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Job outlook for interpreters in the United States
Interpreter job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected interpreter job growth rate is 20% from 2018-2028.
About 14,000 new jobs for interpreters are projected over the next decade.
Interpreter salaries have increased 13% for interpreters in the last 5 years.
There are over 30,152 interpreters currently employed in the United States.
There are 3,772 active interpreter job openings in the US.
The average interpreter salary is $42,008.
Are interpreter jobs in demand?
Interpreter job and salary trends over time
Interpreter jobs over time
Interpreter job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 30,152 | 0.01% |
| 2020 | 32,898 | 0.01% |
| 2019 | 34,025 | 0.01% |
| 2018 | 33,025 | 0.01% |
| 2017 | 30,719 | 0.01% |
Average interpreter salary over time
Interpreter salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $42,008 | $20.20 | +1.0% |
| 2024 | $41,607 | $20.00 | +3.8% |
| 2023 | $40,082 | $19.27 | +5.8% |
| 2022 | $37,882 | $18.21 | +2.3% |
| 2021 | $37,023 | $17.80 | +4.4% |
Interpreter jobs by state
Most common states for interpreters
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 327 | 8% |
| 2 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 36 | 5% |
| 3 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 92 | 1% |
| 4 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 74 | 1% |
| 5 | Arizona | 7,016,270 | 62 | 1% |
| 6 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 45 | 1% |
| 7 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 40 | 1% |
| 8 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 16 | 1% |
| 9 | Delaware | 961,939 | 14 | 1% |
| 10 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 12 | 1% |
| 11 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 11 | 1% |
| 12 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 7 | 1% |
| 13 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 6 | 1% |
| 14 | California | 39,536,653 | 173 | 0% |
| 15 | Texas | 28,304,596 | 104 | 0% |
| 16 | New York | 19,849,399 | 78 | 0% |
| 17 | Georgia | 10,429,379 | 42 | 0% |
| 18 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 15 | 0% |
| 19 | Mississippi | 2,984,100 | 10 | 0% |
| 20 | West Virginia | 1,815,857 | 6 | 0% |
Most common cities for interpreters
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fredericksburg | 2 | 7% | $57,670 |
| 2 | Annapolis | 2 | 5% | $45,892 |
| 3 | Braintree Town | 2 | 5% | $42,732 |
| 4 | Severn | 2 | 5% | $45,903 |
| 5 | Olympia | 2 | 4% | $44,048 |
| 6 | Glen Burnie | 2 | 3% | $45,968 |
| 7 | Des Moines | 4 | 2% | $32,575 |
| 8 | Lowell | 2 | 2% | $42,406 |
| 9 | Boston | 6 | 1% | $42,635 |
| 10 | Little Rock | 2 | 1% | $31,242 |
| 11 | Saint Paul | 2 | 1% | $38,184 |
| 12 | Austin | 3 | 0% | $44,147 |
| 13 | Denver | 3 | 0% | $40,104 |
| 14 | Baltimore | 2 | 0% | $46,076 |
| 15 | Chicago | 2 | 0% | $33,109 |
| 16 | Atlanta | 1 | 0% | $46,160 |
Interpreter job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of interpreter experts
University of California - Davis
Kent State University
Washington and Lee University
Bethel University
Rowan University
International Association of Conference Interpreters
NAJIT
Victoria Juharyan
University of California - Davis
Slavic, Baltic And Albanian Languages, Literatures, And Linguistics
What general advice would you give to an Interpreter?
Victoria Juharyan: Another field that needs professionals with a good command of Russian is the medical field. Translators are in high demand for serving patients who do not speak English. Russian-speakers can also help Ukrainian refugees in the US.
What will help Interpreters increase their earning potential?
Victoria Juharyan: A degree in Russian Studies opens many doors — be it in arts, music, literature, and languages or international relations, business, politics, and diplomacy. 20% of the Earth’s population speaks Russian. It’s one of the critical languages of the United Nations as well as a highly demanded language for jobs at the CIA and the FBI.
What general advice would you give to an Interpreter?
Tanya Bystrova-McIntyre Ph.D.: Assess your current language abilities and identify your strengths and interests. Do you enjoy working from home? Become a Russian freelance translator and a phone interpreter. Enjoy helping others? Join a humanitarian organization, help refugees, or volunteer in a Russian-speaking community (and we have so many in the U.S.). Enjoy politics? Choose a career with a political twist—Russia is a limitless source of political interest. Love teaching? There are also opportunities there. Looking for a career in business? Offer your services as a cultural consultant. Would like to strengthen your language abilities and your resume? Go to live abroad for a year, in the Baltics or Kazakhstan, for instance—you will not regret learning about people and cultures first-hand.
What Interpreter skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Tanya Bystrova-McIntyre Ph.D.: Definitely AI. It has been developing with the speed of lightning. Keep up with the developments and learn as much as possible on how language professionals can integrate AI in their work. Treat AI as an assistant in your chosen career and not as an enemy. Look for aspects that only a human language professional can do.
What will help Interpreters increase their earning potential?
