Scribie – How to Make Money by Transcribing Audio Files – #scribie #transcriptionjobs #onlinejobs
Audio transcription has got to be among the most accessible online gigs you can imagine. If you’re an English speaker and have a decent typing speed, chances are you already have what it takes to become a transcriber. And best of all, you can do it online, at your own convenience. There are hundreds of online transcription services that recruit new users every day. Scribie is just one of them. But is it legit? Who can join and how? Last but not least, how much does it pay?
You needn’t worry about their legitimacy. Even though the Internet is chock-full of frauds promising your ginormous pay for easy work, Scribie isn’t one of them. First of all, they don’t promise to make you rich quickly – or ever. Second, the work is easy, but you still have to roll up your sleeves and do it.
Scribie is one of the oldest online transcription services out there, having been in business since 2008. As of this writing, it has nearly 30,000 certified transcribers. This number does instill some confidence, but it still doesn’t say anything about how happy these people are with the work. So let’s dig in and learn for ourselves!
How to Get in?
The signup process is quite simple. Once you’re on their homepage, scroll down until you see the blue “Apply Now for Transcription Test” button.
Logging in with PayPal is mandatory, since that’s how all the transactions are done. You needn’t worry that they’ll charge you anything. The registration is free for freelancers, and they’ll only use PayPal to pay you.
Next, you’ll be prompted to type in your email address. They won’t let you through immediately though. Depending on the number of current applicants, you will have to wait for a day or two. Then, you’ll get an email invitation and be able to proceed to the test. Complete it successfully, and there’s your certificate, along with the opportunity to start earning.
Well that’s easy to say, but how difficult is it in reality? Before starting your test assignment, make sure to carefully read and study their Guidelines. There are certain rules you’ll want to be aware of, for example how to tag laughter, when and whether to write or omit fillers and stutters, how to format dates, time, speed, etc. (Or should I write “etcetera”?)
But what if they don’t deem your work good enough to let you pass the test? No worries! You will get a rejection email containing feedback. Read it carefully, re-read the guidelines, and just try again. You can try to get in up to ten times, which is more than enough for most people.
How Does It Work?
The full process consists of four steps.
As a beginner, your sole concern is raw transcription. The rest is done by reviewers and proofreaders. If you’re good at transcribing, they might promote you to a reviewer or proofreader down the road. In fact, you won’t be waiting for too long. It only takes ten successful transcriptions to get a bump to another position. Which, of course, means your pay rate will improve a bit.
Now, a piece of good news. You don’t have to write everything word for word. The platform has a transcription software that will provide you with a raw written file, with about 60% accuracy. Your responsibility is to listen and re-listen the audio, compare it to the transcript, and fix all the errors you can track down.
As with most online transcription gigs, you can work as much or as little as you want. Note, however, that the turnaround time (TAT) per project is two hours. So, once you start working on a file, you can’t just quit in the middle and pick it up tomorrow.
Earning Potential
Let’s deal with the elephant in the room right away. The starting rate of $5 per audio hour is very ungenerous. As a transcriptionist or a reviewer, you only stand to earn $5 to $25 per audio hour. Since it takes about four hours of work to transcribe one hour of sound, it means your average hourly rate would start from as little as $1.25.
The math is equal if we put it in their terms. All of their recordings are split into segments six minutes long. It means you need to transcribe ten such segments to be able to earn as little as $5. Therefore, a six-minute file should take about 24 minutes to transcribe, and it would bring you $0.50.
They are, in fact, quite straightforward and honest about your monthly earning potential. As a transcriber, you may hope to earn $200 to $300 per month. If you transcribe and review other people’s work, your earnings can climb up to $500, whereas proofreaders who also transcribe and review can make up to $700. Those who manage to add quality control to their activities can earn up to $1,000 every month. But that’s if you’re ready to spend 8 hours a day, 6 days a week. Which is next to impossible unless your focus and patience are virtually limitless.
Yes, that does sound like a case for despair. To alleviate it, they promise to reward you for referring other people to this panel. For every referred customer, you will get 5% off the price they pay for their orders. As for other transcribers, the affiliate commission is lower, at 2.5% off their earnings.
Plus, you will get a monthly bonus of $5 per every three audio hours that you manage to transcribe successfully.
What We Like About Scribie
- Payments go through PayPal, and they go fast. I think there’s no need to overexplain the benefits of receiving your earnings through this service. You can pay for things online, send money to other people within minutes, withdraw cash to your bank account with a single click. And it only takes a single day for your earnings to hit your PayPal balance.
