If you want to translate English to Khmer, and do not know where to start, here is a mini-guide for you. I will discuss three factors that may affect your decision such as cost, quality, and turn-around time.
What is the cost to translate English to Khmer?
In general, direct contact with the translator via Proz.com, Translatorscafe.com or other gig websites will let you save big on the cost. You can find a freelancer to translate for as little as USD0.035 per source word if you have time to go through the quotation and screening process. You can also recruit Khmer translators directly on the local websites such as www.bongthom.com or www.camhr.com if you have a regular volume to translate, and are willing to employ someone as a part-time, short-time, or even full-time independent contractor. Cost-saving will be significant as you would likely pay a monthly wage of USD 500 on average.
If you use an agency to translate your English text into Khmer, you would most likely spend USD 0.1 per English word on average, depending on the agency you are contacting. I have included a few below with verified information for comparing purposes. The cost factor aside, you may still need to consider an agency over a freelancer if you need a project manager to handle your project or if you translate into multiple languages. The agencies would have already vetted their translators’ qualifications and knowledge. You can also pay securely through an agency while arranging a payment to a translator directly can be a bit tricky. Cambodians are not allowed to accept payment via PayPal.
What Quality Assurance Do You Have?
Even if an agency charges you more, the extra cost compromises the effort the agencies put into recruiting only qualified Khmer translators to work with so that the task is delivered in a timely manner. Often the higher costs are for two different translators as part of the quality assurance. One translator will translator while another will edit and proofread. The project manager who supervises the project usually gives a final quality assurance check before the delivery. Here you can see why it costs more to work with an agency. Therefore, you are recommended to use an agency if your translation is for publication or formal purposes.
What Is the Turn-around Time to Translate English to Khmer?
If you find a reliable translator to work with directly, you would normally get a better turn-around time than working with an agency. A freelancer would be able to turn around a translation within 24 hours for a volume of up to 2,000 English source words. If you have a rush project, you may still get a document with a volume of up to 1,000 words translated within a few hours if you manage to find a full-time Khmer freelance translator.
On the other hand, on average, an agency would normally need 1 to 2 business days to translate around anything between 500 and 2,000 words, as they need time to outsource. For larger projects though, the agency has the ability to turn around more quickly than a freelancer since they have the ability to split the project and assign to various translators in a more organized and timely manner.
Note, though, that there is no guarantee a direct translator you work with from a source above is reliable. You may never hear back from him or her at all after assigning the task, even with some established one. In contrast, an agency gives you the guarantee of delivery since they have access to a larger pool of translators and can switch between them quickly if the first assignment encounters any delay issue.
Comparing Providers for English to Khmer Translation:
| Agency vs Freelancer | Freelancer | Local Agency | Global Agency |
| How to Contact | Proz.com Translatorscafe.com Upwork.com | Khmer Translators | Translated.com Onehourtranslation.com Others |
| Cost (Per Word) | USD0.04+ | USD0.05+ | USD0.09+ |
| Quality Assurance | One Translator No Quality Control | Two Translators Quality Control | Two Translators Quality Control |
| Turn-around Time | Estimated 1 Day for 500-1,000 words | Estimated 1 Day for 500-1,000 words | Estimated 1 to 2 Days for 500-1,000 words |