Turn Any PDF Into a Study Podcast
Upload a textbook chapter, paper, or assigned reading. Scholarly turns it into a three-speaker podcast with chapters, a synced transcript, and page citations. Alex hosts, Sam produces, and the Guest explains the source.
Free to start · No credit card required
Quick answer
Can you turn a PDF into a podcast?
Yes. Scholarly extracts the key concepts and writes a three-speaker conversation. Alex hosts, Sam adds context, and the Guest explains the PDF. Choose a target length; final runtime varies. Each completed episode includes chapters, a synced transcript, and page citations.
Updated July 2026. Speaker roles and length controls reflect the current version of Scholarly.
From PDF to podcast in three steps
Upload the source, choose the style, target length, and language, then start generation.
Upload the PDF
A textbook chapter, lecture slides, a research paper, or a study guide. Scholarly accepts up to 600 pages per source, and you can combine several PDFs into one episode.
Pick a style and language
Conversational, Exam Prep, Deep Dive, or Quick Summary, plus custom instructions like focus on chapter 7.2 onward. Generate in any of 70+ languages, including one different from the source.
Listen, jump, reuse
Stream with captions and chapters, jump from the transcript, and share a link on every plan. Paid plans can download the MP3. You can also turn the PDF into flashcards or a practice quiz.
What does a 30-page chapter sound like as a podcast?
Final runtime depends on the source and target length. The episode focuses on the definitions, arguments, and examples that matter most.
- Every definition, stated plainly and then rephrased in everyday language
- Mechanisms and cause-and-effect chains, the part exams actually test
- Formulas with when-to-use-them context, not just the symbols
- One worked example talked through end to end
- The distinctions students mix up, called out explicitly
- Repeated examples collapse into the single clearest one
- Figure walk-throughs become short verbal descriptions
- End-of-chapter exercises turn into self-test prompts at the end
- Boxed asides and historical tangents get a sentence, not a section
Because every claim is cited back to a page in your PDF, you can open the source whenever a compressed section deserves a full read.
A real episode outline
Here is the shape of an Exam Prep style episode generated from a 28-page biology textbook chapter.
Chapter 7: Cellular Respiration
Cold open
Why a sprinter's muscles burn: the ATP problem the whole chapter exists to solve.
Glycolysis
Where it happens, what goes in, what comes out, and why no oxygen is needed yet.
The Krebs cycle
The hosts trace one glucose molecule through the cycle instead of listing every intermediate.
Electron transport chain
How the gradient drives ATP synthase, plus the ATP yield numbers the exam will ask for.
Where students lose marks
Substrate-level versus oxidative phosphorylation, and aerobic versus anaerobic confusion.
Recap and self-test
A 60-second summary, then three questions to answer out loud before the episode ends.
What to expect from the audio
Concrete expectations before you generate your first episode.
Three speaker roles
Alex hosts, Sam adds context, and the Guest explains the PDF. Natural voices are available in 70+ languages.
Adjustable target length
Set a short summary or a longer deep dive. Final runtime depends on the source and can differ from the target.
Four styles plus instructions
Conversational, Exam Prep, Deep Dive, or Quick Summary, with custom instructions to steer focus toward specific sections or topics.
70+ languages
Generate in the language you study in, or keep an English source and listen in Spanish, Japanese, Hindi, and more.
Chapters, transcript, citations
Episodes are split into chapters by topic. Tap any transcript line to jump there. Claims cite the source pages they came from.
Sharing and paid MP3 download
Share a link on every plan so classmates can stream without an account. Paid plans can download episodes as MP3s for offline listening.
Where a PDF podcast helps, and where it doesn't
Audio is for review and priming. It shines when you listen to a chapter before the lecture that covers it, replay key sections on a commute, or do a final pass the night before an exam, time that would otherwise be zero studying.
It will not do your problem sets. For math-heavy chapters the hosts can state a formula and explain when to use it, but working through derivations and practice problems has to happen on paper. Figures and diagrams are described, not shown, so keep the PDF nearby for visual material.
