Helperbird Accessibility Extension- Make the Web Easier to Read and Use

If reading long web pages makes your eyes tired, your focus wanders, or your brain just checks out halfway through, Helperbird is built with that in mind. Helperbird is a browser-based accessibility and productivity extension designed to make reading, writing, and browsing less exhausting. It is especially useful for dyslexia, ADHD, visual stress, or casual users will notice reduced eye strain after using it for a bit.

This is not a one-trick pony that slaps on a bigger font and calls it good. Helperbird gives you real control over how websites, PDFs, and documents behave indoors, so they display in a way that makes more sense to your brain.

Overview

Helperbird offers a suite of tools that let you control how content looks, flows, and even sounds while you ou browse. It has settings for fonts, spacing, colors, reading modes, and text-to-speech, all of which are adjustable and allow you to adapt a look that suits you. Best of all, these changes follow you from site to site, which is super handy and quite a time saver. It is also really handy that you can toggle each feature you like individually, as opposed to all on or all off, unless you want to.

Ok, so on a personal note, I am dyslexic and have ADD. Reading and writing have always been a chore for me. Frankly, without spell check, there's no way you could read my initial first draft. (Thanks, Ralph Gorin!) Hell, Grammarly struggles with me most days. Over the years, I have tried tons of tools that claim to help, with mixed results. And because of that, I went into Helperbird skeptical. That skepticism did not last long.

The Dyslexia ruler and Focus ruler, in particular, are something I did not expect to love so much. What they do is highlight a specific section / line of text while gently fading everything else out. Instead of fighting distractions, it naturally curates your focus to where it needs to be. They work a little differently. The Dyslexia ruler is static in its spot, and you scroll into it as you read. The Focus ruler follows your mouse. I found it very natural to use and immediately helpful, especially while proofreading this write-up.

You do have to enable the dyslexia features in the menu options (look up for a 3 squares and a + button), as it is not in one of the default “featured” lists. I found the Focus ruler fit me best, and at this point, it is one of those tools I would genuinely miss if I stopped using it.

Helperbird also behaves better than most extensions I have tested. Even on cluttered news sites and PDF-heavy portals, it usually works well without breaking layouts or menus. Sometimes you do need to refresh a page after enabling a specific tool, but the program feels very stable and not memory hungry while in use. It supports Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari, plus iPad and iPhone, which is impressive given what it does.

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Key Features You Will Love

Helperbird is packed with options, but these are the featuresyou would use daily.

Reading Tools

This is where Helperbird earns its keep.

• Distraction-free reading mode removes ads, sidebars, and visual noise
• Immersive Reader with adjustable font size, spacing, and background colors
• Text-to-speech that reads pages out loud for tired eyes or long sessions
• Dyslexia-friendly fonts, high-contrast modes, grayscale filters, and overlays
• Focus tools like the dyslexia ruler, magnifier, and paragraph controls

If you have ever copied text into another app just to make it readable, this replaces that whole workaround.

Writing and Study Tools

Helperbird is not just for consuming content. It helps with producing it, too.

• Voice typing when typing is slow or uncomfortable
• Word prediction to keep sentences moving
• Sticky notes and annotations for research and studying
• Text statistics to analyze length and readability
• OCR to pull text from images or screenshots

Browser and Accessibility Tweaks

These are small features that add up quickly and don't feel like tacked-on afterthoughts..

• Custom cursor size and color
• Auto-scroll for hands-free reading
• Mute autoplay videos, thankfully
• Keyboard shortcuts for smoother navigation
• Visual overlays and rulers for focus and comfort

Free vs. Pro

The free version of Helperbird is very useful and not just a teaser with limited features. It includes reading mode, Immersive Reader, text-to-speech, dyslexia tools, friendly fonts with basic font customization, plus tools like the magnifier and other visual aids.

Helperbird Pro goes further by unlocking deeper customization options, including word spacing, line height adjustments, and advanced reading controls. Those extras could make a real difference for those who spend long stretches online with documents. Pricing is subscription-based on a yearly plan starting @ $30.00 per year with student discounts available, including a plan for a whole school if needed.

Geek Verdict

Helperbird is an accessibility suite with a ton of built-in tools to help people with all sorts of accessibility issues. It is loaded with practical tools that solve real problems instead of checking marketing boxes or tossing some overthought-through idea out. Some features overlap with browser built-ins, but Helperbird pulls them together in one place and makes them easier to use and more configurable.

Deep customization, excellent reading tools, and the ability to work across browsers and devices make us really happy, and the Pro features are tempting enough that most users will want to upgrade.

If you read a lot online and it feels harder than it should, or if it tires you out quickly, Helperbird is worth installing. It takes like 4 clicks to get started. Start with the free version and see how much calmer the web feels.

If you get stuck or want alternatives, drop by the MajorGeeks forums.