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Court reporter: what the job actually is

Recording what is said in court or a hearing and turning it into an exact written transcript that others rely on.

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Court reporter: quick facts

Court reporter salary in Ontario: the median pay is $28.00 an hour, according to Job Bank (reference period 2023-2024). Its three-year outlook in Ontario is good. The job usually needs a college diploma, or an apprenticeship of two or more years.

Median pay in Ontario
$28.00 an hour
Pay range (low to high)
$18.00 to $38.46 an hour
Job outlook, 2025-2027
Good
People working in it in Ontario
4,200
Usually needs
Usually a college diploma, or an apprenticeship of two or more years

Source: Job Bank wages (updated 19 November 2025) and job prospects (updated 10 December 2025), NOC 12110. Pay varies by region and experience.

The work

What this job actually is

  • Recording what is said in a courtroom or hearing and then producing an accurate record. Job Bank describes recording verbatim proceedings with an electronic stenograph machine or stenomask and transcribing them to established formats.
  • Job Bank lists courts of law, federal and provincial legislative assemblies and committees, and self-employed work as employers.
  • Job Bank reports one pay figure and one outlook for the whole group of court reporters, medical transcriptionists and related occupations, not for court reporters alone.
  • Job Bank's outlook notes say the backlog in court cases may add demand, that third-party transcription providers are a source of work, and that voice-recognition software may affect the role and its skill requirements.
  • A large share of the group is self-employed, which means chasing work, deadlines and invoices as well as transcribing.

A Tuesday

What a normal day looks like

Not a good day or a bad one. The ordinary version, which is what you would actually be living.

  1. 8:15 — In, set up equipment, test the audio, check that every microphone is picking up.
  2. 9:00 — Court begins. Your whole job is to hear everything and miss nothing, including the part somebody says under their breath.
  3. 10:30 — A witness speaks fast and a lawyer interrupts. You flag the moment because the record must be right.
  4. 12:00 — Lunch. Your hands and ears need a break more than your stomach does.
  5. 13:00 — Afternoon session. A technical word comes up that you have never heard, and you have to get it right anyway.
  6. 15:30 — Court rises. You save the recording, label it and note anything you will have to check.
  7. 16:00 — Start the transcript for a hearing last week, checking the audio against what you typed.
  8. 17:30 — A rush request from a lawyer who needs a section tonight.
  9. 18:30 — Proofreading. A single wrong word in a transcript can change what a sentence means.
  10. 19:30 — Done for the day, with a stack of recordings waiting for tomorrow.

Honestly

Who loves this, and who should not do it

The second list is the useful one. Nearly every careers page leaves it out, which is why nearly every careers page reads like an advert.

You may like this if
  • You can listen closely for hours, and you get satisfaction from accuracy.
  • You are comfortable being in the room for serious proceedings and keeping everything confidential.
  • You like typing, proofreading and working with technical language.
  • You want the option of working for yourself with the right equipment and clients.
  • You do not need to speak or be noticed. Your job is to be invisible and exact.
You may hate this if
  • You get tired of sitting still and concentrating. Hours of listening with no breaks is physically and mentally demanding.
  • The material bothers you. Court cases include violence, abuse and grief, and you record every word.
  • You dislike deadlines that arrive at night. Transcript requests are often urgent.
  • You worry about technology. Job Bank's outlook text says voice-recognition software may affect the role and its skill requirements, so you would need to keep learning.
  • You want a clear employer and benefits. A large share of this group is self-employed, which means uneven work.
  • You want to speak or argue. Court reporters stay silent unless they have to ask for something to be repeated.

The route in

How you actually get there in Ontario

  1. Finish high school

    Job Bank says court reporters need secondary school and then a college or other programme in court reporting. English, typing and computer skills are the foundation.

  2. Complete a college or other court reporting programme

    Ontario colleges list court-related programmes on ontariocolleges.ca. I could not open a college's court reporting page, so check ontariocolleges.ca and each programme's admission page for the length, equipment and speed requirements before applying.

  3. Ask about certification

    Job Bank says a Chartered Shorthand Reporter certificate may be required for court reporters, depending on the employer or jurisdiction. Ask the courts and agencies you want to work with what they require.

  4. Choose between employment and self-employment

    Courts and legislative committees employ some reporters. Others work for themselves for agencies and law firms. Ask working reporters which they chose and why.

Where this comes from: Job Bank — Court reporter requirements in Ontario · Job Bank — Court reporter duties and workplaces in Ontario

The money

Court reporter salary in Ontario

Job Bank's own figures, quoted rather than summarised, with the period they describe — so you can tell how old they are and go and check them.

$18.00
Low (hourly)
$28.00
Median (hourly)
$38.46
High (hourly)

Ontario, NOC 12110. Reference period 2023-2024, last updated by Job Bank on 19 November 2025. Wages vary a lot by region inside Ontario and by how long you have been doing it — the low figure is roughly where you start, not what the job is worth.

