Guide
NaturalReader vs ElevenReader on Mac: which should you use?
Both are popular ways to listen to text. Here is how NaturalReader and ElevenReader differ for someone who reads mostly on a Mac, using each company's own pricing and help pages.
Updated 26 October 2026.
Short answerPick NaturalReader if you use Windows or Chromebooks too, want a big cloud voice catalogue, voice cloning or a commercial voiceover licence. Pick ElevenReader if you listen mostly on your phone and want ElevenLabs voices for everything. NaturalReader runs in any browser; ElevenReader has no native Mac app. If you mainly want text read aloud on a Mac without a subscription, a third option is Aloud (ours): $19 once, no account, reads from any app.
Side by side
| Aloud | NaturalReader | ElevenReader | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $19 once per Mac, no subscription | Free tier with device voices; online plans Lite $79/yr, Plus $119/yr, Pro $159/yr (or $13.90–$25.90 a month); an older desktop app sold separately for $99.50–$199.50 once | Free: 10 hours of audio a month; Ultra $11 a month or $99 a year |
| Platforms | macOS 14 or later | Web app, Chrome extension, iPhone, Android; older desktop app for Mac and Windows | iPhone, Android and a web app; no native Mac app |
| Account | None | Needed for paid voices | Required |
| Voices | Apple voices (incl. Enhanced and Premium), on-device Kokoro (Apple silicon, macOS 15+), or your own ElevenLabs / Cartesia key | Device voices free; cloud voices and voice cloning on paid plans | ElevenLabs cloud voices |
| Limits | None from Aloud | Paid plans have daily and monthly character limits on the better voices | Hours are spent when text is converted; offline downloads only on Ultra |
| On a Mac | Reads from any app with Control-Option-S or the Services menu | Mostly a web app and Chrome extension | No native Mac app: import into the web app |
Competitor details from NaturalReader plans, ElevenReader pricing, as checked 8 October 2026 for our comparison pages. Prices change; check before you buy.
More detail
See our one-to-one pages: Aloud vs NaturalReader and Aloud vs ElevenReader, or the best text-to-speech apps for Mac.
A third option for Mac: Aloud
Aloud (ours, $19 once per Mac, macOS 14 or later) is a native Mac reader:
- Select text in any app and press Control-Option-S (or right-click → Services → Read with Aloud).
- A reading window with a word highlight and click-to-seek, so you can jump to any sentence.
- Speed from 0.75x to 2x, changed mid-sentence, and resume from the last sentence.
- Natural voices: your Mac's Enhanced and Premium voices, the on-device Kokoro neural voice (Apple silicon, macOS 15+), or ElevenLabs/Cartesia with your own API key.
- Private by default: with Apple or Kokoro voices nothing leaves your Mac; no account, no analytics in the app.
Buy Aloud, $19 once No subscription, no account.
Questions
Is NaturalReader or ElevenReader cheaper?
NaturalReader: Free tier with device voices; online plans Lite $79/yr, Plus $119/yr, Pro $159/yr (or $13.90–$25.90 a month); an older desktop app sold separately for $99.50–$199.50 once. ElevenReader: Free: 10 hours of audio a month; Ultra $11 a month or $99 a year. Check both pricing pages before you buy, as prices change.
Do NaturalReader and ElevenReader need an account?
NaturalReader: Needed for paid voices. ElevenReader: Required.
Is there a one-time Mac alternative?
Yes. Aloud is a native Mac app for $19 once per Mac with no account and no usage limits from Aloud.
Is Aloud free?
No. Aloud is $19 once per Mac, with no subscription and no account.
More Mac utilities from the developer: SnapState puts your Mac windows, apps and browser tabs back after sleep or a monitor reconnect. $9.99 one-time.