French Translation Rates in Canada

Most translation agencies in Canada will not tell you what they charge until you have filled in a form and taken a sales call. We think that wastes your time. Below are the rates Frenchside applies in 2026, what makes a project cost more or less, and a few worked examples so you can estimate your budget before you contact us.

All prices are in Canadian dollars, per source word unless stated otherwise, and exclude GST and QST. They apply to English to French and French to English. Our translators are certified members of OTTIAQ or ATIO, and Frenchside has been working with Canadian companies, law firms, financial institutions and public bodies since 2013.

Canadian French Translation Rate Table for 2026

Volume discounts start at 25,000 words per project or per quarter. Clients on a monthly retainer receive a fixed per-word rate and priority scheduling.

Why The Range And Not A Single Number

Two documents of 5,000 words can legitimately cost different amounts. Five factors move the price inside the ranges above.

• Subject matter. A shareholder agreement is translated by a legal translator who reads Quebec civil law fluently; an employee newsletter is not. Specialized translators cost more because they are rarer, and because the cost of an error in a contract or a drug label is a different order of magnitude. Our French legal translation, financial translation and medical translation pages describe each practice.
• Repetition. Manuals, catalogues, policies and updated versions of documents we have translated before contain sentences we have already translated. Our translation memory identifies them, and we charge repeated and previously translated segments at a fraction of the full rate, typically 25 to 30 percent. On a technical manual update, this alone can cut the invoice by half.
• File format. A clean Word file is quickest. A scanned PDF, an InDesign package, a spreadsheet of product strings or a website export all require preparation and reassembly, which we bill at the engineering rate. Sending editable source files is the simplest way to lower your cost.
• Turnaround. A certified translator produces around 2,000 to 2,500 words of finished, revised translation per day. Anything faster means a team, an evening or a weekend, and the rush surcharge applies. Deadlines set a week ahead avoid it.
• Certification and formatting. Certified documents are reproduced in the layout of the original, stamped, signed and delivered as PDF and, if required, as hard copy. That handling is part of the per-page price for short documents and appears as a flat fee on long ones. Our certified French translation page explains which authorities accept which type of certification.

How Frenchside Compares

Freelance translators in Canada typically charge between $0.15 and $0.25 per word. Large international agencies quote between $0.28 and $0.45 for the same language pair, with project management and revision built in. Frenchside sits in between, and the difference is in what is included.

Every translation we deliver is produced by one certified translator and revised by a second, which is the standard required by ISO 17100 and by most public sector contracts. The price above includes that second reading, a terminology check against your glossary, formatting, and a project manager who answers within the hour during business hours. It also includes a translation memory built in your name, which you may take with you if you leave. Our methodology and quality process page describes each step.

Since 2013 we have supported more than 1,200 organizations, among them Sun Life, Allianz, the National Film Board of Canada, Dexcom, the Canadian Cancer Society and the City of Montréal. Frenchside is a member of the Canadian Language Industry Association (CLIA) and of the Globalization and Localization Association (GALA). Rates are one part of the choice; the case studies show the other part.

What Is Not On This List, And Why?

We do not publish a per-page rate for general documents, because pages vary from 150 to 700 words and a per-page price hides the real cost. We do not offer a “budget” tier with unrevised translation, because we have seen too often what that produces once it reaches an OQLF inspector or a court. And we do not quote interpretation or transcription on this page: those services are billed by the hour or by audio minute, and are described on our French interpretation and transcription pages.

Budgeting We Are Asked About Pricing