The headline promises honesty. Here it is.
We sell subtitle translation. €100 per language, flat rate, any length. You'd expect us to tell you we're the best.
We're not. Not for everyone.
If you're translating a 5-minute TikTok video, we're terrible value. Happy Scribe will do it for €1. If you want free and don't mind inconsistent quality, Amara exists. If you need basic transcription without real translation, the budget AI tools work fine.
But if you're translating a feature film - a documentary, a 90-minute narrative, an hour-long corporate training - and you want it done right? That's where this gets interesting.
We took a deep dive into every major subtitle translation service. Pricing pages. Hidden fees. Real output quality. The works.
Here's what we found.
The Real Cost of Subtitle Translation in 2025
Before we compare services, you need to understand how this industry prices its work.
The Three Pricing Tiers
💰 Budget AI Services (€0.13–0.28 per minute)
Machines do the work. Fast. Cheap. 80-90% accurate. Fine for drafts and social media. Terrible for anything audiences will actually watch.
🏆 Mid-Range Services (€0.25–2 per minute)
AI with light human review or basic human services. 90-95% accurate. Costs scale linearly with length.
👑 Premium Human Services (€2–30 per minute)
Professional translators who understand context, culture, and character. 99%+ accurate. What broadcasters and streaming platforms demand. Expensive.
Here's the math that matters:
| Video Length | Budget AI | Mid-Range | Premium Human |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 minutes | €1–3 | €3–20 | €20–300 |
| 60 minutes | €8–17 | €15–120 | €120–1,800 |
| 90 minutes | €12–25 | €23–180 | €180–2,700 |
Notice anything? Per-minute pricing punishes long-form content creators. A 90-minute documentary costs 9x more than a 10-minute video. Same work for the translator per minute. Same quality. Nine times the price.
This is the dirty secret of the subtitle industry.
The Top 10, Ranked by Honesty
We're not ranking by "best overall." That's meaningless. We're ranking by who's actually best for specific use cases - and being honest about where each service falls short.
1. Rev
Rev is the Honda Civic of subtitle translation. Reliable. Predictable. Nobody ever got fired for choosing Rev.
✓ What they do well
- 99% accuracy guarantee on human services
- 12-hour turnaround on most orders
- Excellent customer service
- Trusted by Spotify, Amazon, and 170,000+ customers
✗ What they don't tell you
- That $0.25/minute AI? It's transcription only. Actual translation with humans runs $6.49–$15.99 per minute.
- 17 languages. That's it. Need Romanian? Thai? Hindi? Look elsewhere.
- A 90-minute film translated to Spanish costs $585–$1,439. Per language.
2. Happy Scribe
Happy Scribe is the budget airline. Gets you there. Might not be comfortable.
✓ What they do well
- 120+ languages (seriously impressive)
- €12 for a 60-minute video (AI)
- Clean interface, easy to use
- GDPR compliant, SOC 2 certified
✗ What they don't tell you
- That 85% AI accuracy? It means 15% errors. In a 90-minute film with 1,000 subtitle lines, that's 150 mistakes.
- Free tier doesn't let you export. Subscription required.
- Human review at €1.70/min makes a 90-minute film cost €153.
3. Sonix
Sonix built their product for teams, and it shows. If you have multiple people reviewing subtitles, this is your tool.
✓ What they do well
- Process 30 minutes of audio in 3-4 minutes
- Excellent collaboration features
- Translation Memory (learns your terminology)
- API access for integration
✗ What they don't tell you
- Translation costs extra. $5-10/hour on top of transcription.
- That $10/hour is single-user only. Teams pay $22/month plus $5/hour.
- 60-minute video = $60 base + $300-600 translation = $360-$660 total.
4. Amberscript
Amberscript Based in Amsterdam. Has GDPR as their middle name.
✓ What they do well
- Cheapest AI option we found (€0.13/min)
- ISO 27001 & 9001 certified
- TPN badge for content security
- Custom dictionary support
✗ What they don't tell you
- Human translation limited to 18 languages
- Accuracy lower than competitors
- 5-day turnaround on translated subtitles
5. SubtitleBee
SubtitleBee was built specifically for Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts. Does that one thing very well.
✓ What they do well
- Beautiful subtitle styling options
- Optimized for vertical video
- 120+ languages
✗ What they don't tell you
- Maximum video length: 30 minutes
- Monthly video limits
- NOT designed for professional subtitle files
6. Maestra
Maestra tries to do everything: transcription, translation, voiceover, dubbing. Jack of all trades situation.
7. Descript
Descript isn't a subtitle service. It's a video editor that happens to do subtitles.
8. GoTranscript
GoTranscript No AI. Uses real humans. Real accuracy. Real prices.
✓ What they do well
- 99% accuracy guarantee
- True human translators
- Academic and legal specialization
✗ What they don't tell you
- Turnaround: 1-3 days minimum
- $1.58/min means $95 for 60 minutes, $142 for 90 minutes. Per language.
9. 3Play Media
3Play Media was built for enterprises. Priced for enterprises. If you're not an enterprise, move along.
10. Voquent
Voquent This is what Netflix and Amazon use. Offers broadcast-quality translation by professional linguists.