Tanya Bystrova-McIntyre Ph.D.: Find a mentor to help you narrow down jobs and help you negotiate a better starting salary. Join professional organizations. Maintain professional online presence. Consider getting certified. For instance, if you plan to be a translator, look into getting an ATA certification (American Translators Association). Remember that it takes about 10 years of deliberate practice and getting professional feedback on your work to become an expert in a field, so, if it is possible, try to treat every job as a step forward. And quit if it is not.
Mark Rush
Prof. of Politics and LawWashington and Lee University
Political Science And Government
What will help Interpreters increase their earning potential?
Mark Rush: Good, clear writing is critical. But, it requires practice and regular reading to maintain a sense of clarity to be able to express your ideas succinctly.
I'd recommend acquiring and maintaining skill in at least one other language. This is a means of empowerment as well as ensuring real cultural understanding-not just cultural understanding translated into English.
Laura Polhemus Ph.D.
Advanced Assistant ProfessorBethel University
American Sign Language
What general advice would you give to an Interpreter?
Laura Polhemus Ph.D.: We are continuing to see more and more virtual interpreting. Knowing how to use technology, how to set up a background and lighting for optimal viewing, and having strategies for making interpreting happen smoothly on various virtual platforms is essential.
The Center for Atypical Language Interpreting offers many resources that will prepare you to work with individuals from a variety of language backgrounds. https://cssh.northeastern.edu/cali/
There are many Deaf individuals obtaining advanced degrees and working in high level positions. Knowing how to behave with the utmost professionalism in a multitude of work settings and having strong academic language skills in both American Sign Language and English are important in working with these individuals.
What Interpreter skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Laura Polhemus Ph.D.: Always be involved with the Deaf community where you live. Go to events, volunteer where appropriate, and seek out ways to be involved. This will grow your ASL skills and your understanding of how to be a good ally.
Never stop learning. Listen to podcasts, watch ASL news, read, go to workshops, seek out mentors, and continue to learn and grow to become more knowledgeable of the world and the languages you’re using.
Give yourself grace and practice self-care. It will take many hours of practice to become an expert, so don’t expect that to happen immediately. The biggest difference between experts and novices in this field is that experts know how to see a mistake and turn it around into something that motivates them or sometime they can learn from instead of seeing it only as a negative.
Take advantage of massages, counseling, chiropractic services, and other types of self-care to keep yourself healthy physically and mentally.
What will help Interpreters increase their earning potential?
Laura Polhemus Ph.D.: Always be involved with the Deaf community where you live. Go to events, volunteer where appropriate, and seek out ways to be involved. This will grow your ASL skills and your understanding of how to be a good ally. Never stop learning. Listen to podcasts, watch ASL news, read, go to workshops, seek out mentors, and continue to learn and grow to become more knowledgeable of the world and the languages you’re using. Give yourself grace and practice self-care. It will take many hours of practice to become an expert, so don’t expect that to happen immediately. The biggest difference between experts and novices in this field is that experts know how to see a mistake and turn it around into something that motivates them or sometime they can learn from instead of seeing it only as a negative. Take advantage of massages, counseling, chiropractic services, and other types of self-care to keep yourself healthy physically and mentally.
Marilyn Manley Ph.D.
Full Professor of Spanish, Department ChairRowan University
Department of World Languages
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Interpreter job market given the pandemic?
Marilyn Manley Ph.D.: One silver lining that has resulted from the Coronavirus pandemic is an increased familiarity for most job sectors with the technological tools needed to hold virtual meetings. These remote collaborations have bridged vast geographical distances and brought together speakers of various languages and cultural backgrounds on a more frequent basis than might otherwise have occurred by this point in time. Thus, while most of us have experienced increased physical isolation due to the pandemic, our virtual worlds have expanded considerably.
With the possibility for increased communication across physical boundaries, students with a background in the study of world languages and cultures will find that their skills are in even higher demand than before. Those equipped with world language proficiency and intercultural competence will find that they are well-prepared for a wide variety of career opportunities available to them as well as further study. Some examples include within the fields of interpretation and translation, health care (for example, in speech-language pathology and the study and treatment of dyslexia and aphasia), business and advertising (for example, in marketing to non-English speakers), education (for example, in language teaching, teaching English to speakers of other languages, training teachers, and designing assessments), communications, publishing, acting or training actors (as while learning the pronunciation and intonation of different languages and dialects), computer science (including applications to speech recognition, text-to-speech synthesis, artificial intelligence and robotics), journalism, law (such as studying the language of legal texts, linguistic aspects of evidence and issues of voice identification), public relations, work for the government (including for the Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI), the National Security Agency (NSA), the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the Department of Defense, etc.) and many others in the public and private sectors that require critical thinking, analytical reasoning, argumentation, and communicative ability.
What certifications/licenses/courses can have the biggest impact for Interpreters?
Marilyn Manley Ph.D.: Students of languages and cultures are already competitive job candidates; however, those who customize their academic careers with a double major, minor, or certificate will be even better prepared to enter the job market. Other strategies are to travel abroad or complete one or more internships to gain additional experience.
