To change the speed of the Windows speech voice, open Start > Settings > Time & language > Speech. Under Voices, adjust the voice speed and use the preview to hear the result. Microsoft does not specify a numeric range or units for this control, and the options may differ between Windows releases.
Change the speech speed in Windows Settings
- Open Settings from Start.
- Select Time & language, then Speech.
- Under Voices, adjust the voice speed and preview the voice. Microsoft describes this section as letting you change the default voice and its speed, then preview it: Download languages and voices for Immersive Reader, Read Mode, and Read Aloud.
The Microsoft instructions do not give the control a numeric range or units. Use the preview to find a speed that works for you rather than relying on a particular words-per-minute value.
If the voice or language you want is missing
Go to Settings > Time & language > Language & region, select the language’s options, and check whether Text-to-speech is available to download. Microsoft notes that speech features are not offered for every language. See Manage the language and keyboard/input layout settings in Windows.
Choose the control that matches the speech feature
The Speech page changes the Windows speech voice speed. Other features have their own controls, so changing this setting may not change their playback rate.
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- Narrator: Use Narrator’s own Speed setting. Microsoft documents it separately in Chapter 7: Customizing Narrator.
- Word Read Aloud: Use the app’s Read Aloud controls where available. Microsoft documents a speech-rate slider for some Word platforms in Listen to your Word documents.
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