If you’re one of the countless accountants who labour over typing up financial statements, minutes of meetings, letters, reports, and spreadsheets, then you’ll probably at some time or another have wished you could pass it all on to someone else. Transcription companies carry out this service for you, transforming your work into typewritten form, whether it be from digital dictation, forms, and documents, audio recordings of meetings, or handwritten notes. But how much can you expect to pay for these services and how secure are they? Here we put 10 transcription firms under the microscope. Remember that apart from TP Transcription, none of the other companies include extras in their basic charges.
1. PageSix
PageSix have their offices on the Isle of Wight but their transcriptionists are based around the UK. They provide transcription for various industries including legal, medical, media, and HR. All of PageSix’s transcriptionists are native English speakers.
Pricing
PageSix’s prices are calculated per minute of audio material and, according to turnaround time, are:
24 hours – £1.80
2 days – £1.60
3 days – £1.50
4 days – £1.40
1 week – £1.20
2 weeks – £1.10
There are some factors that may increase the price, for example, medical transcriptions, focus groups, or requesting a verbatim transcript. The company offer a 10% discount for work submitted of more than 20 hours.
Turnaround Times
Turnaround starts from 24 hours up to 2 weeks with rates varying accordingly.
Security and Confidentiality
The company are GDPR compliant and all audio files are protected using 256-bit encryption. All of their transcriptionists have signed Confidentiality Agreements and PageSix are also happy to provide Non-Disclosure Agreements or sign any client-specific agreement you may require.
2. GoTranscript
GoTranscript was founded in Edinburgh in 2006 and now bills itself as one of the biggest online transcription companies in the world. They have almost 20,000 people working for them around the world and provide standard audio and video transcription as well as specialist transcription for different industries. Their transcriptionists are mostly based in the UK and the US and are native English speakers.
Pricing
Their website states that prices start from £0.58 per minute, although of course costs vary. There is a handy calculator on the website to help you work out the final amount taking into account factors such as the quality of the audio and the text format you would like. Typical prices per audio minute depending on required turnaround time are:
- 6-12 hours – £2.00
- 1 day – £1.04
- 3 days – £0.88
- 5 days – £0.72
There is also a discount for high volume uploads:
- 120+ minutes – 5%
- 480+ minutes – 10%
- 960+ minutes – 20%
Turnaround Times
Starting from 6 hours up to 5 days. The turnaround time affects the price you’ll pay.
Security and Confidentiality
Transcriptionists with Go Transcript are required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement with the firm before undertaking any work and you can request your own NDA to be signed too. All files are encrypted and cut into small parts so that no one transcriptionist can work on more than one section of a file. Transcriptionists’ actions are monitored and all files are deleted from the company’s system once your transcription is complete.
3. Transcript Divas
Transcript Divas have been around since 2013. The company was set up by a social researcher who built his own transcription team after struggling to find transcription companies who could meet his needs. Finding that turnaround times were too lengthy and reliability and accuracy lacking, he built his own transcription firm to excel in these areas.
Pricing
Transcript Divas have an automated online quote feature on their website that allows you to calculate an accurate quote. Rates depend on the required delivery time and quality of the audio but as a guide based on turnaround time, you’d be looking at:
- Same business day – £1.80
- 1 business day – £1.40
- 2 business days – £1.20
- 3 business days – £1.00
- 7 business days – £0.80
The firm offer a 200% guarantee on the accuracy and deadline for any project, giving not only a full refund but the equivalent time and service in credit if the deadline is not met or the accuracy is not at least 98%.
Turnaround Times
Anything from the same business day to a week. For same business day orders, however, you’ll need to call to check before uploading.
Security and Confidentiality
Transcript Divas are registered data controllers on the Data Protection Public Register. All data is encrypted and treated in accordance with GDPR.
4. Fingertips Typing
Fingertips Typing was founded in 2004 and is a UK-based transcription company. While they have extensive experience with market research interview transcription, they also provide services for lots of different industries and where possible try to match you with a transcriptionist who has worked in your industry.
Pricing
Prices are calculated per minute of audio material to be transcribed and also depend on your required turnaround time. For example:
- Standard 24 hour service – £1.10
- Same day service – £1.30
- Weekend service – £1.30
- 4-hour service – £1.50
- Overnight service – £1.50
- After midnight service – £1.50
Certain types of work may be charged at a higher rate, for example, medical transcription or interview transcription where there are numerous people talking. There are sample prices on the website.
Turnaround Times
Turnaround times start from 4 hours and the standard turnaround time for Fingertips is 24 hours.
Security and Confidentiality
Fingertips are signed up to the Data Protection Act 1988 and comply with its guidelines regarding client confidentiality. Data is encrypted and HIPAA compliant and all transcriptionists are required to sign a Confidentiality Agreement with the firm. The client is provided with a Non-Disclosure Agreement and the company are GDPR compliant.
5. TypeOut
TypeOut have been providing transcription services since 2008 and are a UK-based company. Their transcriptionists are also exclusively UK-based and they have experience across a wide range of specialisms including research, medical, and legal transcription.
Pricing
Pricing is dependent on a variety of factors including the number of speakers on the recording, whether there is medical terminology involved, and the quality of the recording itself. Examples of prices per minute for a standard single-voice audio transcription according to turnaround time are:
- 24-48 hours – £1.35
- 2-3 working days – £1.20
- 3-5 working days – £1.05
Turnaround Times
Turnaround times start from 24 hours with TypeOut. This does not include weekends or bank holidays but this can potentially be arranged by contacting the firm.
Security and Confidentiality
TypeOut are registered with the ICO’s Data Protection Act and as members follow their guidelines strictly. They use high-level 256-bit encryption to protect your files and also provide transcriptionists who are DBS checked.
