What are the best document translation services in NYC, and how reliable are they?
At Languagers, we are New York’s go-to translation experts when it comes to translation of everything from legal documents to sensitive medical documents. However, we also know that sometimes, you might just need a few lines of an email or a short personal correspondence translating.
As it stands, when short personal documents need translating, people often turn to free document translation services like Google Translate. The only question is, which offer the best level of accuracy?
Free vs Paid Document Translation Services in NYC
Before we dive into our rundown of the best free document translation services currently available, it is important to note that free services should never be used to translate sensitive business documents.
Online tools like Google Translate can translate short snippets of text with a high degree of accuracy. However, Google Translate cannot be used to accurately translate longer, business, or industry-specific documents. For this, you will need to hire a manual translator through an agency like ourselves at Langaugers.
Google Translate & Google Document Translate
Google Translate needs no introduction as one of the world’s favorite free document translation services. However, what you might not know, is that Google Docs also has its own in-built document translator.
If you use Google Docs as your daily driver for word processing, you can click on the Tools menu tab at any time, and translate documents easily by selecting ‘translate document.’ As a bonus, it is possible to upload MS Word and other documents to Google Drive and translate these too after opening them in Google Docs.
All that it is important to remember, is that Google will struggle to translate complex technical language and business-specific terminology.
Use Microsoft Word to Translate Documents
Google Translate usually hogs the consumer spotlight when it comes to free document translation services. However, what you might not know is that Microsoft has a just as capable translate function in-built into the latest versions of Microsoft Office 365.
To translate text in a document in Microsoft Word, highlight the text in question, then click ‘review.’ Next, select ‘language,’ then click ‘translate.’
Like Google Translate, Microsoft Word translates short, informal pieces of text with a reasonable level of accuracy. However. Using Microsoft’s translate feature is not recommended for sensitive or mission-critical business documents.
Online Doc Translator
Do you need to translate a longer document, but don’t use Google Docs or MS Office 365? If so, it is possible to upload documents manually to Online Doc Translator. This is a free document service that translates whole documents. However, it is powered exclusively by Google Translate.
Being powered by Google Translate means that Online Doc Translator can only ever translate documents as accurately as Google Translate itself. This being the case, it is important not to rely on Online Doc Translator when translating anything more than non-business critical documents or communications.
Free vs Paid Document Translation Services in NYC
As we have hopefully made clear, while free document translation tools are great for casual use, using an algorithm to translate important business documents can spell disaster.
If you have written a novel, research paper, academic article, or need a business document translated, free document translation services will often make documents unreadable. This is why for important documents, it always pays to hire a human translator.
Do you need a document in New York translated quickly and to the highest possible level of accuracy? If so make sure to contact Languagers today by clicking here.