Multilingual website for a special machinery manufacturer in Amsterdam: 2026 pricing

The verdict in three sentences

For a special machinery manufacturer with 50 to 80 employees earning more than half its revenue from exports, a trilingual website (local language, German and English) costs EUR 11,000 to 19,000 excluding VAT in 2026, translation included. A German or Swiss industrial buyer will not contact a supplier whose site is poorly translated: professional technical translation (EUR 0.12 to 0.18 per word) is not optional. Return on investment comes from country-level SEO and industry case studies, which capture high-value specification requests.

2026 budget for a trilingual industrial website

The real cost of technical translation

A site with 25 pages and 10 case studies represents about 18,000 words in the source language. Translation into German and English breaks down as follows:

Post-edited machine translation halves the cost, but it suits corporate pages better than technical data sheets. For a German buyer, a mistake on « Taktzeit » or « Abnahme » instantly signals an unreliable supplier.

What generates enquiries from Germany and Switzerland

International SEO relies on a subfolder structure (/de/, /en/), correct hreflang tags and locally searched keywords: Germans search for « Sondermaschinenbau Montage », not a literal translation. Videos of machines in operation (EUR 1,500 to 3,500 for 4 to 6 short clips) clearly increase time on page. Finally, one case study per industry (automotive, medical, food, cosmetics) with cycle time, overall equipment effectiveness and delivery lead time gives buyers the numbers they will present internally.

Mini case study

Mark, CEO of a 60-employee assembly machine builder near Amsterdam, chooses the trilingual version with 6 videos and 8 case studies for EUR 17,500 excl. VAT, translation included, plus EUR 200 a month of maintenance. His average order per machine is EUR 280,000 at an 18 % margin. The site targets 12 qualified enquiries a year from Germany and Switzerland, with a 15 % conversion rate, i.e. 1.8 machines sold. The resulting margin, about EUR 90,700, covers the first-year cost (EUR 19,900) more than five times.

FAQ

Do we need a .de domain to sell in Germany?

Not necessarily. A /de/ subfolder on a .com or national domain with proper hreflang is enough in 80 % of cases and avoids splitting SEO authority.

Can the site be translated with machine translation only?

For technical pages, that is risky. Post-editing by a specialised translator, at EUR 0.06 to 0.09 per word, is the minimum acceptable for a demanding industrial buyer.

How long before the first enquiries from Germany?

Allow 4 to 8 months for stable SEO rankings on niche queries. A Google Ads campaign targeting DACH, from EUR 800 a month, can speed up the first contacts.

Are videos really worth it?

Yes, a 30 to 60 second clip showing actual cycle time answers the buyer's main question. The budget ranges from EUR 1,500 to 3,500 for 4 to 6 videos.

Who updates the three languages after launch?

The CMS links language versions page by page. A translated news item costs about EUR 60 to 90, to include in a maintenance plan of EUR 150 to 250 a month.

Let's scope your project. We define languages, glossary, videos and case studies for a trilingual website of EUR 11,000 to 19,000 delivered in 10 to 12 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.