Listen 2 Reader vs LoudReader
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Listen 2 Reader
This app reads your documents aloud using natural-sounding neural voices that operate entirely on your device. It offers offline functionality, supports various file formats, and includes features like word-by-word highlighting and AI-powered descriptions for images and charts. Your documents remain private as no data is sent to servers.
- Offline neural text-to-speech
- Support for PDF, EPUB, DOCX, TXT, Markdown
- Word-by-word highlighting
- AI-powered figure descriptions
- Customizable pronunciation rules
- 13+ languages with natural voices
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Listen2 reads your documents aloud with natural neural voices that run entirely on your iPhone or iPad. Because nothing is sent to a server, there is nothing to sign up for and nothing to keep paying for. You can try every feature free for 7 days, then buy the app once. Most text-to-speech apps give you two options. You can use the tried and true system voices, or you can pay every month for cloud voices that read your documents on someone else's computers. Listen2 runs its voice models on your device's Neural Engine and CPU instead, so the voices sound natural and your documents stay on your phone. WHAT MAKES LISTEN2 DIFFERENT Natural voices, built in Listen2 comes with 25 Phonon voices, American and British, female and male. They are installed with the app, so you can start listening the moment you open it, even without an internet connection. Phonon reads long chapters with smooth, steady phrasing and is very efficient on your device. 13 languages Download the Supertonic engine and its 10 voices speak English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Turkish, Greek, Hindi, Vietnamese, Swedish and Hungarian. More languages are on the way. Apple's system voices are available too (Download premium voices for best results). Word-by-word highlighting Listen2 matches the audio to the text with on-device machine learning, so each word lights up as it is spoken and the page scrolls along with you. If that feels busy, you can highlight whole sentences instead. Import almost anything PDF, EPUB, DOCX, DAISY, Markdown, plain text, the clipboard or a web article. Share a page from Safari and Listen2 pulls out the article text. This also works for subscription sites, as long as you are signed in to them in your browser. Smart document reading Listen2 handles multi-column layouts, skips footnote markers in PDFs and rejoins words hyphenated across lines. Scanned PDFs are read with on-device text recognition. Figure descriptions When the reading reaches a chart, diagram or photo in a PDF or EPUB, on-device AI vision describes it aloud. If the document is in another language, Apple's on-device Translation framework translates the description. Pronunciation rules Teach Listen2 how to say a name, term or abbreviation without changing the text on screen. You can hear a rule before you save it, and apply it everywhere or to one document. Highlighting stays in sync either way. Built-in rules silence footnote markers. Voice tuning Adjust how Supertonic voices sound and save your favorite settings as presets. Private by design Text processing and speech both happen on your device. Your documents never leave your phone, and Listen2 has no accounts and does not track you. FEATURES - 25 built-in Phonon voices, plus 10 Supertonic voices in 13 languages - Apple system voices, including enhanced and premium voices - Word-by-word or sentence highlighting - PDF, EPUB, DOCX, DAISY, TXT and Markdown - Figure descriptions with on-device translation (PDF and EPUB) - Collections with intros, cover art and auto-advance - Web Article Collections: turn a batch of articles into one playlist - Clipboard import and Siri Shortcuts - Playback speed from 0.5x to 2.5x - Background playback with lock screen and headphone controls - Sleep timer - Elapsed and remaining time in the reader and on the lock screen - Import from Files, links, the Share sheet or other apps - Export any document as plain text - Atkinson Hyperlegible and OpenDyslexic fonts - Full VoiceOver support with rotor navigation and Magic Tap WHO IT IS FOR - Commuters turning drive time into reading time - Students working through papers and textbooks - Professionals whose documents must stay private - VoiceOver users who want a fully accessible reader - Readers with dyslexia who benefit from seeing and hearing each word together - Anyone tired of paying for text-to-speech every month Listen2 is a one-time purchase with a 7-day free trial.
LoudReader
Convert any ebook, PDF, or web article into an audiobook using natural AI voices. Enjoy unlimited, private, and offline listening with word-by-word highlighting. Offers premium features like adjustable speed and a sleep timer via subscription.
- Convert ebooks, PDFs, web articles to audio
- Natural AI voices
- 100% offline and private
- Word-by-word highlighting
- Import own files
- Background playback
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Turn any ebook, PDF, or web article into an audiobook with LoudReader — the text-to-speech (TTS) voice reader that reads your books aloud in natural AI voices. 100% offline, completely private, and free to listen with no limits. FREE FOREVER — NO LIMITS, NO QUOTAS Listen to as many books as you want, cover to cover, at no cost. No account, no sign-up, no data collection. Every premium voice is free to try for your first 8 hours of listening. LISTEN TO ANY BOOK, ANYWHERE • Download 70,000+ free classics from Project Gutenberg • Import your own EPUB and PDF files • Save and listen to any web article • A bundled collection of beautifully formatted public-domain classics to get you started LoudReader instantly converts them into an immersive audiobook with high-quality, human-sounding narration. FOLLOW ALONG AS YOU LISTEN Word-by-word highlighting keeps you engaged and improves comprehension — see exactly where you are as the narration flows. A great companion for language learners, students, and readers with dyslexia or ADHD. MAKE IT YOURS • Natural AI voices, male and female • Night mode for comfortable reading after dark • Jump to any chapter instantly • Background playback with the screen locked Premium adds adjustable speed (0.3×–3.0×), a sleep timer, ambient soundscapes, and notes & highlights. 100% OFFLINE & PRIVATE BY DESIGN All speech synthesis happens entirely on your device. Your books and reading habits never leave your phone — no cloud, no servers, no tracking. Once a book is on your device it plays with zero connectivity, perfect for flights, the subway, or anywhere off the grid. SUPPORTED FORMATS • EPUB (DRM-free) • PDF (with text extraction) • Web articles (via the Share Extension) SUBSCRIPTION LoudReader is free to use with unlimited listening, forever. Upgrade to Premium to keep every AI voice and add adjustable speed, a sleep timer, ambient soundscapes, and notes & highlights. • Monthly: $7.99 • Annual: $49.99 • Lifetime: $199.99 (one-time) 1-month free trial for eligible new subscribers. Payment is charged to your Apple ID; a subscription automatically renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the period. Lifetime is a one-time purchase and does not renew. Whether you're commuting, exercising, or relaxing at home, LoudReader turns reading time into listening time. Privacy Policy: https://loudreader.io/privacy Terms of Use: https://loudreader.io/terms
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Verdict
Listen 2 Reader and LoudReader both sit at 4.8 stars, but that hides the real split: 100% of Listen 2 Reader's written reviews are positive against 33% of LoudReader's. Listen 2 Reader also leads on ratings volume (13 vs 3). On price, rating, update cadence and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Listen 2 Reader sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and LoudReader sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 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 — 4.8 for Listen 2 Reader against 4.7 for LoudReader. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 13 and 3 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 100% of Listen 2 Reader's written reviews are positive against 33% of LoudReader's.
Listen 2 Reader ships an update every 10 days, LoudReader weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Listen 2 Reader | LoudReader |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (13 ratings) — better | 4.7 (3 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better | 33.3% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 13 — better | 3 |
| Update frequency | Every 10 days | Weekly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 18.2 | 18.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 313 MB | 1.2 GB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Zach Swift | Jeremi Podlasek |
Customer experience
Listen 2 Reader
LoudReader
In-app purchases
Listen 2 Reader
- Listen2 Full Access$19.99
LoudReader
- LoudReader Monthly Premium$7.991 Month
- LoudReader Annual Premium1 Month trial$49.991 Year
- Lifetime Premium$199.99








