Comparison

ReadAloud vs Paddi

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

ReadAloud

Convert any text into natural-sounding speech using on-device neural voices. Listen to documents, web articles, and even scanned text offline in over 60 languages. Customize playback and organize your library for a seamless listening experience.

Highlights
  • Listen to PDFs, Word, EPUB, Kindle, articles, and photos
  • On-device neural and system voices
  • Offline playback in 60+ languages
  • CarPlay integration
  • Syncs library across devices via iCloud
  • Customizable pronunciation and skip rules
  • Export to MP3 and Markdown notes
Features
Read full description

ReadAloud turns any text into natural speech with on-device voices: neural voices for English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, French, German and more, plus Apple's system voices. Listen to PDFs, Word documents, EPUB and Kindle books, articles, photos, and any text in 60+ languages, 100% offline. WHAT YOU CAN DO • LISTEN TO ANYTHING Type or paste text, import a PDF, Word (DOCX), EPUB, or Kindle (MOBI/AZW3, DRM-free) document, scan a photo or a printed page with your camera, or paste a URL to hear the article text. Auto language detection picks the right voice for you. Jump between chapters in EPUB and Word documents, and skip straight to any page in a PDF. Long books, including web novels with thousands of chapters, are supported. • NATURAL VOICES, ON YOUR DEVICE Neural voices run entirely on your iPhone, so there is no internet needed once a voice is downloaded. Japanese and Korean now have four neural voices each. All Apple system voices are included too (Default, Enhanced and Premium), with a voice quality indicator that guides you to the best voice for each language. • LISTEN IN THE CAR WITH CARPLAY Browse your library and folders, pick up where you stopped, see what plays next, and change speed from the Now Playing screen. CarPlay is part of ReadAloud Pro. • PICK UP WHERE YOU LEFT OFF Your place in every document is remembered. Continue from the Lock Screen, AirPods, the widget, Apple Watch or CarPlay. The widget keeps your last document and shows what plays next. Your library syncs between your devices through your own iCloud. • CLEAN, DISTRACTION-FREE READING Reference and footnote numbers are automatically skipped so they never interrupt what you are listening to, and academic two-column PDFs read in the correct order. In any PDF, drag a frame in the Reading Area to choose what is read, so headers, footers and page numbers stay out. • YOUR RULES Teach ReadAloud how to say a word with the Pronunciation Dictionary, and skip anything you do not want read with Skip Rules. • ORGANIZE WITH FOLDERS Sort your Library into folders, so long reading lists stay easy to find. • TAP TO DEFINE Long-press any sentence while listening to look up a word's definition, highlight it, or add a bookmark, without losing your place. • READING THEMES Choose System, Sepia, or Night page themes, adjustable line spacing, and a dyslexia-friendly OpenDyslexic font option. • POWERFUL PLAYBACK Speed control from 0.75x to 2x, drag the progress bar to jump to any point, current sentence highlighted with auto-scroll, skip by sentence, a sleep timer, full Lock Screen and AirPods support, and true background playback so you can listen while doing anything else. While charging, ReadAloud can prepare about an hour of audio ahead for smoother playback. • EXPORT TO MP3 & NOTES Select multiple documents in your Library and export them all to MP3 at once, completely on-device, or export your highlights and bookmarks as a Markdown notes file. Share via AirDrop, Files, or Messages. • SIRI, SHORTCUTS & SHARING Send text, files or web links to ReadAloud from the share sheet in any app, or hand any text to it from Siri and the Shortcuts app. • APPLE WATCH & IPAD See what is reading and control playback from your wrist, and enjoy a layout designed for the bigger iPad screen. PRIVACY FIRST No account, no analytics, no tracking, no third-party SDKs, and we collect no data. Your documents are read and voiced on your device. The network is used only to fetch a web link you paste, to download voices, to sync your library through your own iCloud, and for purchases. Start by importing documents with 10 minutes of real listening included. ReadAloud Pro unlocks unlimited listening, CarPlay, audio export, the Pronunciation Dictionary and Skip Rules. The yearly plan includes an eligible 3-day free trial. Monthly and lifetime options are also available. Terms of Use: https://taxlite.net/read_aloud/terms.html Privacy Policy: https://taxlite.net/read_aloud/pri…

About

Paddi

Features
Read full description

Paddi is a simple and colorful notes and memo app designed for capturing the little things you want to remember. Whether you're writing a quick reminder, making a shopping list, saving a study note, or jotting down an idea, Paddi keeps your notes simple, organized, and easy to manage. QUICK NOTES Capture your thoughts without unnecessary complexity. Create notes quickly Edit notes anytime Keep important information organized Write quick reminders and ideas Use notes for everyday tasks Paddi is made for those moments when you just need somewhere simple to put something down. LISTS AND CHECKLISTS Turn your notes into simple lists for everyday activities. Use Paddi for: Shopping lists Study checklists Work tasks Daily activities Things to remember Personal goals Keep your lists lightweight and easy to update. REMINDERS Use your notes to keep track of things you don't want to forget. Create notes for: Daily reminders Important tasks Appointments Assignments Shopping Personal activities Paddi keeps your reminders and notes together in one simple experience. COLORFUL NOTES Make your notes easier to recognize and organize with colors. Use different colors for different types of information: School Work Shopping Personal Ideas Reminders Choose the style that works best for you and make your notes feel more personal. SIMPLE BY DESIGN Paddi isn't trying to be a complicated productivity system. It's for the small things. A thought you don't want to forget. A shopping list. A quick reminder. A school task. An idea that suddenly came to mind. Open Paddi, write it down, and move on. PRIVATE AND SIMPLE Paddi is designed to keep note-taking straightforward. No complicated setup No account required for basic note-taking Simple interface Lightweight experience Designed for quick everyday notes PERFECT FOR Quick notes Sticky notes Memos Reminders Shopping lists Study notes Work notes Checklists Personal notes Daily tasks Random ideas WHY PADDI? There are plenty of note-taking apps designed for large documents, complicated organization systems, and advanced productivity workflows. Paddi is different. It's designed for small notes and everyday reminders - the things you need to write down quickly and come back to later. Write it down. Keep it simple. Remember it with Paddi. Developed with care by Bigz Apps.

Screenshots

ReadAloud4 screens
Paddi4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: ReadAloud at Free against Paddi's $0.99. Paddi's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 4) and update cadence (daily vs every 4 days). On ads, device support and iOS requirement 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

ReadAloud is free to download; Paddi costs $0.99 up front. ReadAloud sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Paddi asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ReadAloud ships an update every 4 days, Paddi daily. The most recent releases landed on November 9, 2026 and November 6, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
ReadAloud versus Paddi: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterReadAloudPaddi
PriceFree — better$0.99
Rating4.4 (14 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews71.4% of reviews—
Number of ratings14 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 4 daysDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size199 MB28 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperZHENGQIAO JIANGJohn Carlo Cacao

In-app purchases

4 purchases

ReadAloud

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly$3.997 Days
  • Monthly$7.991 Month
  • Yearly3 Days trial$49.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime$129.99
None

Paddi

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ReadAloud free?
ReadAloud is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Paddi free?
Paddi costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do ReadAloud or Paddi have ads?
Neither ReadAloud nor Paddi shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ReadAloud or Paddi?
ReadAloud ships an update every 4 days, and Paddi daily. Most recently, ReadAloud was updated on November 9, 2026 and Paddi on November 6, 2026.

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