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Local leaders in language services: Language service providers ranked by geography, 2023

Report by Sarah Hickey.

If you follow Nimdzi Insights then you know that we like to create rankings. Why, you ask? The answer’s simple. We — along with our clients and industry peers — like to know who the top players are in any given field or area. We look at the global market for language services as a whole, as well as in-country markets and leaders in specific industry verticals and services.

By far our most popular and well-known ranking, the Nimdzi 100 comes out in late February/early March of each year and lists the 100 largest language service providers (LSPs) in the world. The ranking is published alongside an in-depth analysis of the market for language services. Companies featured have an annual revenue of at least USD 10 million (up to USD 1 billion +). In addition, this year, for the first time, we also published a ranking of the next in line (USD 3 million +). The medium-sized players that are keeping this industry afloat. The “premier mid-market providers” that are the engine this industry runs on. 

Also this year, for the first time, we are now publishing a ranking of the top providers (by revenue) per geo region. The geo rankings are based on the Nimdzi 100 ranking of the largest LSPs in the world as well as our ranking of the premier mid-market providers with revenues of USD 3 million plus. The regions we’ve identified are:

  • North America
  • South America
  • The Nordics
  • DACH
  • France and Benelux
  • Southern Europe
  • Eastern Europe
  • UK and Ireland
  • Asia and the Middle East
  • Oceania

LSPs ranked by geo location

Top providers in North America

Top providers in South America

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 Translation Back Office Argentina 10.0 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs
2 2 Bilingual Language Solutions Peru 8.6 v translation, interpreting, healthcare, financial, retail
3 3 RoundTable Studio Uruguay 4.3 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs, video game services, technology, IT & software

Top providers in the Nordics

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 LanguageWire Denmark 67.4 v translation, life sciences, luxury, automotive
2 2 Språkservice Sverige Sweden 44.9 v interpreting, translation & localization, government, technologyy & IT
3 3 Plint Sweden 42.0 v media localization
4 4 DigitalTolk Sweden 29.9 v interpreting, public sector
5 5 Transvoice Sweden 23.2 v interpreting, healthcare, government
6 6 CBG Konsult & Information Sweden 18.3 v translation & localization, automotive & aviation, government
7 7 Lingsoft Group Finland 16.0 v translation & localization, government, other LSPs
8 8 AdHoc Translations Denmark 8.2 v translation, voice-over, subtitling, DTP & graphic design, robotics, ecommerce, life sciences
9 9 Synergium Sweden 8.1 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs
10 10 Delingua Oy Finland 6.4 v translation & localization, government, marketing, creative services, consumer goods, financial & legal
11 11 World Translation A/S Denmark 5.4 v translation & localization, manufacturing

Top providers in the DACH region

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 STAR Group Switzerland 193.7 v translation & localization, platform licensing, automotive & aviation, manufacturing
2 2 SWISS TXT Switzerland 67.0 v media localization
3 3 KERN Global Language Services Germany 50.6 v translation, interpreting, life sciences, automotive, technology, financial
4 4 Apostroph Group Germany 30.6 v translation & localization, marketing, life sciences
5 5 Janus Worldwide Austria 29.2 v translation & localization, technology & IT, manufacturing
6 6 Transline Gruppe Germany 24.9 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, manufacturing, life sciences
7 7 t'works Germany 23.2 v translation, website localization, manufacturing, life sciences, legal
8 8 Supertext Switzerland 19.4 v translation, transcreation, marketing
9 9 mt-g Germany 15.1 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, life sciences
10 10 itl Institut für technische Literatur Germany 14.9 v translation & localization, automotive & aviation, technology & IT
11 11 kothes GmbH Germany 14.0 v translation & localization services, technology, DTP & graphic design
12 12 24translate Group Germany 13.8 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, financial & legal
13 13 German Translation Network - Ge|Tra|Net| Germany 13.2 v translation & localization, interpreting, manufacturing, financial & legal
14 14 EVS Translations Germany 13.1 v translation, finance, legal
15 15 Kaleidoscope Austria 10.5 v translation & localization, transcreation, manufacturing
16 16 Milengo Germany 6.7 v translation & localization, content creation, audio services, IT & software, marketing, media & entertainment
17 17 Rheinschrift Language Services Germany 5.2 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs

Top providers in France and the Benelux region

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 Acolad Group France 333.3 v translation & localization, manufacturing, life sciences, government
2 2 Dubbing Brothers France 151.4 v dubbing & audio, subtitling, media & entertainment
3 3 Global Talk Netherlands 52.3 v interpreting, government, healthcare
4 4 EVA France 35.2 v dubbing, media localization
5 5 Jonckers Belgium 33.6 v translation platform
6 6 Systran France 21.0 e machine translation solutions, IT, defense, e-commerce, public sector
7 7 Presence Translate & Interact Luxembourg 13.1 v interpreting, healthcare, government
8 8 Powerling France 11.0 v translation, life sciences, consumer goods
9 9 Euro-Com International B.V. Netherlands 5.3 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs
10 10 Global textware Netherlands 3.4 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs
11 11 Mastervoice Belgium 3.2 v interpreting, government, manufacturing, chemical industry, healthcare, financial & legal

