How to turn an EPUB into an audiobook
Add your EPUB
Save the EPUB file to your device. Open Narraloud and import it, or use the share button in the Files app to send the book to Narraloud.
Choose a voice
Pick a narrator that suits the book and set a comfortable speed. Narraloud's bundled voices cover English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, and Portuguese.
Press play
Listen from the beginning or jump to a chapter. Each word is highlighted as it is read aloud, so you can switch between listening and reading without losing your place.
An EPUB reader you can listen to
Some books never get an audio edition. Others have a narrator you don't enjoy. Text to speech gives you another way to read the EPUB you already own, with a voice and pace you choose.
Narraloud reads the book's text aloud. You can move by sentence or chapter and resume where you stopped. If you're checking a name or rereading a passage, the text is right there beside the audio.
It's useful for a long novel, a public-domain classic, or a manuscript you want to hear during an edit. You don't need to record the book yourself or prepare an audio file before you start listening.
Save a chapter or a whole book as audio
With Narraloud Plus, open Export Audio and choose the current chapter or the whole document. Narraloud saves an M4A audio file in the voice selected for that document. When it is ready, save it to Files or share it.
Export is one of the features included in Narraloud Plus. Listening is free with the standard voices, an entire book at a time, no credits and nothing to top up. Plus adds background listening, so the book keeps reading with the screen locked or another app in front.
Reading aloud in the app and exporting a whole book are different jobs. Playback lets you start listening without rendering the full book first. An export needs time to generate and save the audio.
Listen to EPUB books offline
The voices run on your device. Once your book and chosen voice are available locally, narration works without Wi-Fi or mobile data. Your EPUB isn't uploaded to a speech service.
Save the books you want to take with you. See the offline text-to-speech guide for more about listening without a connection.
Common questions
Can I use a book from any ebook store?
You need an EPUB file that Narraloud can open. A book locked to a store or reading app with digital rights management (DRM) may not be available as an importable EPUB. Check that you can access the actual file before trying to add it.
Can Narraloud read PDFs as well as EPUBs?
Yes. Narraloud also reads PDFs, saved web articles, and scanned pages. If your book is already an EPUB, import that file directly. There is no need to convert it to PDF first.
Is this a human-recorded audiobook?
No. Narraloud generates narration with text-to-speech voices on your device. You choose the voice rather than buying a separate recording of the book.
