Read It Aloud powered by Eleven Labs

About

Read It Aloud turns any text on the web into a clear, natural-sounding voice — using your own ElevenLabs account so you get studio-quality audio inline on the page you're already reading.

BUILT FOR BRAINS THAT READ BETTER THROUGH THEIR EARS

This extension was built by someone with ADHD, for everyone whose focus, eyes, or reading process gets in the way of consuming text on a screen.

- ADHD — audio sustains attention where visual text loses it. Listening at 1.5x or 2x cuts through the wall that long articles and dense documents tend to put up.
- Dyslexia — hearing words removes the decoding tax of reading.
- Visual fatigue, eye strain, post-concussion sensitivity — give your eyes a break without giving up the content.
- Language learners — natural pronunciation of any text, on any page, in real context.
- Accessibility — higher-quality voices than built-in screen readers, for casual reading and longer content.
- Anyone who wants to "read" while cooking, walking, driving, or resting their eyes.

HOW IT WORKS

1. Install the extension
2. Paste your ElevenLabs API key once (free tier works — elevenlabs.io)
3. Pick a voice
4. Highlight any text on any page, click "Read aloud"

A small floating player appears with play/pause, stop, rewind/forward 10s, speed control (0.5x – 2x), and a download button to save the audio as MP3.

FEATURES

- Works on virtually every site, including strict-security sites like claude.ai, Gmail, Google Docs, court portals, and news paywalls
- Follow-along text panel — current sentence highlights and the panel scrolls with the audio so you never lose your place
- Adjustable speed from 0.5x to 2x with smooth playback
- Multi-chunk handling for very long selections with quota guardrails
- Right-click "Read It Aloud" on any selection
- Toolbar popup for reading the current tab's selection
- Stop button cancels in-flight ElevenLabs requests so you don't burn credits on audio you'll never hear
- Download as MP3 for offline listening
- Light and dark themes that match your system
- Fully accessible — every control has an aria-label, screen-reader friendly
- Dual-tone outline keeps the widget visible on any page background

PRIVACY

We don't run any server. Your selected text goes to ElevenLabs (and nowhere else) so they can generate the audio. Your API key is stored locally on your device only. We collect zero analytics, zero telemetry, and zero identifiers.

Privacy policy: https://jpf1111.github.io/read-it-aloud/PRIVACY

PRICING

The extension is free and always will be. Audio is generated through your own ElevenLabs account; ElevenLabs has a generous free tier and paid plans. You're billed by ElevenLabs directly — we never see your usage.

If Read It Aloud has helped you focus, learn, or just rest your eyes, a coffee is appreciated:
https://buymeacoffee.com/ReadItAloud

REQUIREMENTS

- An ElevenLabs account (free tier works) → elevenlabs.io
- Chrome 116+ (for the chrome.offscreen API)

SUPPORT

Issues and feature requests: https://github.com/JPF1111/read-it-aloud/issues