# Text to Speech Reader vs ReadBack

The clearest difference is rating: ReadBack at 5.0 against Text to Speech Reader's 4.3. ReadBack also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 74%). Text to Speech Reader's advantage is ratings volume (240 vs 10). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Text to Speech Reader sells 8 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per 7 days and ReadBack sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReadBack holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Text to Speech Reader has 240 ratings behind it against 10, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 74% of Text to Speech Reader's written reviews are positive against 100% of ReadBack's.

Text to Speech Reader ships an update every 3 weeks, ReadBack fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on September 17, 2026 and July 4, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Text to Speech Reader | ReadBack |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.3 (240 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reader-readbit/id1545366628/reviews) | **[5.0 (10 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/readback-text-to-speech/id6747597136/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **240** | 10 |
| Positive reviews | 73.9% of reviews | **100.0% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 3 weeks | **Fortnightly** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Size | 51 MB | 43 MB |
| Requires iOS | **17.0** | 18.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Vision Pro** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Virtual Collaboration Research Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1455753337) | [Trent Guillory](https://appshunter.io/developer/826186488) |

## What reviewers say

### 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


### ReadBack

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/readback-text-to-speech/id6747597136)

This application converts documents like PDFs and Word files into natural-sounding speech. It's designed for users who need to listen to written content, offering lifelike voices and background playback for multitasking. Your files are processed and stored locally for enhanced privacy.

**Highlights:** Reads documents aloud (PDF, Word, EPUB), Lifelike, comfortable voices, Background playback for multitasking, Unlimited audio replays, Local file processing for privacy, Pay-as-you-go credits or subscriptions

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (7)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ReadBack Plus | $4.99 | per month |
| ReadBack Pro | $9.99 | per month |
| ReadBack Plus | $47.99 | per year |
| ReadBack Pro | $95.99 | per year |
| 1 Hour Credit | $0.99 | one-time |
| 5 Hour Credit | $4.49 | one-time |
| 10 Hour Credit | $7.49 | one-time |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Text to Speech Reader free?

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

### Is ReadBack free?

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

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

ReadBack is rated higher. Text to Speech Reader averages 4.3 out of 5 from 240 ratings, while ReadBack averages 5.0 from 10 ratings.

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

Neither Text to Speech Reader nor ReadBack shows ads.

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

Text to Speech Reader ships an update every 3 weeks, and ReadBack fortnightly. Most recently, Text to Speech Reader was updated on September 17, 2026 and ReadBack on July 4, 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.*