Portuguese Transcription Expert

$10–18/hr

rate as listed

Workload: ~15h/week
Engagement: Project-based
Location: Worldwide
Field: Languages

Transcribe and annotate Portuguese audio — conversational and formal, across regional varieties — to a written standard that AI speech models can train on. Work is remote, contractor-based, task-batched through micro1's platform, with occasional English audio and English-language project guidelines.

What the work actually involves

You receive batches of Portuguese audio and produce transcripts that match a client's style guide exactly. That guide decides everything contentious: whether filled pauses are written out, how false starts and repetitions are handled, whether numerals are spelled or digitised, how overlapping speech and crosstalk are marked, what tag set is used for non-speech events (laughter, background noise, inaudible spans). Beyond raw typing, you will annotate — speaker diarisation, timestamping, tagging unintelligible regions rather than guessing at them — and review other contributors' transcripts for consistency. Audio quality varies: phone-quality recordings, several speakers, background noise, and speakers from different Portuguese-speaking regions all show up in the same batch.

What the screen is looking for

micro1 runs an AI-led interview before any task work. It probes for native-level Portuguese comprehension across accents (European, Brazilian, African varieties), not just fluency in your own dialect. Expect follow-ups on concrete transcription conventions — how you would mark a two-second inaudible stretch, what you do when a speaker code-switches into English mid-sentence, how you decide between an orthographic and a verbatim rendering. Answers that stay abstract get pushed on. English proficiency matters mainly because instructions, guidelines and QA feedback arrive in English, and some audio will be English too.

Logistics and pay

Remote, contractor, asynchronous — work is claimed from available batches rather than scheduled shifts.
Volume is project-driven and can pause between client engagements; treat it as supplementary rather than a stable full-time load.
Observed pay for this listing is $10–18/hr, positioned by language, audio difficulty and review responsibility. Rates are as observed and not guaranteed.
You supply your own equipment: reliable internet, and closed-back headphones good enough to resolve speech in noisy recordings. A foot pedal or transcription hotkey setup is not required but is why experienced transcribers hit throughput targets.

Who does well

People who have transcribed professionally and can talk about a style guide they worked under, who are comfortable being audited on accuracy, and who flag ambiguity rather than smoothing it over. Prior AI or machine-learning experience is genuinely not expected — the linguistic judgment is the product.

What they look for

Native-level Portuguese comprehension across regional varieties
Professional audio transcription experience with timestamping and speaker labelling
Working knowledge of transcription conventions (verbatim vs. clean read, inaudible tagging, non-speech events)
English proficiency sufficient to follow written guidelines and transcribe occasional English audio
Familiarity with transcription/annotation software and hotkey-driven workflows
Self-managed delivery against batch deadlines

Before you apply

Would you pass this screen?

Drawn from what this listing actually requires. Answered in your browser — nothing is sent to us, and we do not store your answers.

Do you have native or near-native fluency in Portuguese, including spoken comprehension?
Portuguese fluency · required
Can you read English project guidelines and transcribe occasional English-language audio?
English working proficiency · required
Have you completed paid or professional-level audio transcription work?
Transcription experience · preferred
Do you have over-ear or closed-back headphones and a reliable internet connection for streaming audio files?
Audio equipment · required
Have you used transcription or annotation software with timestamping and speaker labelling features?
Annotation tooling · preferred
Are you able to work as an independent contractor on a remote, asynchronous basis?
Contractor status · required

0 of 6 answered

Included with this listing

Interview prep — 10 questions

Matched to what this platform's screening actually measures. Answer each out loud in 60–90 seconds: claim → concrete example → implication.

What it tests: Whether you have worked to an externally imposed written standard rather than transcribing informally for yourself.
A strong answer: Name the domain (legal, medical, media, market research, call centre), the guide or client you followed, approximate hours of audio, and one convention that guide imposed which you personally found awkward.
Where people lose it: Saying 'I've transcribed a lot of audio' with no client, no guide and no volume figure — the screener reads that as unverifiable and probes until you produce specifics or admit you don't have them.

Summary, eligibility guidance and screening preparation are prepared by Sidequest from the platform's posting. Check the source listing before applying.