# Speech Central vs Audibly

The clearest difference is ads: Speech Central at none against Audibly's shown. Speech Central also leads on ratings volume (1.6K vs 4) and update cadence (every 9 days vs every 3 weeks). Audibly's advantage is review sentiment (100% vs 69%) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). On price, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Speech Central sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Audibly sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Audibly holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Speech Central has 1.6K ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 69% of Speech Central's written reviews are positive against 100% of Audibly's.

Speech Central ships an update every 9 days, Audibly every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Speech Central | Audibly |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (1.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155/reviews) | **[5.0 (4 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audibly-text-to-speech/id6754650820/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.6K** | 4 |
| Positive reviews | 69.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Every 9 days** | Every 3 weeks |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 34 MB | 148 MB |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | **15.5** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 12+ |
| Developer | [Labsii](https://appshunter.io/developer/1127349154) | [Hasan Karli](https://appshunter.io/developer/1700265388) |

## What reviewers say

### Speech Central

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155)

This app transforms text from various documents and web pages into speech, offering a distraction-free reading experience. It supports numerous file formats and provides customizable voices, including offline and AI options. Designed for productivity and accessibility, it syncs across Apple devices and offers study tools.

**Highlights:** Optimized PDF & Web Reading, Broad Document Support (PDF, EPUB, DOCX), Offline and Cloud AI Voices, Cross-device Sync, CarPlay & Apple Watch Support, Accessibility Profiles, Annotation and Export Tools

**Features:** Family Sharing, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Speech Central Pro | $9.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Life-saving app
- 👍 Nice app
- 👍 Great app
- 👍 Affordable and full-featured
- 👍 Excellent app for accessibility

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Not great
- 🐛 Trash
- 🐛 Robotic voices
- 🐛 Terrible voices
- 🐛 Buggy

**Reported bugs**

- Crashes when changing advanced settings
- Inconsistent behavior when importing documents
- Fails to recognize some file formats
- Playback issues with high-speed mode
- Repeating chapters unexpectedly

**Requested features**

- Add more natural-sounding voices
- Improve chapter/section navigation
- Allow custom pronunciation of words
- Add support for more languages
- Integrate with Bookshare library


### Audibly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/audibly-text-to-speech/id6754650820)

This app transforms any text into natural-sounding audiobooks. Upload documents, type text, or share content from other apps to create your personal audio library. Enjoy listening offline with a powerful player and customizable options.

**Highlights:** Text to audiobook conversion, EPUB and TXT file upload, Customizable AI voices, Offline playback, Personal audiobook library, Adjustable playback speed, Sleep timer

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (5)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| premium | $2.99 | per month |
| premium | $29.99 | per year |
| Basic 100 | $2.99 | one-time |
| Standard 500 | $12.99 | one-time |
| Premium 1000 | $24.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Speech Central free?

Speech Central is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Audibly free?

Audibly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Speech Central or Audibly?

Audibly is rated higher. Speech Central averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.6K ratings, while Audibly averages 5.0 from 4 ratings.

### Do Speech Central or Audibly have ads?

Audibly shows ads; Speech Central does not.

### Which is updated more often, Speech Central or Audibly?

Speech Central ships an update every 9 days, and Audibly every 3 weeks. Most recently, Speech Central was updated on October 23, 2026 and Audibly on October 24, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*