Best Free and Paid Text-to-Speech Apps and Programs for 2024

If you use the internet in any way, chances are you spend a significant portion of your time reading mountains of content. Whether you regularly browse articles, tutorials, emails, or books, there’s no denying how exhausting and time-consuming it can be to scan long walls of text on a screen. Doing so on a large scale can lead to digital eye strain—a problem that’s skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fortunately, there are a number of text-to-speech programs that can cut down on reading time and increase productivity. As the name suggests, these software options take words and turn them into clear audio. Advances in generative AI in recent years have increased the functionality and natural sound quality of many of these programs, allowing for a more versatile range of tasks. Whether you have accessibility needs, want something that will read your work to you and catch typos, or simply need instructions read aloud as you work, there’s no shortage of great options to choose from.

Let’s take a closer look at some of the most recommended programs on the market today—both free and paid—to determine which text-to-speech software will work best for you.

If you’ve looked into text-to-speech programs, you’ve probably come across Murf AI. Whether you’re looking to convert text to audio or vice versa, Murf AI presents a dynamic range of tools that help with a variety of tasks while still being easy for users of all experience levels to use.

Users can type or paste their text into Murf, select a voice, and listen to the results. What sets Murf apart from similar services is its range of voices. While many text-to-speech programs suffer from stiff-sounding computer-generated audio, Murf offers its users over 120 different voices to choose from, with special customization options to change pronunciation, age, accents, personality, and more. You can even set the audio duration to your liking, with the option to add pauses for more natural-sounding speech. Once you’re happy with the audio, you can download it as an MP3 file.

This, combined with a solid yet easy-to-use interface and additional features like batch editing, make Murf AI a top choice for many people, from educators and business people to advertisers and content creators looking for AI tools. Murf allows users to generate up to 10 minutes of text-to-speech and two projects for free. From there, you can upgrade to the Creator plan, which starts at $23 per month, or the more advanced Business plan, which starts at $79 per month.

For those looking for an easy way to perform text-to-speech tasks across platforms, NaturalReader has a lot to offer. The best part is that while there are paid options for NaturalReader, those looking for free text-to-speech software can still get a lot out of it.

There are three ways to use NaturalReader. First, you can use it as a web app where you type or paste text and hear it read aloud by different voices. This option is also the best way to upload documents to a library to have them read to you. NaturalReader is also one of the best free text-to-speech phone apps you can find, which allows for additional options like an OCR scanner that will help you read scanned documents. Finally, you can add NaturalReader as a handy extension to your Google Chrome browser that will read documents you come across while doing online tasks.

NaturalReader offers a collection of over 100 natural-sounding voices as part of its Premium and Plus subscription plans. These voices can still be accessed by free users, but with a daily limit of 20 minutes for Premium and 5 minutes for Plus voices before reverting to a more general dialect. While investing in these plans may not be a bad idea if you have extensive reading needs, those looking for a simple way to get through long walls of text may be surprised by the functionality of the free version.

Like NaturalReader, Speechify is a text-to-speech tool that you can get a lot out of across platforms with its free version. However, Speechify’s paid tiers are also quite affordable, making it a good choice for those looking for a more dynamic program at an affordable price.

This is another program that can be used online, via a mobile app, or as a web extension. Speechify offers fast audio loading speeds, often taking a second or less. While the free option works pretty well, Speechify’s paid plans offer a wealth of unique text-to-speech features that set the program apart from the crowd. Meanwhile, its various speed options let you adjust the speed or rate of audio playback.

The prices available for Speechify’s paid plans aren’t all that bad. While there are more advanced studio subscription plans that cost between $69 and $99 per month, most can get more than enough out of the regular Premium plan for $29 per month. However, if you opt for the annual option, you’ll save a lot on a plan that costs $139 per year (or $11.58 per month).

A text-to-speech program may not be something you need for heavy, everyday use. Instead, you may simply want a text-to-speech program to bookmark for quick tasks. One of the best programs to get the job done is TTSMaker, a free and accessible piece of software that is as simple as it gets.

While many text-to-speech programs can run in browsers for free, they often do so in an attempt to advertise their more extensive paid plans. TTSMaker, however, gets right down to business, allowing you to easily insert text and choose from hundreds of voice options in multiple languages ​​that will be read to you right from the home page. From there, you have the option to download your audio as an MP3 file for personal or commercial use, completely free of charge. Most other services require you to pay or subscribe for this feature.

Sure, there are a variety of monthly payment options within TTSMaker, from a $12.99 lite option to a $140 studio plan. However, given the comprehensive features offered by the free version, including unlimited MP3 downloads and a 20,000-character weekly limit, it is more than adequate for most needs.

While many use text-to-speech tools simply to get through long walls of words, they can also be incredibly helpful for content creators. Whether it’s podcasts, YouTube videos, or social media recordings, using text-to-speech software can eliminate the hassle of spending money on different types of microphones and recording your own audio. Descript is a solid option for this purpose

Sure, you can generate audio in Descript like you would in a typical text-to-speech software with a range of adjustable voices available. But what sets Descript apart is the way the platform lets you edit pre-recorded audio. You can load video and audio files into the program, and the audio will be converted into a transcribed format similar to a Google Doc. From there, you can add or remove elements from the text, which then edits the audio itself. Additionally, Descript can clean up the audio to remove extra noise, trim filler words like “um” or “uh,” and add captions.

You can get started with the software for free, which allows for an hour of transcribed content per month. There are also three monthly plans for $19, $35, or $50, which drop to $12, $24, and $40, respectively, if you choose the annual plan.

Read Aloud is another program that can be an easy shortcut when going through articles online. It is far from the most versatile in terms of platforms, however, it exists only as a browser extension, not a separate website or app. Despite this, it is available on a wide range of browsers, including Google Chrome, Firefox, and Edge.

This makes it well integrated with many websites. In addition to being easy to use on typical news sites or blogs, it can also review large digital textbooks and university materials, thanks to its ability to read documents such as Google Docs and PDFs. Read Aloud offers 40 different language options, as well as the ability to change the pitch and speed or highlight sections of text from what you are reading to better suit your needs.

This is as basic a text-to-speech program as you can get, so don’t expect any surprising editing or downloading features. The program can also be a bit finicky, playing audio even after you close a tab. Some features require keyboard shortcuts to trigger. But once you get the hang of it, it’s a handy tool, especially useful for students or people with accessibility needs.

There are many text-to-speech programs on the market. Other options, such as Synthesia, Listnr, and ElevenLabs, also came up during the research process for this list and certainly have their advocates. The final choice was a result of various deciding factors.

I have personally tried many of these programs, giving NaturalReader, TTSMaker, and Read Aloud the most accurate transitions. I even had previous experience with some of them. I also explored free trials of Murf AI, Descript, and Speechify. Ultimately, these options were chosen based on a combination of my experience, reviews from other industry-trusted platforms, and user ratings on various app stores and review sites.

We also wanted to cover the different tasks that people typically use text-to-speech programs for. Whether you’re a student doing homework, a content creator looking for a way to streamline your production process, or you just need something handy to read recipes aloud, we hope you’ll find something on this list that fits your specific needs and situation.