✓ What they do well
- Broadcast-ready quality
- Cultural adaptation, not just translation
- 100+ languages with native speakers
✗ What they don't tell you
- $30/minute means $2,700 for a 90-minute film. Per language.
- Designed for studios, not independents.
The Comparison Nobody Else Will Show You
Here's what every service costs for a 90-minute feature film, translated to one language:
| Service | 90-Min Cost | Type | Turnaround | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amberscript (AI) | €12 | AI | Minutes | 90+ |
| Happy Scribe (AI) | €18 | AI | Minutes | 120+ |
| SubtitleBee | N/A | AI | - | Can't handle 90 min |
| Rev (AI) | $23 | AI | Minutes | 38 |
| ⭐ AI Subtitles by WOCOO | €100 | AI + Context | ~30 min | 45 |
| Sonix | $360–660 | AI + Human | Hours–Days | 40+ |
| GoTranscript | $142 | Human | 1–3 days | 50+ |
| Happy Scribe (Human) | €153 | Human | 1–2 days | 120+ |
| Rev (Human) | $585–1,439 | Human | 12–24 hours | 17 |
| 3Play Media | $180–1,800 | Hybrid | 1–5 days | Multiple |
| Voquent | $1,080–2,700 | Human | Days–Weeks | 100+ |
Notice something? The cheap AI options are fast but lack context. The quality human options take days and cost a fortune. AI Subtitles by WOCOO sits in a category of its own: context-aware quality, AI speed, flat-rate pricing.
Where Does AI Subtitles by WOCOO Fit?
We promised honesty. Here it is.
AI Subtitles by WOCOO is terrible if:
- Your video is under 30 minutes (cheaper options exist)
- You need 100+ languages (we offer 45)
- You want the absolute cheapest option regardless of quality (pure AI-only is cheaper)
AI Subtitles by WOCOO is excellent if:
- You're translating feature-length content (60+ minutes)
- You care about context (we analyze characters, scenes, and relationships)
- You need professional quality without premium pricing
- You want predictable costs (€100, no surprises, any length)
- Your film has nuanced dialogue (gender agreement, cultural references, character voice)
- You need it fast (15-minute analysis + 10-15 minutes per language)
Why we built this:
WOCOO is a social video-on-demand platform with over 137,000 registered users. For over three years, we've been distributing independent films directly to global audiences and building communities around that content.
Here's what we learned: the biggest barrier to international distribution isn't marketing or platform access - it's language. A brilliant Romanian documentary means nothing to a German audience if they can't understand the story. A Spanish indie film won't find its audience in Japan without proper localization.
We watched filmmakers spend thousands on translations that still missed the mark. We saw AI tools produce fast garbage. We experienced the frustration firsthand.
So we built something better. AI Subtitles by WOCOO uses the same context-aware translation engine we developed for our own platform - now available to every independent filmmaker.
What makes us different:
We don't just translate words. We understand your story first.
Our proprietary system analyzes your film before translating a single line. It understands who's speaking, who they're speaking to, and the emotional context of every scene. When a character in Romanian needs to say "you're beautiful," we know if they're addressing a man or woman - and conjugate accordingly.
Most AI tools get this wrong. They translate sentence by sentence without context. The result is technically accurate and emotionally wrong.
And we're fast.
A 2-hour feature film? Analysis plus translation in under 30 minutes per language. A 10-minute episode? Done in under a minute.
Context-aware quality at AI speed. That's the combination nobody else offers.
The Bottom Line
There's no "best" subtitle translation service. There's only the best service for your specific needs.
Choose based on:
- Video length - Per-minute pricing punishes long content
- Quality requirements - AI alone isn't enough for professional work
- Language needs - Some services offer 17, others offer 125
- Budget reality - Know your cost before you start
- Turnaround - Pure AI is fast but context-blind. Humans are slow but accurate. Only one option gives you both.
For feature films and long-form content where context matters?
We built AI Subtitles by WOCOO for exactly that.
Two complete translations. No credit card required.
Last updated: November 2025. Prices verified as of publication.
FAQ
Yes. You can run two complete translations - no credit card required. See the full output quality before spending anything.
Fast. A 2-hour feature film takes about 15 minutes to analyze, then 10-15 minutes per language (30 minutes for complex languages like Japanese or Arabic). Short episodes finish in under a minute. Context-aware quality at AI speed.
Because per-minute pricing is designed to maximize revenue, not serve filmmakers. A 90-minute documentary shouldn't cost 9x more than a 10-minute video. The translation work per minute is identical.
Honestly? Use Happy Scribe or Amberscript. We're not the right fit for short content. Our flat-rate pricing makes sense for feature-length content.
We use a proprietary multi-pass analysis system that understands your story before translating it. The AI identifies characters, relationships, and narrative context - then uses that understanding to make smarter translation decisions. The result: translations that are emotionally accurate, not just linguistically correct.
SRT input. SRT, VTT, and TTML output. We can also check Netflix/Amazon compliance if you're heading to streaming platforms.
WOCOO is our social video-on-demand platform where we've been distributing independent films and building audience communities since 2022. AI Subtitles by WOCOO uses the translation technology we built for that platform - now available as a standalone service for all filmmakers.
Ready to translate your next project?
Upload your subtitles, choose your languages, and get broadcast-ready translations in minutes. No per-minute surprises. No hidden fees. Just €100 per language, any length.
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