# Reader vs Voice Aloud Reader

The clearest difference is ads: Reader at none against Voice Aloud Reader's shown. Reader also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and rating (5.0 vs 4.6). Voice Aloud Reader's advantage is ratings volume (19K vs 3). On price, review sentiment, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Voice Aloud Reader sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Reader holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.6. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Voice Aloud Reader has 19K ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 56% of Reader's written reviews are positive against 59% of Voice Aloud Reader's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Reader ships an update weekly, Voice Aloud Reader every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on August 14, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Reader | Voice Aloud Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[5.0 (3 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/reader/id1179373118/reviews)** | [4.6 (19K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/voice-aloud-reader/id1446876360/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 3 | **19K** |
| Positive reviews | 55.6% of reviews | **58.7% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | **No** | Yes |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 2 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 1 MB | 74 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Vision Pro** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 17+ |
| Developer | [The Augmented Text Company LTD](https://appshunter.io/developer/459748478) | [Marcin Olawski](https://appshunter.io/developer/992268205) |

## What reviewers say

### Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/reader/id1179373118)

This app provides a distraction-free reading and annotation experience for PDF documents on iOS. Seamlessly sync your annotated files with your Mac for further editing and workflow integration via iCloud.

**Highlights:** Distraction-free reading, PDF annotation, iCloud sync with Mac, Companion to macOS app

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Ask AI Subscription | $1.99 | one-time |


### Voice Aloud Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/voice-aloud-reader/id1446876360)

This application transforms written text into spoken words, making it ideal for those who are busy or have difficulty reading. It supports a wide range of document types and languages, offering a customizable listening experience.

**Highlights:** Reads text aloud, Supports various document formats, Over 40 languages supported, Customizable reading speed, pitch, and volume, Customizable interface and read modes, File sharing via iCloud/iTunes

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Pro + Premium Voices 1m | $9.99 | per month |
| Premium OCR 100 | $0.99 | one-time |
| Premium OCR 800 | $1.99 | one-time |
| Pro version | $8.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 👍 Easy to use
- 🚀 Reads text quickly
- 💡 Helpful for people with reading disabilities
- 🤑 Good value for the price
- 🎉 Excellent text-to-speech quality

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Inconsistent behavior when pausing/resuming
- 🤖 Robotic-sounding voices
- 💰 Subscription model too expensive
- 🔍 Difficulty finding place in long documents
- 🤷‍♀️ Limited customization options

**Reported bugs**

- Randomly jumps to different sections of text
- Struggles with formatting of multi-column documents
- Occasional crashes when switching between apps

**Requested features**

- Add bookmarking/resume functionality
- Improve voice quality and pronunciation
- Allow custom voice speed increments
- Implement a way to delete documents from library
- Add support for iBooks library integration


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Reader free?

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

### Is Voice Aloud Reader free?

Voice Aloud Reader is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Reader or Voice Aloud Reader?

Reader is rated higher. Reader averages 5.0 out of 5 from 3 ratings, while Voice Aloud Reader averages 4.6 from 19K ratings.

### Do Reader or Voice Aloud Reader have ads?

Voice Aloud Reader shows ads; Reader does not.

### Which is updated more often, Reader or Voice Aloud Reader?

Reader ships an update weekly, and Voice Aloud Reader every 2 months. Most recently, Reader was updated on August 14, 2026 and Voice Aloud Reader on September 24, 2026.

---

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