1. Sign up with just your email
Enter your email and you're straight into your parent account. Adding your child's first name or nickname is optional; without one, Lyra invents a friendly main character. The first 5 days are free, with up to 5 stories a day, and no card is asked for.
2. Pick a theme and tap one button
Choose one of eight themes (space dreams, ocean friends, kind dragons, "surprise me" and more), a length of 3, 5 or 10 minutes, an age range (2–4, 5–7 or 8–10) and a narrator. Add anything for tonight in your own words, like the family dog, a wobbly tooth or the first day of school, and keep a saved list of things to leave out of every story, like spiders or storms. Lyra writes an original story shaped for that age: short and repetitive for toddlers, a small brave adventure for early readers, richer vocabulary for older kids. Stories never copy famous characters or worlds, and every one ends calmly with a slow, sleepy wind-down.
3. An automated safety check runs first
Before you see it, each story goes through an automated check for calm tone and age-appropriate content. Stories are designed to leave out violence, scary horror and nightmares, adult or romantic content, bullying, unsafe dares, and persuasion of any kind, as well as anything on your own leave-out list. Stories are made with AI, which can make mistakes, so please read each one through before sharing it.
4. It's ready in your account in seconds
The story text appears in about 20 seconds, with narration a moment later, in your parent account rather than a child's. Every story is saved there: star the favorites and replay them in one tap when your child asks for the same one again. During your free days and subscription, a story also arrives by email each evening.
5. Read it, or press play
Read it aloud yourself, or press play for gentle AI narration in the voice you picked. Audio never autoplays, so bedtime stays in your hands, and the dark night-mode screen is easy on the eyes after lights-out.
Why not just use a free AI chatbot?
You can, and some parents do. The difference is the work you'd do every night: writing a good prompt, remembering your child's details and what to avoid, checking the story is the right length and level, and making sure it ends calmly instead of on a twist, then finding a voice to read it. Lyra does all of that for you, text and narration, so bedtime takes one tap instead of ten minutes of typing.
Common questions
Is Lyra Stories an AI bedtime story generator?
Yes. Stories are written by AI, but you don't have to write instructions: writing for your child's age, calm pacing, gentle endings and an automated safety check are built in. You pick a theme, add anything for tonight if you like, and tap one button.
Does my child use the app?
No. The account always belongs to a parent or guardian. Stories are made in your account, and you decide when to read or play them. Children don't have accounts.
Do I need my child's real name?
No. A name is optional. Add a first name or nickname to make your child the star, or leave it out and Lyra invents a friendly main character. We ask for an age range, never a birthdate.
Can I listen instead of reading?
Yes. Every story comes with gentle AI narration, with a choice of six narrator voices. Audio never plays on its own; it starts only when you press play.
How much does it cost?
It's free for 5 days with just your email, up to 5 stories a day, no card needed. After that it's $7.99/month if you want to keep going, and you can cancel anytime from your account. If you do nothing, the free days simply end and you are never charged.
Curious what the stories read like? Try our free sample stories.