- If you’re good, it’s easy to get a better position – and better pay rate. The best of all is that this process is automatic. As soon as you complete ten files, you’ll become a reviewer.
- The referral program should bump up your earnings a little. 5% of your referee customers’ payments and 2.5% of your referee transcribers’ earnings doesn’t sound like much, but it’s better than nothing. Note, however, that this program is only applicable for reviewers.
- You’ll get a taste of freedom thanks to the flexible working hours. Work whenever you want, wherever you want, as long as you have a headset and a stable Internet connection and submit your work on time.
- You don’t need any special skills or work experience. Good English, attention to detail, a decent typing speed, and you’re good to go. There are no medical or other heavily specialized transcription files.
What We Don’t Like About Scribie
- The pay rate is rather low, even when compared to similar panels. In comparison, the starting rate at TranscribeMe is $15 per audio hour. Still not a brilliant bargain, but it’s definitely better than the measly $5. Plus, both services (as well as any other crowdsourcing platform) treat you as an independent contractor. Which means you have no rights or guarantees whatsoever.
- Many users complain about the quality of the audio files. Sure, it’s understandable to get a lousy recording every now and then. But if that’s a regular state of affairs, it tends to make your daily work a nightmare.
- More user complaints… Just check out all the negative user reviews on Facebook. I would single out a common complaint that is particularly troublesome if true. Some of the transcribers claim they got bad reviews as soon as they managed to climb one step up the ladder. Which demoted them back to $5 per audio hour. And once you get demoted, there’s no going back! (So much for motivation…)
- Is there or is there not a cashout threshold? The site says that “there is no minimum withdrawal limit”. However, I’ve seen user complaints that there is a 2% penalty if you decide to withdraw your earnings before you accrue $30. Even though it’s not much, it’s still a downside.
Final Word – Is Scribie a Good Side Gig?
Working from the comfort of your couch carries a certain level of freedom that none of the 9-5 jobs will ever offer. But it also comes with significant downsides – especially if you don’t have specialized skills that are highly sought-after and well paid.
Scribie is a perfect case in point. Nearly anyone can try it out, regardless of their background and education level.
However, the reason I don’t recommend it is that there are better transcription panels out there, with more attractive rates. None of them will make you rich. Indeed, very few will be able to replace your day job. But at least you’ll be more content knowing that they aren’t exploiting the heck out of you and feeding you peanuts in return.
cribie enlists freelancers for transcription services, but pays a scant $10 per audio hour and as little as $5 per audio hour to proofreaders
Expected pay: $1 – $5 per hour
Where: Nationwide/worldwide
Commissions & fees: NA
Requirements: 18 or older, computer, internet connection
Review:
Scribie enlists freelancers for transcription services, but pays so little that this job only makes sense if you have an exceptionally low cost of living. The site says that it pays $10 per audio hour. But audio hours are not the same as work hours. Experts say it takes two to six minutes to transcribe each minute of audio. So that makes Scribie’s pay pretty pathetic.
Worse, transcribers say that the company’s audio files are hard to hear and often include multiple speakers — the toughest type to transcribe. Transcriptionists are also graded on a 5-point scale. If you get less than an average score, you get booted from the platform.
What their users say (from Indeed)
It is a flexible company, yes. But the problem with the company is that the pay is very low. The hardest audios I have ever done are from this company, but the compensation for the work done isn’t the best.
I’m still working at Scribie as a transcriber. I enjoy because there’s always a lot of files to transcribe. Sometimes they reject your work which means you don’t get paid at all for all the hours you put it. I love working from home as I get to spend time with my son.
It’s definitely a grind. You start out transcribing, & chances are you won’t make more than 4 bucks an hour- if that. If you can get through the first couple stages of “promotion”, you may be able to make slightly over minimum wage. Work from home, whenever you want. Applying & getting started is simple. If you’ve got absolutely nothing else going & can get through the initial tedious grind, it may be worth it for some side cash.
Low to no pay
I’ve been working with Scribie for about a month now. And I earn about a dollar an hour. Each file is typically worth only $5 per audio hour. They also score you terribly. In one case, they added in a completely random word like “Cupcake” and I disputed the file for the scoring. Every dispute, including that one, has come back without any changes actually being made. Terrible company to work for
One example of this job being terrible is when I transcribed 10 minutes worth of audio, submitted it for review, and then the customer canceled. 2 hours of work for no money. I at least expect some compensation for the wasted hours that I put it. Not only that, even if I did get paid, but I was only getting 1 dollar which is useless. Apparently pay increases after you get promoted after 60 mins of work at a high enough level. How am I supposed to reach that point If none of my work can be reviewed?
