VoiceOver Audio Split

VoiceOver Audio Split puts VoiceOver’s speech in one ear and everything else in the other, like the audio split in JAWS. It also brings popular features from JAWS, NVDA and SuperNova to the Mac, and every one of them works from the keyboard.

Download VoiceOver Audio Split (installer, 3 MB)

Open the downloaded installer and follow its steps; the app goes into your Applications folder. It’s signed and notarized by Apple. All versions and release notes.

Or try the beta on TestFlight, which gets new versions first. TestFlight is by invitation: email amena.thomas@fullcircleat.com with the email address of your Apple Account (your Apple ID), and you’ll get an invitation from TestFlight at that address. Install the free TestFlight app from the Mac App Store, then accept the invitation.

It’s free, for macOS 14.2 or later. Headphones are recommended for the split.

Audio splitting

VoiceOver in your left or right ear, and all other sound in the other.
Other layouts: speech in both ears with other sounds on one side, or the reverse.
Make speech or other sounds louder with a single key.
Lower other sounds automatically while VoiceOver speaks.
Keep Zoom, Teams and FaceTime calls in both ears, or with VoiceOver.
Play VoiceOver on AirPods while everything else plays on your speakers.

Control your Mac’s sound

Quiet everything except VoiceOver with one key.
Change the volume of, or mute, just the app you’re in.
Hear which apps are playing.
Switch output devices and mute your microphone, with spoken confirmation.
Use presets such as Meeting, Music and Focus, which switch automatically when you change apps.
Place any app anywhere between your ears, and give it its own bass and treble.
Hear when another app turns the camera on, or starts using the microphone.

Hearing and clarity

A speech clarity boost that makes VoiceOver easier to understand over loud media.
Leveling for loud videos and ads.
A volume limit to protect your hearing.
One-ear mode, which combines everything into the ear you hear with.
Adjustable left and right ear balance.

Speech tools inspired by JAWS and NVDA

Speech on demand: silence VoiceOver, and hear the current item only when you ask.
Speech history you can review and copy.
Say the clipboard.
System status: battery, network, output device and microphone.
A Text Analyzer that finds formatting problems.
Quick dictionary, Wikipedia and weather lookups.
A camera framing check before video calls.
A layer key, and every shortcut can be changed.

Reading and low vision, inspired by SuperNova

Doc Reader: large print in high-contrast colors, read aloud with each word highlighted.
Scan and Read: hold a letter or label up to your camera and hear it read, with spoken guidance to line it up.
Captions: large-print captions of what VoiceOver says.
Focus frame: a bright, thick frame that follows the VoiceOver cursor.

Audio hub

Internet radio, podcasts, free LibriVox audiobooks and news headlines, all in one keyboard-friendly window.

Everyday tools

Barcode and QR code reader: hear links, Wi-Fi details and phone numbers from QR codes, and look up products by their barcode.
Medicine label reader: hears the medicine’s name first, then the rest of the label as you turn the bottle.
Money identifier, color identifier and light detector.
Document accessibility check: find missing headings, picture descriptions and table headers in Word documents and PDFs before you send them.
Braille files: save any text as a .brf file for embossers and notetakers (uncontracted Unified English Braille).

Working with apps

Custom labels: name an unlabeled button once, and hear your name for it every time.
Place markers: save a spot on a web page and jump straight back to it.
Do It for Me: ask for a control by name, such as “the search field”, and the VoiceOver cursor goes there. Nothing is pressed without your confirmation.

Learn as you go

VoiceOver Lessons: 24 lessons that teach VoiceOver from the very beginning up to Pages, Numbers, Keynote and Safari bookmarks, with real practice, real tasks it notices you doing, questions, hints, daily practice and a one-minute challenge.
A spoken tutorial, and input help that says what any key does.
VoiceOver practice: hear a task, press the VoiceOver keys for it, and keep score.
Typing trainer: talking lessons from the home row up, with finger hints, words per minute and a one-minute speed test.

Optional AI

Describe the image under the VoiceOver cursor or what’s happening in a video, ask an assistant how to do something on your Mac, find controls with Do It for Me, or identify money. These features use Claude with your own Anthropic API key. Nothing is sent unless you ask.

Voice commands

Say “Audio Split” and a command, from anywhere: “Audio Split, turn on VoiceOver”, “quiet everything”, “what time is it?”, “read this label”, “where am I?”. Speech is recognized on your Mac and never recorded; only “find…” sends your request to Anthropic, through Do It for Me. “Launch VoiceOver training” opens the lessons.

In your language

English, Spanish, French and German, following your Mac’s language.

Built for the keyboard

Every command is the right-hand Option key plus another key, so the left Option key keeps working normally. For example:

Right Option and Left Arrow, or Right Option and Right Arrow: put speech in that ear.
Right Option and Up Arrow, or Right Option and Down Arrow: speech louder, or other sounds louder.
Right Option and Space: hear what’s on.
Right Option and M: open the menu, with everything grouped in submenus.
Right Option and Return: type a few letters to find and run any command.

A setup guide walks you through each permission the first time you open the app.

Privacy

Nothing is collected or recorded.
Audio is processed on your Mac and played back instantly.
Text recognition, barcode and label reading and the other camera tools run entirely on your Mac.
Online features connect only when you use them.

Read the privacy policy

Free and open source

VoiceOver Audio Split is free software under the GNU General Public License version 3. The source code and contributor guide are on GitHub; you don’t need a GitHub account to read them or download the app.

Source code on GitHub

Feedback

Feedback from VoiceOver users shapes what comes next. To report a problem or suggest an idea, email amena.thomas@fullcircleat.com. If you use TestFlight, you can also send feedback from the TestFlight app, and if you have a GitHub account, you can open an issue on GitHub.

Download VoiceOver Audio Split (installer, 3 MB)