Hear text read aloud with Narrator

Windows 10

Closed Captioning button — Watch a video about how to hear text read aloud with Narrator. (To view captions in your language, tap or click the Closed captioning button .)

Narrator is a screen reader that reads text on the screen aloud and describes events like error messages so you can use your PC without a display.

Note

Narrator is available in English (United States, United Kingdom, and India), French, Italian, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin (Chinese Simplified and Chinese Traditional), Cantonese (Chinese Traditional), Spanish (Spain and Mexico), Polish, Russian, and Portuguese (Brazil).

Starting Narrator

There are different ways to start Narrator. These are the four ways many people prefer:

On a keyboard, press the Windows logo key +Enter.
On a tablet, press the Windows logo button and Volume Up button together.
On the sign-in screen, tap or click the Ease of access button in the lower-left corner and choose Narrator.
Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.) Tap or click Ease of Access, tap or click Narrator, and then move the slider under Narrator to turn it on.

Tips

If you want to get started right away, press Caps Lock+F1 after you open Narrator, or tap the touchscreen three times with four fingers. This will show you all of the Narrator commands.
If you want to use Caps Lock to capitalize letters while you're using Narrator, press the Caps Lock key twice in quick succession.

Exiting Narrator

There are also different ways to exit Narrator. These are the two shortcuts many people prefer:

On a keyboard, press the Windows logo key +Enter.
On a tablet, press the Windows logo button and Volume Up button together.

New touch gestures

Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 have new actions and new locations for common commands. Here are a few important gestures to get you started.

Use this touch gesture	To do this
Use this touch gesture Swipe in from the right edge with one finger	To do this Open the charms (Search, Share, Start, Devices, Settings)
Use this touch gesture Swipe in from the left edge with one finger	To do this Switch apps, snap them to the side, and close them
Use this touch gesture Swipe in from the top or bottom edge with one finger	To do this Show app commands like Save, Edit, and Delete

Note

The press and hold gesture isn't supported in Narrator.

New keyboard shortcuts

Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 have new keyboard shortcuts too. Here are a few helpful ones.

Use this keyboard shortcut	To do this
Use this keyboard shortcut Windows logo key‌ +C	To do this Open the charms (Search, Share, Start, Devices, Settings)
Use this keyboard shortcut Windows logo key‌ +Z	To do this Show app commands like Save, Edit, and Delete
Use this keyboard shortcut Windows logo key‌ +period	To do this Snap apps to the side
Use this keyboard shortcut Windows logo key‌ +Tab or Alt+Tab	To do this Switch apps

Narrator settings

You can change settings for Narrator in PC settings. To find these settings:

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)
Tap or click Ease of Access, and then change any of the following settings.

Hear what's on the screen

Narrator. Use this slider to turn Narrator on or off.
Start narrator automatically. You can choose whether Narrator starts automatically each time you sign in.

Voice

Choose a voice. With this drop-down menu you can select different types of voices in Narrator, if they're available in your language.
Speed. You can change the speed of the voice with this slider.
Pitch. You can change the pitch of the voice with this slider.

Sounds you hear

Read hints for controls and buttons. You can choose whether Narrator will read hints about how to interact with common items such as buttons, links, list items, and sliders.
Characters you type. You can choose whether or not Narrator reads each key you enter
Words you type. Choose whether or not Narrator reads the words that you type.
Lower the volume of other apps when Narrator is running. This option makes other apps quieter so it's easier to hear Narrator.
Play audio cues. This option turns on the extra sounds that Narrator plays when you do certain actions.

Cursor and keys

Highlight the cursor. This option lets you show or hide the box that highlights where Narrator is on your screen.
Have insertion point follow Narrator. This option lets you show or hide the box that highlights where Narrator is on your screen.
Activate keys on touch keyboard when I lift my finger off the keyboard. If touch mode is available, you can turn this setting on so you can type faster using the touch keyboard. With this setting, you can drag to search for the item you're looking for and lift your finger to press the key.

