Listen to Telegram
CastReader reads Telegram Web channels, groups, and DMs aloud with natural voices — perfect for keeping up with public news channels and long-form broadcasts.
Shipping note: we moved the rate-limiting logic into the edge layer this week. The observable effect is that P99 latency on /search dropped from 420ms to 180ms. Most of the win came from not waking up the DB for rate-limit decisions. Docs updated in the wiki — ping me if you want the design memo.
Reads the message body — avatars, timestamps, reactions are skipped
How CastReader Works with Telegram
Built for public channels and long-form broadcasts
Public Channels
🔊 News / Tech Channels as Audio
Telegram's killer use case is public broadcast channels — news, tech updates, sports, crypto. CastReader turns any channel into a hands-free listen experience. Click Listen on the latest post, or start at the top of your morning and auto-advance through the day's broadcasts.
Long-Form Posts
Channel Essays Read Cleanly
Many Telegram channels post 500-1,500 word essays — effectively mini-newsletters. CastReader reads the full post body, handling Telegram's limited markdown (bold, italic, code) gracefully.
Media Captions
Photo and Video Captions Read, Media Skipped
Telegram messages often pair a photo or video with a long caption. CastReader reads the caption text and skips the media attachment — you get the commentary without a silent pause for a video you're not watching.
Group Chats and DMs
Works Everywhere Text Lives
Public channel, private group, one-on-one DM — CastReader works on all of them. Audio plays only in your browser, never shared back to Telegram or the sender.
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about listening to Telegram with CastReader
Does Telegram have a built-in read-aloud feature?
No. Telegram has no text-to-speech for messages on any of its apps. CastReader adds a 🔊 Listen button on every message in Telegram Web so you can hear any channel or chat read aloud for free.
Which version of Telegram does this work on?
CastReader works on Telegram Web — web.telegram.org/k/ (the K version) and web.telegram.org/a/ (the A version). Both are accessed in your browser. The native iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows Telegram apps are outside the extension's scope.
Can I listen to a public news channel as a podcast?
Yes. Most public channels (news, tech, sports, etc.) work best with CastReader. Open the channel, click Listen on the latest post, and CastReader auto-advances through subsequent posts as you listen. Perfect for commute briefings.
Does it work with private groups and channels?
Yes, for any group or channel you have access to. CastReader reads whatever is visible in your logged-in Telegram Web session. Audio is generated locally and streamed to you — it's never sent back to the channel or other members.
What about voice messages on Telegram?
Voice messages are already audio — CastReader doesn't re-process them. It reads text messages, captions, and text posts. Voice messages play through Telegram's own player as usual.
Can I listen to Telegram on my phone hands-free?
Start playback in Telegram Web on your desktop, then use Send to Phone to stream the audio to your phone via a Telegram bot link. That's the commute-friendly flow.
Is it free?
Completely free. No API key, no usage limits, no account required. Install the Chrome extension and start listening.
Also Try
Listen to Discord
Discord server announcements read aloud
Listen to Slack
Slack channel digests read aloud
Send to Phone
Built on the same Telegram bot — stream audio to your phone
Listen to Reddit
Reddit community threads read aloud
Listen to BBC
Breaking news with native-language voices
Listen to Hacker News
Tech community threads read aloud
Start Listening Now
Completely free. No signup. Install and turn Telegram channels into audio briefings.