How to make an iPhone speak words as you type

What changed: the screenshots are now our own iPhone 17e on iOS 27.0.1, dark mode, and the wording is checked against those screens and Apple's iOS 27 guide.

howtosimply.com/guides/how-to-make-an-iphone-speak-words-as-you-type/ · Checked October 2026 · iPhone 17e · iOS 27.0.1

7 of 7 steps with real screenshots · 3 official sources below

Device

iPhone

Shown on

iOS 27.0.1 (iPhone 17e)

App

Settings

Path

Settings › Accessibility › Keyboards & Typing › Typing Feedback

Real screenshots

7 of 7 steps

Checked

October 2026

Sources

3 official, linked below

Step by step

1. 

   Open Settings and tap Accessibility

   Scroll down a little and tap Accessibility, directly below General in the same group, or type Accessibility into the Search field at the bottom of the screen.

   Watch these steps Done

2. 

   Scroll down and tap Keyboards & Typing

   Scroll down the Accessibility page to find it. On our iPhone 17e it was the only row under Accessories, below the Speech group.

   Done

3. 

   Tap Typing Feedback

   It is the second row of the page, below Hover Typing.

   Done

4. 

   Switch on Speak Words

   The note below says: speak whole words while typing. On our iPhone 17e it was off.

   Done

5. 

   Switch on Speak Auto-text if you like

   The iPhone then speaks auto-corrections and auto-capitalisations automatically, so you hear when it changes a word.

   Done

6. 

   Decide about single letters

   Characters makes the iPhone speak each letter as you type it. Character Hints adds the phonetic name of the letter. These two switches are at the top of the page, under the heading Character Feedback.

   Done

7. 

   Hear the suggested words

   With Hold to Speak Predictions on, and typing predictions enabled, you touch and hold a suggested word to hear it spoken. Typing predictions are the suggestions above the keyboard. Their switch is Predictive Text, in Settings, General, Keyboard, under All Keyboards.

   Done

What changed: the screenshots are now our own iPhone 17e on iOS 27.0.1, dark mode, and the wording is checked against those screens and Apple's iOS 27 guide.

Watch these steps

If you do not see this option

• You look under Spoken Content. Apple's Typing Feedback article puts it under Accessibility, Spoken Content, Typing Feedback. That is the layout of iOS 18 and earlier: Apple's iOS 26 and iOS 27 guides both call that page Read & Speak, and on our iPhone 17e with iOS 27.0.1 Typing Feedback is under Accessibility, Keyboards & Typing. Source: Use Typing Feedback on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch · Source: Hear iPhone speak the screen, selected text, and typing feedback
• You look under Read & Speak. On iOS 27, Read & Speak has the voice, speaking rate and Speak Screen settings. Typing Feedback has its own row on the Keyboards & Typing page, below Hover Typing. Source: Hear iPhone speak the screen, selected text, and typing feedback

If this does not work

• Hold to Speak Predictions does nothing. It needs typing predictions, the suggestions above the keyboard. Check that Predictive Text is on in Settings, General, Keyboard. Source: Use predictive text on iPhone
• The voice is hard to follow. Apple puts the voice and speaking rate for spoken content under Accessibility, Read & Speak. Change Voices or Speaking Rate there. Source: Hear iPhone speak the screen, selected text, and typing feedback

About this guide

Autocorrect changes words while your eyes are on the keys, and the mistake is noticed after the message is sent. With Typing Feedback the iPhone says aloud what it has just written, so you hear a wrong word at once. On our iPhone 17e all five switches were off.

Screenshots: iPhone 17e, iOS 27.0.1, dark mode.

Good to know

To see what you type in larger text instead of hearing it: how to see what you type in larger text on an iPhone.

In short: Settings, Accessibility, Keyboards & Typing, Typing Feedback, Speak Words on.