The best apps for dyslexia read text aloud while highlighting each word, so you can listen and follow along at the same time. Free options: Microsoft Immersive Reader is built into Word, OneNote, Outlook and Edge, and Bookshare is free for qualifying US students. Paid options: Speechify reads almost anything aloud with natural voices on your phone and computer and can scan printed pages. Learning Ally offers human-narrated audiobooks for students.
Dyslexia apps compared
Speechify
Speechify reads PDFs, web pages, Google Docs, emails and ebooks aloud, and highlights each word as it is spoken. With Scan & Listen you take a photo of a printed page, such as a textbook or worksheet, and hear it read back. It works across iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, Windows, the Chrome extension and the web, so a document started on a laptop can be finished on a phone.
The free plan reads text aloud with 10 basic voices at speeds up to 1.5x, with no time limit. In the iPhone app, the free plan keeps up to 5 files in your library. Premium costs $139 a year (about $11.58 a month) or $29 a month and adds 1,000+ natural voices in 60+ languages, speeds up to 4.5x, scanning and AI summaries. See what the free plan includes.
Microsoft Immersive Reader
Immersive Reader is free and built into Word, OneNote, Outlook, Teams and the Edge browser. It reads text aloud with highlighting and adds line focus, text spacing and syllable breaks. It is a good free choice if your reading already happens in Microsoft apps.
NaturalReader
NaturalReader reads documents and web pages aloud in a web app, a Chrome extension and mobile apps. It offers a dyslexia-friendly font and word highlighting. Its free voices have no daily limit, while its more natural voices are limited each day on the free plan. Paid plans start at $79 a year.
Learning Ally
Learning Ally offers more than 80,000 human-narrated audiobooks, including textbooks, for students with dyslexia and other reading differences. Many schools license it for their students. A family membership costs $135 a year and covers the whole household.
Bookshare
Bookshare is an accessible ebook library with word highlighting, large text and braille support. It is free for qualifying US students with a print disability such as dyslexia, from Pre-K through college. Adults who qualify pay $79.99 a year.
Read&Write
Read&Write, from Everway (formerly Texthelp), is a toolbar that adds text to speech, dictation and word prediction to Google Docs, Word, PDFs and web pages. Schools usually license it, and it is free for K-12 teachers.
Voice Dream Reader
Voice Dream Reader reads PDFs, web pages and books aloud on iPhone, iPad and Mac, and connects to Bookshare. It needs a subscription (from $4.99 a month) after a free trial.
Free readers already on your phone
On iPhone, turn on Speak Screen under Settings > Accessibility > Read & Speak, then swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen to hear it read aloud. On Android, turn on Select to Speak under Settings > Accessibility. Both are free. They are basic compared with a dedicated app, but a good place to start.
How to choose a dyslexia app
- Mostly school PDFs and web pages: Speechify, NaturalReader or Read&Write.
- Textbooks and novels as audiobooks: Learning Ally or Bookshare.
- Printed pages and worksheets: an app that scans with the phone camera, such as Speechify.
- Free first: Immersive Reader, Bookshare if you qualify, the built-in phone readers, or Speechify's free plan.
FAQ
What is the best free text to speech for dyslexia?
Microsoft Immersive Reader is free in Word, OneNote, Outlook and Edge. Bookshare is free for qualifying US students. Speechify's free plan reads text aloud with basic voices at up to 1.5x. Apple and Android phones have free built-in readers.
What reading tools do schools use for students with dyslexia?
Schools commonly provide Learning Ally, Bookshare, Read&Write and Speechify, and use Microsoft Immersive Reader where they already use Microsoft 365. Ask your school which ones it already provides.
Does Speechify help with dyslexia?
Yes. Speechify reads text aloud and highlights each word, so you can listen and follow along. Speechify's founder, Cliff Weitzman, has dyslexia and built the first version to get through his own reading.
Are there dyslexia apps for kids?
Yes. Learning Ally and Bookshare are built around students, and Speechify's Scan & Listen lets a child photograph a printed page and hear it read aloud.
