Nimdzi Insights releases 2023 Nimdzi 100

Nimdzi Insights, an international market research and consulting firm, announced today the publication of its annual Nimdzi 100 report. A ranking of the biggest language service companies in the industry, the report is a major undertaking by Nimdzi researchers, serving as an economic barometer for executives and analysts alike.

The report characterizes 2022 as a cooler year, but only in the context of the dramatic growth achieved in 2021. But that’s only the beginning. To read full insights, the report is republished below.


2022 was a particularly interesting year to analyze because the language industry was coming out of two exceptional years. In 2020 growth slowed down as the market adjusted to lockdowns and a changing environment. 2021 then was a boom year that saw growth in the industry skyrocket due to backlog demand from 2020 paired with new demand as language service providers (LSPs) were reaping the rewards of the efforts put in at the start of the pandemic.

2022 was somewhat of a mixed bag as growth was certainly stronger than in 2020 but more moderate compared to the exceptional growth in 2021. Putting the year into context, we can say that in many ways, life has returned to normal. We have adapted to life after and with the pandemic, everyone is traveling again, conferences are being held onsite once more, all the while remote services are here to stay. On the other side of the coin, the global economy is experiencing inflation and an energy crisis, there is war in Europe, and mass layoffs in the tech industry, all leading to an overall feeling of uncertainty. 

Quite fittingly, during interviews for this year’s Nimdzi 100 many businesses reported a slow first half of 2022, followed by a strong second half of the year that outperformed expectations for the very same businesses.

Looking at the results from the top 100, this is what the ranking already shows us about the state of the industry in 2023:

  • Data show that annual growth among the 100 largest industry players has increased as compared to last year, though more moderately than in the previous period where growth was exceptionally high. Between 2021 and 2022, the combined revenues of the top 100 positions in our ranking increased by 17.3%, compared to 22.7% growth for the top 100 in the previous period.
  • The combined revenue of the companies comprising the top 10 positions in 2022 rose 14.2% compared to those from the previous year. The segment with the strongest growth are the companies in the top 50 positions, whose combined revenues increased by 17.9% as compared to those holding the top 50 positions last year.
  • Despite ongoing consolidation at the top, the industry as a whole continues to grow, producing larger LSPs every year. This trend holds true even in the lowest positions of our ranking, with the 100th largest LSP confirming revenues of USD 14.0 million this year as compared with USD 12.6 million, USD 12.0 million, USD 11.6 million, and USD 10.3 million for the 100th ranked LSPs in 2021, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
  • In 2022, a number of world currencies experienced significant devaluations against a strong US dollar. This had an impact on the growth of the top 100 (and the industry as a whole). To illustrate, in this year’s ranking, companies in the top 100 grew 18.6% on average when calculated in USD, whereas growth would be at an average of 26.8% if calculated in the reporting currencies for companies on our list.

We estimate that the language services industry reached USD 64.7 billion in 2022 and should grow to USD 69.3 billion in 2023.

In 2020 we had reduced our growth estimate to reflect the impact of the pandemic, adjusting the market’s compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to 6.0%, down from 6.2% and 6.8% in previous years. However, after a phenomenal 2021 with record growth our estimate for 2021 reflected a one-off increase of 10% compared to 2020. Already in last year’s Nimdzi 100 we predicted that it is unrealistic to expect this exceptional level of growth to continue, but that we can expect the industry to grow at a faster pace than before March 2020, thanks to a changed market that LSPs have adapted well to at this point in time. This is why, in March 2022, we projected a CAGR of 7.0% for the coming years. Considering the results from this year’s ranking, we can now confirm this growth projection despite economic uncertainty, particularly thanks to a strong second half of 2022. This is why we continue to predict that the market will grow at a CAGR of 7.0% in the coming years, reaching USD 90.8 billion by 2027. 

The language industry: Market growth 2009-2022 and forecast 2023-2027

 

Market growth 2009-2022 and forecast 2023-2027
Sources: 2009-2017 CSA Research; 2018-2027 Nimdzi Insights

Chances are the information you came here for is the Nimdzi 100 Ranking, which is presented in the table below. The ranking is based on revenue and lists the top 100 largest language service providers worldwide. 

Now, let’s just jump right in, shall we?

