Most businesses have clients, contractors or offices in countries that don\u2019t speak English as a first language. Even if you don\u2019t, you\u2019re going to need to translate a document sooner or later. Unless you happen to be a linguist, when that day comes you\u2019ll probably reach for an online translation service. But there is more than one. Google Translate doesn\u2019t always do a perfect or even a comprehensible job. Here are five alternatives that offer serious competition.<\/p>\n
Google Translate has one major factor going for it – apart from the brand recognition that comes with that Google name. It\u2019s free. Not all the alternatives are, but if you\u2019re looking for a quality translation for professional purposes these are all a lot cheaper than hiring a translator!<\/p>\n
UnBabel<\/p>\n
UnBabel is free for the first 150 words. You insert your text into a field and select your target language. It uses similar machine learning technology to Google Translate but then sends the finished translation to a human translator to be proofed and corrected. If you want credible communication with non-English speakers, consider UnBabel. Of the options it\u2019s probably the fastest and most efficient. However, it\u2019s not the most in-depth.
\nPrice: $0.03 per word<\/p>\n
Gengo<\/p>\n
Much like UnBabel, Gengo lets you insert text and then select your target language. It comes with the advantage that you can simultaneously translate text to multiple languages and has a very wide range of languages, though this drives the cost up fast. It also helps you select an appropriate tone, helpfully based on where you intend to publish the result. It\u2019s more comprehensive than UnBabel; it\u2019s also more expensive.
\nPrice: $0.12 per word<\/p>\n
Duolingo<\/p>\n
Most of us know Duolingo as a language learning site. But it also offers translation services. You can have a document \u2018crowd translated. It\u2019s free for individuals, but businesses should email for a quote.
\nPrice: email for by-the-job quote<\/p>\n
\/r\/Translator<\/p>\n
Yes, it\u2019s a subreddit. Users will sometimes translate individual words or short pieces of text for free, and you can negotiate prices with individuals for larger pieces. Consider \/r\/forhire too, if this route interests you: you can find freelance translators who will quote you for your text.
\nPrice: variable<\/p>\n
Translate.com<\/p>\n
Translate.com offers both machine translation and human translation. It\u2019s free, but sometimes you don\u2019t get what you don\u2019t pay for: there\u2019s no guarantee that a human translator will see your text. If they don\u2019t you\u2019re no better off than if you\u2019d used Google Translate.
\nPrice: free<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Most businesses have clients, contractors or offices in countries that don\u2019t speak English as a first language. Even if you don\u2019t, you\u2019re going to need to translate a document sooner…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-business-technology"],"yoast_head":"\n