For example, those language students interested in a career as a speech-language pathologist may pursue a double major or minor in Biology or Biological Sciences. Speech-language pathologists diagnose and treat communication and swallowing disorders in patients. According to the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), while most speech-language pathologists work in schools, others often work in the offices of physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, and audiologists, as well as in hospitals (state, local and private), nursing care facilities, and home health care services. According to the BLS, the standard level of education for speech-language pathologists is a master's degree.
What's a good job out of college for Interpreters?
Marilyn Manley Ph.D.: According to the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), high growth rates are projected for the field of Interpretation/Translation. Interpreters and translators convert information form one language to another. While interpreters convert information from one spoken language to another, translators convert written materials from one language into another. Interpreters and translators may be self-employed or work for such industries as professional, scientific, and technical services, educational services (state, local, and private), health care and social assistance, and government.
Those interested in interpreting/translating within a specific environment, for example within health care, may become more competitive by pursuing additional, related study, for example by adding a Biology major or minor in Biological Sciences. Similarly, for example, those interested in a career as a government interpreter may follow the strategy of pursuing additional study in the form a major or minor in Political Science in order to broaden their employment options.
According to the BLS, the entry-level education needed to work as an interpreter or translator is a Bachelor's degree; however, many prospective interpreters and translators may also seek professional certification. While there is no universal certification required of interpreters and translators in the United States, a number of organizations provide certification, including the American Translators Association, the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters and Translators (for court interpreting), the International Association of Conference Interpreters, the Certification Commission for Healthcare Interpreters, and the National Board of Certification for Medical Interpreters.
Katty Kauffman
US-based Freelance Interpreter, member of AIIC, representative of the VEGA Outreach and Mentoring NetworkInternational Association of Conference Interpreters
What type of skills will young Interpreters need?
Katty Kauffman: Interpreters need a range of skills, which fall roughly into three categories:
- Skills covered by your university program. These include technical skills in Simultaneous Interpreting, Consecutive Interpreting and Sight Translation, as well as professional ethics. Ethics are increasingly important at the moment when, because of Covid-related health restrictions, many of us are, unfortunately, having to work without a boothmate until normality returns, and still need to maintain a high level of trust with agencies and clients.
- Skills you may not have covered in school, which are vital as a freelancer. You need soft skills to help you network and engage with potential clients. Applying for pre-candidacy and subsequently joining AIIC as a full member can also raise your visibility within the industry.
An understanding of how to run your own business is also essential. Know what contract you are being offered, how to write an invoice, and which tax structure is best for you. If you are planning on working for yourself, be aware of what is happening with the PRO Act (H.R.2474) and the consequences it may have for freelance workers.
-Technical skills. On the business side, you are creating your own brand, so nowadays, you need a website and a social media presence. Understanding the workings of various RSI platforms and the equipment you need is also fundamental.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Interpreters to find work opportunities?
Katty Kauffman: Conference interpreting is a smaller industry in the U.S. than it is in Europe, where there are a lot of large institutions working daily in multiple languages. Although we do have large institutions that employ conference interpreters, like the UN in New York and the World Bank, IDB, and Pan American Health Organization in Washington, unless they have a particularly sought after language combination, young graduates will find more opportunities by starting their working life in medical institutions or as court interpreters. Both of these require additional, specialized studies and national or state certification, so make sure you know your state's requirements so you can make the best choices for your career.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Interpreter job market given the pandemic?
Aimee Benavides: One big trend right now, that will affect many professions, is the push to limit the ability of service providers to be independent contractors. This has proven to be a controversial subject as the reactions to laws such as AB5 enacted in California and S4204, which was proposed in New Jersey, have demonstrated. These bills have made many freelancers fear the viability of future contract work, while others welcome the prospect of full-time employment with benefits. Navigating the complexities is not easy. It will require that legislators listen to both stakeholders and constituents so that they may fine-tune laws to allow for the many nuances inherent to highly skilled professions such as a court, conference, and medical interpreting. Those who are entering the profession will need to have a clear idea of what is required to be a business owner, if they wish to operate independently.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Interpreters?
Aimee Benavides: The pandemic has changed the way a lot of businesses and organizations function, and this has had an enormous impact on interpreters and, to a lesser degree, translators. Court interpreting has traditionally been provided in person at courthouses, legal offices, and conference rooms, throughout the country. Remote interpreting, for the most part, was considered a last resort. Under current circumstances, courts and other public sector offices have had no option but to adopt remote interpreting as the means to get work done, and it is logical that some offices may continue to emphasize the use of remote services, after the pandemic, as a way to cut costs. It will be of utmost importance to insist that interpreter qualifications not be bypassed to save resources, or for the sake of convenience, in critical environments such as hospitals or courts. In order to preserve the essential progress made over the years with regard to language access, it is crucial to adhere to clear, well-founded professional rules in the areas of interpreting and translation. It will also be important for interpreters to adapt to different technologies, determine when they are appropriate, and ultimately uphold best practices. Interpreters who are familiar with online interpreting platforms and remote technology will ultimately have more opportunities and options than those who do not.