This company is a disgrace… What more need I say? They constantly change rules and standards to basically steal your earnings and you have no choice other than to complain. Then your account will be closed. They are thieves!
Lowest pay in the market — $5-$12 per audio hour. Low-quality audiosPoor review processToo little human interaction with workersUse Scribie only as a training platform. It is not worth anybody’s time working here.
I started working for this company because they are one of the few that will hire beginner transcribers. If you pass their test then they will certify you and you can work as much or as little as you want. No expectations. You work around your own schedule. But this company pays very little — 50 cents per 6 minute audio. So even if it takes you an hour, you still only get 50 cents.
In my review today I will be uncovering all the important things you need to know about the Scribie platform to help you make a more informed decision whether to sign up.
If you can type fast and accurately, and also have good listening skills, Scribie could be a good platform for you as you can use those abilities to earn extra cash online.
However, my Scribie review will be investigating how much you can realistically earn as a member of this site. First however, let’s take a look at how things work.
What Is Scribie?
Scribie is an option for people who can type really quickly and accurately. If you want to improve your earnings on this site, invest in yourself by doing a typing course that improves your speed.
How Scribie Works
Scribie is a transcription service. Put simply, you earn on this platform by typing what you hear. A wide range of audio on different topics may be available to you, so you usually won’t be listening to the same type of content repeatedly.
Every applicant has to do a test to demonstrate that they can reproduce what they hear. If you are accepted, you will be paid for the test.
All payments are sent through PayPal, so if you want to apply, ensure that you have a verified account before you do the test.
You will have your account credited as soon as your transcription is reviewed and accepted. This usually happens quickly but in some cases it can take three days or more. Once your balance gets to $30, you can withdraw your earnings.
How Much Can You Earn With Scribie?
Beginners on this platform can earn between $0.50 and $1 when they transcribe a clip that is 6 minutes long.
An average typist might take 30 minutes to type that clip, so their earnings per hour may only be $2.
Proofreaders on this platform earn more than transcribers. If you work accurately, you can usually get promoted to proofreading and get better rewards for your work. You must be good with punctuation, spelling, and grammar.
Proofreaders can earn twice as much as transcribers, so you can get $2 for a 6-minute clip.
Many people read faster than they type, and that also affects the rate at which they earn cash. A proofreader may check three 6-minute clips in an hour, so their rate would be $6 per hour.
Scribie lets you withdraw money from your account once you reach $30.
Scribie Reviews From Real Users
At the time of writing Scribie has a score of 2.1/5 at Glassdoor.
Although some reviewers appreciate the flexibility of the work, a number of others complain that the rate of pay is very poor, and the customer service team are not very responsive.
There are Facebook reviews with a score of 2.4/5. Some reviews are happy with their experience although there are complaints about the poor quality of files and the poor pay.
There are also reviews at Indeed and the score given is 2.8/5. The same themes arise here too. The flexibility is appreciated but the reviewers complain about the low pay, and some saying they find the work very tedious.
What Are The Pros Of Scribie?
- Scribie pays quickly, and you can get your money after the completion of each clip, once you reach the minimum. The only delays that may arise occur when someone takes a little while to check your work.
- Payments are made directly to your PayPal account.
What Are The Cons Of Scribie?
- Scribie pays you per file that you transcribe. If you are not extremely fast, you will not earn as much on this site.
- Occasionally, a transcription you’ve completed may be cancelled because the audio quality is poor. This might happen when the person who is checking your work cannot clearly hear some of the audio. To prevent this, you may want to let Scribie know immediately if the audio is unclear, and request another clip.
- To earn a reasonable amount as a transcriber you need to provide a high standard of work quickly.
Some Final Thoughts On Scribie
Scribie offers the opportunity for men and women to earn money part time by listening carefully and accurately typing what they hear. You can work from home and can complete as many files as you wish.
Scribie makes it possible to increase the amount you earn by being upgraded from a transcriber to a proofreader. If you display accuracy, this usually happens quickly, so your earnings will go up.
You are never assigned audio to complete. You get to choose exactly what you will work on, and are fee to select the files that are clear.
Since time is a critical factor on this site, it pays to define what you are looking for and stick to that when you are choosing files. Work to improve your typing efficiency and you can make money on this platform.
