How to Add Voice to Mobile Apps with ElevenLabs API

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How to Integrate ElevenLabs into a Mobile App?

Via the ElevenLabs REST API. You send text to the API endpoint, and it returns high-quality audio. Integrate it into iOS (Swift), Android (Kotlin), or cross-platform (Flutter, React Native) apps with a few lines of code. No on-device ML models required — ElevenLabs handles the heavy lifting server-side.

Adding voice to your mobile app used to mean building custom TTS models, licensing expensive SDKs, or sounding robotic with built-in OS voices. ElevenLabs changes that.

What Can You Voice-Enable in a Mobile App?

• Reading content aloud: Articles, books, messages, news feeds
• Voice UI: Navigation prompts, confirmation messages, error feedback
• Language learning: Pronunciation examples, phrase repetition
• Accessibility features: Screen reading for visually impaired users
• AI assistants: In-app chatbots with spoken responses
• Guided experiences: Meditation, workout coaching, audio tours
• Storytelling apps: Children’s books narrated on demand

Integration Tutorial by Platform

iOS / Swift Integration

Call the ElevenLabs TTS endpoint from your Swift app:

import Foundation
import AVFoundation

func generateSpeech(text: String) {
    let url = URL(string: "https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/text-to-speech/YOUR_VOICE_ID")!
    var request = URLRequest(url: url)
    request.httpMethod = "POST"
    request.setValue("application/json", forHTTPHeaderField: "Content-Type")
    request.setValue("YOUR_API_KEY", forHTTPHeaderField: "xi-api-key")
    
    let body: [String: Any] = [
        "text": text,
        "model_id": "eleven_multilingual_v2",
        "voice_settings": ["stability": 0.5, "similarity_boost": 0.75]
    ]
    request.httpBody = try? JSONSerialization.data(withJSONObject: body)
    
    URLSession.shared.dataTask(with: request) { data, _, _ in
        guard let data = data else { return }
        // Play audio with AVAudioPlayer
        let player = try? AVAudioPlayer(data: data)
        player?.play()
    }.resume()
}

Android / Kotlin Integration

import okhttp3.*
import java.io.IOException

val client = OkHttpClient()

fun generateSpeech(text: String) {
    val json = """
    {
        "text": "$text",
        "model_id": "eleven_multilingual_v2",
        "voice_settings": {"stability": 0.5, "similarity_boost": 0.75}
    }
    """.trimIndent()
    
    val request = Request.Builder()
        .url("https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/text-to-speech/YOUR_VOICE_ID")
        .addHeader("xi-api-key", "YOUR_API_KEY")
        .post(json.toRequestBody(MediaType.parse("application/json")))
        .build()
    
    client.newCall(request).enqueue(object : Callback {
        override fun onResponse(call: Call, response: Response) {
            val audioBytes = response.body?.bytes()
            // Play audio with MediaPlayer
        }
        override fun onFailure(call: Call, e: IOException) {}
    })
}

Flutter Integration

import 'package:http/http.dart' as http;
import 'package:audioplayers/audioplayers.dart';

Future<void> generateSpeech(String text) async {
  final response = await http.post(
    Uri.parse('https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/text-to-speech/YOUR_VOICE_ID'),
    headers: {
      'Content-Type': 'application/json',
      'xi-api-key': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
    },
    body: jsonEncode({
      'text': text,
      'model_id': 'eleven_multilingual_v2',
      'voice_settings': {'stability': 0.5, 'similarity_boost': 0.75},
    }),
  );
  
  if (response.statusCode == 200) {
    final player = AudioPlayer();
    await player.playBytes(response.bodyBytes);
  }
}

React Native Integration

import RNFS from 'react-native-fs';
import Sound from 'react-native-sound';

async function generateSpeech(text) {
  const response = await fetch(
    'https://api.elevenlabs.io/v1/text-to-speech/YOUR_VOICE_ID',
    {
      method: 'POST',
      headers: {
        'Content-Type': 'application/json',
        'xi-api-key': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
      },
      body: JSON.stringify({
        text,
        model_id: 'eleven_multilingual_v2',
        voice_settings: { stability: 0.5, similarity_boost: 0.75 },
      }),
    }
  );
  
  const audioPath = `${RNFS.CachesDirectoryPath}/speech.mp3`;
  const blob = await response.blob();
  await RNFS.writeFile(audioPath, blob, 'base64');
  
  const sound = new Sound(audioPath, '', (error) => {
    if (!error) sound.play();
  });
}

API Best Practices for Mobile

• Cache generated audio locally — don’t re-generate the same text twice
• Pre-generate common phrases on app startup for instant playback
• Stream audio for long-form content instead of waiting for full download
• Handle network errors gracefully — fall back to device TTS if API is unavailable
• Use the multilingual model for apps serving users in different languages
• Store API keys securely — use a backend proxy, never expose keys in client code

Real-World App Examples

• Reading app: 10,000+ daily users, all articles read aloud in natural voice
• Language learning app: 40+ languages, native pronunciation for every word
• Meditation app: Custom voice for guided sessions, generated daily
• AI tutor app: Real-time voice responses to student questions

Pricing for Mobile Integration

ElevenLabs charges per character processed. For a typical mobile app reading 5,000 characters per user per day: