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Add some text and press Start Listening, or try a sample above.
Listeny
Free Text to Speech Online
Convert text into natural speech instantly. No sign up, no downloads, completely free.
- No signup required
- Free to use
- Works in your browser
Choose how you want to start
Live highlight demo
Paste your text. Press play. Follow every word.
Try it now
Paste or type below, choose a voice, and press play. Each word highlights as it is spoken. Need a PDF? Use PDF to Speech.
Your text
- No signup required
- Free to use
- Works in your browser
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Now reading
Press play and watch each word highlight as it's spoken. Adjust speed and voice right in the player, or tap the progress bar to jump ahead.
Follow Reading
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Voice Type
AI Voice isn’t available right now. Standard voices still work.
AI Voice uses Microsoft neural voices via a secure edge proxy. Text is sent only to synthesize audio.
Speed
Voice
Space play/pause · ← → skip sentence · + - speed
Reading settings
Volume
Text size
Reading theme
Highlight style
Word-by-word, sentence, or bionic (bold word stems) — helpful for focus, ADHD, and dyslexia.
What is Listeny?
Listeny turns written text into speech you can listen to in your browser. Paste an article, lecture notes, or a draft email, pick how fast it should read, and follow along while each word lights up on screen. Nothing to install, no account to create — it runs on the web page you already have open.
Who it helps
Students use Listeny to rehear revision notes while walking or cooking. Content creators listen to scripts out loud to catch awkward phrasing before recording. People with reading fatigue, dyslexia, or low vision often find it easier when text is read aloud with synced highlighting. Busy professionals skim reports by ear during a commute. Language learners compare pronunciation against a steady voice at a comfortable speed. If you would rather listen than stare at another screen, Listeny is built for that.
How to use it
- Paste or type your text in the box above (or open PDF to Speech for a document).
- Choose Standard voices from your device, or switch to AI Voice for neural English speech.
- Adjust speed and press play. The reader highlights each word as it speaks.
- Pause anytime, scroll to another section, or export MP3 when using AI Voice.
What you get
- Free access with no login required.
- Works in the browser — desktop and mobile.
- Standard mode keeps processing on your device; AI Voice uses Microsoft neural speech via our secure proxy.
- Live word-by-word highlighting so you never lose your place.
- Reading progress saved locally when you return.
- No artificial daily word cap; practical limits apply per synthesis request (see FAQ below).
Common questions
Is Listeny really free? +
Yes. You can paste text, listen, and use Standard voices without paying or creating an account. We may show ads to help cover hosting, but the tools stay free.
What languages and voices are supported? +
Standard mode uses the voices already on your device — often dozens of languages depending on your browser and OS. AI Voice offers natural English neural voices (Jenny and Guy). Open the voice picker on the player to preview what is available on your device.
Is there a text length limit? +
There is no daily cap or account limit. For AI Voice, each synthesis request handles up to about 1,200 characters (long passages are split automatically). The server accepts up to 5,000 characters per request. Standard mode uses smaller chunks suited to browser voices.
Do you store or save my text or audio? +
In Standard mode, text and PDFs are processed entirely in your browser. Your files are not uploaded to Listeny servers. If you choose AI Voice or download an MP3, only the text needed to synthesize audio is sent to our secure speech proxy on Cloudflare Workers. That text is forwarded to Microsoft’s speech service to generate audio. We do not store your raw text in a database or user account. To speed up repeat requests, our proxy may temporarily cache generated MP3 audio for up to 30 days, keyed by a hash of the text, voice, and speed — not by your identity. The cache holds audio bytes only, not a readable copy of your text. Voice, speed, theme, and reading progress are saved in your browser’s local storage on your device — not on our servers.
Does it work on mobile browsers? +
Yes. Listeny runs in modern mobile browsers on phones and tablets. The player stays reachable while you scroll, with tap targets sized for touch. Very long documents may feel smoother on a desktop, but everyday articles and notes work well on mobile.
Can I download the audio file? +
Yes, when you use AI Voice you can export an MP3 of the generated speech. Standard mode plays through your browser’s built-in speech engine and does not produce a downloadable file.