# Text to Speech vs Text to Speech Reader

Text to Speech and Text to Speech Reader both sit at 4.4 stars, but that hides the real split: 74% of Text to Speech Reader's written reviews are positive against 26% of Text to Speech's. Text to Speech Reader also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and ads (none vs shown). Text to Speech's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). On price, rating, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Text to Speech sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days and Text to Speech Reader sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Text to Speech against 4.3 for Text to Speech Reader. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 59 and 240 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 26% of Text to Speech's written reviews are positive against 74% of Text to Speech Reader's.

Text to Speech ships an update every 2 months, Text to Speech Reader every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 18, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Text to Speech | Text to Speech Reader |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.4 (59 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reading-apps/id1541108329/reviews)** | [4.3 (240 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reader-readbit/id1545366628/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 59 | **240** |
| Positive reviews | 25.7% of reviews | **73.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 3 weeks** |
| Monetization | Subscription | **Free with in-app purchases** |
| Size | 117 MB | 51 MB |
| Requires iOS | **14.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Aleksei Metelkin](https://appshunter.io/developer/1611949928) | [Virtual Collaboration Research Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1455753337) |

## What reviewers say

### Text to Speech

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reading-apps/id1541108329)

This app converts text into natural-sounding speech using a variety of voices and languages. It can read aloud content from e-books, navigation apps, translations, and more, enhancing accessibility and convenience.

**Highlights:** Natural sounding voices, 50+ male/female voices, 25+ languages, Read e-books aloud, Navigation voice output, Translation reading

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

**In-app purchases (4)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly subscription | $3.99 | per 7 days |
| Monthly subscription | $4.99 | per month |
| Yearly Subscription | $9.99 | per year |
| Yearly subscription | $19.99 | per year |


### Text to Speech Reader

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reader-readbit/id1545366628)

This app converts text from various sources into natural-sounding audiobooks. It supports numerous file formats, offers advanced AI voices in multiple languages, and includes features like word-by-word highlighting and text summarization to enhance comprehension and save time.

**Highlights:** Convert text to audiobooks with AI voices, Supports PDFs, web articles, and scanned documents, 120+ natural-sounding voices in 27 languages, Word-by-word text highlighting, Summarizes text and extracts keywords, Adjustable speech rate, Personal reading habit tracker

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (8)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weekly Premium | $5.99 | per 7 days |
| Monthly Premium | $11.99 | per month |
| 6 Months Premium | $59.99 | per 6 months |
| Yearly Premium | $95.99 | per year |
| 50.000 Words | $14.99 | one-time |
| 75.000 Words | $19.99 | one-time |
| 150.000 Words | $19.99 | one-time |
| 150.000 Words | $29.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🎙️ Natural, human-like AI voices
- 👍 Free version with good functionality
- 📚 Excellent for students and dyslexic readers
- 🚀 Fast reading speed and multitasking capability
- 📱 User-friendly interface and easy to use

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Frequent crashes and freezing
- ⏸️ Random pausing and stopping during playback
- 📄 Poor handling of PDFs and documents with images
- 🔤 Skips words, sentences, and entire paragraphs
- 💰 Expensive subscription model

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes when opening or loading large libraries
- Random data loss and document disappearance
- Text syncing issues causing data to vanish
- OCR misreads words and scrambles sentence order
- App freezes when adding multiple books

**Requested features**

- One-time lifetime purchase option instead of subscription
- Offline download capability for entire books
- Chrome browser extension
- Custom pronunciation settings for character names
- Option to skip footnotes, page numbers, and citations


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Text to Speech free?

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

### Is Text to Speech Reader free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Text to Speech or Text to Speech Reader?

Text to Speech is rated higher. Text to Speech averages 4.4 out of 5 from 59 ratings, while Text to Speech Reader averages 4.3 from 240 ratings.

### Do Text to Speech or Text to Speech Reader have ads?

Text to Speech shows ads; Text to Speech Reader does not.

### Which is updated more often, Text to Speech or Text to Speech Reader?

Text to Speech ships an update every 2 months, and Text to Speech Reader every 3 weeks. Most recently, Text to Speech was updated on October 14, 2026 and Text to Speech Reader on October 18, 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.*