FocalReader – ADHD Focus Reader

A focus reading tool that dims everything except where you're reading — from a single paragraph down to one line. Works on web pages and PDFs. Built for ADHD, dyslexia, or anyone who gets distracted.

Everything that dims and focuses the page is free. The one optional extra is Explain (AI) — and that still gives you 5 free explanations every day.

NEW IN v1.10.1

Notes: Write a note on any paragraph. Turn on Smart Window, focus a paragraph, and click the pen in the little toolbar above the band. An indigo rule marks every paragraph you've annotated, and the note reveals itself when you come back to that paragraph and puts itself away when you move on. Notes are re-found by the paragraph's own text, so they survive the page being re-laid out. Everything stays on your device — export or import the lot as a JSON file from the popup. Chrome 105+.

NEW IN v1.9.0

Community: A Discord button in the popup takes you straight to the FocalReader server — share feedback, get help, and vote on what gets built next.

NEW IN v1.8.0

Guided tour: New installs get a quick walkthrough of every control — Enable, Follow Mouse, Smart Window, Auto Dim, Haze, Explain, and where shortcuts live. Replay it anytime from the ? icon in the popup's top-right corner.

NEW IN v1.7.0

Explain (AI): Hit a dense paragraph? Focus it and press Alt+Shift+E and FocalReader rewrites it in plain language, right where you're reading. Works on web pages and PDFs. 5 free explanations a day — sign in and upgrade to Pro for unlimited.

Haze: A frosted-glass dim that's softer on the eyes than a flat shade. Set the strength with the Haze slider, or turn on Auto haze to deepen it when you pause to read.

ALSO RECENT

• Site Control (v1.6.0): Choose where FocalReader runs — block specific sites, or flip to "run only on the sites I choose."
• Line Focus (v1.5.0): Smart Window can narrow all the way to a single line. Shift+Right drills in; Shift+Down / Shift+Up read line by line.

KEY FEATURES

• Smart Window: Element-aware focus that snaps to paragraphs, headings, and articles. Step through blocks with Shift+arrow keys. Free, and on by default. Web pages and PDFs.
• Line Focus: Narrow Smart Window down to a single line — Shift+Right to drill in, Shift+Down / Shift+Up to move line by line. Ideal for dense text.
• Notes: Annotate any paragraph and find your notes waiting when you return. Marked paragraphs carry an indigo edge rule; notes reveal on arrival and hide when you move on. Stored on your device only, with JSON export and import. Free. Web pages (PDFs not yet).
• Explain (AI): Turn the focused paragraph into plain language with Alt+Shift+E. 5 free per day; Pro for unlimited. Web pages and PDFs.
• Haze: Frosted-glass dimming with an adjustable level and an Auto haze option that deepens while you read.
• Follow Mouse Mode: The focus window follows your cursor as you read.
• Manual Mode: Position the focus window anywhere and drag to move it (web pages).
• Double-Tap Mode: On PDFs, double-click any paragraph to anchor focus.
• Full Width Mode: Spans the screen width for comfortable line reading.
• Auto Dim: Increases dimming when you stop moving, for a calm read.
• Adjustable size, opacity, and tint color.
• Site Control: Block FocalReader on specific sites, or run it only on the handful of sites you choose.

PDF SUPPORT

FocalReader replaces Chrome's built-in PDF viewer with its own, so the dim band, Smart Window, haze, Auto Dim, and Explain (AI) all work on PDFs just like on web pages. Built-in toolbar with page navigation, zoom, find, outline sidebar, and download.

• Works on local and online PDFs (including arxiv.org and other URLs without a .pdf extension)
• Two-column academic papers detected automatically
• Running headers, footers, and page numbers skipped, so focus follows the body text only

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

• Alt+Shift+F (Option+Shift+F on Mac): Toggle extension on/off
• Alt+Shift+E (Option+Shift+E on Mac): Explain the focused text (AI)
• Alt+Shift+M (Option+Shift+M on Mac): Lock the focus window in place
• Alt+Shift+A (Option+Shift+A on Mac): Toggle auto dim
• Alt+Shift+P (Option+Shift+P on Mac): Open popup
• Alt+Shift+C (Option+Shift+C on Mac): Re-center focus window
• Alt+Shift+Arrow Keys: Resize focus window
• Shift+Down / Shift+Up: Move between paragraphs — or lines, in Line Focus
• Shift+Right / Shift+Left: Narrow to a single line / widen back (Smart Window)

EXPLAIN (AI) AND PRO

Explain (AI) is the only optional paid feature. The free tier gives you 5 explanations a day with no account. For unlimited explanations, sign in with your email and upgrade to Pro ($4.99/month), billed securely through Lemon Squeezy. When you use Explain, only the paragraph you choose is sent to our server and an AI provider to generate the explanation — that's the only time any of your reading text leaves your browser.

PERFECT FOR

• People with ADHD who struggle to focus on text
• Readers with dyslexia who benefit from reduced visual clutter
• Students studying long PDFs and academic papers
• Researchers reading lengthy reports
• Anyone who gets overwhelmed by busy web pages
• Night readers who want reduced eye strain

PRIVACY

The focus, dim, Smart Window, haze, and PDF features run entirely on your device — they don't read or transmit your page content or browsing history. Two features involve a server, and only when you choose to use them:

• Explain (AI): only the specific paragraph you ask to explain is sent — to our Cloudflare Worker and an AI provider — to produce the explanation. Nothing else is sent, and your data is never sold.
• Pro sign-in: stores your email so we can manage your subscription. Free users need no account. Payment is handled by Lemon Squeezy; we never see your card details.
• Feedback: only what you type, and only when you click Send.

Settings sync through your own Chrome account if Chrome Sync is enabled.

HOW TO USE

1. Click the FocalReader icon or press Alt+Shift+F to enable
2. Move your mouse to where you want to read; Smart Window snaps focus to the paragraph under your cursor
3. Press Shift+Right to narrow to a single line; Shift+Down / Shift+Up to move line by line
4. Press Alt+Shift+E to explain a dense paragraph in plain language
5. For PDFs: open any PDF link — FocalReader's viewer opens automatically
6. Adjust size, opacity, haze, and auto-dim timing in the popup

Simple, lightweight, distraction-free reading starts now.