# Minimum fee

Source: https://traduq.com/glossary/minimum-fee · Updated October 14, 2026

A **minimum fee** is the lowest amount a translator charges for a job, applied when the per-word price of a very short text would come to less, because opening files, checking terminology and delivering take time however short the text is.

## Why translators charge a minimum

Every job has a fixed part: reading the brief, setting up the files in the [CAT tool](https://traduq.com/glossary/cat-tool), checking the client's terminology, a final review, delivery and an invoice. On a 100-word text, that fixed part can take longer than the translation itself. Priced per word only, short jobs would not pay for the time they take.

## How it is applied

The translator works out the price as usual, from the word count or a [CAT analysis](https://traduq.com/glossary/cat-analysis), plus any extras or rush surcharge. If the total is below the minimum, the client pays the minimum instead. Many quotes show this as a separate line, so the client can see the per-word price and the adjustment.

There is no standard amount: each translator or agency sets its own. One common approach, given here only as an example, is to set the minimum near the price of an hour of work or of a few hundred words. With several target languages, the minimum often applies to each language, because each one is a separate job.

## Example

A client asks for a 150-word product description at $0.10 per word, which comes to $15. The translator's minimum fee is $40 (an example figure). The quote shows:

- Translation: 150 words at $0.10 = $15.00
- Minimum fee adjustment: $25.00
- Total before tax: $40.00

If the client had sent five such texts together as one project, 750 words would come to $75 and the minimum would not apply. As the [translation rates guide](https://traduq.com/blog/translation-rates-guide) puts it, sending several small texts together in one project usually costs less than paying the minimum several times.

## Setting a minimum in a quote

TraduQ's free [word count and quote tool](https://traduq.com/tools/translation-quote) has a minimum fee field: when the quote total, including extras and any rush surcharge, comes to less, it adds a "Minimum fee adjustment" line for the difference. The [invoice generator](https://traduq.com/tools/invoice-generator) turns the result into a PDF invoice. Both run in your browser and are free, like everything on TraduQ.

## Try it

- [Word count & quote](https://traduq.com/tools/translation-quote) — Count words by match band against your TM or CAT report, price the job and download the quote PDF.
- [Invoice generator](https://traduq.com/tools/invoice-generator) — Create a PDF invoice with VAT, IRPF and reverse-charge notes. Nothing leaves your browser.

## Related terms

- [CAT analysis](https://traduq.com/glossary/cat-analysis)
- [Fuzzy match](https://traduq.com/glossary/fuzzy-match)

## Related guides

- [memoQ vs Smartcat vs Wordfast for a Small Agency (2026)](https://traduq.com/blog/memoq-vs-smartcat-vs-wordfast) — memoQ, Smartcat or Wordfast for a small translation agency? 2026 prices, team costs, shared TMs, Trados file support and which fits your agency.
- [Best Trados Alternatives in 2026 for Freelance Translators](https://traduq.com/blog/trados-alternatives) — Trados Studio alternatives for freelancers in 2026: memoQ, Wordfast Pro, Phrase TMS, CafeTran, OmegaT and MateCat on price, Mac and Trados files.
- [Wordfast vs Trados Studio (2026): Price, Features, Mac](https://traduq.com/blog/wordfast-vs-trados) — Wordfast Pro or Trados Studio? 2026 prices, three-year cost, Mac and Linux support, Trados packages, TM features and which to pick.