Text to speech for audiobooks

By Alex, editor · Updated October 25, 2026 · Published by Ecomparadise, LLC

Free and private: the voice is generated in your browser, so your text is never uploaded. Download the audio as WAV.

Type or paste text, then press Read aloud. Nothing is uploaded.

How to do it

Paste one chapter at a time. Each chapter becomes one WAV file, which keeps long projects manageable. Name files by chapter number when you download.

Tip: Audiobook stores have their own rules on AI narration. Check the policy of the store or distributor you plan to use before you publish.

How it works

  1. Type, paste or open a .txt or .pdf file (text PDFs only).
  2. Choose one of 13 English voices and a speed.
  3. Press Read aloud. The first time, the voice model downloads once (about 90 MB) and is cached.
  4. Speech is generated on your device part by part and starts playing straight away. When it finishes, download the WAV file.

Tips for natural-sounding speech

ProblemWhat to do
A name is mispronouncedSpell it the way it sounds, e.g. "Siobhan" as "Shiv-awn"
No pause where you want oneAdd a full stop, or a blank line for a longer pause
Numbers read oddlyWrite them in words: "twenty twenty-six", "three point five percent"
Abbreviations read letter by letterWrite the full words: "for example" instead of "e.g."
Sounds rushedLower the speed to 0.9 and use shorter sentences

Honest limits

Your text stays private

Most free text-to-speech sites send your text to a server. VoiceRuler generates the voice inside your browser, so your words never leave your device. The Kokoro model is released under the Apache-2.0 licence, which allows commercial use of the output.

Related guides

More: for creators

Frequently asked questions

How long can a chapter be?

Up to 100,000 characters, roughly 2 hours of audio. On a typical laptop, generation runs at very roughly real-time speed or faster; phones are slower.

Is VoiceRuler free?

Yes. There is no sign-up, no daily limit and no watermark, because the voice runs on your device.

Is my text uploaded?

No. Speech is generated in your browser. Only the model and voice files are downloaded.

Which languages are supported?

English only, in American and British voices.

The Rulers

Eight free tools. No sign-up, nothing to install.

Made by the same small team. CutRuler, ScribeRuler, TextRuler and VoiceRuler run entirely in your browser, so your files stay on your device.