How to Create Your Personal Voice on iPhone

Personal Voice lets you create a synthesized version of your own voice that your iPhone can speak on your behalf — a powerful accessibility feature.

In this guide (5 steps):

1.Open the Personal Voice settings
2.Record the phrases
3.Let your phone process the voice
4.Set up Live Speech
5.Use Live Speech to speak

Open the Personal Voice settings

~16s

On your iPhone, go to SettingsAccessibilityPersonal Voice. Tap "Create a Personal Voice." Read the overview and tap "Continue" to proceed.

Quick Tip

This feature requires iOS 17 or later on iPhone 12 or newer. Check your iOS version in SettingsGeneralAbout.

Record the phrases

~24s

The recording session consists of 150 short phrases. Hold your iPhone about 6-8 inches from your mouth in a quiet room. Tap the microphone button and read each phrase clearly and naturally — speak at your normal volume and pace. Tap the checkmark when done with each phrase.

Quick Tip

You don't have to record all 150 phrases in one session. Tap "Done" at any time and come back later — your progress is saved.

Let your phone process the voice

~21s

After completing the recordings, your iPhone will say "Personal Voice is being created." This processing happens on your device and can take several hours — usually overnight. Your phone needs to be plugged in and not in use during processing.

Warning

Processing can take anywhere from a few hours to overnight. Do not delete the app or reset your phone during this time.

Set up Live Speech

~16s

Once Personal Voice is ready, go to SettingsAccessibilityLive Speech and toggle it on. Select your Personal Voice from the voice list. You can also add frequently used phrases as shortcuts (like "Could you repeat that?" or "I'll need a moment to type").

Use Live Speech to speak

~27s

To activate Live Speech, triple-click the side button (or Home button on older models). The Live Speech keyboard will appear. Type what you want to say and tap the "Send" button. Your Personal Voice will speak the text through your phone's speaker. During phone or FaceTime calls, the voice plays through the call.

Quick Tip

You can add saved phrases so you don't have to type common responses each time. Go to SettingsAccessibilityLive SpeechPhrases to add your most-used phrases.

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Personal Voice is an iPhone and iPad feature introduced in iOS 17 that lets you create a synthesized version of your own voice. You record yourself reading 150 short phrases, and your iPhone uses this audio to generate a digital voice that sounds like you.

This voice can then be used with a feature called Live Speech, which lets you type what you want to say and have your iPhone speak it in your voice — out loud during phone calls, FaceTime calls, or in person. This is especially meaningful for people who are at risk of losing their voice due to conditions like ALS, throat cancer, or other medical situations.

Creating a Personal Voice takes about 15-20 minutes of recording and then up to overnight to process on your device. All processing happens on your phone — Apple does not receive or store your voice recordings on their servers.

Even if you don't need to use it right now, creating a Personal Voice while you still have your natural voice means you'll have it preserved if you ever need it in the future.

To use your Personal Voice with Live Speech, you type on your phone screen and press a button — your phone then speaks the text in your synthesized voice through the speaker or the phone's earpiece during calls.

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