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Role hub · Interpreters and Translators

Translator: what the job is, what it pays, and how to get hired.

The work, the skills that matter, the tools in demand and the pay range, from U.S. government data, plus every TryHired page for the role.

Maid DizdarevicCareer coach · 8x LinkedIn Top Voice
Updated Nov 2, 2026 · Data: BLS OEWS May 2025 · O*NET 31.0
Pay ladder · select a percentile
Median percentile pay

Half of translators earn more than this and half earn less.

Annual
$60,170
Hourly
$28.93
Source
BLS May 2025
Quick answer

Translators interpret oral or sign language, or translate written text from one language into another. The median pay is $60,170 a year ($28.93 an hour) (BLS, May 2025). The most commonly reported education requirement is a bachelor's degree (55% of workers surveyed by O*NET).

Median pay
$60,170
BLS May 2025
Employed in the U.S.
52,060
BLS May 2025
Preparation
Job Zone 4 of 5
considerable preparation
Most common education
Bachelor's Degree
55% of workers

Data Government data groups this job as Interpreters and Translators (O*NET-SOC 27-3091.00). Figures on this page are for that occupation.

Key facts

Translators at a glance

  • Interpreters and translators in the United States earned a median annual wage of $60,170 in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

  • In its 2025–35 employment projections, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for interpreters and translators in the United States.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS projects employment of interpreters and translators in the United States to grow 2.0% from 2025 to 2035, with about 6,000 openings a year on average, including replacement openings.

    Source: BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35

  • BLS estimated that 52,060 people were employed as interpreters and translators in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.

    Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025

Explore the role

Every page for Translators

SalaryTranslator salary

Pay by percentile, state and metro, with a negotiation script.

Open →How to becomeTranslator how to become

Education, training and the skills to build first.

Open →ResumeTranslator resume

Keywords, bullet formulas and the skills to prove.

Open →Career changeTranslator career change

Where these skills transfer, with skill match and pay change.

Open →Free toolCheck your resume

Parsed text, evidence per bullet, fixes first.

Open →
The work

What translators do day to day

Data Core tasks rated most important by workers in the role (O*NET).

  1. Follow ethical codes that protect the confidentiality of information.
  2. Translate messages simultaneously or consecutively into specified languages, orally or by using hand signs, maintaining message content, context, and style as much as possible.
  3. Listen to speakers' statements to determine meanings and to prepare translations, using electronic listening systems as necessary.
  4. Compile terminology and information to be used in translations, including technical terms such as those for legal or medical material.
  5. Refer to reference materials, such as dictionaries, lexicons, encyclopedias, and computerized terminology banks, as needed to ensure translation accuracy.
  6. Check translations of technical terms and terminology to ensure that they are accurate and remain consistent throughout translation revisions.
  7. Identify and resolve conflicts related to the meanings of words, concepts, practices, or behaviors.
  8. Compile information on content and context of information to be translated and on intended audience.
Where this career works

Industries that employ it

Data Share of all translator jobs in each industry, 2025 (BLS Employment Matrix).

  1. Professional, scientific, and technical services29.8% of all jobs in this occupation · +0.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $68,560
  2. Educational services; state, local, and private15.3% of all jobs in this occupation · +0.4% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $67,400
  3. Hospitals; state, local, and private6.9% of all jobs in this occupation · +3.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $66,360
  4. Government, excluding state and local education and hospitals5.3% of all jobs in this occupation · +2.3% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $76,160
  5. Ambulatory healthcare services4.1% of all jobs in this occupation · +9.0% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $51,000
  6. Administrative and support services2.8% of all jobs in this occupation · -1.8% projected change here 2025–35 · mean wage $55,400

Sources: BLS 2025–35 National Employment Matrix (share of the occupation's jobs, projected change) and BLS OEWS May 2025 industry estimates (mean wage). Different industry estimates are not a pay forecast for any person.

Skills that matter

Ranked by importance to the job

Data O*NET importance ratings. The first three are core.

SpeakingcoreActive ListeningcoreReading ComprehensioncoreWritingCritical ThinkingMonitoringSocial PerceptivenessService OrientationJudgment and Decision Making

Knowledge areas: English Language, Foreign Language, Customer and Personal Service, Education and Training, Administrative, Public Safety and Security.

Tools and technology

Software translators use

Data Examples reported for the role; employer demand flags from O*NET.

  • AceTools.biz Ace TranslatorForeign language software
  • Adapt ItForeign language software
  • AmoK TranslatorForeign language software
  • Ashkon Translation PadForeign language software
  • Babylon Online TranslatorForeign language software
  • DocTranslateForeign language software
  • Electronic dictionariesDictionary software
  • ExcelTrans TranslatorForeign language software
  • Google Translate ClientForeign language software
  • HunterSoft Business TranslatorForeign language software
  • Intrado SchoolMessengerMobile messaging service software
  • Language Engineering Corporation Translate ProForeign language software

Also called: Interpreter, American Sign Language Interpreter (ASL Interpreter), Court Interpreter, Educational Interpreter, Linguist, Medical Interpreter.

Method

How this page is built

Tasks, skills, tools, education and related roles come from O*NET 31.0. Pay and employment come from the BLS OEWS May 2025 national estimates. The skill-match score is our calculation: Skill match is the cosine similarity of the two occupations' skill profiles: for each of 35 O*NET skills (10 essential, 25 transferable) we multiply importance by level and subtract the average across all occupations, then compare the direction of the two profiles. 100 means identical shape; 0 means unrelated or opposite (negative values are shown as 0). Only occupations that O*NET itself lists as related are compared.

What this page can't tell you
  • How a specific employer defines the job.
  • Pay for self-employed workers (OEWS covers employees).
  • Your own chances: data describes the occupation, not you.
Sources
  1. O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. TryHired selected, ranked and combined the data; O*NET is not responsible for these pages.
  2. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates (public domain).

How TryHired builds this data: sources, methods and downloads. Spotted an error? Report a correction.