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Text to speech Google Chrome

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Table of contents, five best text to speech google chrome extensions, what is text to speech, how tts can help you in your browser, snap&read, our top pick: speechify, getting started with speechify.

Text to speech Google Chrome extensions are the fastest way to improve readability of online written materials. Discover our top five TTS recommendations.

Assistive technology like text to speech (TTS) or read-aloud technology is rapidly progressing. These days, TTS features can be found in multiple digital services, and they can help users with reading issues take full advantage of opportunities in the virtual space. Web browser text to speech extensions are incredibly easy to use. Naturally, there are many text to speech Google Chrome extensions available, and we’re taking a look here at the top five.

First, let’s cover what text to speech even is. Text to speech tools read digital text aloud, hence why they are also called read-aloud programs. TTS apps process words in a document and online articles and read them back to the user in AI-powered speech. The adjustable speech output, natural-sounding speech, and simultaneous word highlighting features of some TTS tools are helpful in various situations, especially considering the technology’s compatibility with multiple devices and operating systems. They’re great tools for improving accessibility as well as productivity.

Not all TTS tools are created equal. Some are more limited in their capabilities and functionality. However, many TTS tools can use their assistive technology for high-quality interpretation of written digital content. Children, people with reading disabilities, or anyone interested in improving their multitasking can use a TTS tool to read entire web pages, transcriptions, and other text-based content. Text to speech audio can even help people go through entire PDF documents. Document reading assistance on mobile devices can also prove invaluable due to the smaller screens and general lack of readability when it comes to documents with small font sizes. TTS tools are perhaps even more helpful to children and students with dyslexia . A TTS browser extension can help students use digital educational tools and keep up with everyone else in the class. The assistance TTS tools provide can give a massive boost to a student’s sense of self-worth and keep them motivated. TTS apps are available in different languages and can provide high-quality, real-time narrations from text files, Google docs , Microsoft Word documents, and other types of digital content. So, what are the best text to speech Google Chrome extensions? Let’s find out.

Best five TTS Google Chrome extensions

Snap&Read is a TTS extension available for iOS devices. It’s free to use and narrates text using computer-generated voice. Although it can sound a bit robotic, it does an excellent job with complex texts and allows voice speed changes. In an educational capacity, the app has almost everything it needs to help students use online research materials, navigate websites, and improve their comprehension of written information. However, the app lacks appropriate content recognition and may have a slightly higher learning curve. Adult guidance might be necessary when recommending the app to kids. One of its best features is allowing users to select specific portions of text by carving out a custom text box.

Natural Reader

Natural Reader is a speech synthesis app presented as a cloud solution for people with reading disabilities and anyone else in need of clear narration of digital written content. It can convert Word and PDF documents , multiple ebook formats , TXT documents, PNG and JPG files, and web page content. The app offers multilingual support for nine languages and enables users to select between more than 50 speech voices. Although a popular Chrome extension , Natural Reader also has a downloadable version and a commercial app. Users can benefit from free access to the personal downloadable app and the cloud-based extension. A paid subscription is necessary to access more features, expand the app’s functionality, and improve the generation of audio files.

Capti Voice

Reading class materials and going over cloud-stored documents is easy enough with Capti Voice. This multi-platform web application has native support for iOS devices but also works as a Chrome extension, making it useful for Android device users who need a TTS browser extension. The free version of the tool is sufficient for personal use and provides enough assistance in some educational applications. However, the pro version enables high-quality voice samples and additional features.

Read Aloud is a popular Chrome extension speech reader compatible with a wide range of Google-powered products like Google Docs, Google Sheets, Google Classroom, and Google Maps. The assistive technology converts written digital content to an audio format with support in 36 languages. Configuring the app is effortless thanks to its intuitive and straightforward user interface. You can select between several voices, adjust the reading speed, and start and stop the playback whenever you want. Although it sometimes has bugs and is incompatible with many similar tools, its download numbers of over 700,000 send a strong statement.

Finally, Speechify is a TTS speech engine with impressive speed reading capabilities designed to assist users with conditions such as ADHD and dyslexia. It can also benefit auditory learners , multitaskers, and people struggling to learn a second language. The app’s basic version is free and compatible with Android and iOS devices as well as Google Chrome, Safari, and Firefox web browsers. Due to its cross-platform support, reliable speed, and narration accuracy, Speechify is a fan favorite in the text to speech space.

