Guide
How to make your iPhone read text aloud
Your iPhone can read almost anything out loud, free, with features already in Settings. Turn on Speak Selection to hear text you select, or Speak Screen to hear the whole page with a two-finger swipe. Here is how to set them up, change the voice and speed, and when an app is worth it.
By the SpeechBee team, who make SpeechBee. Checked against Apple's iPhone User Guide on 12 October 2026
On this page
Speak Selection: hear the text you select
- In Settings, Accessibility, Read & Speak, turn on Speak Selection.
- In any app, select some text.
- Tap Speak in the menu that appears.
You can customize how spoken text is highlighted in the same settings.
Speak Screen: hear the whole page
- In Read & Speak, tap Speak Screen and turn it on.
- On any screen, swipe down with two fingers from the top.
A controller appears. Use it to pause, change the speaking rate, skip forward or back, or tap Speak on Touch and then tap the text you want read. You can keep the controller on screen with Show Controller. You can also ask Siri to "Speak screen".
Accessibility Reader
Also in Read & Speak, Accessibility Reader shows text in a full-screen view with fonts, layouts and colors you choose, and can read it aloud. Turn on Autoplay to have it start reading automatically.
Change the voice, speed and pronunciation
In Settings, Accessibility, Read & Speak:
- Voices to choose a voice and dialect.
- Default Language for the language your iPhone speaks.
- Detect Languages to have it detect and speak more than one language.
- Speaking Rate with a slider.
- Pronunciations to dictate or spell how a word should be said.
When an app is worth it
The built-in tools are free and handle most needs. Reading apps add natural voices, libraries, PDFs and listening across devices:
| App | Good for | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Speak Selection and Speak Screen | Anything on screen, built in | Free |
 Speechify | Books, PDFs, scanned pages, 1,000+ voices | Free plan, Premium about $139/yr |
 NaturalReader | Documents, MP3 export, OCR on paid plans | Free plan, paid from $79/yr |
 Voice Dream | A reading library on iPhone, iPad and Mac | Free download, in-app purchases |
 SpeechBee | Pasting your own text to hear, plus dictation | $79/yr or $99 once |
SpeechBee on iPhone
SpeechBee is the app we make. On iPhone and iPad, paste text into its Read tab to hear it in a natural voice, pick a voice, change the speed and pause any time. The voices run on your device, so your text isn't sent anywhere. SpeechBee is mainly a dictation app, with a voice keyboard for writing by voice, and one plan covers iPhone, iPad and Mac, where it reads selected text in any app with one key. It doesn't import books or scan pages.
Write by voice, listen back, on iPhone and Mac. Free for 7 days.
Voice to text and Read Aloud on your Mac, iPhone and iPad. After the week, $9 a month, $79 a year, or $99 once. Every plan has every feature.
Questions
How do I get my iPhone to read text out loud?
Turn on Speak Selection in Settings, Accessibility, Read & Speak. Select text and tap Speak. Or turn on Speak Screen and swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen.
How do I make my iPhone read a whole page?
Turn on Speak Screen, then swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen, or ask Siri to "Speak screen".
Can my iPhone read a PDF aloud?
Yes. Open the PDF and use Speak Screen, or select text and tap Speak. Reading apps such as Speechify and Voice Dream import PDFs for longer listening.
How do I change the voice my iPhone reads with?
Go to Settings, Accessibility, Read & Speak, then Voices, and choose a voice and dialect.
Can I slow down the iPhone's reading voice?
Yes. Use the Speaking Rate slider in Read & Speak, or the speed control on the Speak Screen controller.
Keep reading
- How to make your Mac read text aloud
- How to dictate on iPhone
- Speechify alternatives for Mac
- Voice Dream Reader alternatives
Sources
All checked on 12 October 2026.