Stepes
Stepes is a cloud-based professional translation platform connecting 100,000+ certified translators across 100+ languages to enterprises, SMBs, and individuals via an AI-augmented TMS with per-word and subscription pricing.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersBeijing, China
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What Stepes does
Stepes is a cloud-based professional translation services platform operating a marketplace of 100,000+ certified translators across 100+ languages, serving individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises globally. The company's core product is a Translation Management System (TMS) that combines AI-powered process automation—including machine translation post-editing (MTPE), real-time translation memory, terminology management, and AI-assisted quality assurance—with professional human translators. The platform supports multiple service tiers ranging from basic machine translation to fully human translation, with rush options delivering 30-minute, 1-hour, and 24-hour turnaround, plus dedicated translator team management (myTranslator), continuous translation for ongoing content, and on-site interpreter booking.
Revenue is generated primarily through per-word transaction fees ($0.09-$0.20 for standard content, $0.12-$0.24 for marketing content) with tiered pricing by content type and language pair, supplemented by enterprise subscription programs with volume-based pricing. The go-to-market motion is hybrid: a self-service web portal and mobile apps serve SMBs and individuals via instant quotes and drag-and-drop ordering, while dedicated enterprise sales teams pursue large accounts. Distribution channels include the web customer portal, iOS/Android mobile apps, a RESTful Translation API for workflow automation, and CMS integrations with WordPress and Drupal.
The company holds ISO 9001:2015, ISO 17100, and ISO 13485 certifications and serves regulated verticals including life sciences, legal, and financial services. Named enterprise customers include Meta, Netflix, IBM, Google, Deloitte, Broadcom, Zoom, PepsiCo, Abbott, Wells Fargo, Marriott, Airbnb, and the US DOT, alongside 1,800+ total corporate clients. Stepes is headquartered in Beijing with US operations indicated by a +1 800 sales number, was founded in 2015, and operates as a private company with 11-50 core employees.
Stepes firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Stepes
- Legal name
- Stepes
- Website
- https://stepes.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Stepes is a cloud-based professional translation platform connecting 100,000+ certified translators across 100+ languages to enterprises, SMBs, and individuals via an AI-augmented TMS with per-word and subscription pricing.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Stepes is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Beijing
- HQ country
- China
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Stepes business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Per-word translation services: Stepes charges customers based on word count for professional translation services. Pricing varies by content type (Standard, Marketing, Legal/Medical) and language pair. Translation rates range from $0.09-$0.20 per word for standard content and $0.12-$0.24 for marketing content. The service supports one-time project-based transactions as well as ongoing enterprise engagements.
- Enterprise subscription programs: Customized pricing and turnaround options for enterprise customers with ongoing translation requirements. Includes dedicated translator teams, priority scheduling, and volume-based pricing through myTranslator feature.
- Rush translation services: Expedited translation services with premium pricing for urgent turnaround requirements including 30-minute, 1-hour, and 24-hour delivery options.
- MTPE (Machine Translation Post-Editing): Human post-editing of machine-translated content as a separate service tier, offering cost-effective translation for high-volume content.
- DTP/Desktop Publishing: Additional formatting and desktop publishing services for translated content to match source document layouts.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Standard translation service for product manuals, user guides, and technical documentation |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Marketing translation service for brochures, advertising materials, and high visibility content |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Legal and medical translation with certified quality for regulated content |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Three service tiers - Basic (Machine Translation), Good (MTPE), Best (Human Translation) |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Stepes product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Stepes is a cloud-based translation services platform that delivers professional human translation combined with AI-powered translation management technology across 100+ languages. The company sells on-demand, enterprise, continuous, certified, and rush translation services for documents, software, websites, video, eLearning, gaming, and technical content, supported by a translation management system, translation API, mobile apps, and on-site interpretation. It serves individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises with a network of 100,000+ translators.