Keyboard commands

Use this keyboard shortcut	To do this
Use this keyboard shortcut Ctrl	To do this Stop reading
Use this keyboard shortcut Windows logo key +Enter	To do this Exit Narrator
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Space	To do this Do primary action
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Right arrow	To do this Move to next item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Left Arrow	To do this Move to previous item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Up arrow	To do this Change view
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Down arrow	To do this Change view
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock + A	To do this Change verbosity mode
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F1	To do this Show commands list
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F2	To do this Show commands for current item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F3	To do this Jump to next cell in row
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+F3	To do this Jump to previous cell in row
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F4	To do this Jump to next cell in column
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+F4	To do this Jump to previous cell in column
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F5	To do this Read which row and column Narrator is in
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F6	To do this Jump to table cell
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F7	To do this Read current column
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F8	To do this Read current row
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F9	To do this Read current column header
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F10	To do this Read current row header
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F11	To do this Toggle touch mode on/off
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F12	To do this Toggle keystroke announcements
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Z	To do this Lock Narrator Key
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+X	To do this Pass keys to app
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+V	To do this Repeat last phrase
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Page Up	To do this Increase voice volume
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Page Down	To do this Decrease voice volume
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Plus	To do this Increase voice speed
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Minus	To do this Decrease voice speed
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+D	To do this Read item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+F	To do this Read item advanced
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+S	To do this Read item spelled out or read detailed reading for Japanese or Korean
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+W	To do this Read Window
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+R	To do this Read all items in containing area
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Q	To do this Move to last item in containing area
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+G	To do this Move Narrator cursor to system cursor
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+T	To do this Move Narrator cursor to pointer
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Tilde	To do this Set focus to item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Backspace	To do this Go back one item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Insert	To do this Jump to linked item
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+M	To do this Start reading
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Close bracket	To do this Read text from start to cursor
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+0 (zero)	To do this Read text attributes
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+H	To do this Read document
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+U	To do this Read next page
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Ctrl+U	To do this Read current page
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+U	To do this Read previous page
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+I	To do this Read next paragraph
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Ctrl+I	To do this Read current paragraph
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+I	To do this Read previous paragraph
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+O	To do this Read next line
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Ctrl+O	To do this Read current line
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+O	To do this Read previous line
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+P	To do this Read next word
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Ctrl+P	To do this Read current word
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+P	To do this Read previous word
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Open bracket	To do this Read next character
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Ctrl+Open bracket	To do this Read current character
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+Open bracket	To do this Read previous character
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+J	To do this Jump to next heading
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+J	To do this Jump to previous heading
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+K	To do this Jump to next table
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+K	To do this Jump to previous table
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+L	To do this Jump to next link
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Shift+L	To do this Jump to previous link
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+Y	To do this Move to beginning of text
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+B	To do this Move to end of text
Use this keyboard shortcut Caps Lock+C	To do this Read current date/time

Touch commands

If you have a new PC that supports four or more contact points, you can use touch commands to control your PC.

Use this touch command	To do this
Use this touch command Swipe left/right with one finger	To do this Move to next or previous item
Use this touch command Swipe up/down with one finger	To do this Change move increment
Use this touch command Tap or drag a single finger	To do this Read what's under your finger
Use this touch command Double-tap with one finger	To do this Activate primary action
Use this touch command Triple-tap with one finger	To do this Activate secondary action
Use this touch command Swipe left/right/up/down with two fingers	To do this Scroll
Use this touch command Tap with two fingers	To do this Stop Narrator from reading
Use this touch command Double-tap with two fingers	To do this Show context menu
Use this touch command Hold with one finger and tap with a second	To do this Activate primary action
Use this touch command Hold with one finger and double-tap with a second	To do this Activate secondary action
Use this touch command Swipe left/right with three fingers	To do this Tab forward and backward
Use this touch command Swipe up with three fingers	To do this Read current window
Use this touch command Swipe down with three fingers	To do this Start reading explorable text
Use this touch command Tap with three fingers	To do this Change verbosity mode
Use this touch command Double-tap with three fingers	To do this Read Text Attributes
Use this touch command Hold with one finger and tap with two other fingers	To do this Start dragging or extra key options
Use this touch command Swipe left/right with four fingers	To do this Move Narrator cursor to beginning / end of unit
Use this touch command Swipe up/down with four fingers	To do this Turn zoom on/off
Use this touch command Tap with four fingers	To do this Show commands for current item
Use this touch command Double-tap with four fingers	To do this Toggle search mode
Use this touch command Triple-tap with four fingers	To do this Show Narrator commands list

Note

Narrator provides basic screen-reading capabilities so you can use Windows when you don't have a more comprehensive screen reader. Narrator isn't designed to read content in all apps. For more info about screen readers and other assistive technologies, go to the Microsoft Accessibility website.

