Making money online has its risks. You need to be cautious about the platforms you’re using and the information you’re willing to provide. These risks are the common reasons why aspiring freelance transcriptionists are skeptical at first.
That said, there are still legitimate ways to make money online, and Rev.com is undoubtedly one of them. This article will discuss what Rev.com is and how you can use it to make a profit online.
What is Rev.com?
Rev was founded in 2009. Its services include transcription, translation, and captioning for companies like PBS and Comcast. They provide these services with the help of both in-house staff and freelancers.
It is one of the better transcription platforms. Rev has been awarded an Editor’s Choice Award for transcribing audio and video files by PC Mag. The company has been featured on sites like The Wall Street Journal and Tech Crunch.
How much money can you make through Rev.com?
If you’re looking for a weekend or part-time job, then Rev.com could be for you. There are lots of different entry-level job openings; transcriptionists, translators, etc. The starting wage works out at about $5-$7 an hour.
If you’re a student looking to earn a bit of extra money, or you live in a country with low living costs, $5-$7 an hour might be ok. However, it’s far below the living wage in the UK or US.
Your monthly income will depend on how much you work. There’s a lot of flexibility in this regard. You can set your working hours. That means you can work one day a week, or every day of the week if you choose.
Most people don’t work full-time. The average transcriptionist completes 15 jobs a month and earns $156. You can feasibly earn somewhere between $1,000-$2,000 a month if you work hard.
Overall, Rev.com may be a great way to make extra money online, but it’s never going to be a replacement for a good job. Look at it as a way to make a bit of extra money.
What entry-level jobs can you get?
The job opportunities at Rev.com revolve around transcription and translation services. There are four main career paths:
- Audio Transcriptionist – convert spoken English in an audio file into a written format
- Captioner – Add captions to a video and transcribe English audio
- Subtitler – Translate the audio with video and add subtitles accordingly
- Translator – Other translation activities aside from video subtitles
If you’re new to the online transcription and translation gig, the process is fairly simple. First, the client will upload an audio or video file to Rev.com. You are then sent the file for review.
The job entails you sitting in front of your computer and transcribing the audio files. Though it sounds easy, some audio files have poor quality, making them hard to understand.
There’s probably not a great future with these types of jobs. We are seeing improved automated transcription services thanks to advances in Artificial Intelligence (just think about the default transcription you get on YouTube, for example). It’s going to take a bit longer to get AI translation, but it’s getting better all the time.
How much does Rev.com Pay?
Like most online jobs, how much you get paid will depend on how much work you’re willing to do. Transcription rates range from $.24 to $.90 per audio or video minute. Captioning ranges from $.45 to $.75 per audio or video minute.
It will probably take you about an hour to transcribe 20-minute audio or video files. That can mean an hourly rate of around $8.00 – $15.00. However, the rate for new workers is lower.
As you progress, you’ll get higher-paying opportunities. That means a better hourly rate.
Rev.com is a great way to earn extra cash in your free time, but it’s not a dependable primary source of income like a full-time job. One of the biggest criticisms of Rev.com is the grading, which seems to hold a lot of people back from going full-time.
Captioners earn $5 to $8 per video minute while translators earn $.05 to $.07 per word. Rev doesn’t disclose the average salary of interpreters for big companies, but hourly earnings are said to be higher.
Reviews on Rev.com
Rev.com has a 4.5/5 customer review score on TrustPilot. Reviews on sites like Glassdoor are mostly negative. As discussed earlier, Rev.com doesn’t pay much, but it’s aligned with the rates of other transcription companies.
One of the biggest issues with Rev.com seems to be the quality and variability of the grading. The review below provides a nice sense of the benefits and frustrations of working for Rev.com.
Rev seems to be a nice option for freelancers who can deal with the opaque grading system,
Transcription jobs are all about speed. If you’re fast and accurate, you can make a decent amount. Some people fall short and, therefore, get low pay. Your pay will depend on your ability to work efficiently. Come to Rev.com with realistic expectations, and you should be happy.
Pros of Rev.com
- Flexible schedule and can work alongside other freelance opportunities
- Good compensation for translators of multiple languages
- Gives users the ability to pick and choose among available projects
Cons of Rev.com
- Complaints about inconsistent grading process or unfair grading of work
- Poor support team
- Pay is highly dependent on speed and accuracy
- Inconsistent stream of assignments
Bottomline
Rev.com is a good opportunity for anyone who wants to work from home or earn a bit of extra money. It’s the ideal student job. To succeed, you need excellent typing skills or fluency in a foreign language. The main problem with Rev.com is that the work is inconsistent, and the grading is not transparent.
Sites like Rev.com and online survey platforms are good sources of supplemental income if you have downtime and want a flexible schedule. You’ll make some money, you won’t get rich, though. For more useful articles, check out our guide on how to make money blogging and everything you should know about Wealthy Affiliate.