Read Aloud/Text to Speech Programs for Windows?

[OddLove]

I've been looking for a free 'Text to Speech' program I can use on my windows computer to help me proof read my stories because I've been missing things even after using Grammarly. They're just small mistakes like repeating words, or using the wrong pronoun. So I'm trying to find a Text to Speech program that doesn't cost money.

I've been using LibreOffice to write ever since Microsoft took WordPad away and I discovered their other program 'Word' has a monthly subscription feed. I understand 'Word' has a read aloud feature, but I can't afford to keep stacking up monthly subscription fees for every little thing in the tech word, which is why I'm using a free open source word processor instead. The problem is it doesn't seem to have a Text to Speech tool on it, and I haven't been able to find any video tutorials for how to add a Text to Speech addon onto LibreOffice.

So if anyone knows any Text to Speech software that's free, and preferable offline or at the minimum doesn't require logging in with your email and creating an account to use, I'd love to hear about it. This is been frustrating experience trying to find a way to read aloud my stuff, but I feel like with how often myself and Grammarly miss things, I really need to use one.

And just to reiterate. Looking for a Text to Speech program that doesn't cost money and doesn't require logging into an account.

Thanks.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

I've been looking for a free 'Text to Speech' program I can use on my windows computer to help me proof read my stories because I've been missing things even after using Grammarly. They're just small mistakes like repeating words, or using the wrong pronoun. So I'm trying to find a Text to Speech program that doesn't cost money.

I've been using LibreOffice to write ever since Microsoft took WordPad away and I discovered their other program 'Word' has a monthly subscription feed. I understand 'Word' has a read aloud feature, but I can't afford to keep stacking up monthly subscription fees for every little thing in the tech word, which is why I'm using a free open source word processor instead. The problem is it doesn't seem to have a Text to Speech tool on it, and I haven't been able to find any video tutorials for how to add a Text to Speech addon onto LibreOffice.

So if anyone knows any Text to Speech software that's free, and preferable offline or at the minimum doesn't require logging in with your email and creating an account to use, I'd love to hear about it. This is been frustrating experience trying to find a way to read aloud my stuff, but I feel like with how often myself and Grammarly miss things, I really need to use one.

And just to reiterate. Looking for a Text to Speech program that doesn't cost money and doesn't require logging into an account.

Thanks.

There's always the brute force method... Read it out loud to your cat...

 

[OddLove]

There's always the brute force method... Read it out loud to your cat...

I would if there wasn't other people around lol, I'm sure my cat would be thrilled to hear me tell him about upright sapiens getting wild.

 

[SyleusSnow]

I've used Balabolka for many years: https://www.cross-plus-a.com/balabolka.htm

It reads MS Word and many other document formats directly.

By default it uses the robotic voices in Windows (which I find actually helps with proof-listening), but there's a hack you can use to unlock the "natural" voice for Balabolka, Calibre and other programs. It's linked on the main page of the Balabolka web site (search for "Microsoft Speech Platform")

 

[Fatdog25]

I use the free version of NaturalReader. It has its limitations but it does offer different voices and different speeds.

It tends to pronounce words like 'read' the same way every time, regardless of context. Keeps me on my toes.

I have a desktop version, no idea if it communicates back to the mother site. I copy/paste the text. There's also a function to create an MP3 but I've never tried it.

 

[NotWise]

There is a text-to-speech plugin for LibreOffice Writer (the Read Text extension), but all it does is act as an interface to some other speech engine either on line or installed on your computer.

The free speech engines available for installation on Linux systems are horrible, but there may be some available for Windows that aren't available for Linux. The online engines are a little difficult to use, and would only handle a limited amount of text at one time.

I scrapped the plugin.

 

[RejectReality]

The free version of Natural Reader works pretty well. I went ahead and paid for it because the paid version has better voices and the ability to create a dictionary of words you can phonetically sound out to correct jarring pronunciations. ( Mainly character names for me )

 

[HectorBidon]

You can use Google Translate. Cut and paste a couple paragraphs at a time into the text box, then click the "listen" icon.

 

[Blind_Justice]

There's NVDA, an open source screen reader. The Windows magnification tool (Windows Key and +) also has TTS capabilities built in and there's Windows Narrator, the same as above minus the magnification. Should be easily accessible through the search field.

 

[OddLove]

I've used Balabolka for many years: https://www.cross-plus-a.com/balabolka.htm

It reads MS Word and many other document formats directly.

By default it uses the robotic voices in Windows (which I find actually helps with proof-listening), but there's a hack you can use to unlock the "natural" voice for Balabolka, Calibre and other programs. It's linked on the main page of the Balabolka web site (search for "Microsoft Speech Platform")

I tried a few different options, and this one is amazing. Simple, direct, and doesn't have any important features hiding behind pay walls. Thank you for the recommendation. It's extremely helpful.