Translation Services in Salt Lake City, UT

Languages spoken in Salt Lake City

23.5% of Salt Lake City residents age 5 and older speak a language other than English at home, and 7.8% speak English less than “very well.” Spanish leads, followed by Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese and Russian, Polish, and other Slavic.

Language spoken at home	Residents	Speak English less than “very well”
Spanish	28,204	9,658
Other Asian and Pacific Island languages	4,420	1,787
Other Indo-European languages	3,760	803
Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese	1,967	1,010
Russian, Polish, and other Slavic	1,887	745
Other languages	1,569	n/a
German and other West Germanic	1,114	n/a

Spanish 28,2049,658 speak English less than “very well”
Other Asian and Pacific Island languages 4,4201,787 speak English less than “very well”
Other Indo-European languages 3,760803 speak English less than “very well”
Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese 1,9671,010 speak English less than “very well”
Russian, Polish, and other Slavic 1,887745 speak English less than “very well”
Other languages 1,569
German and other West Germanic 1,114

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates for Salt Lake City city (tables C16001, C16002, B05002, B05006) (opens in a new tab). Figures with a wide margin of error are not shown.

Where Salt Lake City residents born abroad come from

Countries of birth point to the languages behind the Census groups above, and to the documents (birth certificates, diplomas, court records) that arrive for translation.

Mexico9,933
China, excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan1,493
Oceania, n.e.c.1,047
India979
Guatemala776
Brazil753
Philippines728
Vietnam690

Salt Lake City by the numbers

Residents: 208,007
Speak a language other than English at home: 46,572 23.5%
Speak English less than “very well”: 15,531 7.8%
Limited-English households: 3,409 3.7%
Born outside the U.S.: 31,057 14.9%

Language access rules in Utah

Court interpreter program: The Utah Administrative Office of the Courts establishes the programs that certify and approve court interpreters and publishes the roster of certified, approved, and registered contract interpreters under Utah Code of Judicial Administration Rules 3-306.01 to 3-306.04; a Language Access Program Manager decides rare-language exemptions.
Court-certified languages: Certified interpreters have passed the Consortium for Language Access in the Courts examination; approved interpreters have been rated "superior" in language testing (an Oral Proficiency Interview through Language Testing International); registered interpreters work in languages where no testing is available; and the Administrative Office establishes certification programs, subject to available funding, in the non-English languages most frequently needed in the courts. American Sign Language court interpreters are credentialed separately through the Utah Interpreter Program.
The rule: UCJA Rule 3-306.04 (effective May 1, 2025) requires the appointing authority to appoint a certified or approved interpreter when it determines that a party, witness, victim, or person who will be bound by the legal proceeding has limited English proficiency; a registered interpreter may be appointed only if no certified or approved interpreter is reasonably available, and a conditionally approved interpreter only under further findings; in courts of record the Administrative Office pays the fees.
School language access policies (Utah Code 53G-7-223): Every local education agency must adopt a policy on communicating with students learning English and their families, addressing when to use interpreters and their recommended qualifications for settings such as enrollment, IEP, and disciplinary meetings, and the use of translators or interpreters for materials such as registration forms, report cards, discipline policies, grievance procedures, parent handbooks, and permission requests.
Court form translation: Under UCJA Rule 3-306.04(4), court forms must be translated by a team of at least two people who are certified or approved interpreters or translators accredited by the American Translators Association.
Sign language interpreter certification: Utah Code Title 35A, Chapter 13, Part 6 requires anyone who provides interpreter services for deaf and hard of hearing people in Utah to be certified, with credentials issued or recognized by the Utah Interpreter Program (UCNI, UCPI, UCDI, specified RID and NAD certifications, and EIPA 3.5 or higher).
Interpreters in government proceedings (Utah Code 78B-1-202): The appointing authority must appoint and pay for a qualified interpreter for a deaf or hard of hearing party or witness in covered proceedings, including civil, criminal, grand jury, juvenile, adoption, and mental health commitment proceedings, and must provide interpreters for deaf or hard of hearing witnesses before legislative committees and participants in state or local agency hearings.
Official language: Utah Code 63G-1-201, last amended in 2021, declares English the official language of Utah; the court interpreter rules and school language access policy above operate alongside it.
Refugee resettlement: The Refugee Services Office in the Utah Department of Workforce Services is the designated state agency for funds from the federal Office of Refugee Resettlement and, according to the department's 2026 annual report, improves the lives of more than 65,000 refugees resettled in Utah communities.

Sources

Language services in Salt Lake City

Detailed languages in Salt Lake County, Utah

The Census Bureau publishes individual languages for counties, not for cities. These are the most-spoken languages other than English in Salt Lake County, Utah.

Spanish160,965
Chinese (incl. Mandarin, Cantonese)10,605
Ilocano, Samoan, Hawaiian, or other Austronesian languages7,552
Portuguese6,645
Vietnamese5,848
French (incl. Cajun)4,222
Arabic4,066
Russian3,907

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, ACS 2024 1-year, table B16001, Salt Lake County, Utah.

Salt Lake City questions

What languages are spoken in Salt Lake City?

23.5% of Salt Lake City residents age 5 and older speak a language other than English at home, and 7.8% speak English less than “very well.” Spanish leads, followed by Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese and Russian, Polish, and other Slavic. The most common countries of birth among residents born abroad are Mexico, China, excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan, and Oceania, n.e.c..

How many Salt Lake City households have limited English?

3,409 of 92,652 households (3.7%), according to the Census Bureau: households in which no one age 14 or older speaks only English or speaks English “very well.” These are the households most likely to need an interpreter or translated documents.

How are court interpreters credentialed in Utah?

The Utah Administrative Office of the Courts establishes the programs that certify and approve court interpreters and publishes the roster of certified, approved, and registered contract interpreters under Utah Code of Judicial Administration Rules 3-306.01 to 3-306.04; a Language Access Program Manager decides rare-language exemptions. Certified interpreters have passed the Consortium for Language Access in the Courts examination; approved interpreters have been rated "superior" in language testing (an Oral Proficiency Interview through Language Testing International); registered interpreters work in languages where no testing is available; and the Administrative Office establishes certification programs, subject to available funding, in the non-English languages most frequently needed in the courts. American Sign Language court interpreters are credentialed separately through the Utah Interpreter Program.

Do you provide on-site interpreters in Salt Lake City?

Yes. We schedule interpreters in person in Salt Lake City and across Utah, and by phone and video nationwide, in 250+ languages including Spanish and ASL. Book less common languages as early as you can.

Do you provide conference and meeting interpreters in Salt Lake City?

Yes. We staff conferences, conventions, trade shows, seminars, corporate training, and client meetings in Salt Lake City with simultaneous or consecutive interpreters. For simultaneous interpreting, our own technicians deliver, run, and strike the booths, transmitters, and receivers, shipped from our own inventory.