Use Reading mode & Read aloud on your Chromebook

Customize your reading experience on Chrome with Reading mode. This feature is conveniently located in the Side panel and helps you:

  • Focus more easily on text.
  • Reduce distractions from images and videos on screen.
  • Select alternate typeface and font size.
  • Adjust letter and sentence spacing.
  • Choose background color.

If you’re using a Chromebook, you can hear the text you read with Read aloud.

Tip: The contents from general websites are shown and applied in the side panel.

Use & manage Reading mode & Read aloud

Important:

  • Reading mode is available in Chrome.
  • Read aloud is only available in Chromebook.

When you use Reading mode in the side panel, you can:

  • Play, pause, rewind, or fast forward while you read.
  • Change the playback speed.
  • Select your preferred voice.
  • Turn on or off text highlighting.
  • Adjust the font settings.

To turn on and adjust reading mode:

  1. On your computer, open Chrome.
  2. Go to a website with text that you’d like to read.
  3. At the top right, select More More and then More tools and then Reading mode.
  4. Under "Reading mode," use the toolbar to:
    • Adjust the font: Select Font .
    • Adjust the font size: Select Font size .
      • To decrease the font size: Select Decrease .
      • To increase the font size: Select Increase .
    • Change the Reading mode color theme: Select Color theme .
    • Change the spacing between sentences: Select Line spacing .
    • Change the spacing between letters: Select Letter spacing .
  5. To hear the text spoken aloud with Read aloud, select Play .
    • On your keyboard, you can press K.
  6. Adjust your Read aloud settings:
    • Play and pause while you read: Select Play or Pause .
    • Adjust the playback speed: Select Playback speed .
    • Jump to the beginning of the previous or next sentence: Select Previous or Next .
      • To use your keyboard: Press Left arrow or Right arrow and then Enter.
    • Select your preferred voice:
      • To preview a voice:
        • Through the toolbar:
          1. ​​​​​Select Voice .
          2. Next to the voice name, select Preview .
        • Through your keyboard:
          • Press Right arrow and then Enter.
      • To select a voice: Select the voice you prefer.
      • To add a language: Select Voice and then Languages….
        • To search a language: At the search bar, enter the language.
        • To add a language: Turn on the preferred language.
        • To remove a language: Turn off the language.
      • Turn on or off text highlighting:
        • To turn on text highlighting: Select Turn on highlight .
        • To turn off text highlighting: Select Turn off highlight .

Tips:

  • To pin Reading mode, at the top right of the side panel, select Pin to toolbar Pin.
  • At the top right of the browser toolbar, you can access Reading mode after you pin it. Select Reading mode .
  • When you use Reading mode for the first time, natural voices for the page language are automatically downloaded.
  • When there isn’t enough space for the toolbar options to fit, you can find the toolbar options when you select More More.

Related resources

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