In-House versus Freelance

Translators either work for themselves as freelance translators or in-house as employees of, for instance, a translation agency or software localization firm. The former are typically called freelance translators, or freelancers, and the latter in-house translators. If you are just entering the profession, or if you are considering translation as a career, you have to look closely at these two options to decide which is right for you.

As a freelance translator, you are a business owner. You will take care of marketing, invoicing, accounts payable and receivable, taxes, equipment purchases and maintenance, and so forth. Freelance translators may make more per year on average than in-house translators, but their income is far more variable, and they have to cover all their own expenses, including all taxes, retirement funds, medical and other forms of insurance, and business/operating costs.

As an in-house translator, you work for someone else. You go to your office in the morning, sit in your cubicle during the day translating whatever the company needs, attend meetings to discuss large-scale translation projects, terminology, or equipment, go to training sessions to learn to use the new LAN system or MAT software, and then go home in the evening. Like most jobs, you get paid vacation, insurance, half of your Social Security and FICA taxes paid, and a retirement plan of some sort.

Although the remaining articles will discuss the above differences between freelance and in-house translation in detail, and even offer suggestions as to which people might be suited for, I will say here that often questions of personality and work style are irrelevant. The first and most important question is money. Can you afford to be a freelance translator? To start as a freelance translator, you will need a several thousand dollars to get the computer hardware and software you need, to do some marketing, and to wait out the first few months during which time you will likely have little work, and you will be patiently waiting for that first invoice to be paid. So if you are single with few financial responsibilities, some money saved, and don’t mind a bit of a risk, the answer to the money question is affirmative: you can have a go at freelance translation. If however you are married with a couple of children, have the usual expenses of a mortgage, medical costs, and so forth, then you should think very carefully before starting up as a freelance translator.

There is also a strong argument for getting your feet wet in the industry by working for someone else. You can think of it as paid on-the-job training. You will learn more about translating by translating than by doing anything else. And you will also acquire not only all that secondary know-how, such as word processing, negotiating, or filing tax forms, but also lots of practical knowledge of the industry, such as rates, which language pairs or subject areas are in demand, or what technologies are likely to affect translation in the near future. You might even develop relationships that can be turned into clients for a freelance business. So consider starting off as an in-house translator, especially if you are uncomfortable with the financial aspects of working for yourself, or are uncertain as to how you will feel about working at home alone.