Launched in 2016, Speechify comes with an ever-evolving text to speech API . Both the mobile app and its browser extension counterpart offer support in different languages and a great selection of natural-sounding voices . It supports multiple written content formats. Users can put it to work and improve their understanding of PDFs, documents, online articles, emails, and many more digital resources. In addition, the desktop version of Speechify comes with optical character recognition technology capable of turning entire documents into understandable audio narrations. This is one of the most popular trends in TTS due to its implications in the real world and interaction with hard-copy templates. The reading accuracy, voice clarity , and adjustable speed can help struggling students or employees on tight deadlines go through important files at two or three times the speed without compromising their understanding of the information. The AI voices are some of the best around and maintain their reading accuracy through all speed settings. Add to that the flexibility and cross-platform functionality, and Speechify is easily a top solution among TTS apps. Going one step further, Speechify offers its users top-tier customer support. Unlike some competitors, Speechify counts on trained individuals to resolve most of their customer’s issues instead of the more traditional chatbot support function. As a bonus, using Speech Synthesis Markup Language, or SSML, makes note-taking and highlighting much easier, improving the user’s ability to retain information from converted digital audio materials. The free version of the Chrome extension is one way to ease into the world of text-to-speech and get acquainted with the technology. Alternatively, users can opt for the premium version at only $139 per year or test the premium solution during a three-day trial. Unlike the free Speechify version, the trial unlocks all premium features for testing.

Getting started is easy if you want to be one of 20 million users to improve their knowledge assimilation abilities with Speechify. Installing Speecify’s Chrome extension is no different than adding any other extension to your browser. The cloud-based version of Speechify has about one million users, and anyone can try it for free. The setup takes just a few minutes, after which you can enjoy browsing written content with the desired voice and at whatever speed you find most comfortable. Upgrading to the affordable pricing premium version enables support in over 20 languages, scanning hard-copy content, five read speeds, content skipping, and practical note-taking tools.

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Cliff Weitzman

Cliff Weitzman is a dyslexia advocate and the CEO and founder of Speechify, the #1 text-to-speech app in the world, totaling over 100,000 5-star reviews and ranking first place in the App Store for the News & Magazines category. In 2017, Weitzman was named to the Forbes 30 under 30 list for his work making the internet more accessible to people with learning disabilities. Cliff Weitzman has been featured in EdSurge, Inc., PC Mag, Entrepreneur, Mashable, among other leading outlets.

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Speechify Text to Speech Voice Reader

16.3K ratings

4.6 out of 5

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sarren hines Nov 30, 2024

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Has great voices for reading. I'm not a fan of the obvious AI voices and there are some options. I'm NOT a fan of the price, though. I'm a college student and really can't afford the monthly OR yearly payment on top of the bills I already pay. If it was cheaper, it would be a 5 star.

Andrea Camacho Nov 29, 2024

The best app ever for academic reading. A must.

Kenji Nov 29, 2024

adhd moment when I read 1 sentence and take a 1 hour browsing spree

Garrys Mod Fan Nov 29, 2024

It has very realistic voices! Like, Mr Beast. How did you even make that..? 5 stars!

Teresa Wymore Heitman Nov 29, 2024

I use speechify mostly to help edit my writing. Hearing my work read back to me helps me notice things I may overlook in sight reading. I can switch voices, as well, which provides a freshness to the work so I may notice even more things.

Maria Kuzmina (External) Nov 29, 2024

It helps me better and faster understand text.I have ADHD and once I tried it, it became essential.

Danielle Bishop Nov 29, 2024

normally would be 5 stars! idk whats going on, but it is taking so long to load today. im sentences in by the time it loads. and then once it stars reading, it will continue to stop to load some more. leaving me reading by myself and by the time it starts, im down further, so i have to forward, leaving it to load again. not really able to use today! i tried updating, restarting. idk whats up today, but once it goes back to normal, i would love to give 5 stars! this has helped me not only read... Show more

Shicheng Wu Nov 29, 2024

Jakub Málek Nov 29, 2024

One star less, as the app can't differ between two languages.

Rafiq Rasoul Nov 28, 2024

it cut down my reading time 75%, osm tool

The 7 Best Text-to-Speech Chrome Extensions

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Text-to-speech programs can come in very handy, whether you need to use the extension for reading difficulties, or just because you like having text read aloud. Chrome extensions are the perfect format to use these programs as you browse the web.

So, here we’ve listed some of the best text-to-speech extensions for Chrome.

1. Natural Reader

An intelligent extension, Natural Reader works great for almost any type of text, including PDF, Google Docs, eBooks, and emails.

Natural Reader also has an immersive reader mode that lets you read without any distractions. For those with dyslexia, the immersive reader mode supports dyslexic fonts to make reading easier.

To instruct Natural Reader to start reading, you can use the hotkey Alt + R . Alternatively, if you want to listen to only a part of the text, simply select the text and click on the Natural Reader icon at the end of the selected text.

From the extension settings, you can adjust voice and speed, listen to uploaded PDFs, save to mobile, and set hotkeys.

Natural Readers supports 20 languages, including English, Spanish, French, and German. Other than the Chrome extension, Natural Reader has web, iOS, and Android apps.

Though the extension is free to use, you can get more voice options with Premium and Pro plans, starting from $10 per month.

Download: Natural Reader for Chrome (Free, Paid)

2. Speechify

Speechify is one of the most powerful text-to-speech Chrome extensions on the list.

