Read Aloud vs TTSReader (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Read Aloud grades higher than TTSReader: 3.0 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Read Aloud grades higher on value for money, the free plan and ease of use. TTSReader grades higher on features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
TTSReader
Online text reader with free voices, premium AI voices and MP3 export
Which one is for you
Pick Read Aloud if
- Fits if you want a free way to hear web articles read out in your browser
- Works for people comfortable bringing their own cloud voice key for better sound
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want natural voices out of the box: the free setup uses whatever voices your system has
- Not for you if you read on a phone, because there is no mobile app
- Too light for books: EPUB reading depends on a separate extension from another publisher
- Watch out: cloud voices may need an in-app purchase or your own API key, and the pages state no prices
Pick TTSReader if
- Fits if you want text read aloud with free voices
- Works for someone exporting MP3s of articles
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need commercial use on the free plan, as it bars commercial use or publishing
- Tight if you want premium voices free, as the total is 5K characters
- Watch out: Premium is single-seat, and more users need extra licenses or credits
- Watch out: Premium Plus at $20.99 is listed as not yet available
- Watch out: the pricing page was last updated on 20 June 2025
How we grade them
| 3.0GPARead AloudVery good | 2.6GPATTSReaderGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AFree and open source under an MIT license. Anyone can install it, so it counts as free and substantial. | C$8.25 a month on yearly billing, between the category's $5 cheaper quarter and $9.99 middle. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree outright with no account. The only paid parts are optional cloud voices. | BUnlimited non-premium voices and 5K characters of premium AI voices, for personal use. |
| Features | CReads pages, selected text, PDFs, Google Docs and Kindle pages, with speed, pitch and highlighting. Cloud voices need a provider key, and EPUB depends on a separate extension. | BReads text, files and web pages, free and premium voices, MP3 export, a pronunciation dictionary, an API and automation. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. Install it and click the toolbar icon, with nothing to set up. | CNo store rating on record, and the mobile apps have their own separate plans. |
| Platforms and integrations | CBrowser extension only: Chrome, Edge and Firefox. No phone or desktop app, though it can plug into Polly, Azure, OpenAI and other voice providers. | BWeb, a browser extension, iOS and Android apps, and an API. No desktop app. |
| Best for | reading web pages aloud in the browser | an online reader with free and premium voices |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Read Aloud and TTSReader. How we grade
Price against what you get
Read Aloud has no paid plan and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. TTSReader starts at $8.25 a month and scores 2.7.
TTSReader scores higher, and starts $8.25 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other AI voice generators on the chart, none scores higher than Read Aloud for less, and 2 score higher than TTSReader for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Read Aloud is open source, according to its own site.
- TTSReader also covers read later.
At a glance
| Read Aloud | TTSReader | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free | Free plan |
| Starts at | Free | $8.25 per month, billed annually ($99); $10.99 billed monthly |
| Free plan | The extension is installed from the browser stores and reads pages with the browser's own voices. | Unlimited non-premium voices and 5K characters of premium AI voices, personal use only. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | LSD Software | WellSource Ltd. |
| Price read from | chromewebstore.google.com | ttsreader.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Read Aloud
- Voice quality with the free setup depends on the voices your browser and operating system provide.
- Cloud-based voices may need an in-app purchase or your own provider API key; the pages do not state prices.
- It runs only as a browser extension, with no mobile or desktop app.
- EPUB reading depends on a separate extension from another publisher.
TTSReader
- The free plan allows only 5K characters of premium AI voices in total and bars commercial use or publishing.
- The Premium plan is single-seat; more users need extra licenses or pay-as-you-go credits.
- A Premium Plus plan ($20.99 a month) is listed as not yet available.
- The pricing page was last updated on June 20, 2025, and says the mobile apps have their own separate plans.
Key features
Read Aloud
- One-click page reading
- Click the toolbar icon or use a keyboard shortcut to read the current article, or only the text you have selected.
- Browser and cloud voices
- Uses native browser voices, and the Chrome Web Store page says it can use cloud voices from Google Wavenet, Amazon Polly, IBM Watson, Microsoft Azure and OpenAI.
- 40+ languages
- The store listing says it supports more than 40 languages.
- Reading controls
- Voice, speed and pitch can be changed, text highlighting can be turned on, and the popup has a dark mode.
- Documents and books
- Reads PDF, Google Docs, Google Play Books and Kindle pages, and EPUB through a separate extension.
TTSReader
- Reads text, files and web pages
- Plays plain text, PDFs, e-books and web pages aloud, and remembers the text and your position so you can resume later.
- Free and premium voices
- Free voices have no cap on the free plan; premium AI voices from Google, OpenAI, Microsoft and TTSReader's own are metered by characters.
- MP3 export
- Export speech as downloadable MP3 audio, mixing voices, languages, speeds and pauses.
- Extension and mobile apps
- A Chrome extension reads any web page, and iOS and Android apps support listening on the go, including CarPlay and Android Auto.
- Pronunciation dictionary
- Custom pronunciation entries let you fix how names and terms are spoken.
- API and automation
- Programmatic access is part of the pay-as-you-go credits plan; the free and Premium plans exclude API, bots and automation.
Plans
Read Aloud
Extension$0
Reads pages with the browser's built-in voices. Cloud voices may need an in-app purchase or your own API key, with no prices stated.
TTSReader
Free$0
Unlimited free voices, 5K premium characters in total, no commercial use or publishing of audio.
Premium$8.25
per month, billed annually ($99); $10.99 billed monthly
Single seat, 1M premium-voice characters a month, commercial use and publishing allowed.
Pay-as-you-go$10
for 200K characters, prepaid credits valid 1 year
Prepaid credits for API use or going over plan limits: $32 for 1M characters, $300 for 10M.
Ways to pay less
Read Aloud
No public discounts listed.
TTSReader
- Annual discount
Annual billing on Premium
Premium is $99 a year ($8.25 a month) against $10.99 a month when billed monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Read Aloud or TTSReader?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Read Aloud is cheaper to start with: it is free, against $8.25 a month for TTSReader. Read Aloud is free, and TTSReader starts at $8.25 per month, billed annually ($99); $10.99 billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Read Aloud or TTSReader?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Read Aloud and TTSReader have a free plan.
Which platforms do Read Aloud and TTSReader run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only TTSReader lists a web app and iOS and Android apps. Both list a browser extension. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.