WHICH CAT TOOL SHOULD YOU BUY? (Translation Software Tier List)

[@lih1352]

Wow I volunteered as a translator for over a decade in a church. Translated loads of material and never knew or even thought to investigate about tools to make it easier on myself. PDFs were my worst nightmare without being able to convert them. I only used Word and split the screen half side with the original and other side the translation and just typed typed typed Lol Good thing I enjoy translating otherwise I would’ve gone crazy.

[@Freelanceverse]

PDF are still a nightmare even with CAT tools :) but it gets easier, that's true. Especially once you've been working with one for a year or so and you have a large backlog of translated material, you can reuse a lot of stuff, that's nice.

[@lih1352]

@@Freelanceverse Yes, backlog sounds extremely helpful. Thanks for making such informative videos

[@Hinokami73]

God bless the work from your hands!

[@ancliuin2459]

It's not as bad as you think. There are people who have been translating stuff for a living without CAT for 30+ years, just with Word and dictionaries and (later) online references. Guess how I know. :)

[@lih1352]

@@ancliuin2459True, but who wouldn’t prefer less effort and more productivity?

[@AnnettMcDavid]

Thank you! Great video to get back into CAT tools. Going back into translation after about 7 years and your videos help greatly.

[@ClaudC]

I've recently created a Smartcat account and I'm really enjoying the features and resources of the Agency mode, especially the ability to create rate cards for different projects and clients, and... 1. Invite my colleagues or friends to the account 2. Create project, calculate cost, assign task for my customers 3. Pay my collaborators and receive payments from my customers.

[@anasofiaalmeida5720]

Im loving your videos! Im an aspiring freelance translator and all your videos have been so helpful so far. Thank you and keep up with the great work

[@Freelanceverse]

♥️♥️♥️

[@HaiLag]

A very useful video! I work as a freelance AREN translator but never heard about Group Buys, and I was always looking for a free or at least some cheap and good CAT tool,. The only thing I could do was buying MemoQ with a discount for students, but that was a very good idea .. Thanks

[@Freelanceverse]

Great, I'm glad you got value from the video!

[@Meekailtaabish]

I'm too

[@FUNnel4283]

I do the same thing as you (translation from Ar to En) do you have any idea where can I apply for translation jobs online ?

[@helenai13]

Thank you for such an informative video, becoming immensely easier for us to have an idea of where to begin searching.

[@Freelanceverse]

That is what the channel is all about :)

[@taniajurado3583]

Thank you, Adrian! I've been using SmartCat through an agency's account and didn't know it could be used to find new clients as well. I am now looking for a CAT tool for my own projects and this video was really helpful :)

[@tomate_pelado]

are you liking use the SmartCat? I'm thinking about use this plaatform but I'm little insecure

[@Freelanceverse]

Let me know which CAT tool(s) you use :)

[@aqualatus]

I'm forced to use Transit on a daily basis and I totally agree with your rating. I didn't know it was so popular though. I was hoping you'd mention OmegaT. I use it from time to time and really enjoy its simplicity. Great video, thanks!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks for the feedback, I've only ever heard of OmegaT, never used it before. Is it opensource? Might try it out once, thanks for the tip :)

[@aqualatus]

​@@Freelanceverse Yes, it's opensource.

[@Freelanceverse]

@Alvaro Casillas Casillas Exactly, good for beginners, but at one point everyone has to upgrade.

[@karenpearl4935]

Came here from your 2nd live KZbin video... Very detailed

[@tastyless5737]

Thanks for your videos, really helpful!

[@ckoul5351]

Thank you very much for this video. It has helped me immensely having the most popular available CAD choices analyzed in tandem. You mentioned the spell checker problem in SDL Trados. Since I'm thinking of investing in that CAD program, is this issue really that bad? Spell checking is a standard function nowadays and it just baffles me that such a high-end product, like SDL, seems to have such a subpar implementation of this feature.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi there, it really is that bad, but I've since been informed that you can change the spell checker to the MS Word one. Haven't tried it, but if this works, it would solve the issue of course.

