Read Webpages Aloud on Android: Step-by-Step

This guide shows you how to make your Android phone or tablet read any webpage out loud, turning articles, news, and long documents into hands-free audio. You’ll learn the built-in method that works on most devices, plus a reliable alternative if your phone doesn’t have it. Nothing needs to be installed for the primary method, but the alternative uses a free app.

What You’ll Need

• An Android phone or tablet (Android 5.0 or newer for the built-in method)
• Google Chrome, Samsung Internet, or another browser that supports the “Select to Speak” feature
• Optional: The free app “Pocket” for saving and reading articles later

Step-by-Step

Method 1: Use the Built-in Select to Speak (Most Android Phones)

1. Enable the feature in Settings. Open your phone’s Settings app, tap Accessibility, then look for Select to Speak or Text-to-Speech output. If you see “Select to Speak,” tap it and turn the switch on. If you don’t see it, your phone may not have this feature—skip to Method 2.
2. Open the webpage you want to read. Launch your browser (like Chrome) and navigate to the article or page you want to hear.
3. Activate Select to Speak. You can usually do this in two ways:
   • Press and hold the power button and select the “Select to Speak” icon from the pop-up menu (if available).
   • Or, swipe down from the top of the screen to open the quick settings panel, then tap the “Select to Speak” icon (it looks like a speech bubble with a person).
4. Select the text to read. After activating, a small toolbar appears at the bottom. Tap the green play button, then drag your finger across the text you want to hear. You can select a paragraph, a whole section, or the entire page by dragging over it.
5. Listen and control. The phone will start reading the selected text aloud. You can pause, stop, or adjust the speaking speed using the toolbar. To stop completely, tap the stop button or swipe down from the top and tap the notification.

Method 2: Use the Pocket App (Works on Any Android)

1. Install Pocket. Go to the Google Play Store, search for “Pocket,” and install the free app from Mozilla.
2. Save the article. In your browser, open the article you want to read. Tap the share button (usually three dots or a share icon), then choose “Pocket” from the sharing options. The article will be saved to your Pocket list.
3. Open Pocket and start listening. Open the Pocket app. You’ll see your saved articles. Tap the article you want to hear, then tap the “Listen” button (usually a headphone icon or a play button). Pocket will read the article aloud with a natural-sounding voice.
4. Adjust playback. Use the playback controls to pause, skip forward or back, and change the reading speed. You can also set a timer to stop playback after a certain time.

Common Mistakes

• Selecting too much or too little text. If you drag over the entire page, the phone might read navigation menus and ads. Instead, drag only over the main article text.
• Not enabling the feature first. The Select to Speak toggle must be turned on in Settings before it appears in the power menu or quick settings. If you don’t see it, go back and enable it.
• Using a browser that doesn’t support it. Some third-party browsers may not work well with Select to Speak. If it doesn’t work, try Chrome or Samsung Internet, or use the Pocket method.
• Forgetting to turn off the feature. After using Select to Speak, it may stay active, causing your phone to read text when you tap on it elsewhere. Turn it off in the quick settings or accessibility settings when you’re done.

Tips

• Adjust the reading speed. In the Select to Speak settings, you can change the speech rate. Slower is better for complex topics, faster for skimming.
• Use headphones. For long reading sessions, headphones are more comfortable and don’t disturb others.
• Save articles for later. With Pocket, you can save articles while you have internet, then listen to them offline later—great for commutes or flights.
• Use the volume keys to control playback. When audio is playing, pressing the volume up or down can often pause or stop the reading.
• Try different voices. In the text-to-speech settings, you can download different voices (e.g., a higher-quality voice) for a more natural sound.

Troubleshooting

• No sound comes out. Check that your phone’s volume is turned up and not on silent. Also, make sure the media volume (not just ringtone) is increased. If using Bluetooth, ensure the device is connected and working.
• Select to Speak doesn’t appear in the power menu. This is a common issue on some phones. Use the quick settings panel instead, or go to Accessibility settings and tap the “Select to Speak” shortcut to activate it manually.
• The app reads the wrong text. If it’s reading ads or menus, you selected too much. Try selecting just the main paragraph. Some pages have a “reader mode” (look for the book icon in the address bar) that strips out clutter—enable that first, then select.
• The voice sounds robotic. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Text-to-Speech output and select a different engine or download a higher-quality voice. On some phones, you can also adjust the pitch.
• Pocket won’t save the article. Make sure you’re logged into the Pocket app. If the share button doesn’t list Pocket, tap the three-dot menu in the share sheet and add Pocket as a share target.
• The reading stops after a few seconds. This can happen if the screen locks. In Select to Speak settings, enable “Keep screen on during playback” or adjust your screen timeout to a longer duration.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this work on all Android phones?

Most phones with Android 5.0 or newer have the Select to Speak feature, but some manufacturers (like Samsung, OnePlus, and Xiaomi) may have it under a different name or hide it. If you can’t find it, use the Pocket method, which works on any Android device.

Can I make it read the whole page without selecting?

Yes. In some versions of Select to Speak, after activating the feature, you can tap the “Select all” button (usually an icon with four arrows) to read the entire page. If that’s not available, you can drag your finger from the top to the bottom of the page to select everything.

Is there a way to change the voice?

Yes. Go to Settings > Accessibility > Text-to-Speech output. There you can change the engine (e.g., Google Text-to-Speech) and download different voices. Some voices sound more natural than others.

Can I listen to articles in the background while using other apps?

With Pocket, yes. The app continues playing audio even if you switch to another app or lock your screen. The built-in Select to Speak also works in the background, but you’ll need to keep the browser open in the background.

Does this use a lot of data?

The text-to-speech itself uses very little data because it’s generated on your phone. However, if you’re using Pocket to save articles, that downloads the article text, which is also small. Streaming audio from a podcast app would use more data.

Can I use this to read PDFs or other documents?

Select to Speak works on any text on the screen, so it can read PDFs in a PDF viewer or text in a notes app. Pocket, however, is designed for web articles and may not handle PDFs well.

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