Top providers in Southern Europe

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 STAR7 Italy 87.3 e translation & localization services, manufacturing, IT
2 2 SeproTec Multilingual Solutions Spain 68.0 v translation, interpreting, pharma, life sciences, IP
3 3 Translated Italy 55.0 v translation & localization, tourism, technology
4 4 Logos Group Italy 54.0 v translation & localization, copywriting & transcreation, dubbing & audio
5 5 Awatera Cyprus 14.4 v translation & localization, interpreting, life sciences, technology & IT, gaming
6 6 Linguaserve Spain 9.8 v translation & localization, transcreation, technology & IT, marketing, retail, government, chemical industry
7 7 Idisc Information Technologies SL Spain 4.7 v translation & localization, work for other LSPs
8 8 Montero Language Services S.L. Spain 4.6 v translation & localization, intellectual property
9 9 All in Translations Limited (All-in Global) Malta 3.6 v translation & localization, content creation, technology, IT & software, video game services
10 10 Way2Global Srl SB Italy 3.4 v translation & localization, financial & legal, life sciences, leisure, work for other LSPs

Top providers in Eastern Europe

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 Summa Linguae Technologies Poland 33.2 v data & AI, translation & localization, technology & IT
2 2 Skrivanek Czech Republic 25.0 v translation & localization, manufacturing, other LSPs
3 3 Luisa Estonia 3.6 v translation & localization, interpreting, transcription, subtitling, financial & legal, life sciences, technics

Top providers in the UK and Ireland

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 RWS United Kingdom 923.8 FY translation, patents, life sciences, IT
2 2 Keywords Studios Ireland 709.8 v video game services
3 3 translate plus United Kingdom 355.3 v translation, dubbing, manufacturing, marketing
4 4 Hogarth Worldwide United Kingdom 281.0 v communications company, localization
5 5 VSI United Kingdom 113.4 v media localization
6 6 ZOO Digital Group United Kingdom 95.0 v subtitling, dubbing, media & entertainment
7 7 thebigword United Kingdom 84.4 e interpreting, translation, government
8 8 Vistatec Ireland 69.6 e translation, LQA
9 9 Alpha CRC United Kingdom 35.4 v technology & IT, video games, translation & localization
10 10 Toppan Digital Language United Kingdom 31.4 v translation & localization, healthcare, marketing, finance
11 11 Spark United Kingdom 31.4 e localization, technology, media
12 12 DA Languages United Kingdom 25.3 v interpreting, translation, education, financial
13 13 THG Fluently United Kingdom 16.3 v translation & localization, copywriting & content creation, consumer goods, beauty & wellness
14 14 Global Lingo United Kingdom 12.0 v translation, interpreting, transcription, technology & IT, e-learning
15 15 Mondia Technologies Ltd United Kingdom 11.3 v manufacturing & engineering, professional services, multimedia & e-learning
16 16 Transcom Global United Kingdom 10.8 v translation, life sciences
17 17 The Translation People United Kingdom 9.3 v translation & localization, life sciences, consumer goods, NGOs
18 18 Sandberg Translation Partners Ltd United Kingdom 8.9 v translation & localization, content creation, work for other LSPs
19 19 Allcorrect Ireland 7.7 v translation & localization, video game services
20 20 Wolfestone Group United Kingdom 7.7 v translation & localization, interpreting, technology & IT, life sciences, marketing, education & e-learning
21 21 Locaria United Kingdom 7.4 v translation & localization, transcreation, content creation, retail, advertising, software, travel
22 22 Conversis United Kingdom 7.1 v translation & localization, DTP, life sciences
23 23 Codex Global Limited United Kingdom 6.7 v translation & localization, retail & ecommerce, beauty & wellness
24 24 ALM Translations Ltd United Kingdom 4.9 v translation & localization, manufacturing, life sciences
25 25 Lingohaus Ltd United Kingdom 3.2 v translation & localization, interpreting, energy, manufacturing, automotive & aviation, security