[@ckoul5351]

@@Freelanceverse Thank you for the quick and informative response. Keep it up and stay safe :)

[@weinasg1371]

Very detailed. Thank you for the comprehensive comparison 💐

[@Freelanceverse]

My pleasure 😊

[@Maegrol]

Between uni and my current job I used Lilt to translate a website. Have you heard of that one? It's a web-app and it displays an MT preview underneath the segment you're currently working on (which is adapting to your sentence as you're writing). So you're not post editing per se but are given a MT "proposition" of sorts. Probably a controversial feature but I found it pretty useful. It sped up my process by a little bit, especially for shorter segments where I could just use a keyboard shortcut to insert the MT. Or I would start writing out a sentence and sometimes the MT ended up "guessing" what I was going to write anyway, so I could use it as a quick autocomplete. It was pretty neat I have to say, even though MT is the boogeyman of the translation industry it can be extremely helpful when used in the right way. But I'm sure you have a video in the pipeline on that subject.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Bastian, interesting, I've never heard of Lilt. Will definitely check it out! Thank you! Oh yes, of course, MT implementation can be super useful. For some clients this is exactly what they need, depending on the type of texts and audiences. I have some topics planned about this, you're right :) just want to make sure I gather enough information first to make it useful for everyone. I still come across a lot of colleagues who just dismiss and ignore the progress in automated translation, which is definitely not the way to go in my opinion. Thanks again for your comment, very useful!

[@yoliveira.translator]

Another amazing content, as usual.

[@Freelanceverse]

Thank you Yago!

[@ze635]

I have been using Matecat lately to practice since I am finishing my graduation. What I find really annoying is the Tagging System, a complete nightmare for me when compared to the one on Trados.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Zé, thanks for the feedback. I've never used Matecat before, but only ever heard rather negative things about it. Good tool to start out and practice though :)

[@felerobert5024]

Thank you so much. The video was quite insightful.

[@Freelanceverse]

Glad it was useful!

[@mohamadelmrabet9152]

Hi, my friend, thanks for your input on CAT tools. Can you recommend top PCs for freelancers? Thank you!

[@Freelanceverse]

As long as you dont go for a Mac, all else is good enough :)

[@gabo6713]

Very helpful insight. Thanks.

[@waldecyrodrigues7159]

Just found your chanel. Nice to meet you! Thanks!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thank you for being here :)

[@mansilla6759]

Thank you for the information. What about their effectiveness to work with a team, or as project manager, which one would you recommend?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Claudia, in that case I'd go for one of the two top paid ones memoQ or SDL Trados. They both have seamless workflow implementation with up to 4 or even 5 steps. The PM can easily assign one task to one Freelancer and have the project autimatically go to the next step when he or she completes the previous phase. I work in both of them with team workflows and both work great.

[@ParisTNT]

This was great. Nice video. Very clear. Thank you!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thank you Paris! :)

[@jtparryheb]

Thank you for the very informative video! Subscribed. :) Do these tools generally have export and import functions, so if you start with one tool but move to another you can also easily transition your work?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi jtparryheb, thanks so much for the comment and your sunscription! Yes indeed, there's usually no problem to transition to a new tool and to bring all your existing TMs and translations over. -Adrian

[@jtparryheb]

@@Freelanceverse Thank you for your response, and I appreciate all of your helpful videos. Best of luck with having this channel grow!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks for your support in return :)

[@waldecyrodrigues7159]

In relation to machine translation..have you ever tried DeepL? If so, would you recommend it in order to ease the translator tasks?

[@Freelanceverse]

Yes I use it sometimes. Can definitely recommend, but make sure to buy a license to have data security.

[@lmznour1645]

Do employers expect to see any certificates for these programs to prove translation software skills?

[@amyamzv]

This video was really helpful, thank you. Does Memoq and Trados take up a lot of storage? I'm considering getting one of them on my Mac's Windows but I won't if they take up a lot of storage

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Amy, it takes up 600MB on my PC

[@marialopes9190]

Thank you for all the information you provided.😊 I just want to clarify: Which CAT tool gives a license?

[@Freelanceverse]

Some of them are free to use like SmartCAT and Memsource

[@marialopes9190]

@@Freelanceverse Thank you!

[@BrotherKplays]

Many thanks for this comparison. For someone who always needs to export the translation to Word document for submission, what would you recommend between Trados and Memoq?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Kurt, that is a standard functionality for any CAT tool, you won't struggle to find that in either of them.

[@etherealix__]

Is there any free CAT? That's too expensive till I can't afford:(

[@Freelanceverse]

Smartcat, Phrase, Smartling, Matecat etc all these are serverbased and free to use to an extent

[@TranslatorsTech]

Cool roundup!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks Philippe!

[@mcha226]

Though OmegaT is free, what tier would it fall into? :)

[@Freelanceverse]

I have never used it before :) no idea sorry

[@hanglisa1]

Thank you so much for this very helpful video! I do have a question. I have tried the trial for memoq and noticed that there's a section where we can use a wordbank to help translate. Is there by chance a place where we can find other wordbooks online or would I have to create it from scratch? Once again! Thanks for this awesome informative video!