Listening is recognition, not recall. After one or two passes, switch to retrieval: turn the same PDF into flashcards or a practice quiz so you are forced to produce the answers instead of nodding along.
PDF to podcast, frequently asked
How do I turn a PDF into a podcast?
Upload a PDF, then choose a style, target length, and language. Scholarly creates a three-speaker episode that explains the key concepts, with chapters, a synced transcript, and page citations. Generation time and final runtime vary. Every plan can stream and share the episode. Paid plans can download the MP3.
Does the podcast read my PDF word for word?
No. Scholarly extracts the key concepts and explains them through a three-speaker conversation. It focuses on definitions, mechanisms, and exam-relevant distinctions, with page citations for verification.
How long is the episode for a typical chapter?
Episode length depends on the source, style, and target. Set a short summary or a longer deep dive; final runtime can vary. You can regenerate the PDF with different settings.
Can I use research papers and journal articles?
Yes. For papers, the hosts walk through the research question, method, findings, and limitations in plain language, which is often the fastest way to decide whether a paper deserves a close read. Citations point back to the relevant pages and sections.
Do lecture slides and scanned PDFs work?
Lecture slides work very well because they already highlight what the instructor considers important. Text-based PDFs give the best results; scanned pages work when the text is clearly legible. One source can be up to 600 pages, and you can combine multiple files into a single episode.
What do the voices sound like?
Every episode has three speaker roles. Alex hosts, Sam adds context, and the Guest explains the source. Natural voices are available in over 70 languages.
Is listening to the podcast enough to pass the exam?
Honestly, no. Audio is excellent for first exposure and review, but exams reward retrieval, producing answers from memory. Use the episode to understand the chapter, then make flashcards or a practice quiz from the same PDF to actually test yourself.
Can I download episodes or share them?
Every plan can stream an episode and share a public link. Paid plans can download the MP3 for offline listening.
Is PDF to podcast free?
Yes. The Free plan includes one AI creation shared across Scholarly for the life of the account. It does not reset, and you can use it for a podcast. Premium includes 10 AI creations each week. No credit card is required.
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Turn this week's reading into audio
Free to start. Upload a chapter, listen on your commute, and keep the citations for anything worth a closer read.
Free
See what it does with one of your own sources.
- 3 AI Chat messages per day
- 1 free AI creation total
- 1 free file upload total (8MB)
- 5 quiz questions per day
- 1 exam attempt per day
- 15 voice minutes per day
- 32-page PDF to flashcards
- 500 autocomplete words per day
Use it to generate flashcards, improve a deck, or create a podcast, video lecture, slides, infographic, mind map, study guide, worksheet, spreadsheet, story book, timeline, SOP, flowchart, lesson plan, or outline — or run Deep Research or turn a recording into AI Meeting Notes.
Premium
Steady weekly output from the material you already have.
$30/month
Everything in Free, plus:
- 10 AI creations per week
- Unlimited AI chat & autocomplete
- Unlimited file uploads (up to 300MB)
- Unlimited study sessions
- Unlimited exams & quizzes
- 1000-page PDF to flashcards
- Export to Anki
- Priority support
Laureate
For work where being right matters more than the price.
billed monthly · cancel anytime
Everything in Premium, plus:
- Any Frontier model — Claude Opus 5, Gemini 3.1 Pro, Grok 4.6
- 75 AI creations per week
- 20 Frontier creations per week
- 20 Frontier Chat messages per week
- Unlimited uploads up to 1 GB, plus 3,000-page PDFs
- 12 hours of voice mode per day
- Priority support and early access to new Frontier models
Pricing shown in USD. Local currency may be available for Premium in app.
Compare plans
AI chat
Premium and Laureate include unlimited AI chat. Frontier Boost on makes Auto (Laureate) use Claude Sonnet 5; off uses GPT 5.6 Luna.
- Free
- 3/day
- Premium
- Unlimited
- Laureate
- Unlimited
Chat Frontier Boosts
Laureate is the only individual plan that can run Frontier models — Claude Opus 5, Gemini 3.1 Pro, Grok 4.6, Claude Sonnet 5. You get 20 Frontier creations and 20 Frontier Chat messages each week; after that everything keeps working on GPT 5.6 Luna at high reasoning.
