a 30-min minimum rate.
It is the same as translations: sometimes it is a short translation, but that might be what makes you connect with a new client, and maybe next time they will offer you a bigger or better job.
I am open to accepting a slightly lower rate if it is a good or long-time client with an occasional lower budget, or if it is a job I am particularly interested in.
I might increase my rate for a highly technical assignment or for a call during what on this forum are called “ungodly hours” 
I would appreciate updates and new functions regarding remote interpreting very much!
Kind regards,
Maria
[Modificato alle 2023-04-20 17:46 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| Thanks, Maria! | Apr 20, 2023 |
Thanks for the useful feedback!
It may be off-topic for this thread, but you say you would appreciate updates and new functions regarding remote interpreting. This made me curious. Is this your main thing? Or is it an area that you want to do more in?
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it is an area I would like to do more in, potentially turning it into my main thing.
| | | | IrinaN
United States
Local time: 05:42
English to Russian
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For one, per minute pay and pay for pre-scheduled conferences/meetings are two different species and the pricing is very different.
1. Per minute rate applicable to "service and support interpretation", so to speak, that involves police, immigration, grandmas lost in insurance bills and bank statements etc, and performed on demand without pre-set time and subject is set by the client and our freedom here pretty much ends in "take it or leave it". Negotiations are not prohibited:-) b... See more For one, per minute pay and pay for pre-scheduled conferences/meetings are two different species and the pricing is very different.
1. Per minute rate applicable to "service and support interpretation", so to speak, that involves police, immigration, grandmas lost in insurance bills and bank statements etc, and performed on demand without pre-set time and subject is set by the client and our freedom here pretty much ends in "take it or leave it". Negotiations are not prohibited:-) but any cent you may want to negotiate better be negotiated from the start. As a minimum, this is not our market today. Supply of candidates is absolutely overwhelming. Never mind that some can hardly speak either language of the pair.
2. Remote conferences should be done at our regular rates. I personally would agree to something I never agree for in-person gigs - half a day or even 2 hours since there will be no dressing up and commuting involved. For simo, it should be a 2-hr minimum pay of $200, for serious conferences at least a couple of prep hours should be added. Same principle for consecutive - your usual rates with a partner, or a 25% higher rate if the pace of the meeting and the subject make you feel OK working alone with proper breaks, and some prep time.
3. Signing up to per minute rate for conferences should be regarded as criminal behavior (I would love to add an adjective referring to the mental state of the signatory but that just won't be nice, would it? ) and should not be practiced or even discussed. In fact, where I come from as an interpreter, I've never even heard of such arrangements. Any client proposing this joke will be laughed out of state by any of my colleagues. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Thanks, IrinaN! | Apr 25, 2023 |
Very helpful!
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I usually work for companies that pay rather normally. It is the same as in presence interpretation rates seeing that the work, preparation and concentration are identical. So far, no client has objected.
| | | | Liviu-Lee Roth
United States
Local time: 06:42
Romanian to English
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Lingua 5B wrote:
I categorically turn down the per minute rates. I did consider remote interpreting, but the rates were unbelievably low, so I never did it.
I would accept only half day (4 hour minimums). The reason being that even for 1/2 or 1 hour project you need to come prepared, induced with topics and terminology, test your equipment, etc., and need to spend the time on it in advance. In any case, including preparation and blocking your day for it, you’ll certainly dedicate more than 1 hour to it.
However, most of these projects are based on per minute rates, no minimums, no cancelation fees, etc.
I am getting paid by the minute ($1.00/min) and I do only immigration and criminal court hearings. It is not boring, the narrative is almost the same and you do it from the comfort of your room.
In my language pair, we are at the opposite spectrum; too few interpreters for the huge demand. Cases have been continued because there was no interpreter available. In one instance, a federal court in California was willing to fly me from the East-Coast to LA to interpret for them in a criminal case.
In my case, no need to waste time to prepare, and, yes, they pay for late cancellation (less than 24 hrs.), there is a minimum of one or two hours- depending on the court.
Lee
| | | | Adieu
Ukrainian to English
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2 hour minimum, late cancel fee 100%, some kind of excessive long travel compensation for mileage or time, and a single 2 hour gig should exceed average local menial job wages for a full 8-hour day.
Surcharge for simultaneous just because it is expected, although in all honesty I find it easier and would rather charge extra for consecutive. Oh well, tradition is tradition.
Remote? Sure, very cool and I happen to have nice equipment for that. But no discounts so they don... See more 2 hour minimum, late cancel fee 100%, some kind of excessive long travel compensation for mileage or time, and a single 2 hour gig should exceed average local menial job wages for a full 8-hour day.
Surcharge for simultaneous just because it is expected, although in all honesty I find it easier and would rather charge extra for consecutive. Oh well, tradition is tradition.
Remote? Sure, very cool and I happen to have nice equipment for that. But no discounts so they don't get any ideas.
Minute pay? NO. See: 2 hour minimum.
[Edited at 2023-11-05 04:29 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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