ISO 5060:2024

Overview - ISO 5060:2024 (Translation evaluation guidance)

ISO 5060:2024 provides general guidance for the human evaluation of translation output. It covers the evaluation of:

• human translation,
• post-edited machine translation (PEMT), and
• unedited machine translation (MT).

The standard adopts an analytic evaluation approach based on defined error types and penalty points that produce an error score and a final quality rating. It focuses on minimum complexity to remain widely applicable across the translation sector and also supports the evaluation of source texts intended for translation. The document is explicitly not for interpreting and does not prescribe processes for quality assurance or corrective actions.

Key topics and technical requirements

ISO 5060:2024 addresses practical elements needed to implement repeatable translation evaluation workflows:

• Evaluation approach: analytic, error-type based scoring rather than holistic-only assessment.
• Error typology & severity: guidance on classifying errors, assigning severity levels and identifying critical errors.
• Penalty points & scoring: configuration of penalty points to compute an error score and convert it to a quality rating.
• Sampling: role and methods for sampling translation output to be evaluated.
• Evaluator competence: recommended qualifications and professional competences for evaluators and human resources considerations.
• Evaluation lifecycle: structured pre-evaluation (specifications and scorecards), evaluation phase (scoring, counting repeated errors), and post-evaluation (feedback and dispute resolution).
• Tools & artefacts: templates such as scorecards and guidance for developing a translation evaluation system (annexes contain practical examples).

Practical applications and who uses it

ISO 5060:2024 is designed for broad use across the translation ecosystem:

• Translation service providers (TSPs) - freelance translators, agencies, and in-house language teams can standardize evaluation of deliverables.
• Clients and procurement teams - for objective supplier evaluation, acceptance criteria and SLA measurement.
• Localization managers and QA teams - to compare human, PEMT and MT output using consistent metrics.
• Translator education and training institutions - to teach evaluative best practices and assessor competence.
• Project managers - to define sampling, scorecards and feedback loops for continuous improvement.

Keywords: ISO 5060:2024, translation evaluation, translation services, error typology, penalty points, post-editing, machine translation, evaluator competence, quality rating, translation scorecard.

Related standards

• ISO 20539 - vocabulary for translation, interpreting and related technology (normative reference).
• ISO 17100 - translation services - definitions and requirements (used in definitions and scope).