How to read a Google Doc out loud
Paste the link to your Google Doc into Read-Along and listen to it, with each word lighting up as it is read. Everyone gets one free document a day, no card needed. Premium has no daily limit and puts your documents first.
Hear a sample
Under a minute, read to you.
Press play and follow the highlighted words — this is exactly what your documents become.
The Tortoise and the Hare, by Aesop.
A Hare one day ridiculed the short feet and slow pace of the Tortoise, who replied, laughing: "Though you be swift as the wind, I will beat you in a race." The Hare, believing her assertion to be simply impossible, assented to the proposal; and they agreed that the Fox should choose the course and fix the goal.
On the day appointed for the race the two started together. The Tortoise never for a moment stopped, but went on with a slow but steady pace straight to the end of the course. The Hare, lying down by the wayside, fell fast asleep.
At last waking up, and moving as fast as he could, he saw the Tortoise had reached the goal, and was comfortably dozing after her fatigue.
Slow but steady wins the race.
From Aesop's Fables (public domain). Read by Heart, one of our AI voices.
Steps
- In Google Docs, click Share and set General access to "Anyone with the link".
- Copy the link and paste it into the box on our home page (or upload the file instead).
- Sign in with your email or phone, no password, and press play when it is ready.
The doc must be link-shared
We can only open a Google Doc that is shared as "Anyone with the link". If yours is private, we cannot read it. Download it as a Word (.docx) or PDF file from Google Docs and upload that instead.
What you hear
A short document is ready in a few minutes; a long one takes about half as long as it takes to listen. It reads aloud with a computer voice. You can pause, jump back 10 seconds and change the speed, on a phone or a computer. We skip page numbers, headers and footers that repeat on every page, endnote lists and web addresses, so you hear just the text.
What it costs
Everyone gets one free document a day, no card needed. Premium has no daily limit and puts your documents first. Premium is $14.50 a month, or $69 a year. It renews until you cancel.
Questions
Can Read-Along read my Google Doc?
Yes, if it is shared as "Anyone with the link". Paste the link on the home page.
What if my Google Doc is private?
Download it from Google Docs as a Word or PDF file and upload that file instead.
Is it free?
One document a day is free with no card. Premium has no daily limit.