Windows 7

Windows comes with a basic screen reader called Narrator, which reads text on the screen aloud and describes some events (such as an error message appearing) that happen while you're using the computer.

Narrator is not available in all languages, so if the steps below don't work, Narrator is not available for your language.

To open Narrator click the Start button , and then, in the search box, type Narrator. In the list of results, click Narrator.

Use the keyboard shortcuts in the following table to specify which text you want Narrator to read:

Use this keyboard shortcut	To do this
Use this keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+Enter	To do this Get information about the current item
Use this keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar	To do this Read the entire selected window
Use this keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Alt+Spacebar	To do this Read the items that are selected in the current window
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+Ctrl+G	To do this Read a description of the items that appear next to the currently selected element
Use this keyboard shortcut Ctrl	To do this Stop Narrator from reading text
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+Q	To do this Move the cursor backward to the beginning of any preceding text that has different formatting. For example, the cursor moves from a bold word to the beginning of a non-bold word that precedes it.
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+W	To do this Move the cursor to the beginning of any text that follows it that has different formatting. For example, the cursor moves from a bold word to the beginning of a non-bold word that follows it.
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+E	To do this Move the cursor back to the beginning of any text that has the same formatting. For example, the cursor moves from the middle of a bold word to the beginning of that word.
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+R	To do this Move the cursor to the end of any text that has the same formatting. For example, the cursor moves from the middle of a bold word to the end of that word.
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F2	To do this Select all of the text that has the same formatting as the character at the cursor
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F3	To do this Read the current character
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F4	To do this Read the current word
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F5	To do this Read the current line
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F6	To do this Read the current paragraph
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F7	To do this Read the current page
Use this keyboard shortcut Insert+F8	To do this Read the current document

Note

The Insert key is used for Narrator commands, so when you press Insert while Narrator is running, you won't be able to insert characters. To use the Insert key to insert characters while Narrator is running, press Insert+I and then the characters you want to add.

Show all

Choose which text Narrator reads aloud

To open Narrator click the Start button , and then, in the search box, type Narrator. In the list of results, click Narrator.
Under Main Narrator Settings, do one or more of the following:
- To hear what you type, select the Echo User's Keystrokes check box.
- To hear background events, such as notifications, select the Announce System Messages check box.
- To hear an announcement when the screen scrolls, select the Announce Scroll Notifications check box.

Change the Narrator voice

To open Narrator click the Start button , and then, in the search box, type Narrator. In the list of results, click Narrator.
Click Voice Settings, and then make any of the following adjustments:
- To select a different voice, click the voice you want to use in the Select Voice box.
- For a faster voice, select a number in the Set Speed list. The higher the number, the faster the voice.
- For a louder voice, select a number in the Set Volume list. The higher the number, the louder the voice.
- For a higher-pitched voice, select a number in the Set Pitch list. The higher the number, the higher the pitch. A higher-pitched voice can be easier for some people to hear.

Start Narrator minimized

To open Narrator click the Start button , and then, in the search box, type Narrator. In the list of results, click Narrator.
Select the Start Narrator Minimized check box.

The next time you start Narrator, it will appear as an icon on the taskbar instead of being open on your screen.

To restore the Narrator dialog box to its full size, click Narrator in the taskbar.

Turn off Narrator

To open Narrator click the Start button , and then, in the search box, type Narrator. In the list of results, click Narrator.
Click Control whether Narrator starts when I log on.
Clear the Turn on Narrator and Turn on Audio Description check boxes and click Apply.

Windows Vista

Windows comes with a basic screen reader called Narrator that reads text on the screen aloud and describes some events (such as an error message appearing) that happen while you're using the computer.