Google has been working on a reading mode feature for the Android version of Chrome for several months. Now, the software giant has introduced a feature called “Listen to this page” with the latest Chrome update. Activated with a podcast-like tool, this feature provides significant convenience for users on text-focused web pages.

Content Read by Chrome

Based on my tests with Chrome version 126 for Android, when the “Listen to this page” feature is enabled, a simple playback window is presented to the user. The controls here resemble those of a music or podcast player, allowing for actions such as fast-forwarding, rewinding, speeding up, and pausing. Additionally, the reading voice can be changed from among five options, with the default being the Cloud voice.

This feature, which supports multiple languages, can be accessed by entering a text-based web page and tapping the three dots in the top right corner. The feature is located between the “Translate” and “Add to Home screen” options. Additionally, you can ask Google Assistant to read web pages aloud for you.

A similar feature is also being tested for the desktop version. Furthermore, a nearly identical feature has been available on iPhones through the Safari browser for some time, where Siri reads web pages aloud. Google has begun a wide rollout of the “Listen to this page” feature, which is available to users in versions of the app following version 125.