Speechify Price, and a Cheaper Alternative for Chrome
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What Speechify costs, whether it's worth it, how to cancel, and what I'd use instead for reading in Chrome.
How much does Speechify cost?
- Free: $0, with 10 voices Speechify itself calls robotic sounding, and a top speed of 1.5x.
- Premium, paid monthly: $29 a month. Over a full year that's $348.
- Premium, paid yearly: $139 up front, which works out to $11.58 a month.
Premium is where the natural voices are, plus speeds up to 5x, the phone apps' scan feature and AI summaries.
I checked these on speechify.com/pricing on October 24, 2026. If they've changed, let me know and I'll update this page.
Is Speechify worth it?
It depends on where you do your reading. Speechify is a good app, and a lot of what you pay for is its phone apps, its ebook and document library, and listening that follows you across devices.
It's probably worth it if you listen on your phone, scan paper pages with your camera, or want one library of books and documents on every device.
It's probably not worth it if most of what you listen to is web pages, course pages, PDFs or Google Docs on a computer. Then you'd be paying $139 a year mostly for apps you don't open. That's the case I built Audhio for: I wanted my course material read to me in Chrome without paying that much.
How to cancel Speechify
Where you cancel depends on where you signed up.
- Signed up on the website: go to app.speechify.com, click your profile picture in the top right, open Settings, and choose Cancel Subscription.
- Signed up in the iPhone or iPad app: cancel in your Apple subscriptions (Settings, your name, Subscriptions, Speechify).
- Signed up in the Android app: cancel in the Google Play Store, under Payments and subscriptions.
Speechify says you keep Premium until your next billing date after you cancel, and that cancelling stops future charges but doesn't refund past ones. The steps for the website come from Speechify's own guide.
Why people look for Speechify alternatives
Speechify is a capable tool built around a specific use case: managing a cross-device reading library. Not everyone needs that. The three most common reasons people look elsewhere:
The cost
Speechify Premium is $139 a year, or $29 a month. The free plan limits you to robotic-sounding voices and a 1.5x top speed. For people who just want to listen to what's already in their browser, it's a high bar to clear.
The good voices are paywalled
On Speechify's free plan you get 10 voices that Speechify itself calls robotic sounding. The natural AI voices and speeds above 1.5x require Premium. Audhio's free plan includes its natural AI voices and its full speed range. What it limits is time: 30 minutes a month, then Pro at $9.99/month.
The import workflow
Speechify is built around its own reader interface. Getting the best experience often means importing content into Speechify rather than reading it where you found it. If you're already on the page you want to read, that context switch breaks the flow.
Audhio vs. Speechify
| Audhio | Speechify | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 30 min/mo free, then $9.99/mo | Free with robotic voices, or $29/mo or $139/yr |
| Account required | Google only | Yes |
| Word highlighting | ✓ | ✓ |
| Chrome extension | ✓ | ✓ |
| Reads current tab | ✓ | Partial |
| Mobile app | No | ✓ iOS + Android |
| Reads PDFs | ✓ | ✓ |
| Your reading saved to your account | No | Yes |
| Setup | Install, sign in, play | Register + configure |
How they actually compare
Price
Audhio's free plan gives you 30 minutes of listening a month. Word highlighting, all four AI voices, and speed control are included, not locked away. If you need more than 30 minutes, Pro is $9.99/month or $99/year for unlimited listening. That's about $40 a year less than Speechify Premium.
Speechify Premium costs $29 a month, or $139 a year if you pay up front. Speechify's free plan limits you to robotic-sounding voices and 1.5x speed.
Word highlighting
Both tools highlight the word being spoken as audio plays. The implementation is different: Audhio highlights directly on the webpage in your browser, with the original formatting and layout intact. You're reading in context.
Speechify's highlighting works best inside its own reading interface. For many content types the browser extension captures and displays content cleanly, but the experience is centered on Speechify's reader rather than the original page.
Browser integration
This is the biggest practical difference. Audhio is a Chrome extension. You're already on a page, you hit play, it reads. No import step, no redirect, no extra interface to load. Works on news articles, course material, documentation, Wikipedia. Whatever you're reading.
Speechify's Chrome extension is designed as an entry point to their platform. For many content types it works smoothly, but the intended workflow is to bring content into Speechify's reader rather than reading it in place.
Privacy
When you press play, Audhio sends the text to its server and to ElevenLabs, its voice provider, to make the audio. That audio and its text are saved for up to 90 days so the same text plays faster next time. They aren't linked to you. You do sign in with Google, so Audhio knows your email and how many minutes you've used. Usage events include the address of the page you were on, but never the text.
Speechify saves your content to their platform. That enables cross-device access to your reading library, which is a genuine feature for some users. It also means your content is associated with an account and stored on their servers.
Mobile
Speechify has well-reviewed iOS and Android apps with offline support and a clean mobile reading experience. Audhio is Chrome-only. There's no mobile version. If you do most of your reading on your phone, Speechify's mobile ecosystem is the better option for that use case.
Who should switch to Audhio
Switch to Audhio if:
- ✓ You mostly read in your browser: web pages, PDFs, and Google Docs
- ✓ You want natural AI voices without paying $139 a year
- ✓ You're a student reading course material on WGU, Canvas, or Moodle
- ✓ You want to listen while staying on the original page
Stay on Speechify if:
- ✗ You rely on iOS or Android apps for mobile listening
- ✗ You keep a library of ebooks and documents to listen to across devices
- ✗ You need cross-device sync to continue where you left off
- ✗ You want AI summaries or offline listening
Frequently asked questions
How much does Speechify cost?
Premium is $29 a month, or $139 a year paid up front ($11.58 a month). Paying monthly for a full year comes to $348. The free plan has 10 robotic-sounding voices and a top speed of 1.5x. Checked on speechify.com/pricing on October 24, 2026.
How do I cancel my Speechify subscription?
On the web, go to app.speechify.com, click your profile picture, open Settings, and choose Cancel Subscription. If you subscribed in the iPhone app, cancel through Apple. If you subscribed in the Android app, cancel through Google Play. You keep Premium until your next billing date.
Is there a free Speechify alternative?
Audhio is free to start. The free plan gives you 30 minutes a month with word highlighting, all four AI voices, and speed control. For unlimited listening, Pro is $9.99/month or $99/year. Sign in with Google and start listening in under a minute.
Can Audhio fully replace Speechify?
For reading in your browser, yes. If you use Speechify mainly to listen to articles, course pages, or web content, Audhio covers that. Light use fits in the free 30 minutes; heavier use needs Pro at $9.99/month. Audhio also reads PDFs and Google Docs in Chrome. Where Speechify wins: mobile apps, ebooks, and cross-device content libraries. Audhio doesn't have those.
Does Audhio work on the same sites as Speechify?
Audhio reads the main content of any webpage: articles, course material, documentation, Wikipedia, blog posts. It works on WGU, Canvas, Moodle, and most learning platforms, including pages you have to log in to. It also reads PDFs and Google Docs that you open in Chrome.
What does Speechify's free version include?
Speechify's free plan includes 10 standard voices, which Speechify itself describes as robotic sounding, and playback up to 1.5x. Its natural voices and faster speeds need Premium, which is $29 a month or $139 a year.
Is Audhio safe to use?
Audhio doesn't sell your data or use it for ads. The text you play is saved for up to 90 days with its audio, not linked to you. Usage events include the address of the page you were on, but never the text. You can read the full privacy policy at audhio.com/privacy.