Listen to any PDF, Word doc or ebook
Drop a file and Bookvox reads it aloud, highlighting each sentence as it goes. It's free with no limits, there's nothing to sign up for, and your document never leaves your device.
Drop a PDF, Word, EPUB or text file
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Free, no limitsNo sign-upYour file never leaves your device
How it works
Two kinds of voices
Bookvox can speak with the voices already on your device, or with natural studio voices that it runs on your device for you. Use whichever suits the moment; you can switch at any time.
| Instant voices | Studio voices | |
|---|---|---|
| What they are | The speech voices built into your browser or phone | Natural AI voices (Kokoro) that run on your own device |
| Start | Immediately, nothing to download | After a one-time 92–326 MB download, kept in your browser |
| Languages | Whatever your device offers, often dozens | English (American and British accents) |
| Sound | Depends on the device; Edge, Safari and Android include natural-sounding ones | Consistent and natural on every device |
| MP3 download | No | Yes |
| Speed | Always real time | Real time on recent computers; older laptops may pause between sentences while generating |
Free, and why it stays free
Most read-aloud apps ration free listening (minutes a day, hours a month) because every minute of speech costs them server time. Bookvox doesn't make speech on a server. Your own browser does the work, so there are no minutes to ration and no reason to charge for the basics. Long reports, whole novels, a semester of readings: open as much as you like.
Private by design
Bookvox has no upload step and no account. Your file is opened, split into sections, saved and spoken inside your browser. Documents are kept in this browser's own storage so you can come back to them, and you can remove them from the list at any time.
Two honest details. Some instant voices are online voices supplied by your browser maker (they're marked “online” in the voice menu); with those, the sentence being read is sent to Google or Microsoft to be spoken. Studio voices never send your text anywhere. The studio voice model itself is downloaded once from Hugging Face, which sees that download like any other web request.
What you can open
- PDF: reports, papers, manuals, ebooks. Bookvox removes page numbers and running headers and uses the PDF's bookmarks as chapters. Scanned PDFs need OCR first.
- Word (.docx): headings become chapters. Older .doc files need to be re-saved as .docx.
- EPUB: DRM-free ebooks are read chapter by chapter from the book's own contents. Store-bought ebooks with DRM can't be opened.
- Text, Markdown and HTML: notes, drafts, saved articles, or anything you paste in.
Questions
Is Bookvox really free?
Yes. There are no limits on how long a document can be or how many you open, and there's no paid tier required to listen or to download MP3s. It's cheap to run because your browser does the work.
Do I need an account?
No. Open the page and drop a file. Your documents and reading positions are remembered in this browser only.
Does my document get uploaded?
No. Files are read and stored on your device. The only exception is if you pick a voice marked “online” in the voice menu: those are supplied by your browser maker, and the sentence being read is sent to them to be spoken. Studio voices never send text anywhere.
Can I download the audio?
Yes. Use Download MP3 in the player to save the current section as an MP3, or the whole document as a zip of MP3s, one per section. Downloads use a studio voice.
Does it work on my phone?
Yes. Instant voices work on current iPhones and Android phones. Studio voices need a recent device, and making long MP3s on a phone is slow, so a computer is better for big downloads.
Which languages does it support?
Instant voices cover whatever languages your device has installed, often dozens. Studio voices are English, with American and British accents.
Why does the studio voice pause on my laptop?
Natural speech takes real computing power. Recent computers make it faster than it plays; older laptops can be slower, so Bookvox waits for each sentence. Switch to an instant voice for pause-free listening, or let an MP3 download run in the background.