Source: Job Bank — Court reporter wages in Ontario

Where it is heading

The outlook for the next three years

Job Bank publishes a three-year outlook for every job in every province. It is the closest thing to an honest forecast, and it moves, so read it as a weather report rather than a verdict.

Ontario, 2025-2027

Good4 out of 5 stars

  • Employment growth will lead to a few new positions.
  • Several positions will become available due to retirements.
  • There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation.

What that rating means: how many openings Job Bank expects in Ontario for this kind of work against how many people are likely to be looking — not whether it is a good job. A “limited” rating means more competition for each opening; it does not close the door, and it can change before you are ready to walk through it.

What is changing in this work

  • Significant backlog in court cases and medical procedures may add demand for this occupation during the forecast period
  • Prevalence of third-party providers of transcription services are expected to be sources of employment
  • Availability of advanced voice-recognition software may affect the role and skill requirements of this occupation

Who hires for it

  • Leading share employed in business support services such as document preparation services
  • Health care, mainly hospitals
  • Provincial government is another key employer
4,200
people work in this job in Ontario
87%
are women (48% across all jobs)
47%
are self-employed (15% across all jobs)

Source: Job Bank — Court reporters, medical transcriptionists and related occupations job prospects in Ontario (NOC 12110). Outlook updated by Job Bank on 10 December 2025; read by us on 5 October 2026.

Before you leave school

Things you can do now

  • Build your typing speed and accuracy. Practise until you can type without looking at the keys.
  • Take English and law-related courses if your school offers them, and read well-written legal or news reports aloud.
  • Visit a public court sitting if your family or teacher can arrange it, and notice what the reporter does and does not do.
  • Ask about co-op placements in a legal office or a government office. Even office work in a legal setting tells you if you like the pace.

Test it

Do this before you decide anything

Reading about a job tells you almost nothing. This is designed to be done alone, this week, for free.

Transcribe ten minutes of speech and count your errors

About 90 minutes
  1. Find a recording of a public hearing, committee or lecture of about ten minutes, one with more than one speaker if you can.
  2. Listen once, then type every word you hear, including the hesitations. Pause and rewind as much as you like.
  3. Listen again while reading your text, and mark every word you got wrong or were unsure of. Count them.
  4. Read the Job Bank requirements page, and one Ontario college's court-related programme page, and write down what is asked.

What it tells you. A yes is that you could stay locked in for the full ten minutes, the errors made you want to go back and fix them, and you still liked it after the second listen. That is the job. A no is that your attention drifted by minute three, or the corrections felt like punishment. An actual day is hours of this, and the tolerance for it is not going to grow much.

Better than any article

Questions for somebody who does this job

Most people say yes to a teenager who asks good questions. These are the ones that get real answers rather than encouragement.

  1. “How many hours a day are you actually recording versus transcribing?”
  2. “How has voice recognition changed your work?”
  3. “Did you need the Chartered Shorthand Reporter certificate, and did it change your work?”
  4. “What do you do about a word you cannot hear clearly?”
  5. “How do you stay focused through a long, dull session?”
  6. “How hard was it to find work at the start?”

Could you own one of these?

The part other career sites never mention

Yes, and Job Bank's workforce figures show a large share of this group is self-employed. Freelance reporting means equipment, software, confidentiality, quoting, invoicing and finding agencies and law firms who will use you. Ask a freelancer how their first year went.

Business 101 is free and teaches that part

Quick answers

Questions people ask about this job

How much does a court reporter make in Ontario?

The median pay for a court reporter in Ontario is $28.00 an hour, according to Job Bank (reference period 2023-2024, updated 19 November 2025). The range Job Bank publishes runs from $18.00 to $38.46 an hour. Pay varies by region, employer and experience.

What is the job outlook for a court reporter in Ontario?

Job Bank rates the employment outlook for this work in Ontario as good for 2025-2027 (updated 10 December 2025). Employment growth will lead to a few new positions. Several positions will become available due to retirements. There are a small number of unemployed workers with recent experience in this occupation. A lower rating means more competition for each opening, not that no one is hiring.

What do you need to become a court reporter in Ontario?

Job Bank says this work usually needs a college diploma, or an apprenticeship of two or more years. The usual route in Ontario, in order: Finish high school; Complete a college or other court reporting programme; Ask about certification.

Where does a court reporter work in Ontario?

Leading share employed in business support services such as document preparation services. Health care, mainly hospitals. Provincial government is another key employer. (Job Bank.)

How many people work as a court reporter in Ontario, and how many are women?

Job Bank counts about 4,200 people working in this job in Ontario. 87% of them are women, compared with 48% across all jobs. That describes who does the work today, not who can.

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Parent of a teenager weighing this up? Career coaching for teens gets them talking to people who do the work, anywhere in Ontario.

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Wages and training requirements change. Every figure on this page is linked to the body that publishes it, and the review date above says when we last checked. If you find something out of date, tell us and we will fix it.