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Lisa, thanks so much. Glad the video was helpful. I'm not exactly sure what you mean by wordbank and wordbooks unfortunately. Maybe you can try to explain it in a bit more detail?

[@hanglisa1]

@@Freelanceverse sorry for the confusion. I meant translation memory. Is there such thing as a place we can find that already have translation memory packets online or does this just get built with overtime as we translate?

[@Ellinor99]

@@hanglisa1 I would also like to know the answer to this question!

[@tradutorajuliana]

This video is sooo helpful, obrigada!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks for watching Juliana :)

[@fatimemehdiyeva2439]

where should i start to learn one of this cat tools. i come across this in many job reqirments but i dont know how can i learn it even for internship they ask this but companies don't give chance to students lern new skills basically i havr to learn it by myself

[@Freelanceverse]

There are a lot of videos on KZbin explaining how they work, I will also make a video soon about it. Just go for a free tool and then look up instruction videos on KZbin for it.

[@fatimemehdiyeva2439]

@@Freelanceverse thank u very much

[@randykenderguillenroca5712]

Grat video. SmartCat

[@coffeefanatic5798]

Sir I wanna learn CAT what must I do?

[@Freelanceverse]

Check out my tutorials :)

[@BaileyKahlua]

Hi Adrian, Do you have an opinion on XTM Cloud as a CAT tool? Do you have experience with this one by any chance?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi there, yes I worked with it a couple times for clients. They gave me a server job on there. It works quite well, nothing special, but nothing bad either :)

[@YS-ub4jm]

Thank you for the great review. i am searching for a solution for translation project management tools for videos that I can get translators from different countries to work on, even simultaneously. The idea is to save on project management time and money. With this in mind, would you still recommend your tier 1 or 2 choices? I also wanted to know do you (or anybody else) have any knowledge or experience with Ooona? I checked their website and saw they work with some big names companies.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi there, I'm not familiar with Ooona. I would definitely still recommend memoQ, SDL or SmartCAT for simultanuous project work.

[@abhinavchauhan7864]

Did you say that memoq can be run on a mobile?😀

[@Freelanceverse]

The cloud version definitely yes :)

[@abhinavchauhan7864]

@@Freelanceverse lol. So people can do translation on mobile?

[@Freelanceverse]

Sure :)

[@abhinavchauhan7864]

@@Freelanceverse wow that's great. Thanks

[@dimitraiconomou7696]

Thank you so much for this information. Do you use any practice management software? Are there any available for translators?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Dimitra, thanks for the comment :) No, I don't use any PMS software. Not aware of any to be honest, but it could be a video idea for the future.

[@dimitraiconomou7696]

@@Freelanceverse Thanks! I will do some research. If I find something useful, I will let you know. :)

[@bigNoseoftheCotton]

What would be your advice to beginners?...I mean, Where to start? How to study the target language? Really like your video.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Bruno. The best is to go for a translations degree I'd say.

[@Daubentonia88]

Is there any open source - free that you would recommend for someone starting please?

[@Freelanceverse]

A couple of the ones I mention in this video are free :)

[@adokaralic]

Hi :) Which one of these to use if I am translate rookie? I have just stared and need a program. I am using Macbook Air M1 Thanks.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Adnan, I would go for a free browser version when you first start out.

[@adokaralic]

Thank you, Adrian. I will take a look at it.

[@rolandspiess610]

How about Omega-T? It´s a free software.

[@Freelanceverse]

I've only ever heard of it, but never used it before.

[@RakhmanovRecords]

Hi there, I am a complete beginner in this field, never used any Cat before. My question is, if I start from scratch and there is no any database stored yet, in the software I will use (as I understood from your another video Memoq is good enough eh), does it mean that in the very beginning the program will not assist me? Does it mean that the program will start working for me once I collect enough words/word pairs/phrases? A lot of videos on how to start or how to use these programs, however no one explains where the matching pairs are coming from once you start use a program. Hope my question is clear enough. Thanks.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi there, yes I understand your question thank you. If you start on your own without receiving a memoQ package from the client, then yes, you will not find any matches in the beginning. You need to start building up your memories. Lets say one for technical, one for marketing etc for each language pair you work with. But sometimes the client sends you a preprepared memoQ package that you can open with the tool and then they can already attach a full memory. So when you start working you would get matches from the client's TM. However, once you deliver, this is gone again. So you only have access to this TM while you are working on a project. So the best is to start buidling your own and also use the client's ones that you get. This way you guarantee consistency and also build a valuable TM for yourself.