Top providers in Asia and the Middle East

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 Poletowin Pitcrew Holdings Japan 260.5 FY translation, video game services
2 2 GienTech China 208.3 v translation & localization, language testing & QA, technology, IT & software
3 3 President Translation Service Group International (PTSGI) Taiwan 157.6 v translation & localization, interpreting, healthcare, video games, financial & legal, ife sciences
4 4 GTCOM (Global Tone Communication Technology) China 104.3 v language technology, translation, data & AI
5 5 Honyaku Center Japan 78.6 v translation, patents, life sciences, finance & legal
6 6 TAKARA & COMPANY Japan 70.0 v transcreation, translation, technology & IT, creative services
7 7 Sunyu Transphere China 61.4 v translation & localization, intellectual property, technology & IT
8 8 Verztec Singapore 54.4 v interpreting, transcription, DTP & graphic design, education, financial & legal
9 9 EC Innovations Singapore 49.6 v translation & localization, interpreting, life sciences, technology & IT
10 10 Yamagata Japan 38.4 v documentation company, technical translation
11 11 Rozetta Corp. Japan 31.6 v translation, platform, technology
12 12 CRESTEC — Localization Japan 31.6 v translation, localization, manufacturing, automotive, IT & software
13 13 Akagane Japan 31.5 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, manufacturing
14 14 Sichuan Lan-bridge Information Technology Co. China 30.5 v translation & localization, manufacturing, technology & IT, automotive
15 15 BLEND Israel 25.0 v translation & localization, education, IT, video games
16 16 Glodom Language Solutions China 23.2 v translation, IT, patents
17 17 Hansem Global South Korea 14.0 v technical writing, translation, consumer goods
18 18 Human Science Japan 13.3 v translation & localization, data & AI, technology & IT, marketing
19 19 Linguitronics Co., Ltd. Taiwan 10.0 v translation & localization, life sciences
20 20 Shenzhen Giltbridge Translation Co., Ltd. China 6.7 v translation & localization, linguist staffing, intellectual property, life sciences
21 21 E4NET South Korea 5.9 v translation & localization, life sciences, IT & software, government
22 22 White Globe Group India 3.0 v translation & localization, interpreting, manufacturing, automotive & aviation, life sciences, media & entertainment

Top providers in Oceania

wdt_ID Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 1 Appen Australia 388.5 FY data company
2 2 Multicultural NSW Australia 59.8 FY translation, interpreting, government
3 3 Ai-Media Australia 41.5 FY translation & localization services, government, education
4 4 Straker Translations New Zealand 38.3 e technology & IT, manufacturing, translation & localization
5 5 ONCALL Language Services Australia 38.2 e interpreting, healthcare
6 6 TIS National (Translating and Interpreting Service) Australia 33.3 FY interpreting, translation, public sector
7 7 LanguageLoop Australia 19.3 e interpreting, government
8 8 Expression Australia Australia 11.2 FY sign language interpreting
9 9 Translationz Australia 6.4 v interpreting, translation, healthcare, legal
10 10 2M Language Services Australia 4.8 e interpreting, translation & localization, government, mining, defense
11 11 Interpreting and Translation Centre Australia 4.6 FY translation, interpreting, government
12

Our rankings are live documents and are therefore subject to change.

Notes:

  • (FY) fiscal year, figures for the latest financial year (verified with financial reports)
  • (v) verified, data provided by companies
  • (e) estimated revenue, based on extensive industry research
  • Several companies appear to have the same revenue due to currency rounding. However, the ranking order is accurate considering the second decimal with one exception: on the North America ranking two companies have the exact same revenue, which is why in this case the ranking number is repeated (#39).

Methodology

  • The rankings in this report are based on two other Nimdzi rankings: 1) The Nimdzi 100 that lists the 100 largest LSPs in the world; 2) Our ranking of the premier mid-market providers with revenues of USD 3 million plus.  
  • We’re listing full company revenue, not just language services revenue. It is impossible to separate the two in external sources of information, such as annual reports, press releases, and stock listings, which provide the foundation for our work.
  • We use data from the latest fiscal year for each company. This means the numbers for some companies will not reflect 2022 calendar year revenues. 
  • Our definition of language services includes: translation, localization, transcreation, multilingual desktop publishing (DTP), language quality assurance, linguistic testing, multilingual copywriting, multilingual technical writing, language project management, interpreting, video remote interpreting, telephone interpreting, linguist verification and staffing, media localization, versioning, adaptation, subtitling, voiceover, dubbing, machine translation (MT), training machine translation engines, cultural consulting, data services, and related services.
  • Growth rates are calculated in USD. 
  • We use average annual currency conversion rates to US dollars, published by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States for each day of trading in 2022. 

Most importantly: These rankings do not claim to be comprehensive lists of all LSPs that fall into the USD 3 million + revenue bracket for each geo region. As our estimate of the number of LSPs in the world shows, we expect that there are at least 2,500 companies that potentially qualify for this size category. So what this report provides is a snapshot and a starting point that honors those LSPs that provided their company data to us in recent Nimdzi surveys.

Are you missing from the list? Probably. Well, let’s fix that, shall we? We encourage anyone who wants to be part of our rankings to provide their data here. We expect these geo rankings to grow significantly in the coming years, so make sure you put your company on the map!

This has been a preview. The full report can be accessed online by Nimdzi Partners.

This report has been researched and written by Nimdzi's VP of Research, Sarah Hickey. If you wish to learn more about the state of the language industry today, reach out to Sarah at [email protected].

17 May 2023

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