Simultaneous Interpreter Cost for a Church: Human Interpreter vs AI Captions

What is simultaneous interpreting, and why is the cost hard to pin down?

In simultaneous interpreting the speaker keeps talking while the interpreter says the meaning in another language, and listeners usually hear it through headphones. Churches use it for Sunday sermons, joint services and conferences.

A single answer to "how much does it cost" does not exist, because a quote depends on many items. We could not find a published, citable standard price, so this article does not give a figure for human interpreters and does not compare against a guessed number. Instead it shows what to ask and how to compare.

Which items should you ask an interpreter or agency to spell out?

Two quotes for "one sermon" can look very different. Get answers to the list below first, so the quotes can sit side by side.

• Language pair: whether it is a common pair or a rare language or dialect.
• Billing unit: by the hour, half day, full day or event, and the minimum charge.
• Time covered: whether preparation, a rehearsal and a hand over after the service are included.
• Number of interpreters: one or two, and whether they take turns.
• Equipment: who supplies headsets, transmitter and receivers, and whether that is extra.
• Overtime and cancellation: how a long sermon is billed, and what a late cancellation or reschedule costs.
• Travel and other charges: mileage, parking or meals.
• A standing weekly arrangement: whether a long term booking changes the rate, and who covers when the interpreter is ill.

How is the cost of AI captions calculated?

Sermon Translate charges by hours, not by event. All figures below come from the pricing page, in US dollars.

Paying every 6 months or yearly costs less than paying monthly: two weeks free on the 6 month price and one month free on the yearly price. Paying up front for 6 months or a year also adds 10 bonus hours. Extra hours start at $2.25 an hour.

How the hours are used matters. Each extra caption language multiplies the time billed for that recording. One hour shown in three languages uses three hours, not one.

A worked example: one weekly service in three languages

Say the sermon and worship run 1.5 hours, there are 4 Sundays in the month, and three languages are shown at once. This is an example we calculated from the rules above, so check it against your own schedule.

If the same church needs only one language, a 1.5 hour service four times a month is 6 hours, and Basic at $19.99 with 12 hours covers it. Counting the languages you really need is the most important step in estimating the cost.

How do the two options compare beyond price?

For fuller comparisons see the AI versus human interpreter page, the headset comparison and the overall guide to church translation costs.

When is a human interpreter still the better choice?

• Medical, legal, crisis counselling and end of life conversations, where a misunderstanding is not acceptable.
• Languages the tool does not support, or very rare dialects.
• Listeners who need to hear rather than read, such as older members who tire of reading captions.
• Venues without a stable internet connection.
• Content full of jokes, wordplay or cultural background that needs explaining.

Many churches use both: captions for the ordinary Sunday, and a human interpreter with headsets for the members who need to listen. That keeps the person's time where it matters most and makes the cost easier to control.

How can you work out your own church's answer quickly?

1. List the languages a normal Sunday really needs, leaving out occasional guests.
2. Work out the length of a service and multiply by the Sundays in the month.
3. Ask one or two interpreters or agencies for a written quote, using the questions above.
4. Multiply use per service by Sundays to get the caption hours you need, then match a plan.
5. Put both sets of numbers in one table, and add the line "will someone reliably come every week?"
6. Use the monthly free hour to test it on a real Sunday.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a simultaneous interpreter cost?

There is no single published price. The cost depends on language, hours, venue, equipment and how many interpreters are needed, so ask for a written quote and check how overtime, cancellation and equipment are charged.

What should a church ask before booking an interpreter every week?

Ask about the billing unit and minimum charge, whether preparation time is included, whether two interpreters are needed, who supplies the headsets, whether a standing booking has a different rate, and who covers if the interpreter is unavailable.

How does Sermon Translate charge?

By the hour. Every account without a paid plan gets 1 free hour a month, Basic is $19.99 a month for 12 hours, Standard is $34 a month for 30 hours, and All Languages is $59 a month for 60 hours. Each extra caption language counts as an additional share of the time.

How many hours does a three language service use?

Each extra language multiplies the time billed for that recording, so one hour shown in three languages uses three hours. Standard already includes 2 languages, so only the third adds to the usage.

Can AI captions replace a human simultaneous interpreter?

For a regular sermon with several languages they often do. For medical, legal, crisis or end of life talks, or a language the tool does not support, a trained human interpreter is still the safer choice.

Do members need headsets for AI captions?

No. Members scan a QR Code and read in their phone browser with no account. The limit is that everyone needs an internet connection.

Try Sermon Translate at your next service

Start with 1 free hour every month, no credit card needed. Plans start at $19.99 a month.