I’ve been using Android smartphones daily since 2009, as I love having so many options for customization, especially when it comes to low vision accessibility settings and options for setting up third-party launchers and additional settings. As my disability has continued to change over time, I’ve experimented with several different Android settings for accessibility, including audio settings that can be used with large print. Here is an overview of low vision accessibility settings for Android phones, including settings that I personally use on my own devices.
Choosing an Android phone
This post assumes that the user has already purchased an Android phone that runs at least Android 8.0 or higher (also known as Android Oreo). I currently use the Google Pixel 5, which is my second Pixel phone, but I’ve also had Motorola, Samsung, and Huawei phones, all of which have comparable accessibility features. To learn more about choosing a smartphone with low vision, I’ve linked a post from my Mainstream Technology and Low Vision series below.
Related links
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Smartphones
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Feature Phones/Landline Phones
- How I Use My Phone As Assistive Technology In Class
- Choosing New Devices With Chiari Malformation
- Smartphone Accessibility Settings For Photosensitivity
Display
The Display section allows users to customize the appearance of their device to make it easier to see for users with low vision. There are also third-party applications that can customize their display even further, which I talk about in a later section of this post.
Brightness
There are two options for screen brightness, including a slider for setting a specific brightness percentage and the option to turn on Adaptive Brightness, which automatically adjusts to environmental lighting. If this is still too bright, there is an option in the Accessibility section to turn on an extra dim display.
Dark mode
Dark mode (sometimes called dark theme or night mode) is a display setting for user interfaces that displays a light-colored text against a dark-colored background. This is different from the default “light mode”, which displays dark-colored text against a light-colored background. Dark mode color palettes typically consist of white or light grey text, icons, and user interface elements displayed on a dark gray, dark blue, or black background.
Display Size and Text
In the Display Size and Text menu (Settings > Display > Display Size and Text), there are a few different low vision accessibility settings that can be enabled, including:
- Font size: adjust size of text only
- Display size: Make everything on the screen bigger or smaller, including icons and app interfaces
- Bold text
- High contrast text, which features a black outline around white text or a white outline around black text to improve readability on colored backgrounds
Navigation Mode
Instead of using swipe gestures provided in Android 10 and later for moving between applications or opening/closing applications, three-button navigation restores the home, back, and window buttons to the bottom of the touch screen, along with the accessibility button if enabled.
Colors
Another helpful display setting for users with low vision is the Colors section of the Display menu, which offers options for boosted or adaptive colors that appear more saturated on the screen. This can make it easier to view images such as photos in bright environments or increase contrast of display elements.
Screen protector
For users that have a glass screen protector on their device and notice a delay when pressing items on the touch screen, screen protector mode can also be turned on within Display settings, which will increase the sensitivity to the screen and make it easier to press.
Related links
- Lighting And Low Vision
- Choosing Between Light Mode and Dark Mode For Low Vision
- A to Z of Assistive Technology for Reading Digital Text
- High Contrast and Low Vision
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Covers and Cases
Accessibility: Screen reader
A screen reader is a tool used by people with vision loss that reads information out loud on a webpage or in an application. Screen readers allow users to navigate their device using a keyboard or a series of gestures, and are typically “always on”- if someone has a screen reader enabled, it is reasonable to assume that the user would be unable to use their device if the screen reader were turned off.
Text-to-speech or on-demand screen readers are tools used by people with vision loss or print disabilities that impact the ability to read standard text. They can be activated on an as-needed basis by selecting a shortcut, pressing a button, or using a keyboard/gesture shortcut. Once text-to-speech finishes reading all the information on a page, it shuts off until the user activates it again. Text-to-speech does not use any specific gestures or require the user to change how they interact with their device.
On Android, the screen reader feature is called TalkBack, and the text-to-speech feature is called Select-to-speak.
TalkBack
TalkBack is a built-in screen reader that reads all of the text on the screen, as well as alt text and other navigational elements so that users can navigate their phone without looking at the screen. TalkBack works similar to other mobile screen readers- it can be used in conjunction with a voice assistant to navigate between apps and input text, or with on-screen gestures. TalkBack can also be connected to a refreshable braille display.
When TalkBack is turned on, users will need to use specific gestures to navigate phone content, such as double-tapping to select content, scrolling gestures to move through display elements, and two fingers for scrolling through a page.
Select-to-speak
For users that benefit from having text content read out loud but don’t want to have everything read out at all times or use TalkBack gestures, Select-to-speak is a text-to-speech option available as part of the Accessibility button. To activate Select-to-speak, press the accessibility button at the bottom of the screen and then do one of the following:
- Tap a specific item on the screen like text or an image to hear text content or image alt text read out loud
- Drag one finger across the screen to select multiple items to read out loud
- Tap the play button to hear everything on the screen from top to bottom and left to right. Interacting with the screen while Select-to-speak is reading will stop it from reading out content, though information is highlighted as it is read out loud
- Select text that appears inside the Camera view to read environmental text out loud
Text-to-speech output
Within the Select-to-speak and TalkBack menus, there is an option for customizing text-to-speech and TalkBack audio. This includes choosing the language that is used, as well as the speech rate and pitch. Users will need to configure separate settings for both TalkBack and Select-to-speak if they use both programs.
