Translation Services Market

Translation Services Market Outlook (2024 to 2034)

The global translation services market is estimated to have a value of US$ 42.2 billion in 2024. Worldwide demand for translation services is foreseen to rise at a CAGR of 2.5% and reach a market size of US$ 54.1 billion by the end of 2034.

As geographical boundaries blur, business activities are taking place throughout the world, necessitating the need for effective language translation services. The integration of multimodal and augmented reality (AR) translation and neural machine technologies is emerging as the latest translation services market trends.

Demand for translation services is expected to remain concentrated across East Asia and comprise 23.5% of the global translation services market share by 2034. This is primarily attributed to a flourishing business and trading economy across countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea.

Since the dawn of the 21st century, translation services have emerged as a full-time and lucrative business, providing services in over 200 languages. As more industries make their services available through the internet, demand for web content translation is gaining traction. Enterprises are addressing the rising demand for translation services by deploying highly intricate interpretation software and solutions.

As the global economy becomes increasingly integrated, the need to expand the scope of operations to different countries and continents is rising rapidly. The technological advancements are further aiding enterprises in targeting customers overseas.

A key aspect of cross border communication and business is overcoming language barriers. Hence, corporations are installing advanced translation and interpretation solutions and attempting to connect with stakeholders who are distributed throughout the globe. It is expected that most translation services will be rendered across the developing regions, particularly Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East & Africa.

From IT & telecommunications to healthcare & pharmaceuticals and other heavy industries, the need for deploying translation services is becoming a necessity. Countries such as India, China and Japan are proving to be major powerhouses for translation services, as most business operations are concentrated in these countries.

• The North American translation services market size is calculated at US$ 10.1 billion for 2024.

Report Attributes	Details
Translation Services Market Size (2024E)	US$ 42.2 Billion
Forecasted Market Value (2034F)	US$ 54.1 Billion
Global Market Growth Rate (2024 to 2034)	2.5% CAGR
South Korea Market Value (2034F)	US$ 2.9 Billion
Interpretation Service Demand Growth (2024 to 2034)	3.9% CAGR
Key Companies Profiled	LanguageLine Solutions; TransPerfect; Yamagata Corporation; Lionbridge; Logos Group; SDN; RWS; Lingotek; Welocalize; Semantix

Which Market Trends are Pushing Adoption of Translation Software Solutions?

“Effective Language Services Gaining Momentum with Geographical Expansion Strategies”

Growing need for language services in finance and banking, healthcare, travel and transportation, media and entertainment, and educational fields is set to drive the translation services market growth during the next 10 years. Raw data and information are abundantly available all around us. Understanding this data and gaining useful insight into it is the main goal these days.

Service providers from all industries are utilizing internet security and advanced technologies to translate small bytes into digital signals and humans in a stable format. Thus, the digital world of communication, i.e. the combination of translation service tools, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and big data as a service, acts as a single global system to improve code, text, voice note, and language translation.

“Cloud-based Services Gaining Traction across Several Enterprises”

Profitability and affordability are driving the adoption of cloud technology translation services. Google Cloud Translation and Microsoft Azure Translator are some of the prime providers of cloud-based translation services.

• Google Cloud translation offers an accurate machine translation service using AI and is made for developers and enterprises that need customizable automatic translation services.
• Microsoft Azure translator translates text and documents with a simple REST API call. It is a cloud-based machine translation service.

In the digital world, people are constantly demanding high-quality services. Cloud translation services are emerging as secure and reliable technologies to translate information into readable language for the reader.

“Migration for Jobs and Education Increasing Adoption of Language Translation Software Applications”

Globalization and foreign investment policies are increasing business activities across the globe. The increasing influx of manufacturers and multinational corporations into developing countries is expected to play an important role in driving demand for translation software solutions. Furthermore, growing immigration from one country to another for jobs and education is expected to create lucrative opportunities for translation service providers.

Which Factors are Challenging the Effectiveness of Translation Software Solutions?

“High Data Traffic Leading to Inaccuracies and Quality Concerns”

Rise in the traffic of raw data available on-premise and cloud (offline and online) can hamper the quality of translation services. With rising data traffic, modifications should be made to increase the number of words translated per second, thus bringing the existing algorithms up-to-date with the most recent data. The latest digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and manpower should be more proactive in meeting the growing needs of society to see exponential growth in the coming years.

Start-up Ecosystem

• A Canadian start-up uCareLINGO offers a voice translation app. Founded in 2020 uCareLINGO improves communication between patients and caregivers through its translation software application.
• SLAIT is a United States-based start-up that offers AI-driven sign language translation solution. The company’s solution aids in facilitating communication between deaf and hearing people. The company’s software integrates with any video communication platform.

Comparative View of Related Markets

Translation Software Market:

Attribute	Translation Software Market
Growth Factor	Increasing traffic of raw data available on-premise and on the cloud, combined with rising online video content, set to increase adoption of translation software over the next ten years.
Opportunity	Expanding content marketing trend coupled with introduction of artificial intelligence and machine learning set to generate profitable opportunities for translation software providers.