After downloading the extension, you'll view a floating widget on the right side of your screen. When you click on the play button , the extension starts reading from the beginning of the page. You can, however, enable Click to Listen and start listening from any particular point on the webpage.

It supports 30 different languages and 130 voices. Besides the usual webpages and blogs, Speechify can read out scanned texts, PDFs, and even tweets for you on the Twitter web app.

Speechify lets you save webpages to the library for listening to at a later time. The Premium plan costs $11.58 per month (billed annually) and offers additional voices and languages, lets you listen to scanned texts, and supports importing, highlighting, and skipping.

Perhaps the most useful feature of the paid plan is the ability to increase audio speed. Speechify's mobile app is one of the most popular text-to-speech apps for Android as well as iOS. So, whether you're a student, struggle with reading, or prefer listening to articles, Speechify can come in really handy.

Download: Speechify for Chrome (Free, Paid)

3. Read Aloud

Read Aloud is an open-source project that is specially designed for people who prefer listening to content rather than reading it. It offers support for 40 languages.

Read Aloud can read different formats like Google Docs, blog posts, PDFs, Amazon Kindle, Google Play Books, etc. To listen to any piece of text, select and right-click it, then choose Read aloud selected text . Alternatively, you can use the shortcut Alt + P .

It lets you adjust the reading speed, volume, and pitch from the Settings icon. Moreover, you can choose whether to highlight the played text.

Read Aloud has around a million downloads on Chrome Web Store, so it’s definitely a popular TTS extension for Chrome.

Download: Read Aloud for Chrome (Free)

4. Snap&Read

Snap&Read is a feature-rich reading extension that lets you listen to any kind of text. Other than webpages, Google Docs, and PDFs, Snap&Read can also read text from images and scanned documents using OCR.

To listen to any text, select the Loud Speaker icon from the sidebar, then click on the text from where you want Snap&Read to read.

For listening to text from screenshots or images, select the Rectangular Selection icon . Select the area from where you want Snap&Read to detect and read text.

Moreover, Snap&Read can translate the text into other languages and adjust the readability of the text. Using this extension, you can remove distractions and change the spacing and number of words per line to create a better reading experience.

Snap&Read is a great text-to-speech extension, especially for educators and students. It costs $3.99 per month, but you can access a free trial.

Download: Snap&Read for Chrome ($3.99 per month)

5. Talkie: Text to Speech

Talkie is a simple text-to-speech Chrome extension that supports multiple languages. As it is quite a basic extension, Talkie is a good choice if you need limited features.

To make Talkie read any text, select the text, right-click it, and choose Talkie from the context menu. Talkie automatically detects the languages, selects a voice, and reads the text for you. For setting a default voice, you’ll have to upgrade to Premium.

It doesn't have any word limits and can work offline if the languages are downloaded. Best of all, you can download more TTS languages and voices for your operating system, and Talkie can auto-detect and use them.

Most of the features are free, but you can also upgrade to Premium for more options. Talkie Premium does not have a fixed price, but is a pay-what-you-want subscription.

Download : Talkie: Text to Speech for Chrome (Free, Paid)

6. Intelligent Speaker

Whether you want to listen to articles, PDFs, Google Docs, or uploaded text, Intelligent Speaker got you covered.

This extension supports 20 languages and automatically detects the language. You can read complete web pages as well as selected text. To make the voice sound more natural, you can turn on breathing.

Available as a browser add-on, Intelligent Speaker lets you sync your content to a podcast app, so you can listen to articles on the go. You can even download the converted audio file using this extension. Intelligent Speaker works offline and is available for all major browsers.

The free plan supports only one hour of listening each month, so you'll have to subscribe to Premium, which costs $6.99 per month, for unlimited listening.

Download: Intelligent Speaker for Chrome (Free, Paid)

7. Text to Speech

Text to Speech Chrome extension by Hewzio is a simple yet useful extension. It can read the entire web page for you, supporting 30 languages.

To listen to any article, simply click on the extension icon or right-click the screen and choose Read Page . The extension will start reading the page from the beginning. To listen to selected text, play the audio and click on the sentence from where you want it to read.

Text to Speech also has a distraction-free reader mode, making it one of the extensions that enhance your reading experience . You can sync articles across devices, including mobile phones, and create podcasts from articles using Text to Speech by Hewzio.

The free plan does the basic job of converting text into audio, but the paid plans offer more features, including the dark mode. There are three paid plans, ranging from $1 to $10 per month.

Download: Text to Speech for Chrome (Free, Paid)

Let the Extension Read Out the Screen for You

Whether you want to read webpages, documents, or images, these Chrome extensions can read out the screen for you. These extensions are a great way for students to learn different languages and avoid reading long research papers.

Similarly, these text-to-speech extensions are really useful for people with vision impairment or reading difficulties like dyslexia.

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