Does FreeTTS work offline?

No — voices are generated server-side via Microsoft Azure neural TTS, which needs a connection. FreeTTS caches audio for instant replay, so paragraphs you've already heard load offline.

Does the FreeTTS extension slow down web pages?

No. The player only injects when you trigger a read. Idle, the extension does nothing — no background scripts, no telemetry pings, no battery drain.

Is text I select sent to FreeTTS servers?

Only the text you actively select is sent to the FreeTTS TTS endpoint to generate audio, and it is discarded after generation. No content is logged or used for training.

Can I download the audio FreeTTS generates?

Yes. Right-click any selection and choose 'Download selection as MP3'. The free tier includes a short audio watermark; PRO removes it.

What if Alt+Shift+S conflicts with another shortcut?

Open your browser's extension shortcuts page (chrome://extensions/shortcuts on Chrome, edge://extensions/shortcuts on Edge) and remap to any combination — function keys, ctrl-combos, anything the browser supports.

How is FreeTTS different from Speechify?

Speechify charges $29/mo and requires a credit card to start the trial. FreeTTS is free for daily use with no card, and PRO is $19/mo if you want HD voices, 95 expressive styles, and unlimited generations.

Where do I send feedback or report a bug?

Email support@freetts.org or open an issue on the public repo. Every message is read and fixes typically ship within days.

FreeTTS is installed and ready

Listen to anything
you read.

Q: Which voices are free in the FreeTTS extension?

15 standard Edge voices auto-detected by the page's language (English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and more). PRO unlocks 2,250+ HD neural voices with 95 expressive styles.

Right-click any text on any page → hear it read aloud with 2,250+ AI voices. No setup. No account for the first 3 reads. Free forever for the basics.

on Chrome Web Store

Try it on a sample article See what it can do

freetts.org/article — being read aloud

Article preview

Reading is one of the oldest interfaces. Listening is one of the newest. Both ways into the same idea — just routed through different senses.

en-US-Andrew · 1.0×

2,253

AI voices

75+

Languages

Expressive styles

To start

What you can do

Four ways to listen

Works on every site — news, blogs, Substack, GitHub READMEs, Reddit threads, in-browser PDFs.

Read any selection

Highlight a paragraph, right-click → 🔊 Read selection. A floating player drops in with play, pause, scrub, speed, and word-by-word highlight in sync with the voice.

🔊Read selection

🎭Read in Theatre Mode

✨Summarise & read (PRO)

⬇️Download as MP3

Read the whole page

Right-click anywhere → 📖 Read this page. FreeTTS extracts the article body (skipping nav, ads, footers) and queues every sentence so you can listen end-to-end.

AI Summary FREE TRIAL

Skip the article, listen to the gist. Right-click → ✨ Summarise & read. 3 free summaries to start, then unlimited on PRO. Powered by GPT-4o-mini.

AI summary · ~8 sec

Saved you 4 min of reading

Theatre Mode

Click 🎭 on the player for a full-screen distraction-free reading view — karaoke word highlighting, breathing background, perfect for long articles.

Reading is one of the oldest interfaces.

2,250+ premium voices

Cast a voice that fits

From narrator-grade English to expressive Japanese, every voice is a neural model. Free tier includes 15 standard voices; PRO unlocks the full HD library.

Andrew

Warm narrator · EN

Sonia

Crisp British · EN-GB

Davis

News anchor · EN

Xiaoxiao

Modern Mandarin · ZH

Denise

Refined Parisian · FR

Katja

Clear German · DE

Nanami

Polished · JA

Swara

Hindi broadcaster · HI

Browse all 2,250+ voices

Keyboard shortcuts

Faster than the right-click menu. Customise at chrome://extensions/shortcuts if Alt+Shift conflicts.

Alt+Shift+S

Read selected textHighlight first, then press the keys.

Alt+Shift+R

Read this pageAuto-extracts the article body.

Space

Pause / resumeWhile the floating player is open.

Esc

Close the playerStops audio and dismisses the floating panel.

Unlock the full library with PRO

HD neural voices · 95 expressive styles (cheerful, sad, whispering, excited, & more) · unlimited generations · no audio watermark · background play after closing the tab · full commercial license. Same account works on web, extension, and Android.

Buy PRO — $19/mo

FOUNDER LIFETIME — $199 ONCESkip the $19/mo forever · only 19 spots left

Pin FreeTTS to your toolbar

The popup is one click away once pinned. Three steps:

Click the puzzle piece icon in the top-right of Chrome.
Find FreeTTS in the dropdown.
Click the pin icon next to it. Done.

Why FreeTTS

vs. the alternatives

Feature

FreeTTS

Speechify

Free tier covers daily use

✓ Yes

—

No card required for free tier

✓ Yes

—

Download MP3 of any selection

✓ Free

PRO only

AI summary built-in

✓ Free trial

PRO only

Web + Extension + Android

✓ All three

All three

Cancel friction

One tap

Documented complaints

PRO price

$19/mo

$29/mo

Quick answers

Things people ask first

Does this work offline?

No — voices are generated server-side via Microsoft Azure neural TTS, which needs a connection. We cache audio for instant replay though, so paragraphs you've already heard load offline.

Will it slow down the page I'm reading?

The player only injects when you trigger a read. Idle, the extension does nothing — no scripts running, no telemetry pings, no battery drain.

What about privacy?

Selected text is sent to FreeTTS's TTS endpoint and discarded after audio is generated. No content is logged or used for training. Full privacy policy.

Can I download the audio?

Yes — right-click any selection → ⬇️ Download selection as MP3. Free tier includes a short audio watermark; PRO removes it.

Which voices come standard?

15 free Edge voices auto-detected by the page's language (English, Spanish, French, German, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, etc.). PRO unlocks 2,250+ neural HD voices with expressive styles.

What if Alt+Shift+S is taken?

Visit chrome://extensions/shortcuts and remap to whatever combo you prefer.Chrome lets you bind to function keys, ctrl-combos, anything.

How is this different from Speechify?

Speechify charges $29/mo and requires a card up front for the trial. FreeTTS is free for daily use, no card, $19/mo if you want HD voices and unlimited. See the full comparison.

I have feedback or a bug.

Email support@freetts.org or open an issue on the public repo. We read every message and ship fixes within days.

That's it. You're set.

Open any article and right-click the text — your first listen is one tap away.

Open the FreeTTS web app

Listen to anything you read.