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Interpreters in Chicago, IL
Yes: we book interpreters in Chicago by video at $80 an hour (one-hour minimum) or in person at $110 an hour (two-hour minimum), plus $0.70 per mile of travel, confirmed before you pay. In the Circuit Court of Cook County the judge or clerk arranges a court interpreter through the Office of Interpreter Services, with Spanish and Polish available daily and other languages on 48 working hours' notice, and the Chicago Immigration Court on East Monroe Street provides one for the hearing. Private bookings are for depositions, attorney meetings and USCIS interviews.
In person in Chicago
$110 an hour per interpreter, two-hour minimum, plus $0.70 a mile from the interpreter's location.
By video or phone
$80 an hour, one-hour minimum, no travel. Zoom, Google Meet, Teams or a phone call.
Quote within minutes
We reply within minutes, four business hours at most, with the interpreter, the exact price and any travel, before you book. Asking costs nothing.
Cook County courts staff Spanish and Polish every day; other languages need 48 working hours
The Circuit Court of Cook County provides interpreters itself. Someone who needs one must tell the court clerk or the judge on arriving in the courtroom; if the court decides an interpreter is necessary, court staff fill out the request and the Office of Interpreter Services arranges it. With judicial approval, interpreters are available first come, first served, in any type of criminal or civil case for Spanish and Polish only, and resources are limited. Other languages require at least 48 working hours' notice, except for emergency orders of protection and in-custody cases, and the court prefers 14 days' notice for sign language. Its most frequently requested languages are Spanish, Polish, Arabic and Russian (Cook County Circuit Court).
So in a Cook County courtroom you should not be paying us. Chicago lawyers book us for what happens outside it: depositions in Loop offices, meetings with clients before a hearing, and witness preparation for the immigration court on East Monroe Street. For a language other than Spanish or Polish, an interpreter hired for the preparation meetings also lets the attorney confirm the exact language and dialect to put on the court's request.
Polish, Ukrainian and Urdu sit high on Chicago's list
Of the 2,587,654 Chicagoans aged five and over, 1,671,020 speak only English at home and 617,723 speak Spanish, according to the Census Bureau's 2024 estimate (ACS B16001). Chinese is second at 62,147, then Polish at 30,769 — the same language the county court staffs alongside Spanish — followed by Tagalog, the Census group that includes Ukrainian, Arabic, French and Urdu.
All of these are standard-rate languages for us. The Census's West African group (Yoruba, Twi, Igbo and others) is not: Yoruba, Twi and Igbo carry the limited-availability surcharge of 25–30%, so an in-person hour is $137.50 to $143 and the two-hour minimum $275 to $286.
What an interpreted appointment in Chicago costs
A two-hour green card interview at the USCIS office on Ida B. Wells Drive is $220 in person; with a 20-mile round trip from the interpreter's location at $0.70 a mile, $234. A three-hour deposition in the Loop with a 30-mile round trip is $330 plus $21, $351. A one-hour video call to prepare a witness is $80, with no travel.
We quote within minutes, four business hours at most, and confirm the interpreter and the travel figure before you pay. The interpreter's name and credentials are sent once the booking is paid.
Languages spoken at home in Chicago
The most common languages other than English, from the U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2024 1-year, table B16001 (language spoken at home, population 5 years and over), Chicago city, Illinois. A language that links has its own page on what to get right when booking an interpreter for it.
| Language | People who speak it at home |
|---|---|
| Spanish | 617,723 |
| Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese) | 62,147 |
| Polish | 30,769 |
| Tagalog (incl. Filipino) | 17,464 |
| Ukrainian or other Slavic languages | 15,046 |
| Arabic | 14,458 |
| French (incl. Cajun) | 12,570 |
| Urdu | 12,397 |
| Russian | 10,762 |
| Yoruba, Twi, Igbo, or other languages of Western Africa | 10,561 |
Where interpreters are needed in Chicago, and who provides them
Some of these places must provide the interpreter themselves, and then you should not be paying for one. Where that is so, the official page is linked.
| Place | Who provides the interpreter |
|---|---|
| Chicago Immigration Court, 55 E. Monroe St., Suite 1500 (also reached from E. Adams St.) | The court provides the interpreter for the hearing, at government expense (ICPM 3.10). Attorneys book their own for client preparation and witness meetings. |
| USCIS Chicago Field Office, 101 West Ida B. Wells Drive | USCIS does not supply one for a green card interview: an applicant who needs an interpreter brings one, who shows a government-issued ID, takes an oath and interprets word for word. |
| Circuit Court of Cook County, Office of Interpreter Services (main office: Leighton Criminal Courthouse, Room 4B02) | Tell the clerk or judge in the courtroom; if the court finds an interpreter necessary, court staff request one. Depositions are arranged by the attorneys. |
| Chicago Public Schools | CPS offers families school information in their preferred language and can provide a translator for some meetings about their student; ask the school. |
| Cook County Health hospitals and clinics | On-site Spanish interpreters 24 hours a day, telephone interpreting in more than 240 languages, and video remote interpreting in 45 languages including ASL. |
What an interpreter costs, worked out
These are the published rates multiplied out: $80 an hour by video or phone, $110 an hour in person, $0.70 a mile of travel.
