Society of Professional Interpreters · Est. 2026

The interpreter is the value.
Not the middleman.

Language agencies bill hospitals $120 an hour and hand the interpreter a fraction of it. SPI is the registry that removes them. The interpreter sets their rate and keeps all of it, you reach them directly, and the worth goes to the professional who earned it. You pay the interpreter's rate plus a flat 10% to connect, a fraction of what an agency takes.

Free to search Interpreters keep their rate Credentials staff-verified
SVerified Interpreter RecordNo. SPI · 2026 · 0001
Maria Salazar
Boston, MA · Metro area
Verified by SPI staff
LanguagesSpanish ↔ English
ProficiencyILR 3+ · verified
SpecialtyMedical · Mental health
CertificationCCHI
Training250+ hours
Continuing ed · 2026 18 / 24 hrs
Direct rate$65 / hour
Updated Jun 2026Contact directly

New to interpreting? Start your training at the AALB academy.

Follow the money

Where your hour actually goes.

The agency bills the hospital. The interpreter does the work. Watch who keeps the money.

The agency model

Through a language agency

The hospital pays$120 / hour
The interpreter keeps$45
The agency keeps$75
The SPI model

Direct, on the registry

The hospital pays$110 / hour
The interpreter keeps$100
SPI platform fee$10

Same interpreter. Same hour. The interpreter goes from $45 to $100, the hospital still pays less than the agency charged, and the margin the middleman skimmed went to the person doing the work.

Illustrative figures. SPI takes a flat 10%, added on top and shown in full. Agency splits vary and are rarely disclosed, which is the point.

Transparent by design

One fee, in plain sight.

No markup buried in a bill. The interpreter sets their rate and keeps every dollar of it. We add a flat 10% on top, and everyone sees it.

Maria
Certified Spanish interpreter
Her rate$60 / hour
2-hour call · Maria is paid$120
She keeps 100% of it.
SPI platform fee · 10%$12
The client pays$132

That is the whole arrangement. Maria keeps her $120, we earn $12 for the connection and the platform, and the client sees exactly where every dollar of their $132 goes.

The registry, live

Real professionals. Verified records.

Anyone can search, free and anonymous. Every result is a working interpreter whose credentials were reviewed by SPI staff.

Maria S.
Boston, MA
Verified
LanguagesSpanish ↔ English
ProficiencyILR 3+
SpecialtyMedical
David O.
Houston, TX
Verified
LanguagesMandarin ↔ English
ProficiencyILR 4
SpecialtyLegal
Amara K.
Minneapolis, MN
Verified
LanguagesArabic ↔ English
ProficiencyILR 3+
SpecialtyMedical
40+
Languages supported
8
Specialty areas
ILR
Proficiency verified
$0
To search
№ 01 What "verified" means

A badge here is earned, not claimed.

Most directories let anyone write anything. On the registry, credentials are reviewed by SPI staff before a single badge appears, and the record keeps proving itself over time.

Reviewed

Credentials, vaulted.

National certifications (CCHI, NBCMI, NAJIT), state licenses, and training milestones are checked by staff and stored as verifiable badges.

Measured

Proficiency, proven.

Optional proctored ILR testing puts a formal proficiency rating, ILR 3, 3+, or 4, on the record. The scale institutional clients already trust.

Maintained

Always current.

Continuing education auto-logs to the record: 72 hours a year across accredited CEUs, live practice, and engagement. Verification you can watch grow.

At 2 a.m., a verified interpreter is not a line item.

When a Dari speaker arrives in your emergency department, language access becomes the difference between informed consent and confusion. SPI exists so the person in that room is trained, verified, and still getting better, and paid fairly for it.

Society of Professional Interpreters · A program of Americans Against Language Barriers
Two ways in

Find one, or become one.

For organizations

$0 to search · a flat 10% when you book
  • Search the registry free, no account
  • Verified credentials before you spend
  • Message interpreters directly, no dispatcher
Work with an interpreter

For interpreters

$0 to join · keep 100% of your rate
  • Set your rate and keep all of it
  • A verified registry profile that markets you
  • Continuing education, practice, and community
Get on the registry