- Free
- —
- Premium
- —
- Laureate
- 20/week
AI creations
AI creations are used for AI Flashcards, deck edits, AI Podcasts, AI Video Lectures, AI Slides, worksheets, AI Infographics, mind maps, study guides, spreadsheets, story books, timelines, SOPs, flowcharts, lesson plans, outlines, AI Meeting Notes, and Deep Research reports.
- Free
- 1 total
- Premium
- 10/week
- Laureate
- 75/week
Creation Frontier Boosts
Frontier Boost on makes Auto (Laureate) use Claude Sonnet 5; off uses GPT 5.6 Luna. Laureate includes 20 boosts within its 75 weekly creations. Flashcards never spend a boost.
- Free
- —
- Premium
- —
- Laureate
- 20/week · included
Video lectures
- Free
- Uses AI creations
- Premium
- Included in 10/week
- Laureate
- Included in 75/week
File uploads
- Free
- 1 total (8MB)
- Premium
- Unlimited (300MB)
- Laureate
- Unlimited (1 GB each)
PDF to flashcards
- Free
- 32 pages
- Premium
- 1000 pages
- Laureate
- 3000 pages
Practice questions
- Free
- 5/day
- Premium
- Unlimited
- Laureate
- Unlimited
Practice exams
- Free
- 1/day
- Premium
- Unlimited
- Laureate
- Unlimited
Voice mode
- Free
- 15 min/day
- Premium
- 2 hr/day
- Laureate
- 12 hr/day
Autocomplete
- Free
- 500 words/day
- Premium
- Unlimited
- Laureate
- Unlimited
Export to Anki
- Free
- —
- Premium
- Included
- Laureate
- Included
Support
- Free
- Standard
- Premium
- Priority
- Laureate
- Priority
What customers say
Scholarly has enhanced the quality of notes and questions I administer to my tutees. Insightful, to the point.
TD Georgas
Tutor
I have very good experience with Scholarly it summarize me scientific text in hovel academic level with citation. I use this for any therapeutic area . It is great and useful tool.
Diana
Scholarly user
Scholarly has been a valuable tool for my studies. The AI-generated flashcards and intuitive features make organizing and retaining information much easier.
Briana
Scholarly user
This app is great for studying for big test. Drop your PDF's in the system and it'll do the trick. You can organize it specifically for your needs.
Kelvin
Scholarly user
Your questions, answered
Is Scholarly free to use?
Yes! The free plan includes core study tools with clear limits: 3 AI Chat messages per day, one free AI creation total, 1 free file upload total, quizzes, practice exams, and manual flashcard creation. Upgrade to Premium for 10 AI creations per week and unlimited uploads.
What uses my free AI creations?
Generating flashcards, improving a flashcard deck, making a podcast, creating a video lecture or infographic, building slides, a spreadsheet, or a story book, making a mind map, study guide, or worksheet, having an AI Agent create a timeline, SOP, flowchart, lesson plan, or outline, running Deep Research, or processing a recording uses your free AI creation. It is a lifetime free credit and does not reset. AI Chat messages, quizzes, and exams still have separate daily limits; free file uploads are also lifetime credits.
Can I cancel anytime?
Absolutely. There are no contracts or commitments. You can cancel your subscription at any time from your account settings, and you'll keep access until the end of your billing period.
What payment methods do you accept?
We accept all major credit and debit cards through Stripe. Pricing is displayed in USD by default, but local currency is available in the app.
Can I use Scholarly with a class or school?
Yes. For a school or organization-wide rollout, contact us at hello@scholarly.so and we'll help you find the right setup.
What happens when I hit a free plan limit?
You'll see a prompt to upgrade. Your existing work is never lost — limits only apply to new actions. Free AI creations and the free upload are lifetime credits and do not reset. Premium includes 10 AI creations per week and unlimited uploads.