The Nimdzi 100

Rank Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
1 TransPerfect United States 1,161.3 v translation, life sciences, legal
2 RWS United Kingdom 923.8 FY translation, patents, life sciences, IT
3 LanguageLine Solutions United States 836.0 v interpreting, translation & localization, healthcare, government
4 Sorenson Communications United States 825.0 e sign language interpreting
5 Keywords Studios Ireland 709.8 v video game services
6 Lionbridge United States 575.0 v translation, life sciences, technology, legal, games & entertainment
7 Iyuno United States 501.0 v media localization
8 Appen Australia 420.2 e data company
9 translate plus United Kingdom 355.3 v translation, dubbing, manufacturing, marketing
10 Acolad Group France 333.3 v translation & localization, manufacturing, life sciences, government
11 Welocalize United States 292.0 v translation & localization, data & AI, technology, legal, life sciences
12 Hogarth Worldwide United Kingdom 281.0 v communications company, localization
13 Poletowin Pitcrew Holdings Japan 260.5 FY translation, video game services
14 Centific United States 237.0 v localization, data curation, global experiences
15 AMN Language Services United States 216.0 FY interpreting, healthcare
16 GienTech China 208.3 v translation & localization, language testing & QA, technology, IT & software
17 Pixelogic Media United States 200.0 v media localization
18 STAR Group Switzerland 193.7 v translation & localization, platform licensing, automotive & aviation, manufacturing
19 CyraCom International United States 177.4 v interpreting, translation, healthcare, insurance, government
20 President Translation Service Group International (PTSGI) Taiwan 157.6 v translation & localization, interpreting, healthcare, video games, financial & legal, ife sciences
21 Translation Bureau Canada 151.5 v translation & localization, interpreting, government
22 Dubbing Brothers France 151.4 v dubbing & audio, subtitling, media & entertainment
23 Questel United States 129.0 e translation, legal, patents, life sciences
24 Voice and Script International (VSI) United Kingdom 113.4 v media localization
25 Visual Data Media Services United States 110.0 v media localization
26 GTCOM (Global Tone Communication Technology) China 104.3 v language technology, translation, data & AI
27 Propio Language Services United States 96.3 v healthcare, government
28 ZOO Digital Group United Kingdom 95.0 v subtitling, dubbing, media & entertainment
29 United Language Group United States 86.0 v translation, interpreting, healthcare, life sciences
30 thebigword United Kingdom 84.4 e interpreting, translation, government
31 STAR7 Italy 80.6 e translation & localization services, manufacturing, IT
32 Honyaku Center Japan 78.6 v translation, patents, life sciences, finance & legal
33 BIG Language Solutions United States 77.7 e translation, interpreting, education, legal, healthcare, life sciences, financial
34 CQ fluency United States 75.2 v translation & localization, healthcare, life sciences
35 Argos Multilingual United States 71.5 v translation & localization, life sciences, technology & IT
36 TAKARA & COMPANY Japan 70.0 v transcreation, translation, technology & IT, creative services
37 Vistatec Ireland 69.6 e translation, LQA
38 SeproTec Multilingual Solutions Spain 68.0 v translation, interpreting, pharma, life sciences, IP
39 LanguageWire Denmark 67.4 v translation, life sciences, luxury, automotive
40 SWISS TXT Switzerland 67.0 v media localization
41 Uphealth-Martti United States 62.4 e interpreting, healthcare
42 Sunyu Transphere China 61.4 v translation & localization, intellectual property, technology & IT
43 Multicultural NSW Australia 59.8 FY translation, interpreting, government
44 Akorbi United States 58.2 v healthcare, financial, interpreting
45 Certified Languages International United States 55.3 v interpreting, healthcare, other LSPs
46 Translated Italy 55.0 v translation & localization, tourism, technology
47 Verztec Singapore 54.4 v interpreting, transcription, DTP & graphic design, education, financial & legal
48 Logos Group Italy 54.0 v translation & localization, copywriting & transcreation, dubbing & audio
49 Global Talk Netherlands 52.3 v interpreting, government, healthcare
50 KERN Global Language Services Germany 50.6 v translation, interpreting, life sciences, automotive, technology, financial
51 MotionPoint United States 48.0 e website translation
52 EC Innovations Singapore 45.2 e translation & localization, interpreting, life sciences, technology & IT
53 Språkservice Sverige Sweden 44.9 v interpreting, translation & localization, government, technologyy & IT
54 MasterWord Services United States 42.8 v linguist staffing, interpreting, translation & localization, government, healthcare
55 Plint Sweden 42.0 v media localization
56 Ai-Media Australia 41.5 FY translation & localization services, government, education
57 CSOFT International United States + China 39.9 e translation & localization, interpreting, technology & IT, life sciences
58 Yamagata Japan 38.4 v documentation company, technical translation
59 Straker Translations New Zealand 38.3 e technology & IT, manufacturing, translation & localization
60 ONCALL Language Services Australia 38.2 e interpreting, healthcare
61 GLOBO Language Solutions United States 36.2 v interpreting, healthcare, government, education
62 Alpha CRC United Kingdom 35.4 v technology & IT, video games, translation & localization
63 EVA France 35.2 v dubbing, media localization
64 PGLS United States 35.2 v translation & localization, government
65 Jonckers Belgium 33.6 v translation platform
66 TIS National (Translating and Interpreting Service) Australia 33.3 FY interpreting, translation, public sector
67 Summa Linguae Technologies Poland 33.2 v data & AI, translation & localization, technology & IT
68 Traductions Serge Bélair (TRSB) Canada 32.5 e translation & localization, financial & legal, life sciences
69 Rozetta Japan 31.6 v translation, platform, technology
70 CRESTEC — Localization Japan 31.6 v translation, localization, manufacturing, automotive, IT & software
71 Akagane Japan 31.5 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, manufacturing
72 Toppan Digital Language United Kingdom 31.4 v translation & localization, healthcare, marketing, finance
73 Spark United Kingdom 31.4 e localization, technology, media
74 Apostroph Group Germany 30.6 v translation & localization, marketing, life sciences
75 Sichuan Lan-bridge Information Technology Co. China 30.5 v translation & localization, manufacturing, technology & IT, automotive
76 DigitalTolk Sweden 29.9 v interpreting, public sector
77 Versacom Canada 29.3 v translation & localization, financial & legal
78 Janus Worldwide Austria 29.2 v translation & localization, technology & IT, manufacturing
79 Acclaro United States 28.4 v translation & localization, copywriting & content creation, technology & IT, media & entertainment
80 DA Languages United Kingdom 25.3 v interpreting, translation, education, financial
81 Skrivanek Czech Republic 25.0 v translation & localization, manufacturing, other LSPs
82 BLEND Israel 25.0 v translation & localization, education, IT, video games
83 Transline Gruppe Germany 24.9 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, manufacturing, life sciences
84 t’works Germany 23.2 v translation, website localization, manufacturing, life sciences, legal
85 Transvoice Sweden 23.2 v interpreting, healthcare, government
86 Glodom Language Solutions China 23.2 v translation, IT, patents
87 Systran France 21.0 e machine translation solutions, IT, defense, e-commerce, public sector
88 Supertext Switzerland 19.4 v translation, transcreation, marketing
89 LanguageLoop Australia 19.3 e interpreting, government
90 CBG Konsult & Information Sweden 18.3 v translation & localization, automotive & aviation, government
91 Hanna Interpreting Services United States 17.0 v interpreting, translation, healthcare, education, public sector
92 THG Fluently United Kingdom 16.3 v translation & localization, copywriting & content creation, consumer goods, beauty & wellness
93 Lingsoft Group Finland 16.0 v translation & localization, government, other LSPs
94 Linguava United States 16.0 v interpreting, translation & localization, healthcare
95 e2f United States 15.5 e data & AI, translation, linguist staffing, technology
96 mt-g Germany 15.1 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, life sciences
97 itl Institut für technische Literatur Germany 14.9 v translation & localization, automotive & aviation, technology & IT
98 Awatera Cyprus 14.4 v translation & localization, interpreting, life sciences, technology & IT, gaming
99 Hansem Global South Korea 14.0 v technical writing, translation, consumer goods
100 kothes GmbH Germany 14.0 v translation & localization services, technology, DTP & graphic design

