Free or Low Cost Apps

Enjoy these apps that make reading even easier.  These are available for anyone to use and provide various support for reading in the form of print, digital text, audio, text-to-speech and more.

Bookshare:

• online library of accessible reading materials
• syncs to numerous websites and library sites
• accessible books, textbooks, newspapers and magazines
• works with DAISY players, screen readers, refreshable braille displays, and other assistive tech.
• NEW app: Bookshare Reader
• Cost: free for qualified students, less that $1 per week for other members
• Compatibility: online resource, iOS, Android

Dolphin EasyReader:

• accessible reading app that can link up to student Bookshare accounts (see Kelsey McLane for an account)
• magnified text and/or audio
• uses VoiceOver and built-in reader
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

Speechify:

• text-to-speech to listen to your documents, books, and articles
• HD voices and 50+ languages
• toggle your reading speed up to 900 words per minute (5x speed)
• import internet articles straight from your browser
• scan physical book pages with your device camera
• sync audiobooks across devices
• Cost: free or $11.58 per month for Premium
• Compatibility: iOS, Android, web browser extension

ABBYY TextGrabber:

• use your device's camera to capture text and translate it using OCR to use with VoiceOver or Spoken content (text-to-speech)
• easily extract text from books, magazines, newspapers, and more
• text can be edited or copied to another sources
• Cost: free with in-app purchases
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

Beeline Reader:

• monochrome color text reader
• OpenDyslexic font
• read PDF files, webpages, and convert eBooks to PDF files to read in this app
• various monochrome color schemes
• Cost: $1.99 for app, free in online browser
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

CometDocs PDF Converter:

• create and convert PDF documents to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, images and more
• save to Google Drive
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: iOS, Android, Windows, Chrome extension

Claro PDF Pro:

• listen to your PDFs using VoiceOver or Spoken Content
• convert images to accessible PDF files that can be search, copied, or highlighted
• change background and invert colors
• annotate or mark up your document or images
• Cost: $9.99
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

Claro ScanPen:

• listen to printed material
• take a photo of your document, select text, and hear it being read
• compatible with VoiceOver
• multiple languages
• Cost: $9.99
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

CamScanner:

• take a picture of your document, note, whiteboard, and more
• Use OCR feature to convert image to readable text
• add annotations
• sync across devices
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: iOS, Android

GoRead:

• download and listen to our Bookshare books on your Android device
• works with DAISY and EPUB books with text-to-speech
• connects to your Bookshare account
• optimized for visually-impaired readers, but usable for anyone
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: Android

HelperBird:

• text-to-speech and dictation for notes
• customizable styles and colors
• includes features for assistance with color blindness and zoom features
• Dictionary, Google translate, dyslexic font and more
• Cost: free or $4.99 per month for Premium
• Compatibility: Chrome extension

Mercury Reader:

• removes distractions and clutter from webpages for easier reading
• customize the size of the text or font
• choose between light or dark background
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: Chrome extension, Windows

Rewordify:

• takes confusing text and offers an easier way to understand content
• copy and paste text that is hard to understand in the site, and it will reword it for you in simpler language
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: online resource

Select and Speak:

• uses human-quality text-to-speech to read any selected text in browser
• 20+ languages
• change voice and speed in the settings
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: Chrome extension

SwiftRead:

• speed read through text in your browser
• copy and paste any text into the text box 
• track your speed improvement
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: Chrome extension, Edge extension

vBookz PDF Voice Reader:

• text-to-speech voice reader with 17 languages
• downloadable voices
• change voice and reading speed
• switch between original text layout and text-only view
• dyslexic font
• change color themes, fonts, and font sizes
• Cost: free for limited, $4.99 for Pro 
• Compatibility: iOS

Yuzu:

• load and read textbooks
• highlight, make notes, and bookmarks
• syncs across devices
• adjust layout, font, and zoom
• search for keywords, phrases, or figures
• listen to your books with Read Aloud
• download digital content for offline reading
• Cost: free
• Compatibility: iOS, Android, Windows