[@RakhmanovRecords]

@@Freelanceverse thanks for the explanation. Happy to subscribe to your channel! Now I see why I understood nothing from those video tutorials I watched before.

[@RakhmanovRecords]

@@Freelanceverse sorry, forgot to ask you one more thing, hope you can answer. Say, for example, if someone shares his package with me, I can use it on my software, right? Do translators share their packages with each other? Also, if translators themselves build up their own memories, it does not guarantee the quality of what they build-up, right? I am applying for a translator's job with one of the international bodies and looked at the translations on their website: most of the documents are poorly translated. Am I correct to say that possibly their memories are of bad quality?

[@Freelanceverse]

Yes I mean your memories are only as good as your translations of course :) whatever you translate goes into your memory. If you receive a package from a client, your translation gets saved in their memory. If they then comission another translator for another job for this end client, then he or she will see your translations in the client memory. Ideally, the client does a cleanup of their memories to keep them up to date and correct. But unfortunately this is not always done. But imagine, sometimes you have to switch around a sentence in the target language, right? Maybe the first part of the source actually comes last in the target. If you then save this translation into the memory, it makes no sense as a match. So never blindly trust any TM matches, you should always make sure the context fits. An entry for "food" will most likely be translated differently when the context is human food or dog food for example :)

[@RakhmanovRecords]

@@Freelanceverse Thank you for the informative reply

Thank you. Is there any CAT software, which can be used from the Linux platform?

[@Freelanceverse]

Hey! I have no idea about Linux, sorry!

[@omerk8403]

Cafetran Espresso works on all OS.

[@pratimapatil5953]

Thank you so much very useful video, Sir can you please guide me, I am new in this field, it means through SDL we can translate from English to Marathi, please reply

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Pratima, thanks for the comment. Yes, you can translate any languages with SDL, also Marathi. No problem :)

[@pratimapatil5953]

@@Freelanceverse Thank you Sir for guidance

[@shubhangi6642]

Is there any tool that can be used in interpretation services which enhances quality of the process

[@Freelanceverse]

I don't know much about interpreting services, sorry!

[@danielsuciu73]

Hi, what do you think of DeepL? Thank you.

[@Freelanceverse]

I think it's great :)

[@MHRCF]

I disagree with you, the About Section is the most important section on the LinkedIn profile and is the difference between a rinky dink profile and a professional profile. I would advise you to update this video with current information in Jan. 2022. #MomosHRConsultingFirm

[@Freelanceverse]

I assume you refer to the LinkedIn video? :) I never looked at anyone's section. As I mention in the video, these are all my opinions. Of course everyone should do what they find most useful.

[@MHRCF]

@@Freelanceverse Yes! Right comment, wrong video 😂😂😂

[@dsleech]

OmegaT is relatively easy to use and it's free.

[@Freelanceverse]

Yes, so I've heard. I have yet to try it out, maybe some day :)

[@JeffMathe]

Great video. MemoQ was my first CAT I ever had, then went to SDL as projects required. These 2 are good but expensive as you rightly said. I will try the group buy… Currently My licenses with the big 2 expired. Please Which free CAT can I use while sorting out the licenses for my main?? Thanks.

[@tessrio]

Hello from Florida! Thanks much “Freelanceverse” for your so useful information. I am humbly trying to enter this translation universe. For years, in most of my workplace, I’ve been their “informal” translator. Never I received a dime of appreciation for this “extra task”. Now, I decided to go pro and see what my odds are. Is there still time to learn and be a professional translator? I love reading and translate is quite a natural act for me. So, here is the most silly question of this chat among professionals, and sorry for the ignorance. I’m still researching and learning... If I understood your explanation well, I need to have CAT tool in my computer and pick up one of the softwares you mentioned here. So, if the Cat Tool is the computer assistance translation platform, why is still necessary another software? Thank you. All the best to all. Tess

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Tess, thanks so much for watching and your comment! Of course, there is always enough time to make something work :) and don't worry, there are no silly questions. This is what this channel is for after all. So, no you misunderstood something there. The CAT tool is the software, there's nothing additional you need to get. But before purchasing a CAT tool, you should work on your portfolio and on finding some clients. There is no point investing in a CAT tool if you don't have work for it yet. I'd suggest you check out last week's video about building a portfolio and then you work from there. What is the area that you worked in for years? I'd suggest you specialize in this area as a translator since you can already show some experience and knowhow there. Feel free to ask more :) -Adrian

[@tessrio]

@@Freelanceverse COOLLLL Adrian, very nice. I worked in Compliance for over 15 years in the financial industry in New York for the largest international banks. English, Portuguese and Spanish translations happened every day. I guess I can say this issue is quite and expertise for me, huh? Not numbers and capital markets matters but banking regulations, legal documents, codes of ethics, frauds, companies and individuals source of wealth, etc. But, I also like other “lighter” matters and before moving to US I did translation for medical issues, marketing, travels. Someone mentioned that a good way to start and create a sort of “portfolio” is to do volunteering translations for NFP organizations. Who is going to give me credit? Unless I offer to the companies at least one free translation... Your thoughts, please. Thanks again.