Online Language Learning Market:

Attribute	Online Language Learning Market
Growth Factor	Expanding travel and tourism industries, combined with rising demand for online courses are acting as drivers for the growth of the global online language learning market.
Opportunity	Increasing emphasis on bilingual and multilingual education driving demand for online language learning services.

Country-wise Analysis

Why are Translation Service Providers Thriving in the United States?

“High Rates of Immigration Driving High Demand for Translation Services in Government Offices”

Attribute	United States
Market Value (2024E)	US$ 4.5 Billion
Growth Rate (2024 to 2034)	3% CAGR
Projected Value (2034F)	US$ 6.1 Billion

The increasing scale of operations of various industries in the United States is driving the adoption of translation services. Prominent end-use industries including BFSI, IT & telecom, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, and government offices are among the primary beneficiaries of translation and interpretation services throughout the United States. A large part of this is attributed to the increasing wave of immigrants looking to settle and establish a promising career for themselves. In the country, some specific companies offer tailor-made translation services.

Which East Asian Country is Lucrative for Translation Service Providers?

“Growing Business Activities in Japan Increasing Need for Reliable Translation Technologies”

Attribute	Japan
Market Value (2024E)	US$ 2.8 Billion
Growth Rate (2024 to 2034)	3.1% CAGR
Projected Value (2034F)	US$ 3.7 Billion

Translation service demand is growing exponentially in East Asia’s rural, urban, and government organizations to maintain customer satisfaction. Many start-ups from East Asia countries such as China, Japan, and South Korea are contributing to overall market growth.

Low-level Japanese enterprises are collaborating with larger enterprises to better understand customer needs and develop new, faster methods to decode problems and provide optimal solutions. Among all countries in East Asia, Japan is emerging as a lucrative market due to the rising start-up ecosystem as well as the availability of a skilled workforce. Across Japan, language translation service providers are collaborating with technology business providers, as well as other enterprises to develop highly robust interpretation software platforms.

Category-wise Analysis

Which Type of Translation Service is Most Widely Demanded?

“Written Translation Services Exhibiting Increasing Demand in Medical Institutions”

Attribute	Written Translation Services
Segment Value (2024E)	US$ 29.6 Billion
Growth Rate (2024 to 2034)	2.1% CAGR
Projected Value (2034F)	US$ 36.2 Billion

Written translation services are estimated to account for 70% of the global market share in 2024 due to an increase in foreign business activities and significant technological advancements such as the introduction of AI, ML, and big data analytics.

Furthermore, as the number of multi-language documents grows, many businesses are hiring translators to expand their client base across multiple countries. Language translation services are also gaining importance in the legal, medical, travel, and tourism industries, contributing to written translation service demand growth.

How is the Market for Legal Application of Translation Services Faring?

“Rising Foreign Investments Driving Need for Legal Translation and Interpretation Services”

Attribute	Legal
Segment Value (2024E)	US$ 12.7 Billion
Growth Rate (2024 to 2034)	1.8% CAGR
Projected Value (2034F)	US$ 15.1 Billion

The increasing immigration trend across the globe is driving the need for translators. This is also increasing the need for legal translators and interpreters as the immigrants don’t know or speak the country’s language. In addition, the legal translator offers interpretation services to their foreign clients via phone or video remote translation and interpretation. They also provide simultaneous, consecutive, and escorted interpretation, which is contributing to the growth of legal translation services.

Competitive Landscape

The market for translation services is massive, with myriad local and global players. Acquisitions, expanding product portfolios and upgrades, contracts, and amalgamation, are among the strategies used by key players in the translation services market to increase their profit shares globally.

• In June 2022, TransPerfect announced that it had joined major law firms in providing pro bono services in support of a mass effort by former Afghan judges to seek asylum in the United Kingdom. TransPerfect Legal Solutions (TLS) provided pro bono language services in Pashto and Dari, for legal documentation necessary for many asylum cases. The campaign is a multi-faceted and multinational team effort that includes lawyers from major international law firms and comes in response to the potential danger posed to these judges following the Taliban assuming control of Afghanistan.
• In January 2021, Semantix along with its partner ES Team was awarded the EU Commission’s call for tender GROW/2020/OP/0002, one of the largest translational contracts across Europe. Through this tender, all EU language translation facilities transforming EU into a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy
• In November 2020, LanguageLine Solutions announced integration with Bluestream Health to enable on-demand, one-touch access to over 13,000 professional, medically trained interpreters in 240+ languages.

Fact.MR provides detailed information about the price points of key providers of translation services positioned across the world, sales growth, production capacity, and speculative technological expansion, in the recently updated market report.

Key Segments of Translation Services Market Research

• By Type:

  • Written Translation Services
  • Interpretation Services
  • Others

• By Application:

  • Legal
  • Financial & Banking
  • Medical
  • Tourism & Travel
  • Others

• By Region:

  • North America
  • Latin America
  • Western Europe
  • Eastern Europe
  • East Asia
  • South Asia & Pacific
  • Middle East & Africa