Product overview
Stepes is a cloud-based translation services platform offering a comprehensive portfolio of professional human translation solutions. The core offering centers on the Translation Management System (TMS) combined with on-demand, enterprise, and continuous translation services. The platform is built around human-powered translation enhanced by AI/automation technologies, including MTPE (machine translation post-editing), real-time terminology management, and AI-assisted quality assurance. The product portfolio includes dedicated translator team management (myTranslator), mobile and app-based translation access, API-driven workflow automation, and specialized rush translation services (30-minute, 1-hour, 24-hour). Additional services span interpretation (on-site, mobile, location-based), linguistic validation for clinical research, and localization services for documents, websites, software, video, and eLearning content across 100+ languages.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Translation Management System (TMS) Cloud-based Translation Management System (TMS) that lets enterprises manage translation projects, translation memory, and terminology on the cloud with real-time project visibility, continuous updates, and AI-assisted quality assurance. Built for enterprise localization teams.
- On-Demand Translation Services On-demand human translation for small and mid-sized projects, allowing businesses to get documents translated on-demand with instant online quotes, drag-and-drop file upload, and 24-hour typical turnaround. Priced per word across Standard, Marketing, and Legal/Medical tiers.
- Enterprise Translation Services Scalable enterprise translation services for organization-wide localization requirements, including dedicated translator teams (myTranslator), centralized project management, customized pricing, priority scheduling, and dedicated account support.
- Document Translation Services Linguistically fluent and technically accurate document translations across all major file formats including Word, PDF, InDesign, PowerPoint, and Excel. Targeted at individuals, SMBs, and enterprise teams needing multilingual business documents.
- Software Localization Services End-to-end software localization including internationalization (I18N), localization (L10N), in-context translation, and testing services for mobile apps and enterprise software. Built for software companies and digital product teams.
- Website Localization Services Website translation with proxy translation technology that automatically crawls and extracts content from CMS systems (e.g., WordPress, Drupal) without manual export, supporting continuous updates for translated websites. Targeted at ecommerce, SaaS, and corporate websites expanding internationally.
- Video Translation Services Video translation services including subtitling, voiceovers, and on-screen text localization in 100 languages. Used for marketing videos, training modules, and multimedia content.
- eLearning Translation Services Translation services for eLearning and training courses, including voiceovers, subtitling, on-screen text localization, and LMS content. Targeted at academic institutions, eLearning platforms, and corporate training teams.
- Technical Translation Services Professional translation for technical, engineering, and scientific content with subject matter expertise across 1,700 industry fields. Targeted at manufacturing, engineering, oil & gas, and technology companies needing user manuals, SOPs, and safety documentation.
- Certified Translation Services Accurate, official, and accredited translations for immigration, legal, academic, and regulatory purposes, with notarization options. Targeted at individuals, law firms, immigration attorneys, and regulated industries.
- Gaming Translation Services Video game translations for mobile, desktop, and game consoles, supporting all gaming platforms. Targeted at game developers and publishers localizing content for global audiences.
- MTPE (Machine Translation Post-Editing) Enterprise Machine Translation Post-Editing combining neural machine translation with human translators for cost-effective quality output at high volumes. Supports MTPE 2.0 allowing linguists to score MT quality against multiple linguistic metrics for continuous MT improvement.
- Translation API Comprehensive RESTful translation API for automated translation workflows enabling end-to-end translation automation integrated into enterprise systems. Targeted at developers and enterprise IT teams building continuous localization pipelines.
- Translation Mobile App Mobile app (iOS and Android) for real-time human translation via chat interface. Described as the world's first translation app powered by human translators, with patent-pending mobile translation technology enabling translators to receive instant notifications and translate on-demand.
- Linguistic Validation Services High-quality, comprehensive translation process for multilingual clinical research with compliance to global regulatory standards (FDA, EMA). Targeted at pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device, and CRO organizations running clinical trials.
- On-Site Interpretation Services On-demand on-site interpreter services in major cities worldwide, bookable via mobile app, with GPS-powered matching to the nearest qualified interpreters. Targeted at enterprises and individuals needing in-person interpretation for meetings, conferences, and events.
- Enterprise Localization Services Enterprise language localization services and solutions covering all content types, combining human expertise with TMS, translation memory, and terminology management for cross-format, multi-language rollouts.
