Listen to a PDF With Text to Speech

A long PDF is easy to save and hard to finish. You can listen to it instead.

With CatchGist, you upload the file in your browser, pick a voice, and hear the document. You can hear the original with text to speech, or hear the gist first and ask questions. No account is needed to start.

Hear a PDF in the browser

1. Open catchgist.com.
2. On the first screen, choose Language you hear and a Voice.
3. Upload your PDF. You can also add a webpage, pasted text, or an image.
4. Tap Hear the original to listen to the readable text, or Catch the gist if you want the point first.

This works for a report, a memo, a paper, or another document you would rather hear than reread on screen. Printed or scanned pages can be read too; those files may take a little longer because the text has to be recognized first.

Very long documents may exceed the reading limit. Try a shorter section if the full document cannot play. You still listen on catchgist.com. Nothing is published, and the file is not turned into a podcast.

Gist first, if you do not want all 20 pages at once

If you only need to know what the document is saying, start with the gist. You can interrupt at any time and ask about a section, a number, or a claim, by voice or by typing.

If you already want the whole PDF, use text to speech and hear the original. You can come back to the gist later in the same session.

Several related documents

If you have a few related PDFs or articles, you can add up to five at once. CatchGist compares them only when you ask, so you can hear where they agree and where they differ.

Free to try

You get 10 free uses in total, shared between gists and full-text listens. They do not reset monthly. You can start without signing in; sign in to save the briefing and find it later.

Try it with a PDF at catchgist.com.