| Booking | How it is worked out | Total |
|---|---|---|
| One-hour video or phone call | 1 hour × $80 | $80 |
| Two-hour video interview | 2 hours × $80 | $160 |
| Two-hour meeting in person, 20-mile round trip | 2 hours × $110 + 20 miles × $0.70 | $234 |
| Three-hour deposition or closing in person, 40-mile round trip | 3 hours × $110 + 40 miles × $0.70 | $358 |
| Full day in person (six hours), two interpreters in relay | 2 interpreters × 6 hours × $110 | $1,320 plus travel |
The quote confirms the interpreter, the exact travel figure and the total before you book; nothing is charged until you confirm.
How the travel charge works out
Travel is charged at $0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location, which means you can work it out rather than wait for a quote: a 20-mile round trip is $14, a 60-mile round trip is $42, a 150-mile round trip is $105. There is no separate call-out fee on top.
We will not pretend to know in advance where the interpreter will be coming from — that depends on the language, the date and the venue. What we do is confirm the interpreter and the exact travel figure before you book, so it is never a surprise on the invoice. Virtual assignments carry no travel charge at all, which is one reason most of what we do is virtual.
By video, by phone or in person
Virtual interpreting runs on Zoom, Google Meet or Microsoft Teams, or over the telephone. It is quicker to arrange, costs less and carries no travel charge, and it suits appointments, calls and most meetings.
In person is what venues with their own rules tend to expect, and the right choice when documents are being signed or several people are speaking at once. Tell us the platform, or the city and the venue, when you send the request.
How booking an interpreter works
- You send the request with the form below: the language, the setting, the format, the date and how long it should last.
- We confirm before you commit: the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one. We reply within minutes, four business hours at most, and no payment is taken at this stage.
- You confirm and pay, and the interpreter is booked for your date. The interpreter's name and credentials are sent to you once the booking is paid.
What to have ready
The more of this comes in the first message, the fewer exchanges before you have a price:
- The language, the date, the start time and how long it should run.
- Virtual or in person: the platform, or the city and the venue.
- The setting and the subject matter.
- How many people need interpreting for.
- Any credential the venue requires of the interpreter. We confirm before you book whether we can staff it; the interpreter's name and credentials follow once the booking is paid.
Request an interpreter
Tell us the date, the language and the setting and we will come back with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one — before you commit to anything.
Thank you — we have your request
We will reply within minutes, four business hours at most, with the interpreter, the exact price and the travel figure if there is one, before you commit to anything.
Sources
What this page says about Chicago was checked against these sources on October 29, 2026. Rules change; the source is always the authority.
- U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2024 1-year, B16001, Chicago city (read from the table-based summary file, acsdt1y2024-b16001.dat)
- EOIR — Chicago Immigration Court
- EOIR — Immigration Court Practice Manual, chapter 3.10, Interpreters
- USCIS — Field Office Locator (Chicago Field Office)
- USCIS Policy Manual — Volume 7, Part A, Chapter 5, Interview Guidelines
- Circuit Court of Cook County — Office of Interpreter Services
- Chicago Public Schools — Parent Engagement: Translation Services
- Cook County Health — Patients & Visitor Information
Frequently asked questions
Does the Cook County court provide an interpreter?
Yes. Tell the clerk or judge in the courtroom; if the court finds one necessary, staff request it from the Office of Interpreter Services. Spanish and Polish are available daily on a first-come basis; other languages need at least 48 working hours' notice (Cook County Circuit Court).
Does the Chicago immigration court provide an interpreter?
Yes, for the hearing, at government expense (ICPM 3.10). The request should be made no later than 30 days before the hearing. Meetings with your attorney beforehand are not covered.
Do I bring my own interpreter to a USCIS interview in Chicago?
For a green card interview, yes, if you need one. The USCIS Policy Manual has the interpreter show a government-issued ID, take an oath and interpret word for word. In person it is $110 an hour with a two-hour minimum, plus travel.
Is the price per person or per interpreter?
Per interpreter, per hour, billed from the scheduled start time. One interpreter covers a meeting; a full-day hearing may need two working in relay.
What if the venue provides its own interpreter?
Then you should not be paying us. Immigration court provides one, and hospitals and school districts frequently must. Ask them first.
Can I see the interpreter's credentials before I pay?
Tell us the credential the venue or the other side requires when you request, and we confirm before you book whether we can staff it. The interpreter's name and credentials are sent once the booking is paid.
How is travel charged?
$0.70 per mile from the interpreter's location — a 20-mile round trip is $14. We confirm the exact figure before you book, and virtual assignments carry none.
Need an interpreter in Chicago?
Tell us the date, the language, the venue and how long it runs, and we will confirm the interpreter and the exact price, travel included.