Related links
- A to Z of Assistive Technology For Low Vision
- How To Use Select to Speak on Android
- How To Use Text-To-Speech With Low Vision
Accessibility: Color and Motion
The Color and Motion section of the Accessibility menu features several different display settings, including system-wide dark mode, color correction, and color inversion.
Color correction
Users who are colorblind due to deuteranomaly, protanomaly, or tritanomaly can enable color correction to make their device easier to see, or use a grayscale display that removes all color.
Color inversion
Color inversion is a color mode/color filter that changes a light-colored display with dark text to a dark-colored display with light text. This can be helpful for users with low vision that are sensitive to bright lights or want to improve the contrast of a display without removing any background graphics. This will override dark mode displays and render them as having light backgrounds with dark elements, and can be used in any application.
Dark mode
This is the same dark mode that can be enabled in the Display section, but the setting is also included in the Accessibility section for convenience. For people who prefer an even dimmer screen, there is also an “extra dim” option for reducing the white point of the device.
Remove animation
For users sensitive to app transitions, animations, or movement, remove animation will turn off non-essential animations within the phone’s system interface. To further turn off auto-play settings for gifs and similar content, users will need to configure settings within specific apps (Messages, YouTube, social media, etc.).
Related links
- Choosing Between Light Mode and Dark Mode For Low Vision
- How To Use Invert Colors With Low Vision
- Avoiding Flashing Lights On Social Media
- Smartphone Accessibility Settings For Photosensitivity
- Disability Accommodations For Fluctuating Eyesight
Accessibility: Magnification
Need to zoom in on the screen? Magnification allows users to quickly zoom in on the screen with the magnification shortcut to display content more clearly. Magnification can either be enabled as part of the accessibility button pinned to the bottom of the screen, or by pressing and holding both volume keys; this can be configured by selecting the Magnification shortcut option. In Android 15, another option is to use the two finger double-tap gesture to activate Magnification.
Users have two options for displaying content with magnification for Android, including a full screen view and a partial screen view, which resembles a lens view and can be adjusted or moved across the screen. A default magnification view may be set, or users can select an option to have both options available and select which one they want to use when activating the magnification shortcut.
Zooming in with Magnification
To use magnification continuously:
- Activate the Magnification shortcut
- Tap the screen
- Drag two fingers to move around the screen and adjust the viewing window
- Pinch with two fingers to adjust the zoom level up/down
- Tap the Magnification shortcut again to stop magnification
To use Magnification for a short period of time (full screen only):
- Activate the Magnification shortcut
- Touch and hold anywhere on the screen
- Drag one finger to move around the screen
- Lift finger to stop magnification
To further customize the magnification display, users can select sliders to magnify typing and have the magnifier follow text as they type, or keep magnification on while switching apps, which includes a zooming out animation when switching apps.
Related links
Interaction Controls
Accessibility menu
Accessibility Menu is another Android feature that provides users with a large on-screen menu of features that can be used to control an Android device. Each button is high contrast and features colorful labels that can assist users with accessing specific device functions. Users can enable the Accessibility Menu shortcut in Settings but cannot rearrange or change how icons are displayed.
The Accessibility Menu offers the following features:
- Google Assistant
- Accessibility settings (opens Settings app)
- Device power
- Volume down/Volume up
- Recent apps
- Brightness down/Brightness Up
- Lock screen
- Quick Settings
- Notifications
- Screenshot
System controls
System controls provides additional options for low vision accessibility settings for Android, including:
- Navigation mode (duplicated from Display)
- One-handed mode, which provides the option to pull down the top half of the screen with a scrolling gesture so it’s easier to reach with one hand. To activate this, swipe down near the bottom edge of the screen
- Power button ends call
- Auto-rotate screen (turn off to avoid animation)
Related links
Accessibility: Captions
For users that rely on on-screen text to interact with audio content, Android has several low vision accessibility options that can make captions easier to read. Some devices may require free downloads from the Google Play store to use these settings.
Live Caption
Live Caption detects spoken content on the device and transcribes it in real time. This can be used for phone calls and videos, and will also detect sounds such as laughter and applause. Within Live Caption, users can also enable the option to type responses during calls, where responses are read aloud to the other caller using a synthesized voice.
