// Speechify alternative
Speechify's reading, on your Mac. And it types, too.
Speechify reads text aloud, but it is a subscription and it runs in the cloud. Hushbird reads any selected text back to you entirely on your Mac, turns your voice into text as well, and is $39.99 once.
Launch price. $39.99 through September 1, 2026, then $79.99.
Why people switch
On-device
Private, works offline
Speechify processes in the cloud, so an outage at their provider is an outage for you. Hushbird's voice runs locally on your Mac, so nothing is uploaded, it works with no internet, and there is no service to go down.
Pay once
$39.99, not a yearly plan
Speechify's premium plans renew every year. Hushbird is one purchase, licensed for two Macs.
Both ways
It dictates, too
Speechify is built to read. Hushbird also turns your voice into clean text in any app, so one tool covers reading and writing.
Side by side
| Feature | Hushbird | Speechify |
|---|---|---|
| Reads text aloud | Yes | Yes |
| Dictation into any app | Yes | Limited |
| Runs on-device (private) | Yes | No, cloud |
| Works offline | Yes | No |
| Keeps working during a cloud outage | Yes | No |
| Pricing | $39.99 once | Yearly subscription |
| Best for | Private, native Mac use | Huge voice library, cross-platform |
// fair is fair Speechify has a massive catalog of voices, mobile apps, and document/OCR reading across platforms. If you want the biggest voice library on every device, it wins there. Hushbird trades that for privacy, a one-time price, and being a native Mac tool that also dictates.
Hear it in your browser, then on your Mac
There is a reader try-box on the home page. The app's voice runs on-device; the web preview is the only cloud exception, clearly marked. 7-day full trial, no card.