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi Tess, wow yes that's definitely going to be your specialization. 15 years in that field gives you a huge advantage. You can even make it without language degree then (check my video on degrees for that). Having a specialization doesnt mean you will only be working on these texts, you can always do other stuff as well. Yes, nonprofit is a great resource for portfolio building. I made a video on that last week (Permission Paradox). Make sure to check that out.

[@tessrio]

Yes, I will, Adrian. I’m now following you. Thank you so much for inspiring and somewhat guide me in this maze... Lol! I’ll keep you posted. Be well.

[@Freelanceverse]

Good luck! :)

[@mrcrowleybr]

Hello Adrian! Guten tag, bom dia from Brazil. Thanks for the videos! I was watching while having lunch today(earlier yesterday lol) on my computer, and wasn't logged in. Sorry for for not leaving likes. I went to the Smarcat website and it seems it isn't free anymore, what happened? I'm looking into becoming a translator myself these past few months and the news of a free of charge Cat tool got me excited for a second. lol... Can I work without one at all until I am making enough to pay for them? Cheers!

[@Freelanceverse]

Hi there Hugo, no need to apologize for that lol, just watching the videos is more than enough! ;) The basic version of smartCat is still free, you can just not work on large jobs or several jobs at once. But to start out, it's perfect. There are also other free versions, I think wordfast is also free for example. Or if you are a Proz member, you also get access to a free one. But yes, in the beginning you can also work without one, that is no problem. One negative thing is that agencies often require you to own one of the big guys to be able to start with them. But in the beginning you can also use Trial versions with different email addresses until you have a steady flow of work :)

[@DinirNertan]

So many good programs in general break down horribly when they are exposed to CJK, so I wish there's a video like this that includes experience on using the programs for these languages. But that requires someone who speaks one of these languges, is an established translator, cares about sharing their experience online like what you are doing, and importantly, sharing for anyone not just people of the same nationality. I don't think it's common to share experience, in the corresponding cultures... 😔

[@davidhebesberger3498]

Is it common practice that agencies who require you to use Trados in their project description will accept applicants using memoQ?

[@Freelanceverse]

It's certainly not uncommon but you need to let them know for sure. Just say that they won't notice any difference on their end.

[@davidhebesberger3498]

@@Freelanceverse Okay. Thanks for the advice and for being super helpful in general! Great and authentic channel.

[@ArusHarutyunyan]

Thank you so much for your videos! This is the first video of yours I'm watching, and i added almost all the other videos to "watch later" hahha

[@Freelanceverse]

That's great to hear :) hope you like the other ones too!

[@olenakolesnyk555]

Thank you very much!!! I enjoyed watching your video, it was clear and very helpful. Wishing you good luck!

[@Freelanceverse]

thanks for the feedback, Olena :)

[@tcg3810]

What kind of map is that? The north-west tile of Turkey is diffrent coloured. Is it european map or someting? Even so, it seems odd.

[@Freelanceverse]

Yes, it is a European map. The European continent is coloured in bold colours, the asian side is less pronounced.

[@astridarroyave]

❤

[@Freelanceverse]

Feel free to connect on LinkedIn: Adrian Probst

[@letpeoplebe]

Can you use memoq apple MacBook?

[@Freelanceverse]

No, unfortunately it only works on PC environment

[@MokiSenpai]

I use it with Parallels, under a virtualized Windows desktop. It works like a charm, just like on a PC.

[@omerk8403]

Cafetran Espresso works well on Mac os and Linux.

[@charlyreich73]

Thank you for your helpful video. Do you have any experience with DeepL Pro? (I saw it also has a CAT tool)..

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks, Charly! Really? No, I've never heard about that.

[@FarhadHaqverdi]

What about Matecat?

[@Freelanceverse]

I have since been made aware of it :) didnt know it before. It seems to be ok for beginners as far as I can see, but I read a lot of problematic reports with it.

[@peru18211]

Very useful and informative. Thank you!

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks so much :)

[@grenadebiter]

Very well explained, good job.

[@Freelanceverse]

Thanks so much :)