Understanding Smartwords
Overview
Smartwords are the currency Smartcat uses to pay for automated actions. This includes automatic repetition insertion, TM match insertion, source-to-target insertion, and AI-powered actions, like translation, content generation, voiceovers, image processing, and more. You spend Smartwords when you use these features and acquire them through a subscription or pay-as-you-go purchase.
How it works
Smartwords are deducted from your workspace balance when an action runs
Your balance is always visible in the top-right corner of the app
Workspace balances are shared across all users within a workspace. Organization balances can be shared across multiple workspaces and are added to a workspace balance in the Smartwords count.
Benefits
Pay only for the actions actually performed — no flat fees for unused capacity
Full visibility into which projects, languages, and actions drove your usage
Balance top-ups available mid-term so you are never blocked mid-project
When to use it
Smartwords are consumed automatically whenever you run an automated action. Understanding this section helps you predict costs, avoid surprises, and investigate unexpected charges.
Reference this article when you need to:
Understand what an action will cost before running it
Check your current balance before starting a new project
Investigate why your balance dropped more than expected
Read your consumption report to identify which specific actions generated charges
Estimate how many Smartwords to purchase before an upcoming project
How to use it
Check your current balance
Your Smartword balance is visible in the indicator at the top-right corner of the screen. Click the counter to expand the display. Click View report to see a breakdown of recent Smartword consumption.
Click the Smartword counter → View report pace → Smartwords
Select the time period you want to review
Review the report. Each row represents one consumption event. You can download a CSV report for a more detailed overview.
Check your consumption report
Use this when you want to understand exactly which actions consumed Smartwords, or when investigating a specific project.
Click the Smartword counter → View report pace → Smartwords
Select the time period you want to review
Review the report. Each row represents one consumption event. You can download a CSV report for a more detailed overview.
The report columns in the website view are:
Column | What it tells you |
|---|---|
Used For | When the Smartwords were consumed |
Earliest Date | The project associated with the consumption |
Most Recent Date | What triggered it (e.g. MT, TM insertion, voiceover, image re-embedding) |
Amount | The source language of the content processed |
The report columns in the CSV are:
Time | When the Smartwords were consumed |
Package ID | Unique identifier of the Smartwords package from which units were consumed or that was created/expired. Links the operation to a specific allocation of Smartwords. |
Type | What action triggered the consumption |
Amount | Number of Smartwords consumed |
Package Owner | The name or identifier of the entity that owns the Smartwords package (typically the workspace or organization name) |
Start Date | If a package was added, shows the start date of the package. If this is a Smartwords consumption event, this column is empty. |
End date | If a package was added, the date when the package will expire |
Price | If a package was added, price of the package |
Currency | If a package was added, the currency for the package price |
Project ID | The unique identifier of the Smartcat project where the Smartwords were consumed. Only populated for spending operations. |
Project name | Name of the project that consumed the Smartwords |
Document ID | The unique identifier of the specific document within the project where Smartwords were consumed. Only populated for spending operations. |
Document name | Name of the translated document |
Language | Target language |
External tag | A user-defined tag passed via API integrations for tracking and attribution purposes. |
Internal tag | System-generated or internally-assigned tags for categorizing consumption. Used for internal tracking such as marketplace attribution, AI translation tagging, etc. Only populated for spending operations. |
Top up your balance
Pay-as-you-go (mid-term top-up)
Go to Workspace → Smartwords
Locate the Pay-as-you-go option
Select the amount and confirm payment
⚠️ Pay-as-you-go Smartwords are available for a year, regardless of when the subscription ends.
Upgrade your subscription plan
Contact Smartcat’s Sales team to upgrade your subscription plan.
💡 When you upgrade, any remaining Smartwords from your previous plan carry over and are added to your new balance.
Contact Sales for bulk packages
For large top-ups or bundle pricing, contact the Sales team through the Contact Sales option in your account dashboard.
Result: Your Smartwords balance is increased and available immediately for card payments. Bank transfers may take up to 5 business days to reflect.
Requirements and Limitations
Smartwords cost by action
As a general rule, 1 Smartword = 1 source word translated into 1 target language. Translating a 500-word document into 3 languages costs 1,500 Smartwords. Some actions have different rates:
Action | Smartwords cost |
|---|---|
AI translation (per source word, per target language) | 1 SW |
Translation Memory (TM) automatic insertions | 1 SW per word |
AI text generation | 1 SW per word |
Extracting text from images or files with images | Free (requires a sufficient Smartword balance of 250 Smartwords for every page) |
Re-embedding translated text into an image | 1,000 SW flat per image |
Extracting text from video or audio files | Free (requires a positive balance) |
Translating subtitles | Charged at download, not during translation |
AI voiceovers | 10 SW per word |
Factors that increase consumption
Multiple MT engines: Each enabled engine charges separately — a project with two engines consumes twice the Smartwords for that step
Pre-translation: Smartwords are charged when the file is uploaded, not when you review the output
File re-uploads (non-unique-ID files): Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files do not have unique segment IDs — all segments are re-processed and charged again on re-upload
File re-uploads (unique-ID files): XLIFF, LocJSON, PO, and RESX files carry unique segment IDs — only new or changed segments are charged on re-upload
Files with code formatting: Markup and code tags count as translatable segments and can significantly increase the Smartwords cost relative to the visible word count
OCR file requirements
⚠️ Files requiring Optical Character Recognition (images, PDFs, PPTX) use a page-based estimate before the actual word count is known. Smartcat requires a minimum balance of pages × 250 Smartwords to start processing. Maintain a buffer above your expected usage to avoid OCR jobs being blocked.
Balance types and expiry
Workspace balances are shared across all users — personal balances are unavailable when a workspace balance exists
Subscription Smartwords expire at the end of the subscription term — unused Smartwords do not roll over
Personal trial balances expire 15 days after registration
Pay-as-you-go availability
⚠️ Pay-as-you-go is not available on all account types. Free accounts and certain account types cannot purchase Smartwords directly.
Refunds
⚠️ Smartwords are non-refundable once consumed. If consumption occurred due to a configuration error (e.g. multiple MT engines accidentally enabled), contact Support — but refunds are not guaranteed.
FAQs
Q: Does adding an LQA or review stage consume Smartwords?
A: No. Only automated actions, such as TM Insertions and AI-powered actions, consume Smartwords. Human review stages, LQA stages, and Reviewer Agent usage do not consume Smartwords
Q: If I delete a translation and redo it, am I charged again?
A: Yes. Smartwords are consumed when translation is performed, not when it is accepted. Re-translating content charges again
Q: Why was I charged more than the word count of my file?
A: The most common reasons are multiple MT engines enabled (each charges separately), OCR estimation using page-based rounding, files with heavy code formatting, or a file re-upload that re-processed all segments. Go to Workspace → Smartwords, filter by your project, and review the Action type column to identify the specific events
Q: Can I see consumption by individual team member?
A: The workspace Smartwords tab shows aggregate usage. For a per-user breakdown, contact your account team about reporting options available on your plan
Q: My Smartwords balance dropped overnight with no active projects. What happened?
A: This can be caused by a schedule project, an integration, or a package expiring and reducing your visible balance. Go to Workspace → Smartwords, review the consumption report for events in that timeframe, and contact Support if no matching events appear