- Multilingual Survey Translation Services Translation of customer surveys in 100 languages, supporting market research and customer experience programs across global markets.
Quantifiable outcome
- Turnaround time: Most business translations (under 2,000 words) completed within 24 hours
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Stepes
Customer profileNamed customers26 records
Segments10 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Stepes technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
AI capability5 records
Feature8 records
Stepes partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators5 records
Recent moves2 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Stepes competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TransPerfect: TransPerfect is the world's largest language services provider, offering translation, interpretation, and localization across 200+ languages to enterprise clients. It directly competes with Stepes across enterprise translation, on-demand services, and TMS offerings.
- Smartling: Smartling is a cloud-based translation management and localization platform offering enterprise TMS, AI-powered translation, and professional services. It competes directly with Stepes in software/website localization and enterprise TMS deployments.
- RWS Group: RWS (parent of SDL and Trados) combines enterprise translation services with the Trados TMS platform, competing head-to-head with Stepes in regulated verticals (life sciences, legal, IP) and in translation technology.
- Lionbridge: Lionbridge is a top-tier global LSP providing translation, localization, and interpretation services to enterprises across technology, life sciences, legal, and gaming. It is highly comparable to Stepes in customer segments, service breadth, and AI-augmented translation delivery.
- Unbabel: Unbabel combines neural machine translation with human post-editors in a hybrid 'LangOps' platform for enterprise customer support and content translation. Its AI-human hybrid model and enterprise customer focus are closely analogous to Stepes' MTPE + human approach.
- Lokalise: Lokalise is a localization platform purpose-built for software and digital products, offering TMS, in-context translation, and developer APIs. It overlaps with Stepes' software localization and continuous localization offerings, particularly for tech customers.
- Crowdin: Crowdin is a cloud localization platform combining translation management, professional vendor services, and developer integrations. It is comparable to Stepes in TMS, API-driven localization, and serving software/SaaS customers.
- LanguageLine Solutions: LanguageLine Solutions is the largest provider of interpretation services (phone, video, on-site) in the US, serving healthcare, government, and enterprise. It overlaps directly with Stepes' on-site, mobile, and location-based interpretation offerings.
Broad incumbents
- Google Cloud Translation: Google Cloud Translation is a broadly available neural MT API used by enterprises for high-volume, lower-stakes content. It does not directly compete in certified/regulated human translation but sets the price floor and quality benchmark against which Stepes must position.
Emerging players
- Lilt: Lilt is an AI-native translation platform pairing adaptive MT with linguists for enterprise localization. It is comparable to Stepes in the AI-augmented translation model and enterprise target market, with a more software-led positioning.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses1 record
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights8 records
Customer concentration
Stepes social profiles
Digital presenceStepes compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance13 records
Stepes financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Stepes leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Stepes funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Stepes M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Stepes
What does Stepes do?
Stepes is a cloud-based translation services platform that delivers professional human translation combined with AI-powered translation management technology across 100+ languages. The company sells on-demand, enterprise, continuous, certified, and rush translation services for documents, software, websites, video, eLearning, gaming, and technical content, supported by a translation management system, translation API, mobile apps, and on-site interpretation. It serves individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises with a network of 100,000+ translators.
Is Stepes a public or private company?
Stepes is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Stepes founded?
Stepes was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Stepes based?
Stepes is headquartered in Beijing, China, in the Asia region.
How does Stepes make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Per-word translation services are the primary driver. The others are enterprise subscription programs, rush translation services, MTPE (Machine Translation Post-Editing) and DTP/Desktop Publishing.
Who are Stepes's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TransPerfect, Smartling, RWS Group, Lionbridge, Unbabel, Lokalise, Crowdin and LanguageLine Solutions. Google Cloud Translation is listed as a broad incumbent. Lilt is listed as an emerging player.
Does Stepes have an API?
Yes. Stepes offers a Translation API that enables end-to-end translation workflow automation for enterprise clients. The API supports automated translation workflows, allowing integration into enterprise systems for content translation. Developer documentation is at www.stepes.com/translation-api.