Listen to your Gmail: forward once, hear it anywhere
Forward a message from Gmail to your private InboxToAudio address and get narrated audio back — or set up a filter once and let a newsletter narrate itself every week.
No Google account access, no extension, no password. Gmail just forwards a copy.
From $7.50/month billed annually · Try one email free, no card required
The one-minute version
Gmail already knows how to forward mail. InboxToAudio gives you an address to forward it to, and returns narrated audio. Nothing is installed, and no Google account access is granted.
- 1
Open the message in Gmail
On the web, use the three-dot menu at the top right of the message and choose Forward. On the Gmail mobile app, tap the three dots and then Forward.
- 2
Send it to your listening address
Paste your private address — it looks like alpha.beta.12345@inbox.inboxtoaudio.app — and send. No subject line changes or special formatting needed.
- 3
Hit play
Within a couple of minutes you get a reply with a private link, and the episode is in your queue with chapters, a transcript, and speed control.
Forward newsletters automatically with a Gmail filter
If you always want a particular newsletter as audio, let Gmail do the forwarding. This is a two-part setup: first Gmail has to trust the destination address, then a filter routes the right mail to it.
- 1
Add the forwarding address
In Gmail, go to Settings, See all settings, then the Forwarding and POP/IMAP tab. Choose “Add a forwarding address” and paste your InboxToAudio listening address.
- 2
Confirm the verification code
Google emails a confirmation code to the address you just added — which means it lands in your listening inbox. Open your listening inbox, find the message from Gmail, and use the code or link to verify.
- 3
Create the filter
Go to Settings, Filters and Blocked Addresses, then “Create a new filter.” Put the newsletter’s sending address in the From field, click Create filter, and tick “Forward it to” with your listening address selected.
- 4
Leave your inbox alone
Gmail forwards a copy, so the original issue still arrives in your Gmail exactly as before. You get both the email and the audio.
Prefer to keep it manual? Skip the filter entirely. Forwarding by hand takes three taps and gives you control over which issues become audio and which ones you skip.
Choose what gets forwarded
One sender
Filter on the newsletter’s From address to narrate just that publication — the most common setup.
A label
If you already sort reading material into a label, filter on the same criteria and forward it. Everything you were saving for later becomes audio.
Long threads only
Filter on size or keywords when you only want the heavy stuff narrated and the short back-and-forth left as email.
Nothing without approval
Turn on approved senders in your listening settings so only addresses you list can create audio, even if a filter misfires.
What about Gmail’s own read-aloud?
Android’s TalkBack, iOS VoiceOver, and Chrome read-aloud extensions all speak an open message, and they are free. They read the page as it is built, though — sponsor blocks, unsubscribe footers, image alt text, and all — and they leave nothing behind when you close the tab.
Forwarding gives you cleaned text, chapters on long pieces, a saved position, a queue that survives the day, and a choice of 28 narration voices. The tradeoff is a subscription and a couple of minutes of processing.
Also works with the rest of your mail
- Outlook and Microsoft 365 — forward by hand or with an Outlook rule
- Apple Mail on Mac, iPhone, and iPad
- Yahoo, Proton, Fastmail, and any other client with a forward button
- Work mail, as long as your organization allows external forwarding
Frequently asked questions
- Forward the message to your private InboxToAudio address using Gmail’s Forward option, on the web or in the mobile app. You get narrated audio back within a couple of minutes, with chapters, a transcript, and adjustable playback speed.
Your Gmail backlog, on your commute.
Forward the newsletter you have not opened in three weeks and hear it before you get to work.
From $7.50/month billed annually · Cancel anytime