6. DictateNow
DictateNow is part of the ServicesNowGroup and is based in the UK with offices in Manchester, Belfast, and Glasgow. Their head office is in Borehamwood. They have been providing outsourced transcription amongst other services for the past 15 years and have experience in various industries including accountancy practices. They have a large team of home and office-based transcriptionists working for them throughout the UK.
Pricing
DictateNow, unlike other transcription firms, do not publish their prices on their website. They have a live chat function but their chat operators will not give out pricing information. To find out prices for their transcription services, you need to request a callback or get in touch via email.
Turnaround Times
They advertise their average turnaround time as being 45 minutes for standard dictations.
Security and Confidentiality
DictateNow are ICO registered for data protection and have a UKAS 27001:2013 certification for Information Security. All staff, whether home or office-based, undergo Information Security Awareness Training in accordance with their ISO27001. All staff are also required to sign a confidentiality agreement. The company also has a UKAS ISO9001:2015 certification for Quality Management and are ISO22301 certified for Business Continuity.
7. Rev
Rev is a US-based global company providing transcription, caption, and foreign subtitle services around the world. Their transcriptionists are home-based in various countries but always native English speakers. The company has been around since 2010 and now has more than 50,000 transcriptionists on the books.
Pricing
Pricing for transcription is a flat rate of $1.25 per audio minute – around £1.00 at current exchange rates – regardless of how many speakers are involved or the quality of the recording.
Turnaround Times
The standard turnaround time for Rev’s $1.25 service is 12 hours. You can receive your transcript in as little as 3 hours, but this will cost $1.00 extra per audio minute.
Security and Confidentiality
Rev encrypts your data both while it is being stored and when it is being sent and any communication with the company is encrypted with HTTPS and Transport Layer Security 1.2. All data is stored at Tier IV or III+, SSAE-16, PCI DSS, or ISO 27001 compliant facilities based in the US. Transcriptionists are required to sign strict Non-Disclosure and Confidentiality Agreements.
8. Take Note
Take Note was founded as a one-person operation in 2006 but quickly grew and now has more than 600 transcriptionists working regularly with them. The company offers transcription for various industries as well as minute and note-taking services.
Pricing
For a full quote, you will need to contact Take Note with details of the work you would like completed. However, the website offers a guideline:
- Verbatim transcription – from £0.99 per audio minute
- Detailed notes transcription – from £0.89 per audio minute
Detailed notes leave out small talk and filler words, whereas verbatim transcription is the audio transcribed in its entirety.
Turnaround Times
The company can provide transcription within 12 hours, 24 hours, 48 hours, or 7 days. Prices vary accordingly.
Security and Confidentiality
Take Note are ISO 27001 and 9001 certified and they use data encryption to protect your files. Personal data is held in compliance with the European Data Protection Act. All audio files are deleted 3 months after completion with the transcriptions being deleted after 12 months. They are GDPR compliant and happy to sign Non-Disclosure Agreements.
9. Transcription Centre
Birmingham-based Transcription Centre work with clients throughout the UK and Europe. All of their transcriptionists are not only native speakers but also educated to degree level. They specialise in a variety of industries including business and law and as far as possible try to match your work to the most suitable transcriptionist.
Pricing
Transcription Centre’s standard price list for per minute of audio is as follows:
- Next day delivery – £1.50
- Delivery within 2 days – £1.40
- Delivery within 3 days – £1.30
- Delivery within 1 week – £1.10
- Delivery within 2 weeks – £1.00
Extra fees apply in certain cases, for example, where the audio quality is poor or there are more than 3 speakers.
Turnaround Times
Turnaround Times start from next day delivery on business days of Monday to Friday. You should receive the transcription by 5pm on the delivery day. If you need the transcription before 5pm or on a weekend then you will need to contact the company directly beforehand.
Security and Confidentiality
Transcription Centre encrypt all files for your protection and transcripts are securely destroyed after 30 days. The company are registered and comply with the UK Data Protection Act and all of their transcriptionists have signed Non-Disclosure Agreements.
10. TP Transcription Limited
TP Transcription has been providing transcription services to private companies, professionals, universities, government, and the NHS since 2001. They employ more than 45 transcriptionists and translators and work is carried out by native English speakers.
Pricing
Prices vary depending on the number of speakers involved in the recording but TP Transcription do not charge extra for regional or second language accents. Examples of prices per audio minute according to turnaround time are:
- 48 hours/1 speaker – £1.20
- 7 days/1 speaker – £0.95
- 14 days/1 speaker – £0.80
- 48 hours/2 speakers – £1.60
- 7 days/2 speakers – £1.25
- 14 days/2 speakers – £0.95
TP Transcription offer a discount for bulk orders.
Turnaround Times
The fastest standard turnaround time is 48 hours. However, the company can accommodate urgent turnarounds upon request.
Security and Confidentiality
TP Transcription employ a Data Processing Agreement alongside a Non-Disclosure Agreement for work carried out and templates of these can be found on their website. They are also happy to sign individual NDAs or tailor it for you if you do not already have one drawn up. The company are GDPR compliant and have the following: Cyber Essentials certificate, BPSS clearance, ISO9001:2015, ISO27001:2017, and ISO14001:2015 accreditations. They are members of both the Transcription Society in the UK and the American Translators Association. DBS checked transcriptionists can be provided on request.
Summary
Employing the use of a transcription firm can really help take the weight off busy professionals. As we’ve seen, prices can be very reasonable and work can often be completed in a matter of hours. Just make sure before uploading any work that you’ve received an accurate quote taking into account variables such as the quality of the audio, the number of speakers, and the accents involved. Also, remember that the prices quoted often do not include VAT.
