Accessibility features built into your devices mean they can read any on-screen text aloud – effectively converting your ebooks into audiobooks.
Whether you have an iPhone, an Android phone, a Windows laptop or a Mac, narration tools (and other accessibility add-ons) can help you manage particularly long reads. Plus, many screen-reading tools give you a couple of digital voices to choose from.
Below, our experts explain how to have your digital book collection read aloud.
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Converting an ebook to an audiobook
On iOS (iPhone, iPad)
Apple’s screen reader is called VoiceOver. To access it, you need to head to Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver. It has the option to change the voice used and configure settings.
Once enabled, you can tap once to select an ‘item’, or a block of text. A double-tap will ‘activate’ (read aloud) the item. Note that Apple’s VoiceOver can also be used to read PDF documents and describe forms, tables and lists.
See also: VoiceOver User guide on the Apple website and our own advice on 7 easy ways to make your iPhone more accessible
On Android
Android’s answer to a built-in screen reader is known as TalkBack, which you’ll find under Settings > Accessibility > TalkBack. If you’re having trouble finding it, use the toolbar at the top of your Settings menu.
When you run TalkBack for the first time on your device, a tutorial screen will pop up and guide you through the controls.
See also: Get started on Android with TalkBack on the Google website
On Fire Tablets and Kindle ebook readers
Amazon’s recent Fire Tablets and Kindle models have a text-to-speech feature called VoiceView. Tape the Aa button while reading on a supported device, then choose More > Text-to-speech.
With some Kindle ebooks, you can add human-read Audible narration – this isn’t free but can cost as little as £3.50. Search for an ebook you own at amazon.co.uk and look to see whether it says Audiobook or, under the Buy now button, Add Audible narration to your purchase.
See also: Listen to Content with Text-to-Speech
Want to buy a Kindle? All of our Amazon Kindle reviews show the cheapest prices we could find from reputable retailers.
On Windows PC
If you’re using a Windows machine, the OS has a built-in screen reader called Narrator. To find it, click Start (or press the Windows key on your keyboard) > Settings > Accessibility (Ease of Access in Windows 10) > Narrator.
Under the Personalize Narrator’s voice heading, you’ll see a dropdown menu that lets you change the style of your narrator.
See also on Microsoft’s website: Narrator on Windows 10 / Narrator on Windows 11
On Mac
To access your screen reader settings on a Mac, simply go to System Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver. You can press Command-F5 to quickly enable or disable the tool, or use Siri (say ‘Hey Siri, Turn VoiceOver on/off’)
See also: VoiceOver User guide on the Apple website
How to download free audiobooks
Apple Books and Google Play host a small range of free audiobooks – mostly from classic literature, such as Apple’s unabridged presentation of HG Wells’ The Time Machine, read by Frasier star Kelsey Grammer.
BBC Sounds offers a selection of quality audiobooks that you can listen to via the Sounds app or BBC Sounds website. However, these are often abridged versions of books, chopped up into short ‘episodes’, originally designed for broadcast on programmes such as Radio 4’s Book of the Week.
Project Gutenberg’s website (gutenberg.org) has a selection of free audiobooks, alongside Its public-domain ebooks. Click Search and Browse > Book Search > Advanced Search, then select Audio Book Index from the Filetype menu and click Search.
Librivox (librivox.org) is a website dedicated to free audiobooks. The drawback is that it’s restricted to content in the public domain, so most titles are older or somewhat obscure. That said, there are plenty of great reads, including lots of Sherlock Holmes stories.
Audiobooks on Librivox are all read by volunteers, rather than professional voice performers. Some of Project Gutenberg’s audiobooks are read by humans, while others are narrated by computerised voices. In both cases, the quality can be variable.
Borrow from your library
Download the Libby app from either the Google Play store or Apple App Store, or visit libbyapp.com. Sign in with your library card to access free audiobooks (and ebooks) from your local library.
When we tried the app, there were 17,460 audiobooks to choose from across a wide range of genres.
For more expert advice on scoring free reads, see our guide on Where to download free or cheap ebooks.
Popular headphones for audiobooks
If you’re looking to get stuck into a new audiobook and don’t want to play it out loud (perhaps you’re on a packed train), investing in some high-quality headphones is a good move.
To help you start building your shortlist, we’ve picked out some of the most popular headphones for 2023, based on visits to our expert reviews. If you’re on a budget and you’re a Which? member, do remember that you can access our Great Value headphone reviews.
SoundCore by Anker Space A40
These truly wireless, in-ear headphones let you change numerous settings to your liking. You can have the battery life displayed on the earbuds themselves, and interact with your music using touch controls.
You can also control these headphones using a compatible voice assistant – Apple’s Siri or Google Assistant, for example.
For more on these headphones, read our SoundCore by Anker Space A40 review.
Apple AirPods Pro (2022)
These truly wireless headphones are bundled with changeable silicone eartips and are charged by the case. Much like their predecessors, the earbuds of the AirPods Pro 2 have touch controls on the stem. Among other things, this lets you control noise cancellation by pressing and holding the stem.
Although the headphones work with most Android devices, they do so with limited functionality – the voice assistant and the Personalised Spatial Audio feature are exclusive to Apple devices.
For more on these headphones, read our Apple AirPods Pro (2022) review.
Sony WH-1000XM4
Sony’s over-ear wireless headphones have active noise-cancelling, which means you can block out distractions and focus on your audiobook. They’re fully foldable, with the earcups both twisting 90 degrees to lie flat and fold up towards the headband to store in the hard semi-circular travel case provided.
Controls on the headphones allow you to play/pause music, change the volume, skip to next/previous track, fast forward/rewind and control calls.
For more on these headphones, read our Sony WH-1000XM4 review.
See all of our headphones reviews, or explore our guide on the best headphones for 2023.
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