The verdict in three sentences
For a Dutch manufacturer generating 40 % of its revenue in Germany and Belgium, a trilingual Dutch, English and German website is a sales tool, not a nice-to-have. The 2026 budget splits into two blocks: development, with a 30 to 60 % multilingual premium at agencies, and technical translation, billed at 0.12 to 0.18 EUR per word for 25,000 to 40,000 words. With a clean hreflang setup in subdirectories and mixed translation (human for technical datasheets, reviewed AI for the rest), the project fits in 10 weeks and often costs half of an all-human quote.
The translation item: human, reviewed AI or mixed
An industrial catalogue mixes very different content: product sheets with tolerances and standards, corporate pages, news. Translating everything at the same rate is rarely rational. The table compares three approaches for 30,000 source words translated into English and German, i.e. 60,000 target words.
| Approach | Indicative 2026 rate | Cost for 60,000 words | Timeline | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Specialised human translation | 0.12 to 0.18 EUR per word | 7,200 to 10,800 EUR | 4 to 6 weeks | Low |
| AI reviewed by a native translator | 0.04 to 0.07 EUR per word | 2,400 to 4,200 EUR | 2 to 3 weeks | Medium on trade vocabulary |
| Raw AI without review | Near zero | Under 200 EUR | A few days | High: errors on standards, wrong tone |
| Mixed: human for datasheets (10,000 words), reviewed AI for the rest | Weighted | 4,000 to 5,400 EUR | 3 to 4 weeks | Low on what matters |
| Upfront terminology glossary | 300 to 800 EUR | Flat fee | 1 week | Reduces risk for every option |
These rates are market estimates for the Dutch to German pair, which is among the more expensive. The upfront glossary (materials, DIN and EN standards, units) is the best investment: it ensures consistency between the website, PDF datasheets and sales offers.
Subdomains, subdirectories or country domains
The chosen architecture shapes the rankings of each language version for years. Hreflang tags tell Google which version to serve based on the visitor's language and country.
| Option | Example | Technical cost | SEO effect | Maintenance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Subdirectories | site.nl/de/ | Lowest | Domain authority benefits all languages | A single site |
| Subdomains | de.site.nl | Medium | Partially separated authority | Extra DNS and certificate setup |
| Country domains | site.de and site.be | High, 2 to 3 domains | Strong local signal, authority to rebuild | Several sites to monitor |
| Correct hreflang implementation | Reciprocal nl, en, de, nl-BE tags | Included if planned from the start | Prevents cannibalisation between versions | Check on every new page |
| Language selector without forced redirect | Remembered manual choice | Low | Lets Google crawl every version | Simple |
For a mid-sized manufacturer, subdirectories remain the best compromise. A separate nl-BE version is only justified if prices, lead times or contacts really differ for Belgium.
The development budget
At an Amsterdam agency, a monolingual industrial website of 30 to 50 pages costs around 10,000 to 20,000 EUR, and going trilingual adds 30 to 60 % (market estimate). At Kolonell, the Premium package covers a multilingual website with hreflang, language selector and per-language back office for 3,050 to 5,340 EUR, with translation quoted separately at actual cost. The 10-week timeline includes 3 to 4 weeks of translation running in parallel with development.
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Illustrative example: Pieter, export director of a mechanical components manufacturer near Amsterdam, needs 30,000 words translated into English and German. An all-human quote reaches 9,000 EUR. In mixed mode, his 10,000 words of datasheets are translated by a human at 0.15 EUR, i.e. 3,000 EUR for two languages, and the remaining 20,000 words by reviewed AI at 0.05 EUR, i.e. 2,000 EUR. Total translation: 5,000 EUR, plus 600 EUR for the glossary. With Kolonell Premium development at 4,800 EUR, the full project comes to 10,400 EUR, against 22,000 to 30,000 EUR for an agency quote with fully human translation.
FAQ
Should the whole site be translated at launch?
No, start with the pages that sell: product ranges, datasheets, contact, references. Launching with 60 to 70 % of content translated is common, with the rest following within 2 to 3 months.
Does Belgian Dutch need a separate version?
Only if the offer differs, for example local distributor or different lead times. Otherwise a single Dutch version is enough, with a few vocabulary adjustments.
How much does it cost to update a product sheet in three languages?
With an existing glossary, translating a 400-word sheet into two languages costs around 100 to 150 EUR by a human. With reviewed AI, allow 30 to 60 EUR.
Are hreflang tags hard to maintain?
Not if the CMS generates them automatically for every linked page. It is checked monthly in Standard maintenance at 110 EUR, because a reciprocity error can make a version vanish from results.
Can a fourth language be added later?
Yes, if the subdirectory architecture is planned from the start, adding French or Spanish is mainly a translation cost. Allow 2 to 4 weeks for 30,000 words in mixed mode.
Let's scope your project. A trilingual Dutch, English and German industrial website with hreflang and mixed translation, indicative development budget of 3,050 to 5,340 EUR in Premium, live in 10 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
