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NaturalReader makes it easy to start listening to content from a wide range of sources. You can upload documents, type or paste in your own text, scan image-based files, or add a webpage by URL. This article covers each of these options for both the web version and mobile app.
Upload a Document
To upload a document from your device:
On web
Drag and drop the file directly into the reader area, or
Click Upload Document from the sidebar, then select Document
On mobile
Tap the Home icon to return to the Library if needed.
Tap Add from the bottom toolbar, then choose Document
You can upload one or multiple files at once. Each file will be added as a separate document in your library.
Supported formats include:
.doc, .docx, .pdf, .txt, .rtf, .epub, .pptx, and .odt
Type or Paste Text
Create a new document with your own text.
On Web
Click Add Text from the sidebar
Type or paste content directly into the editor
Click the Clipboard icon to quickly paste copied content
Click the X icon to clear the text field
On Mobile
Tap the Home icon to return to the Library, if needed
Tap Add > Text
Type or paste content directly into the editor
Tap the Clipboard icon to paste
Tap the Tx button to clear the text field
To save your work:
For desktop, tap or click the menu (three dots) in the top right corner, then select Save Text to save the content as a PDF file in your library. On mobile, tap the Save icon from the toolbar.
Listen to Scanned PDFs and Images (OCR)
If you upload a scanned PDF or an image file (such as a .jpg or .png), NaturalReader will automatically detect that it contains non-selectable text and offer to convert it using OCR (Optical Character Recognition). This process turns the visual text into readable, selectable content so it can be read aloud.
Upload a Scanned PDF
Scanned PDFs are often saved as .pdf files, even if they contain only images. To upload one:
On web:
Drag and drop the file directly into the reader area, or
Click Upload Document > Document in the sidebar, then upload the file.
On mobile:
Tap the Home button to return to the Library, if needed.
Tap Add > Document, then select your scanned PDF.
After uploading:
Click or tap Play on the document.
If the file contains unreadable text, NaturalReader will prompt you to use OCR.
Select the page range you want to convert (up to 50 pages at a time).
(Optional) Choose Set Margins to manually adjust the area to be converted.
Tap Cancel to exit margin mode or the checkmark to confirm.
Tap or click Convert Now to begin conversion.
After it's done converting, click or tap Play to listen
If the file has more than 50 pages, repeat the process for additional batches. You do not need to split the file manually—just select a new page range when prompted.
Upload an Image or Photo
You can also use OCR on image files such as .jpg or .png.
On web:
Drag and drop the image(s) into the reading area or
From the sidebar, select Upload Document > Image
On mobile:
Tap the Home button to return to the Library if needed.
Tap Add > Photo Library to upload existing images, or
Tap Add > Camera Scanner to take a new photo.
After it's done converting, click or tap Play to listen
You can upload up to 20 images at once. When you upload multiple images, they will be combined into a single document, which can then be processed and read as one file.
Tips for Best Results
Use high-resolution, high-contrast scans or images
Printed or neatly written text gives the best accuracy
Handwritten text can work, but very messy handwriting may reduce accuracy
If the original page has handwritten notes, highlights, or underlining, OCR may attempt to convert those markings too
Clean, legible notes may be included in playback
Heavily layered, messy, or scrawled markings may interfere with accurate conversion or prevent the text from being converted at all
Blurry or low-light images can impact recognition
Scan to Text
Use this option to manually extract text from a scanned PDF or image file using OCR (Optical Character Recognition). This creates an fully accessible version of the document so it can be read aloud by NaturalReader.
Scan to Text is especially useful if:
The file contains a mix of selectable and non-selectable content, which may prevent the automatic OCR prompt from appearing
You want to re-convert a document to resolve reading issues, such as:
Text being read out of order (e.g. columns)
Ligatures or joined letters not being read correctly
Image-based text that is being ignored
To use Scan to Text:
On web and mobile:
Open or upload the document.
From the sidebar under More Features, select PDF > OCR > Next or
Open the 3-dot menu > Scan to Text > NextSelect the page range to convert, up to 50 pages at a time
Select Convert Now
Once it's done, press the Play button to start listening
Add a Webpage by URL
To extract and listen to content from a webpage:
On web:
From the sidebar, select Upload Document > Webpage URL.
On mobile:
Tap the Home button to return to the Library, if needed.
Tap Add > Webpage URL.
Paste the full URL (including https://), and NaturalReader will extract the readable text and add it to your library as a new document.
Note: This works best with straightforward article-style pages. Dynamic, interactive, or login-restricted content may not load properly.
Other Resources
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