Dyslexia-friendly web reading tips
Dyslexia looks different for everyone. Some people mix letter order; others lose the line mid-paragraph; others understand spoken ideas instantly but stall on long blocks of print. The web often makes that harder: low-contrast grey text, narrow columns packed with links, decorative fonts, and layouts that reflow when ads load.
The tips below are practical design and habit changes — not a cure and not a substitute for assessment or teaching support. Many neurotypical readers find them easier too. Use what helps; ignore the rest.
Prefer fonts that stay distinct
Letters that look alike (b/d, p/q, rn/m) cause extra work when a typeface is highly stylised or condensed. Sans-serif faces with clear apertures — and purpose-built options like Atkinson Hyperlegible — tend to hold up better on screens than thin decorative fonts. Avoid forcing everything into ALL CAPS; word shapes disappear.
SimplRead’s interface uses Atkinson Hyperlegible for body text and Literata for headings, with line height around 1.7 so lines do not crowd. You can still zoom with the browser if you need larger type.
Give lines room to breathe
Dense paragraphs with little leading make it easy to skip a line or re-read the same one. Aim for comfortable line height, shorter line lengths (roughly 50–75 characters), and space between paragraphs. Slide layouts help because each screen holds only a few sentences — your eye does not have to hunt across a long column.
Watch contrast and background colour
Pure black on pure white can feel harsh under fluorescent light or late at night. Soft off-white or warm paper tones with dark charcoal text often reduce glare while keeping contrast high enough to read. Dark themes help some people and hurt others — try both. What matters is that text stays clearly darker (or lighter) than the background, not low-contrast grey on grey.
Reduce page chrome before you start
Cookie banners, sticky share bars, autoplay video, and related-article carousels steal glances. Reader modes in browsers help. So does a dedicated reader that strips navigation first. If a site is unusable, copy the article text you can access and paste it into SimplRead rather than fighting the layout.
Optional tools: bionic emphasis and highlighting
Some dyslexic readers like light bolding on the start of words (sometimes called bionic reading) or a highlight that moves word by word. Evidence is mixed and personal preference rules. SimplRead offers these as options — turn them on for a week, then decide. If they distract you, leave them off; the slide format alone is often enough.
Pair simplification with the original source
Plain-language slides are excellent for understanding the arc of a story. They are a poor place to cite a percentage or a legal clause. Keep the source link handy. A good workflow: slides first for comprehension, original second for precision on the parts you will use.
Browser and OS habits worth enabling
- Increase default zoom on sites you visit daily.
- Use system dyslexia or accessibility fonts where available.
- Enable reduced motion if animations make tracking harder.
- Block autoplay media so sound and motion do not interrupt decoding.
- Read in shorter sessions with a bookmark or slide number — fatigue makes errors more likely.
SimplRead does not diagnose or treat dyslexia. If reading difficulties affect school or work, a qualified specialist can help with assessment and strategies beyond any single app.