How to Make Text Talk on TikTok

TikTok's text-to-speech feature lets your on-screen words do the talking, transforming simple text into an AI-generated voiceover that adds personality, humor, and accessibility to any video. This article is your complete guide to using it. We'll walk through the simple steps to turn text into voice, explore creative strategies for making your content stand out, and solve common issues that might get in your way.

What Exactly is Text-to-Speech on TikTok?

The text-to-speech function is a built-in TikTok tool that reads any text you add to your video aloud. It uses an artificial voice to narrate your words, creating an audio track that syncs with your video content. Originally introduced as an accessibility feature to help visually impaired users enjoy content more easily, it was quickly adopted by creators for its creative and comedic potential. Its deadpan delivery and distinct sound became an iconic element of TikTok humor, on par with trending audios and filters.

There are three huge benefits to using text-to-speech:

• It captures attention immediately. Whether someone is scrolling with the sound off or on, having text read aloud makes it impossible to miss your message. This is perfect for viewers who are passively watching or multitasking.
• It opens up new creative possibilities. You don't have to use your own voice to tell a story. This feature allows you to create skits with a neutral narrator, give your pets an inner monologue, or add a layer of new personality to your videos without saying a word.
• It makes your content more accessible. By providing an audio version of your on-screen text, you make your videos more inclusive for people with visual impairments. It also helps users who aren't fluent in the language to hear the pronunciation, adding another layer of clarity.

A Step-by-Step Guide to Making Text Talk on TikTok

Getting your text to speak is a straightforward process within the TikTok editor. Just follow these steps, and you'll have a voiceover ready in seconds.

Step 1: Record or Upload Your Video

Start by getting your video content ready. You can either film a new clip directly in the TikTok app by holding the red record button, or you can upload a pre-existing video from your phone's camera roll. To do this, tap the plus (+) icon at the bottom of the screen, then select "Upload" from the bottom right.

Step 2: Add Your On-Screen Text

Once your video is in the editor, it's time to add the words you want to get spoken.

• Tap the "Text" (Aa) icon located in the editing tools menu on the right side of the screen.
• Type out the sentence or phrase you want automated. Don't worry about getting it perfect just yet, you can edit it later.
• From here, you can also customize the font, color, alignment, and background of your text to match your video's aesthetic.

While you can write a long paragraph, the text-to-speech feature tends to work best with shorter, punchier text boxes. If you have a lot to say, consider breaking it up into multiple text boxes that appear one after another.

Step 3: Activate the Text-to-Speech Feature

This is where the magic happens. After you've typed your text, simply tap on the text box you just created. A small menu will pop up with a few options like "Edit," "Set duration," and "Text-to-speech."

Tap the "Text-to-speech" icon - it often looks like a person's head with radiating sound waves. As soon as you tap it, you'll hear an audio preview of your text being read aloud.

Step 4: Choose a Voice

TikTok is constantly adding new voice options to choose from. After tapping the text-to-speech icon, you might see several voice styles appear. The original robotic female voice (often nicknamed "Jessie") is the most recognizable, but other options, including various male voices, character voices (like a trickster or a cartoon), and even singing voices, offer a ton of creative flexibility. Tap through the options to find one that best fits the mood and message of your video. For comedic timing, the default voice is often the gold standard, but for storytelling, another voice might add the right touch.

Step 5: Adjust the Text Duration

This might be the most important part of getting text-to-speech right. You need to tell TikTok when your text and its corresponding narration should appear and disappear. If you get this wrong, the voice might play out of sync with your visuals or the text might vanish before the voice is finished speaking.

Here's how to set the duration correctly:

1. Tap on your text box one more time.
2. Select "Set duration" from the small pop-up menu.
3. You'll be taken to a timeline editor showing your video clip and a red bar representing your text's visibility. Drag the beginning and end sliders of this red bar to control exactly when the text appears on the screen.
4. Make sure the text remains visible for the entire time the automated voice is speaking. As you adjust the slider, you can play a preview to see how it lines up. This is also how you can sequence multiple text-to-speech clips - just set their durations to appear one after another.

Step 6: Finalize Your Video and Post

With your text-to-speech narration timed perfectly, you're ready to put the finishing touches on your TikTok. Add any trending sounds, filters, or effects you want, then tap "Next." Write a compelling caption, add relevant hashtags, and choose your cover image. When you're all set, hit "Post" to share your video with the world.

Creative Ways to Use Text-to-Speech

Knowing how to use the feature is one thing, knowing when to use it is what separates good content from great content. Here are a few proven ideas to inspire your next video.

• Give Your Pet an Inner Monologue: This is a classic TikTok trope for a reason. Film your dog staring blankly at a wall and use text-to-speech to narrate its "existential thoughts." Film your cat knocking something over and have the voice calmly explain, "This was a calculated act of rebellion." It's endlessly funny and relatable for pet owners.
• Act as a Deadpan Narrator: Use the robotic voice to narrate something happening on screen, an 'unimpressed documentary' approach. This works especially well for chaotic or funny situations. For example, filming a messy kitchen with the narration, "Here we observe the subject in its natural habitat, postponing responsibilities."
• Voiceover a Tutorial or Recipe: If you're camera-shy or just want a clear, consistent narration for your how-to videos, text-to-speech is perfect. You can demonstrate how to cook a meal, complete a DIY project, or share a life hack while the voice calmly lists the steps. It keeps the video moving and makes instructions easy to follow.
• Animate a Story: You can create compelling stories without ever appearing on camera. For example, a popular trend is to show something in a video (like a screenshot of a funny conversation or an interesting landscape) and use multiple, sequenced text-to-speech boxes to tell the backstory. The voice becomes the central storyteller.

Troubleshooting Common Text-to-Speech Problems

Like any app feature, text-to-speech can sometimes be buggy. If you find it's not working or the option isn't appearing, here are a few simple fixes to try.

1. Update Your TikTok App

The most common cause of missing features is an outdated app. Head to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store and check if there's a new version of TikTok available. Installing a fresh update often restores missing features and fixes bugs.

2. Check Your Phone's Language and Region

The text-to-speech feature, including the variety of voices, can be limited by your phone's language and your account's region settings. The feature is most robust in English-speaking regions. If you use TikTok in another language, you may have limited or no voice options.

3. Keep the Text Clip Short

Sometimes, an extremely long text clip can cause the system to glitch. If a long sentence isn't working, try breaking it into two or three shorter text boxes. You can then use the "Set duration" editor to have them play back-to-back seamlessly.

4. Clear Your App Cache

A cluttered cache can cause all sorts of performance issues. You can clear your TikTok cache without deleting any of your drafts or important data.

1. Go to your profile page.
2. Tap the three horizontal lines in the top right corner to open "Settings and privacy."
3. Scroll down to "Free up space" and tap it.
4. Tap the "Clear" button next to "Cache."

5. Restart the App (and your Phone)

When all else fails, the classic "turn it off and on again" fix works surprisingly often. Close the TikTok app completely and reopen it. If that doesn't work, try restarting your phone. This can resolve temporary glitches that are preventing a feature from working correctly.

Final Thoughts

TikTok's text-to-speech feature is a fantastic tool that's both functional and creative. By turning text into narration, you can grab attention faster, tell better stories, improve your video's accessibility, and create comedic moments without ever having to record your own voice.

Once you've perfected content creation with features like text-to-speech, keeping your posting schedule organized is the next challenge. We've found that having a clear plan is what makes growth sustainable. That's why we built Postbase with a visual content calendar that lets us plan and schedule all our TikTok videos alongside content for Instagram, YouTube Shorts, and our other platforms. It takes the stress away so we can focus on being creative.