# Speech Central vs Timber

Speech Central and Timber both sit at 4.6 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Timber's written reviews are positive against 69% of Speech Central's. Speech Central's advantage is ratings volume (1.6K vs 3). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Speech Central sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Timber sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.6 for Speech Central against 4.7 for Timber. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Speech Central has 1.6K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 69% of Speech Central's written reviews are positive against 100% of Timber's.

Speech Central ships an update every 9 days, Timber every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 29, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Speech Central | Timber |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.6 (1.6K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/speech-central-voice-reader/id1127349155/reviews) | **[4.7 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/timber-text-to-speech-voice/id6779086700/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **1.6K** | 3 |
| Positive reviews | 69.3% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 9 days | **Every 4 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Size | 34 MB | 252 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Labsii](https://appshunter.io/developer/1127349154) | [Truth in the Machine LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/6779086852) |

## 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


### Timber

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/timber-text-to-speech-voice/id6779086700)

Transform any text into spoken word with this versatile reader. Listen to articles, books, PDFs, or even printed pages. Offers a wide selection of voices and languages, with a focus on privacy and user experience.

**Highlights:** Text-to-speech conversion, Reads articles, books, PDFs, and printed pages, Supports 71 languages and 324 voices, On-device processing for privacy, Customizable reading experience, Personal voice recording, Export audio

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Apple Watch app, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (3)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Timber Pro Monthly | $5.99 | per month |
| Timber Pro Yearly | $39.99 | per year |
| Timber Pro Lifetime | $99.99 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Speech Central free?

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

### Is Timber free?

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

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

Timber is rated higher. Speech Central averages 4.6 out of 5 from 1.6K ratings, while Timber averages 4.7 from 3 ratings.

### Do Speech Central or Timber have ads?

Neither Speech Central nor Timber shows ads.

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

Speech Central ships an update every 9 days, and Timber every 4 days. Most recently, Speech Central was updated on October 29, 2026 and Timber 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.*