Make small print bigger and hear it read aloud

The short answer

Your phone has free, built-in tools that can turn the camera into a magnifying glass and read text out loud to you. They’re already on your phone; you just switch them on once. Some of them use AI to recognize the words in what the camera sees.

1Open Settings, then Accessibility

2Switch on the magnifier or read-aloud tool

3Point, zoom or select the text

4Read it bigger, or listen

On an iPhone

Use your iPhone as a magnifying glass

The Magnifier app comes built into iPhones. ^[6]

1. Open it by saying “Siri, open Magnifier,” or search for “Magnifier” on your Home Screen.
2. Point the camera at the small print (a menu, medicine label or receipt).
3. Drag the zoom slider to make the text bigger.
4. Turn on the flashlight in the app if the room is dim.
5. Tap the freeze-frame button (a circle inside a circle) to hold the picture still while you read. ^[3][6]

Tip: you can also add Magnifier to Control Center (in Settings, then Control Center) so it’s one swipe away. ^[3][6]

Hear the screen read aloud

1. Go to Settings, then Accessibility, then Spoken Content.
2. Turn on Speak Screen.
3. Now, on any page or message, swipe down with two fingers from the top of the screen. Your iPhone reads the whole screen aloud, with buttons to pause or change the speed. ^[1]
4. Prefer not to swipe? Just say “Siri, speak screen.” ^[1]

On an Android phone

The exact menu names can differ a little between brands, but the steps are similar. On Samsung phones, for example, Select to Speak is under Settings, then Accessibility, then Vision enhancements. ^[7]

Zoom in on the screen

1. Open Settings, then Accessibility, then Magnification.
2. Turn on Magnification shortcut.
3. Use the shortcut (for example, the Accessibility button, or tap the screen three times quickly), then pinch with two fingers to zoom in and out. ^[4]

Hear text read aloud, even from paper

1. Open Settings, then Accessibility, then Select to Speak.
2. Turn on the Select to Speak shortcut.
3. On any screen, start Select to Speak (for example, swipe up with two fingers or tap the Accessibility button), touch or drag across the text, then press Play. ^[5]

Google says Select to Speak can also read printed text through the camera: open the Google Camera app (Google’s instructions name this app; other camera apps may not work), point it at a page, start Select to Speak, and drag your finger over the words to hear them. ^[5]