A voice aloud reader is a type of software that can read text out loud in a synthetic computer voice. You just open a file, highlight some text, and click a button to have it spoken aloud.
The computer voices have come a long way and now sound very natural and human-like.Voice aloud reader programs work across many applications like web browsers, word processors, ebooks, PDFs, and more.
You can customize the speaking voice, speed, and even have words highlighted as they are read.
These tools are a great assistive technology for students, writers, proofreaders, and anyone who has trouble reading or wants a break from eye strain.

Top Voice Aloud Readers for PCs
Here are my top recommended voice reader software options for Windows and Mac computers:
Natural Reader (Windows & Mac)
One of the most popular and highest quality text-to-speech programs is Natural Reader. It has very natural sounding voices and can read text from PDFs, word docs, web pages, emails, and ebooks. You can convert documents to speech with just a couple clicks.
Natural Reader has some great premium features like:
- Optical character recognition to convert scanned files and images to editable text to read aloud
- Text highlighting word-by-word as its being read
- A floating toolbar so you can click to start and stop reading hands-free
- MP3 audio export to listen on-the-go
- Multiple voice options including kids voices and foreign languages
The free version is still very powerful, but the premium features give you a lot more functionality. Plans start at $99 per year.
Balabolka (Windows)
Balabolka is a totally free and open source text-to-speech program for Windows PCs. It can read the clipboard contents, text files, articles on the web, and content from Word, PDF, and EPUB files. It also has an on-screen viewer you can use to see the files being read.
Although the voices aren’t as realistic sounding as premium software, Balabolka is still highly accurate. You can adjust the reading speed, voice, and volume. There are plugins to get it working with Chrome, Word, Adobe Reader, and other apps.
The biggest downside is Balabolka is not designed to look attractive or be extremely easy to use like paid programs. But if you’re on a tight budget, it’s a very capable free option
Voice Dream Reader (iOS)
Voice Dream Reader is one of the best reading apps for iPhones, iPads and Apple Watch. It can read any text aloud with high quality voices, including PDFs, ebooks, web articles and Office documents. Just import or open a file and hit play.
Some of the standout features include:
- Fully customizable reading speed and voice settings
- Text highlighting synced with the speech
- Built-in voices for English, Spanish, French, German and Italian
- Navigate text by headings, pages, paragraphs, or user-defined bookmarks
- Automatically scroll text
- Export audio files to listen offline
- Integrate with Apple VoiceOver screen reader for improved usability
Voice Dream Reader is $14.99 on the App Store but includes all premium features and updates. It’s an exceptional app for hands-free reading on Apple devices.
@Voice (Windows & Mac)
@Voice is a text-to-speech reader from Linguatec that integrates deeply with your computer’s operating system. Once installed, you can turn text into lifelike speech in any program using customizable hotkeys.
It offers a broad range of voices for over 20 languages, and lets you adjust the volume, rate, and pitch of each one.
Other cool features are the ability to create and import pronunciation rules to customize how words are spoken, and to speak text automatically in dialog boxes, web pages, emails and PDFs.
The free edition has basic functionality limited to a single voice at a time. The Pro version adds premium voices, the ability to create voice profiles, save audio clips, and more starting at $39.95.
Panopreter Basic (Windows)
Panopreter Basic is another free open source text-to-speech option for Windows. It uses high quality voices from Microsoft’s Speech API, so it sounds quite natural. The interface is minimal and easy to use.
Just open a document like a web page or Word doc and click a button to read it out loud. You can pause and restart reading and adjust the speaking speed. Panopreter also has settings to skip over unwanted content like ads and comments.
The downside is it has very basic functionality compared to paid programs. But it works on Windows XP up to Windows 10, while many software now only supports Windows 7 and later. So if you need a simple reader for an old machine, Panopreter Basic is an excellent choice.
WordTalk (Mac)
WordTalk is a robust text-to-speech add-on for macOS that comes preinstalled on all new Macs as part of the OS accessibility options. It converts words into speech across programs like web browsers, word processors, spreadsheets, and more.
To use WordTalk, you just have to enable the option in System Preferences. Then you can highlight text and press F5 on your keyboard to start reading. It will read your selected text aloud using your chosen system voice and speed.
The voice quality is high since it uses the same built-in voices as VoiceOver, Apple’s screen reader. But WordTalk only provides basic playback with no additional control or customization compared to dedicated apps. It is most useful for occasional reading needs rather than power users.
Conclusion
Voice aloud reader software can make your computer feel a lot smarter by adding the capability to read documents and web pages aloud.
This assistive technology is a great productivity tool for anyone with vision impairments, reading disabilities, or those who just want to give their eyes a break.
While there are many paid and free text-to-speech options available, my top overall recommendations are Natural Reader, Balabolka, and Voice Dream Reader for their high quality voices and packed feature sets.
WordTalk and Panopreter also make good free alternatives if you have basic needs. No matter which one you choose, you’ll gain a remarkably convenient way to consume content hands-free.