Narrator is a screen reader that reads text on the screen aloud and describes events like error messages so you can use your PC without a display.
Narrator is available in English (United States, United Kingdom, and India), French, Italian, German, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin (Chinese Simplified and Chinese Traditional), Cantonese (Chinese Traditional), Spanish (Spain and Mexico), Polish, Russian, and Portuguese (Brazil).
There are different ways to start Narrator. These are the three shortcuts many people prefer:
Another way to get to Narrator is to use search:
Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, and then click Search.)
Enter Narrator in the search box, and then tap or click Narrator.
If you want to get started right away, press Caps Lock+F1 after you open Narrator, or tap the touchscreen three times with four fingers. This will show you all of the Narrator commands.
If you want to use Caps Lock to capitalize letters while you're using Narrator, press the Caps Lock key twice in quick succession.
There are also different ways to exit Narrator. These are the two shortcuts many people prefer:
Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 have new actions and new locations for common commands. Here are a few important gestures to get you started.
Use this touch gesture | To do this |
---|---|
Swipe in from the right edge with one finger |
Open the charms (Search, Share, Start, Devices, Settings) |
Swipe in from the left edge with one finger |
Switch apps, snap them to the side, and close them |
Swipe in from the top or bottom edge with one finger |
Show app commands like Save, Edit, and Delete |
The press and hold gesture isn't supported in Narrator.
Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1 have new keyboard shortcuts too. Here are a few helpful ones.
Use this keyboard shortcut | To do this |
---|---|
Windows logo key
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Open the charms (Search, Share, Start, Devices, Settings) |
Windows logo key
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Show app commands like Save, Edit, and Delete |
Windows logo key
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Snap apps to the side |
Windows logo key
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Switch apps |
You can change settings for Narrator in PC settings. To find these settings:
Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, tap Settings, and then tap Change PC settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, click Settings, and then click Change PC settings.)
Tap or click Ease of Access, and then change any of the following settings.
Hear what's on the screen
Narrator. Use this slider to turn Narrator on or off.
Start narrator automatically. This setting controls whether Narrator starts automatically each time you sign in.
Voice
Choose a voice. With this drop-down menu you can select different types of voices in Narrator, if they're available in your language.
Speed. You can change the speed of the voice with this slider.
Pitch. You can change the pitch of the voice with this slider.
Sounds you hear
Read hints for controls and buttons. This option controls whether Narrator will read hints about how to interact with common items such as buttons, links, list items, and sliders.
Characters you type. You can choose whether or not Narrator reads each key you type.
Words you type. Choose whether or not Narrator reads the words that you type.
Lower the volume of other apps when Narrator is running. This option makes other apps quieter so it's easier to hear Narrator.
Play audio cues. This option turns on the extra sounds that Narrator plays when you do certain actions.
Cursor and keys
Highlight the cursor. This option lets you show or hide the box that highlights where Narrator is on your screen.
Have insertion point follow Narrator. This option lets you show or hide the box that highlights where Narrator is on your screen.
Activate keys on touch keyboard when I lift my finger off the keyboard. If touch mode is available, you can turn this setting on so you can type faster using the touch keyboard. With this setting, you can drag to search for the item you're looking for and lift your finger to press the key.
