Guide
Listen to documents instead of reading them
Some people take in text more easily by ear, or by hearing and seeing it at the same time. That includes many people with dyslexia or ADHD, and anyone whose eyes are tired by the end of the day. Here's a practical way to set that up on a Mac.
Updated 8 October 2026.
This is a practical guide, not medical advice. Text to speech is a reading tool. It isn't a treatment, and it isn't a substitute for an assessment or support from a qualified professional or your school or workplace.
What tends to help
- Read along. Many people find it easier to follow when each word is highlighted as it's spoken, rather than listening with the text hidden.
- Choose your speed. Start a little slower than feels natural, then speed up as you get used to the voice.
- A voice you like. A more natural voice is easier to listen to for a long time. See natural-sounding voices.
- Less on the page. Fewer distractions around the text: no ads, sidebars or pop-ups.
- Short sessions. Breaks, and a way to pick up exactly where you stopped.
Set it up with what's built in
- Turn on Speak Selection: System Settings → Accessibility → Read & Speak (called Spoken Content on macOS 14 Sonoma and 15 Sequoia) → Speak selection.
- Click the info button and set Highlight content to Words and Sentences, with colours you find easy to see.
- Download an Enhanced or Premium voice in Manage Voices, and set the speaking rate.
- For web pages, open Safari's Reader (Shift-Command-R) and choose a font and background you like before reading.
- Optional: Hover Text (Accessibility → Zoom) shows a large version of the text under the pointer.
How Aloud fits
- One reader for everything. Selections from any app, PDFs, browser articles and screenshots all open in the same reader, with a soft, rounded highlight on the current word.
- Calmer pages. Paper, Sepia, Night and High Contrast themes, and a focus mode that clears everything but the page and dims all but the paragraph being read.
- Less noise. PDF headers, page numbers, web addresses and citation marks are skipped, so the voice reads the content.
- Click to jump. Click any sentence to hear it again or skip ahead.
- Picks up where you left off, and a sleep timer stops at the end of a paragraph or after a set time.
- Your pronunciations. Teach it a name or term once.
Resources
- Apple Accessibility on Mac
- International Dyslexia Association
- British Dyslexia Association
- Understood.org, on learning and thinking differences
Questions
Is text to speech helpful for dyslexia?
Many people with dyslexia find listening while following highlighted text helpful for getting through reading. It's a tool, not a treatment; talk to a specialist or your school or workplace about support that suits you.
Does my Mac have built-in read-along highlighting?
Yes. Turn on Speak Selection and set Highlight content to Words and Sentences in its options.
What speed should I listen at?
Whatever feels comfortable. Many people start near normal speaking speed and increase it over time. Aloud plays at up to 2x.
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.