 

Our ranking is a live document and 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
  • Some companies appear to have the same revenue due to currency rounding. However, the ranking order is accurate considering the second decimal.

Close, but no cigar

The following companies would have made the ranking in previous editions, but due to the growth of other players as well as new arrivals on the Nimdzi 100, they did not make the cut this year. However, they deserve an honorary mention.

Company Country 2022 Revenue (USD million) Note Main business
24translate Group Germany 13.8 v translation & localization, DTP & graphic design, financial & legal
Interpreters Unlimited Group United States 13.5 v interpreting, legal, education, gaming
Human Science Japan 13.3 v translation & localization, data & AI, technology & IT, marketing
German Translation Network – Ge|Tra|Net| Germany 13.2 v translation & localization, interpreting, manufacturing, financial & legal
EVS Translations Germany 13.1 v translation, finance, legal
Presence Translate & Interact Luxembourg 13.1 v interpreting, healthcare, government
Global Lingo United Kingdom 12.0 v translation, interpreting, transcription, technology & IT, e-learning
Ingenuiti United States 11.7 v translation, DTP & graphic design, life sciences
Mondia Technologies Ltd United Kingdom 11.3 v manufacturing & engineering, professional services, multimedia & e-learning
Expression Australia Australia 11.2 FY sign language interpreting
Powerling France 11.0 v translation, life sciences, consumer goods
Transcom Global United Kingdom 10.8 v translation, life sciences
Kaleidoscope Austria 10.5 v translation & localization, transcreation, manufacturing
Terra Translations United States 10.4 v translation, language testing & QA, video games, education & e-learning
Translation Back Office Argentina 10.0 v translation, localization, work for other LSPs
Linguitronics Co., Ltd. Taiwan 10.0 v translation and localization services, Life sciences

 

Watchlist

Language service providers without a definitive revenue estimate 

The Watchlist consists of companies that should be in the ranking but are not listed because they do not disclose, publish, or otherwise reveal their revenue. Furthermore, some organizations are units inside larger corporate groups where a small part of revenue comes from language services, and annual reports do not allow researchers to segment out the translation and interpreting revenue. We provide visibility to such companies on the Watchlist to highlight their impact on the industry. 

