Transcription · Arabic
Arabic transcription services
Native Arabic transcribers for corporate video, eLearning, legal, media and more. Modern Standard Arabic and regional dialects, delivered in your chosen format with verbatim or clean options. Part of a full Arabic language service: transcripts, subtitles, voice over, and translation of any content you need.
About Arabic transcription
Match the transcriber to the variety on the recording
Arabic is one of the world's most widely spoken languages, with more than 400 million speakers across 22 countries.
At GoLocalise, we work with native Arabic transcribers who handle both MSA and the major regional dialects.
We manage every stage, from brief review and linguist selection through to quality checks and final delivery, so the transcript matches the content you are producing and the audience it is meant for.
Choose your format
Three ways to transcribe the same recording
The right one depends on what the transcript is for. If you are not sure, tell us the use case and we will recommend it.
Full verbatim
Every wordRecords every spoken detail, including pauses, filler words, repetitions and hesitations, exactly as they occur.
Best for
Legal evidence, research interviews, focus groups
Edited
Clean readRemoves redundant words and hesitations while keeping the meaning and the speaker's intent fully intact.
Best for
Corporate meetings, interviews for publication, content to be translated
Summarised
Key pointsCondenses the discussion into structured key points rather than a full record of the conversation.
Best for
Executive briefings, legal summaries, research documentation
What's included
What comes with every Arabic transcript
MSA or the right dialect
Egyptian, Gulf, Levantine or Maghrebi — spoken Arabic varies far more than the written standard. We transcribe the dialect on the recording, or render it into Modern Standard Arabic if you ask.
Right-to-left, correctly set
Arabic script laid out properly, with Latin names, figures and quoted English handled cleanly inside a right-to-left document.
Timecodes where you need them
Per speaker turn, per paragraph or at fixed intervals, matched to your edit or subtitle workflow.
Speaker identification
Every turn attributed — by name where you supply them, by role where you don't.
Second-linguist proofing
A second native Arabic linguist checks the draft against the audio before delivery.
Your format
Word, PDF, plain text, Excel or a subtitle-ready file — tell us the next step.
How it works
One project manager, from brief to delivery
A structured workflow, built so accuracy and confidentiality are verified at each stage rather than assumed at the end.
Brief and dialect
We confirm the dialect or MSA, the number of speakers and the transcript's purpose, so the output matches the use.
Transcriber assignment
Your file goes to a native Arabic transcriber who knows the regional variety and the subject — broadcast, government, research or legal.
Transcription and review
The draft is produced in correctly set right-to-left Arabic, then checked against the audio for accuracy, attribution and formatting.
Delivery
Your transcript in the format you need, on budget and on time.
For pan-regional research or broadcast archives spanning several dialects, we assign a coordinated team and agree milestones up front.
Who we work with
Industries that rely on Arabic transcription
Across the MENA region a documented record is a compliance requirement in some sectors and an accessibility one in others. These are the briefs we see most.
Broadcast & media
News, interviews and documentaries, with subtitle-ready templates.
Government & public sector
Proceedings and public-information material, handled in confidence.
Market research
Focus groups and interviews across Gulf, Levantine and Maghrebi markets.
Legal & compliance
Hearings, arbitration and contracts, formatted to requirement.
Energy & corporate
Board meetings, negotiations and technical briefings.
Academic & research
Lectures, field interviews and research material.
Confidentiality
Who hears your Arabic audio
Arabic transcription often means broadcast footage, government material or regional market research spanning several countries — content that is sensitive by nature. So who hears it matters as much as how accurately it is captured.
Your files are uploaded through an encrypted system, handled by a named Arabic transcriber under NDA, and never fed into public speech-to-text tools. We will sign your own confidentiality agreement, follow your retention rules, and delete everything on delivery if your policy requires it.
Encrypted upload
No loose files over email.
NDA as standard
Yours or ours, before we start.
No public AI tools
Your audio never trains anything.
Deletion on request
Files removed on delivery if you need it.
Arabic specifics
One language label, two registers and a dozen dialects
Arabic is diglossic. Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) is used in news, formal content and official communications, while regional dialects such as Gulf, Egyptian, Levantine and Maghrebi are what people actually speak. Audio often moves between the two, sometimes within a single file, so matching the transcriber to the variety on the recording matters more than the language label alone.
In practice: MSA suits news, formal content and official communications; dialects are what speakers use in interviews, reality output and conversational material. If the audio moves between varieties, we assign a transcriber who handles both. Send us a sample and we will identify what is on the recording.
That is the whole of step two. We match the linguist to the content — MSA, a regional dialect, or a mix — and send you a sample where it helps you decide.
Transcription rates
Professional Arabic transcription
Best for single-speaker content such as interviews, dictations and internal communications.
- Native Arabic transcriber
- MSA or regional dialect
- Verbatim or clean read
- Proofreading pass
A complete managed service for multi-speaker content, legal and compliance work, and projects needing time-coding, translation or subtitling alongside the transcript.
- Everything in Standard
- Dialect-specialist linguist
- Timecodes and speaker IDs
- Arabic and English in one pass
Priced by runtime, audio quality, number of speakers and turnaround, and backed by our Price Match Promise. Send us a sample for an exact, no-obligation quote.
Trusted by global brands
We have used GoLocalise on a regular basis for projects in a number of languages. The service we receive is great. The team is always friendly and professional. The voiceovers we receive are of a very high quality and the turnaround is extremely quick. We are very happy to recommend GoLocalise to other businesses.
It was a pleasure to work with David and the team at GoLocalise. David gave me lots of help and advice, guiding me through my first subtitling project. He really knows his stuff! The experience was completely pain-free. I would not hesitate to recommend GoLocalise – outstanding work at a good price.
They're reliable, adaptive and obsessed with quality. And while you can never be 100% guaranteed of perfection, you can be sure GoLocalise will go the extra mile to get it right every time. We've worked with them now for over 5 years and we are truly thankful to have such a strong localisation partner for our business.
Related services
What happens after the transcript
Transcription in more languages
Native transcribers for interviews, meetings, research, media and legal material. Browse another language, or ask us about yours.
Most common questions
Most recorded media uses Modern Standard Arabic, regional dialects, or a mix of both. MSA suits news, formal content and official communications; dialects are what speakers use in interviews, reality output and conversational material. If the audio moves between varieties, we assign a transcriber who handles both. Send us a sample and we will identify what is on the recording.
Ready to transcribe your Arabic audio?
Send us the files and tell us the dialect — we'll come back with an exact, itemised quote.
Professional voice over services for your audio and video productions
Voice over
- State-of-the-art studios
- Neumann microphones
- On-hand sound engineers
- 1,000+ voice actors
Translation
- 100+ languages covered
- Tailored to your needs
- Stringent quality control
- Dedicated project managers
Subtitling
- Experienced subtitlers
- Industry-standard software
- Burn-in and graphic editing
- Open and closed captions
Transcription
- Improve accessibility
- Reach a wider audience
- Boost SEO and video views
- Maximise video engagement