Use this keyboard shortcut | To do this |
---|---|
Ctrl |
Stop reading |
Windows logo key
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Exit Narrator |
Caps Lock+Space |
Do primary action |
Caps Lock+Right arrow |
Move to next item |
Caps Lock+Left Arrow |
Move to previous item |
Caps Lock+Up arrow |
Change view |
Caps Lock+Down arrow |
Change view |
Caps Lock + A |
Change verbosity mode |
Caps Lock+F1 |
Show commands list |
Caps Lock+F2 |
Show commands for current item |
Caps Lock+F3 |
Jump to next cell in row |
Caps Lock+Shift+F3 |
Jump to previous cell in row |
Caps Lock+F4 |
Jump to next cell in column |
Caps Lock+Shift+F4 |
Jump to previous cell in column |
Caps Lock+F5 |
Read which row and column Narrator is in |
Caps Lock+F6 |
Jump to table cell |
Caps Lock+F7 |
Read current column |
Caps Lock+F8 |
Read current row |
Caps Lock+F9 |
Read current column header |
Caps Lock+F10 |
Read current row header |
Caps Lock+F11 |
Toggle touch mode on/off |
Caps Lock+F12 |
Toggle keystroke announcements |
Caps Lock+Z |
Lock Narrator Key |
Caps Lock+X |
Pass keys to app |
Caps Lock+V |
Repeat last phrase |
Caps Lock+Page Up |
Increase voice volume |
Caps Lock+Page Down |
Decrease voice volume |
Caps Lock+Plus |
Increase voice speed |
Caps Lock+Minus |
Decrease voice speed |
Caps Lock+D |
Read item |
Caps Lock+F |
Read item advanced |
Caps Lock+S |
Read item spelled out or read detailed reading for Japanese or Korean |
Caps Lock+W |
Read Window |
Caps Lock+R |
Read all items in containing area |
Caps Lock+Q |
Move to last item in containing area |
Caps Lock+G |
Move Narrator cursor to system cursor |
Caps Lock+T |
Move Narrator cursor to pointer |
Caps Lock+Tilde |
Set focus to item |
Caps Lock+Backspace |
Go back one item |
Caps Lock+Insert |
Jump to linked item |
Caps Lock+M |
Start reading |
Caps Lock+Close bracket |
Read text from start to cursor |
Caps Lock+O |
Read text attributes |
Caps Lock+H |
Read document |
Caps Lock+U |
Read next page |
Caps Lock+Ctrl+U |
Read current page |
Caps Lock+Shift+U |
Read previous page |
Caps Lock+I |
Read next paragraph |
Caps Lock+Ctrl+I |
Read current paragraph |
Caps Lock+Shift+I |
Read previous paragraph |
Caps Lock+O |
Read next line |
Caps Lock+Ctrl+O |
Read current line |
Caps Lock+Shift+O |
Read previous line |
Caps Lock+P |
Read next word |
Caps Lock+Ctrl+P |
Read current word |
Caps Lock+Shift+P |
Read previous word |
Caps Lock+Open bracket |
Read next character |
Caps Lock+Ctrl+Open bracket |
Read current character |
Caps Lock+Shift+Open bracket |
Read previous character |
Caps Lock+J |
Jump to next heading |
Caps Lock+Shift+J |
Jump to previous heading |
Caps Lock+K |
Jump to next table |
Caps Lock+Shift+K |
Jump to previous table |
Caps Lock+L |
Jump to next link |
Caps Lock+Shift+L |
Jump to previous link |
Caps Lock+Y |
Move to beginning of text |
Caps Lock+B |
Move to end of text |
Caps Lock+C |
Read current date/time |
If you have a new PC that supports four or more contact points, you can use touch commands to control your PC.
Use this touch command | To do this |
---|---|
Swipe left/right with one finger |
Move to next or previous item |
Swipe up/down with one finger |
Change move increment |
Tap or drag a single finger |
Read what's under your finger |
Double-tap with one finger |
Activate primary action |
Triple-tap with one finger |
Activate secondary action |
Swipe left/right/up/down with two fingers |
Scroll |
Tap with two fingers |
Stop Narrator from reading |
Double-tap with two fingers |
Show context menu |
Hold with one finger and tap with a second |
Activate primary action |
Hold with one finger and double-tap with a second |
Activate secondary action |
Swipe left/right with three fingers |
Tab forward and backward |
Swipe up with three fingers |
Read current window |
Swipe down with three fingers |
Start reading explorable text |
Tap with three fingers |
Change verbosity mode |
Double-tap with three fingers |
Read Text Attributes |
Hold with one finger and tap with two other fingers |
Start dragging or extra key options |
Swipe left/right with four fingers |
Move Narrator cursor to beginning / end of unit |
Swipe up/down with four fingers |
Turn zoom on/off |
Tap with four fingers |
Show commands for current item |
Double-tap with four fingers |
Toggle search mode |
Triple-tap with four fingers |
Show Narrator commands list |
Narrator provides basic screen-reading capabilities so you can use Windows when you don't have a more comprehensive screen reader. Narrator isn't designed to read content in all apps. For more info about screen readers and other assistive technologies, go online and search for the Microsoft Accessibility website.