Best Localization Experts

What a good localization project includes

Localization gigs are priced by word count, languages and testing. Check that the project states:

• Languages and regional variants.
• Content: which screens, pages or files.
• File formats you will send and receive.
• Glossary and style guide.
• Cultural review of images, examples and names.
• In-context testing.
• Updates: how new text is handled later.

Ask whether translators are native speakers of the target language and familiar with your type of product. Game, legal, medical and software text each have their own conventions that general translators may not know.

Ask about quality checks. Good localization projects include a second linguist who reviews the translation, plus a check of numbers, formats and terminology. For important launches, a review step catches errors that would otherwise reach thousands of users at once.

How to prepare for localization

1. Exported text in a consistent format.
2. Screenshots or access to a test build.
3. Character limits for buttons and labels.
4. Glossary of product terms.
5. Target markets and audience.
6. Formats: dates, currencies, units and addresses.

Prepare your product for localization before translating. Avoid text inside images, allow layouts to grow for longer languages, and keep all text in separate files. A developer can check this, and it saves costly fixes later.

Plan for updates. Every new feature brings new text. Agree on how updates will be sent, translated and tested, so localized versions do not fall behind.

What drives the price

• word count and number of languages
• technical or specialized content
• glossary and style guide creation
• cultural review and image changes
• in-context testing
• ongoing updates

Start with a small set of screens or pages in one language to test the process before scaling up to many languages.

Red flags

• Machine translation delivered without review.
• No questions about context or screenshots.
• No testing in the actual product.
• Non-native translators for the target language.
• Broken layouts or missing characters in samples.

Ask a native speaker in the target market to try the localized product. Real users notice awkward phrasing and cultural mismatches that a checklist may miss.

For standard documents, see our translation guide. For app text in your own language, read our UX writing guide, and for app store listings our app marketing guide.

Think about support and marketing too. Users in a new market will write to you in their language and search for your product in their own words. Plan who will answer support messages and how app store listings, emails and help pages will be localized alongside the product.

Quick pre-order checklist

• My text is exported with screenshots and character limits.
• Translators are native speakers familiar with my product type.
• A glossary and style guide are agreed.
• The localized product will be tested in context.
• I have a plan for future updates.