The reason it is important for us to track these companies is because even though they might not compete for clients, they compete for talent and resources. They also represent opportunities for technology providers and investors.

The companies are listed in alphabetical order.

Company Headquarters Description
Ability InterBusiness Solutions (AIBS) Japan translation, technical writing
Advanced Language Systems International United States translation, localization, government
Alibaba Language Services China IT company, translation platform
AllWorld Language Consultants (ALC) United States translation, interpreting, government
American Language Services (AML-Global) United States translation, interpreting, legal, technical, media
Angel Translation Corporation China translation, localization, interpreting
Blu Digital Group United States media localization
CALNET United States government, interpreting
Chizai Corporation Japan translation, patents
Conduit Language Specialists United States translation, interpreting, government
Congrès Global Communications Japan translation, interpreting, conference
Convo Communications United States sign language interpreting
CWU United States translation, interpreting, government
Datawords France translation, marketing
Deluxe United States media localization
Diction Switzerland translation & localization, marketing, financial & legal
DXC ACG United States IT company, translation, software localization
EnVeritas Group (EVG) United States communications company, content localization
Geneva Worldwide United States interpreting, translation, legal, healthcare
Global Linguist Solutions (GLS) United States translation, interpreting, government
ICON Ireland clinical research group, life sciences, translation
IDC Digital United States media localization
Iota Localization Services Ireland translation & localization, IT and software, education, security
KACE Company United States translation, interpreting, government
Language Services Associates United States interpreting, healthcare, insurance, financial
Leidos United States translation, interpreting, government
Lengoo Germany translation, technology
LIS Solutions (Legal Interpreting Solutions) United States interpreting, government
LocTeam Spain translation, localization
Maruboshi Co., part of CMC Corporation Japan translation, interpreting, technical writing
Metropolitan Interpreters and Translators (Metlang) United States translation, interpreting, government
Mid Atlantic Professionals (SSI) United States government, interpreting
Mission Essential United States translation, interpreting, government
Mother Tongue United Kingdom transcreation, translation, content creation
MultiLingual Solutions (MLS) United States translation, interpreting, software localization
Prime Focus Technologies India media localization
Qloc Poland localization, video game services
Raytheon United States government, language technology
Smartling United States IT company, translation, content localization
SOS International United States translation, localization, interpreting, government
SunFlare Japan translation, technical writing
Testronic United Kingdom video game services, localization
TITRAFILM France media localization
Tradutec Group France translation, life sciences, finance
Transn China translation, financial & legal
tsd GmbH Germany translation, manufacturing, financial, pharma
Unbabel United States translation, platform, technology
Valbin Corporation United States government
WCS Group Netherlands translation, interpreting, technical documentation
Wordbank United Kingdom translation, audiovisual, marketing
Wordbank United Kingdom translation, transcreation, marketing, media, technology
WordTech International China translation, localization
WorldWide Language Resources United States translation, interpreting, government
ZVRS / Purple Communications United States sign language interpreting

 

How we create the Nimdzi 100

During the course of this market analysis, Nimdzi uncovered prominent LSPs that have previously been invisible in market reports because they do not participate in surveys and are reluctant to disclose their revenue. Nimdzi has employed an investigative approach and invested hundreds of hours into intense research, data collection, and analysis in order to present data that have previously been unavailable.

We are very proud to offer broad access to our data. This ranking is offered to all who are interested. No paywall. No strings attached. Localization buyers, investors, savvy job seekers, and analysts are welcome to use this document. Just don’t forget to reference Nimdzi Insights, LLC, as the source. Interested parties are free to reach out to us directly should they have any questions.

Below is a summary of the methodology used for the Nimdzi 100 ranking.

  1. We concentrated on identifying LSPs with USD 10 million or more in revenue, with the assistance of in-country experts. In most countries, there are only a few providers of this size, and it is impossible for them to hide from local competitors because they hire staff, take part in requests for proposals and employ a large number of translators. Once we identified the relevant LSPs, we researched information that could help us make more accurate estimates of their size and talked to the management directly to verify our findings.
  2. We’re listing full company revenue, not just language services revenue. It is impossible to separate these in external sources of information, such as annual reports, press releases, and stock listings, which provide the foundation for our work.
  3. 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. 
  4. 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.
  5. Growth rates are calculated in USD. 
  6. 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.

The ranking is out but this is not the end of this year’s Nimdzi 100. Stay tuned as we finalize our full market report that comes with an analysis of current trends and market dynamics. Out soon!

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