AI Voice for Accessibility: Read-Aloud and Audio Versions Fish Audio
Turn text into a listenable version: read-aloud pages, course and public information audio in 30+ languages, with the pacing rules and per-document credit math. Start from $9 with no subscription.
An audio version is not a translation of the page. It is a second format of the same content, made for the moments when reading is not possible or not comfortable: while commuting, while cooking, or for readers who face barriers on the page — dyslexia, low vision, or reading in a second language. Making one costs credits measured in the dozens, which is why organizations that publish text are starting to publish the listenable version beside it.
This guide covers where audio versions matter, how to prepare text for the ear, and what each document costs.
Where audio versions matter
- Articles and documentation. A read-aloud version of a help article or blog post reaches listeners the text never will. Keeping one voice across the set turns scattered pages into a coherent library.
- Course and training material. Narrated modules let students study screen-free; the e-learning guide covers the production loop, and the same script can ship as both video and audio.
- Public and health information. The same information re-voiced into each language a community actually speaks — the language guides cover what changes in each script.
- Policies, handbooks and manuals. Long internal documents are the least-read and most-listened format there is: a handbook narrated once is reviewed on the commute instead of never.
- Screen-free moments. The commute, the gym, the kitchen — audio versions meet readers where the page cannot.
Writing for the ear
- Short sentences, one idea each. The listener cannot re-read a clause; they hear it once at the speed you generated.
- Numbers as spoken. Write prices, dates and quantities in the form they should be heard, exactly as you would say them out loud.
- No visual shortcuts. Tables, footnotes and sidebars become spoken sequences: "the first option is... the second option is...".
- Expand abbreviations the first time, then keep the short form if it is read consistently.
- A steady pace, delivered by punctuation. Commas and full stops are the pauses; keep them where a narrator would breathe.
The workflow
- Pick one voice for the whole set and save it — consistency is the orientation system for returning listeners.
- Prepare the script, then generate the full document in one batch so the tone does not drift between chapters.
- Regenerate changed sections only. Documents update; re-voice the edited section with the same voice and splice — the download guide covers how files leave the workspace.
- Publish the audio beside the text so every page offers both formats from the start.
What does an audio version cost?
One credit covers about 1,000 characters, and English runs about six characters per word:
| Document | Words | Characters | Approximate cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Help article | ~1,000 | ~6,000 | 6 credits |
| Policy handbook | ~5,000 | ~30,000 | 30 credits |
| Audio edition of a manual | ~20,000 | ~120,000 | 120 credits |
Even a full manual sits inside one $9 Starter pack, which holds 1,000 credits. Packs are one-time purchases, credits stay valid for 12 months, and there is no subscription. Organizations and client work need the $29 Creator pack for commercial usage rights — the commercial use guide covers what each pack includes.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a replacement for a screen reader?
No — it is a second format of the text, not a tool for navigating one. A screen reader lets a person walk through any page interface-first; an audio version is a produced file a person can listen to anywhere, on any device, without the interface. The two coexist.
How should I prepare a document for listening?
Write for the ear: short sentences, numbers written as spoken, abbreviations expanded, and one idea per paragraph. Anything that depends on visual format — tables, sidebars, footnotes — should be rewritten as a spoken sequence, because the listener cannot scan back.
Which voice works for long listening?
A calm, steady narrator at a moderate pace, held across the whole series. Consistency matters more than any single voice choice: returning listeners orient by the voice, so a document set narrated by the same voice feels like one library.
Can published audio versions use generated voices?
Yes, with the right pack. Audio versions published by an organization, a course or a client project are commercial use, which starts with the $29 Creator pack. Personal projects are covered by the $9 Starter pack.
What does an audio version cost to produce?
One credit covers about 1,000 characters, so roughly 1,000 words of English runs about six credits. A help article is a few credits, a policy handbook about thirty, and a full manual around one hundred and twenty — all inside one $9 Starter pack.
Related
- AI audiobook narration - chapter-level production and credit planning for long-form audio.
- Languages hub - every language guide in one place, from Arabic to Polish.
- Fish Audio guides - the index of every workflow, tool and language on the site.