Available for DRM-free EPUB
iPhone, iPad, and Android
Import a DRM-free EPUB in the CastReader mobile app and read it with synchronized highlighting and listening controls.
Files protected by DRM are not supported.
Current document support
Choose the CastReader app that matches your document
The castreader.com local reader accepts PDF, DOCX, DRM-free EPUB, TXT, Markdown, and HTML. The browser extension Reader accepts PDF, DOCX, TXT, Markdown, and images but cannot import EPUB.
Local EPUB import unavailable
Chrome, Edge, and Firefox extensions
Use the extension Reader for local PDF, DOCX, TXT, Markdown, and image files, as well as supported webpages and browser-based readers. It does not accept a local .epub file.
Local EPUB import is the exception; other listed Reader file formats remain available in the extension.
Choose a browser extensioncastreader.com
This website reads supported local files without uploading the original file. It does not export EPUB or other documents as downloadable MP3 files.
On-device voices send no text. AI voices send the paragraph being spoken; AI explanation sends selected text unless you explicitly approve the whole document.
Compare all CastReader versionsEPUB support, without platform ambiguity
Can the Chrome, Edge, or Firefox extension import a local EPUB?
No. The extension Reader accepts local PDF, DOCX, TXT, Markdown, and image files, but EPUB is not one of its accepted local formats.
Where can I open a DRM-free EPUB with CastReader?
Use the local reader on castreader.com or the CastReader app for iPhone, iPad, or Android. Import availability still depends on the EPUB structure and whether the file is DRM-free.
Can this website convert my EPUB to a downloadable MP3?
No. The local web reader can open and read supported files but does not convert them into a downloadable MP3.
Does CastReader remove or bypass ebook DRM?
No. CastReader does not bypass DRM, ownership, publisher restrictions, or source permissions.
Listen on Your Phone
Download the CastReader app for DRM-free EPUB import and supported mobile reading workflows.
Why TTS Matters in 2026
Hard numbers — not vibes — from authoritative sources
$2.22 billion
US audiobook sales in 2024, up 13% year-over-year (Publishers Weekly / Audio Publishers Association)
Source →51%
of US adults have listened to an audiobook in 2025 — roughly 134 million people (APA Consumer Survey 2025)
Source →2.2 billion
people globally with near- or far-vision impairment (WHO Fact Sheet, 2024). TTS is the primary access path for digital reading content.
Source →78%
of audiobook listeners multitask while listening — commute, chores, exercise (Audiolibrix Great Audiobook Survey, 2024)
Source →27.2 minutes
average single-trip US commute in 2024, up from 26.8 (US Census ACS via Statista). That's nearly an hour each day of audio-only time.
Source →effect size 0.35
measured comprehension lift from TTS for reading-disabled students across 22 studies (Wood, Moxley, Tighe & Wagner, Journal of Learning Disabilities, 2018)
Source →15.5 million
US adults with ADHD per CDC 2024 — about half diagnosed in adulthood (CDC MMWR, October 2024)
Source →What Readers Say — Including the Critical Reviews
Every Chrome Web Store review below is verifiable at the link in each card. We don't hide negative feedback — we answer it within 24 hours.
★★★★★
“This is 1 of the best TTS and its smooth. If this is truly free i'll keep this 100%. Every other TTS says its free but has a secret. They interrupt or they just say better ai voices pay. But i like this voice. I've tried loads and this is 1 of the best ones that actually says free.”
★★★★★
“Works perfectly on vivaldi. One suggestion though. I wish it had a play button appear next to a paragraph when we hover over it. Just like in the case of speechify.”
★★★★★
“Extremely user friendly short keys. Placed forward backward and speed up down as Natural as it could be. Voices are great and smooth. I would recommend it over many hyped products.”
★★★★★
“At the very least it's better than many paid TTS models. Still not as good as ElevenReader or LAP, but maybe the best free model for TTS.”
★★★★★
“So glad I can finally switch voices! The default was fine but I found one I actually enjoy listening to for hours. Small thing, huge difference.”
★★★★★
“Best one i found, user friendly, and great voice over.”
★★★★★
“ChatGPT's long answers are finally listenable. Let it generate while I listen — doubles my productivity. Love the inline button next to each response.”
★★★★★
“I tried using this add-on to listen to an ebook on the O'Reilly learning platform, and it works smoothly. However, it always restarts from the first paragraph whenever I scroll or select a different paragraph. Please consider adding a bookmark or checkpoint feature so users can mark where the reading should begin.”
↪ Founder reply
Replied by CastReader founder Yan Xu within 48 hours: acknowledged the issue, shipped a bookmark feature in the following release. Reviewer's verbatim feedback drove the v1.2 roadmap.
★★★★★
“Need to highlight text and select it.”
★★★★★
“Hard to select text.”
↪ Founder reply
Replied by CastReader founder Yan Xu within 24 hours: apologized, asked which site/browser the issue occurred on, provided a workaround using the keyboard shortcut, and offered direct support at support@castreader.ai.
Recent Updates
We re-test, re-write, and ship continuously. Every entry has a real date.
Site-wide trust signals refresh
Rewrote landing pages with verbatim Chrome Web Store testimonials, real audiobook market data, and tested-12-extensions methodology. Every claim now has a sourceable link.
Native mobile listening
CastReader provides native apps for iPhone and Android; Android downloads are available directly from Google Play.
Technical deep-dive published
Wrote up the OCR pipeline: how CastReader handles Amazon's 184 random font alphabets and 361 unique glyphs per Kindle book. Shared in dev.to.
Mobile Kindle Read Aloud page added
The phone app flow now has its own landing page for bookshelf sync, Read Aloud, synced highlighting, auto-scroll, background playback, and resume progress.
Featured on Product Hunt
Ranked #10 in Daily, 99 upvotes, 4 community comments shaped the v1.2 roadmap.
Voice quality upgrade — Kokoro AI
Switched from older TTS engines to Kokoro neural voices. User reviews shifted from 'usable but robotic' to 'enjoy listening for hours' (verbatim from review by patrick chiang).
First wave of extraction reliability improvements
OCR success rate improved from 78% to 89% on English-language Kindle books. Multi-column page detection added for academic PDFs.
Why This Exists
I built CastReader because I owned hundreds of Kindle books and couldn't listen to them on my morning runs without buying separate Audible copies. The technical problem — Amazon's Cloud Reader font encryption — turned out to be solvable with OCR. The product problem — making it actually pleasant across phones, desktops, and 9 supported languages — took two years of iteration. We're a small team. I answer every Chrome Web Store review personally (see testimonials above — including the 3-star and 1-star ones). If something's broken or missing, email support@castreader.ai.
— Yan Xu, founder
Last reviewed: · CastReader Team — reviewed against 2025 testing data
Read PDFs out loud on every device — browser, phone, or desktop.
Free CastReader works on Chrome / Edge / iOS / Android / Mac. Turn any PDF into speech online, no install required.
Browser extensions
For supported webpages and browser-based readers. File import varies by browser; use the mobile app for a consistent DRM-free EPUB workflow.
Mobile apps
For DRM-free EPUBs and mobile reading on iPhone, iPad, and Android.
Supported webpages· Kindle / Google Docs / Notion· DRM-free EPUB on mobile· 9 languages · German included
Official App Store and Google Play downloads · Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari for Mac extensions