Live Transcribe
Live Transcribe detects environmental speech and transcribes it as text, providing a transcript that users can scroll through and follow along with. Users can type responses to transcription, search within transcriptions, and even get alerts when their name is spoken. Live Transcribe is configured as an accessibility shortcut and activated on demand.
Caption Preferences
When displaying content in Live Captions or as part of other media applications, users can customize how captions are displayed so that they are easier to read with low vision. Caption size and style options include:
- Text size: five options, including very small, small, medium, large, and very large. This may obscure media content on the screen.
- Caption style: White on black, black on white, yellow on black, yellow on blue
In addition to default options, the following caption preferences can also be customized:
- Font family: 9 options, including mix of sans serif and serif fonts
- Text color: 40 options, including several high contrast shades
- Text opacity: Four options ranging from 25% to 100%
- Edge color: Black only
- Background color: 40 options, same as text colors
- Background opacity: Four options ranging from 25% to 100%
- Caption window color: 40 options, same as text/background
- Caption window opacity: set to 100%
Related links
Accessibility: Audio
Audio settings may also be listed as Audio and On-Screen Text settings within the Accessibility section.
Audio description
While most of the Audio settings are specifically designed with hearing loss or audio processing disorders in mind, the audio description setting can be used to automatically play videos or content that has a secondary audio description track enabled, such as on streaming platforms.
Sound amplifier
To enhance audio quality for environmental sounds and device sounds, sound amplifier makes weak sounds louder without making powerful sounds even louder. Sound amplifier will need to be used with headphones.
Sound notifications
Sound notifications display within the notifications section of the device and can be shown in large print or with a connected braille display. Sound notifications detect environmental sounds like alarms, doorbell ringing, appliances, and dog barking.
Accessibility Shortcuts
Android’s Accessibility button is used to quickly access accessibility features on the device, and may be located either on the Navigation bar or floating over other apps, depending on which setting the user has enabled. The Accessibility button can be customized by opening Settings > Accessibility > Accessibility Shortcuts, which is located under the General sub-section of the Accessibility page.
To add accessibility features to the accessibility shortcut, open the desired accessibility feature in Settings and turn on Shortcut, followed by Tap accessibility button. Alternatively, users can choose to press and hold down volume keys to open/activate a specific feature. Users can enable more than one accessibility feature to be used with the Accessibility button, and can choose a feature to use by long-pressing on the accessibility button and choosing which tool they would like to use, or enable a specific feature to open by default.
Android currently offers the following options for the Accessibility button:
- Shortcuts for downloaded apps (e.g. Reading Mode)
- TalkBack
- Color Correction
- Color Inversion
- Extra Dim
- Magnification
- Select-to-speak
- Accessibility Menu
- Switch Access
- Live Transcribe
- Sound Amplifier
Related links
Using the GBoard Android keyboard with large print
GBoard is the built-in keyboard from Google and offers several options for low vision accessibility. As of October 2025, users can now increase the font size of their keyboard up to 200%, which can be configured by going to GBoard > Settings > Preferences > Appearance > Font size. The font size can be adjusted using a slider, which includes the following options for scaling the default system font size:
- Match system (if the largest font size is already enabled, this will appear at 200%)
- 85%
- 100%
- 115%
- 130%
- 150%
- 180%
- 200%
There are also options for alternative keyboard layouts that may be easier to see, including a Morse Code keyboard and ClearFlow keyboard (which can be turned on in Gboard > Settings > Languages > English and swiping to view the keyboard layouts).
Users with low vision may also consider turning the following features on or off when typing with large print:
- Preferences: no suggestion strip, no double space period. Key pop-up may be useful for showing what key is being pressed.
- Theme: Default themes or solid colored backgrounds with high contrast colors that make text easier to see.
- Corrections and suggestions: Turn on auto-correction and auto-capitalization. Turn off smart compose
- Voice typing: Turn on voice typing
- Emoji, stickers & GIFs: Turn off Emoji fast-access row, turn off predictive content search (if sensitive to flashing animations)
Related links
Additional customization options for Android
For users that want to customize low vision accessibility settings for Android phones even more, there are several third-party apps available for download that can make Android easier to see with large print apps. I have an in-depth post linked below that covers apps such as Big Font for large print, Microsoft Launcher custom homes screens, custom keyboards, and others.
Related links
- Make Android Easier To See With Large Print Apps
- How To Create A Custom Android Home Screen With Microsoft Launcher
- Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Keyboards
More resources on low vision accessibility settings for Android phones
- Read all of my blog posts on Google and Android applications for low vision at Google and Android Archives | Veronica With Four Eyes
- Need low vision accessibility settings for iPhone? I write about accessibility settings I use for iOS in How To Make iPad Accessible for Low Vision
- To make a phone easier to hold, I recommend reading Mainstream Technology and Low Vision: Covers and Cases
Published November 14, 2016. Updated October 2025