# Listening vs Text to Speech

The clearest difference is update cadence: Listening at every 8 days against Text to Speech's every 5 months. Text to Speech's advantage is iOS requirement (14.0 vs 16.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Listening sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $12.99 per month and Text to Speech sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

Listening ships an update every 8 days, Text to Speech every 5 months. The most recent releases landed on November 12, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Listening | Text to Speech |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.5 (1.5K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/listening-text-to-speech/id1635430768/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **1.5K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 28.9% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Every 5 months |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Size | 128 MB | 9 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.4 | **14.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch** | iPhone, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [The Listening App Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/1635259485) | [Reva Desai](https://appshunter.io/developer/1780266324) |

## What reviewers say

### Listening

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/listening-text-to-speech/id1635430768)

This app converts written content like articles, papers, and PDFs into natural-sounding audio. It allows for customizable playback speeds and one-tap note-taking, making it ideal for learning on the go.

**Highlights:** Convert articles, papers, and PDFs to audio, Natural-sounding voices, One-click note-taking, Adjustable playback speed (0.5x to 4x), Supports multiple file formats, Multitasking while listening

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

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Unlimited, Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $12.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $14.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $19.99 | per month |
| Unlimited Listening, Monthly | $19.99 | per month |
| Unlimited, Yearly | $39.00 | per year |
| Unlimited Listening, Yearly | $99.99 | per year |
| Unlimited Listening, Yearly | $139.99 | per year |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Easy to use
- 👍 Clear and natural-sounding voice
- 📚 Helpful for academic papers and articles
- 🚶‍♀️ Convenient for listening on-the-go
- 🔖 Skips citations and formatting

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Buggy PDF conversion
- 🔀 Jumbles paragraphs and sentences
- 🔢 Struggles with technical terms and numbers
- 💰 Expensive subscription
- 🔒 Difficult to cancel subscription

**Reported bugs**

- Frequent app crashes
- Inconsistent performance across PDFs
- Login and password reset issues
- Unexpected charges after cancellation
- Inability to delete or manage uploaded files

**Requested features**

- Multiple voice options
- Ability to edit and annotate text
- Improved section detection and navigation
- Offline mode for downloading content
- Better integration with cloud storage


### Text to Speech

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/text-to-speech-reader/id6738470609)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Premium Monthly Access | $2.99 | per month |
| Premium Yearly Access | $19.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Listening free?

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

### Is Text to Speech free?

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

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

Neither Listening nor Text to Speech shows ads.

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

Listening ships an update every 8 days, and Text to Speech every 5 months. Most recently, Listening was updated on November 12, 2026 and Text to Speech on November 8, 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.*