BlueBubbles vs iBlueText
Compare BlueBubbles and iBlueText side by side: iMessage features, channels, developer tools, pricing and compliance, checked on each provider's own site.
BlueBubbles
Free, open-source iMessage bridge you host on a Mac
- Starting price
- Free
- Free plan
- Free and open source (Apache-2.0)
iBlueText
Hosted or self-hosted iMessage lines with iPhone lookup
- Starting price
- $29/month (self-hosted, 1 line); $99/month per hosted line
- Free plan
- No-card trial: 100 lookups, 10 verifications and 10 iMessages; self-hosted 3-day trial
BlueBubbles supports 45 of the 77 features compared here, and iBlueText supports 43.
Where BlueBubbles is ahead
- Group chats
- Group management
- Group name and photo
- Mentions
- Edit and unsend
- Stickers
- Formatted text
- Live Photos
and 7 more in the table below.
Where iBlueText is ahead
- Contact cards
- Managed lines
- Dedicated numbers
- Shared numbers
- Line pooling
- SMS fallback
- RCS fallback
and 5 more in the table below.
Feature comparison
| Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
| iMessage messaging | ||
| iMessage | ||
| Group chats | Not listedNot mentioned in the API docs | |
| Group management | Not listed | |
| Group name and photo | Not listed | |
| Mentions | Not listed | |
| Tapbacks | ||
| Threaded replies | ||
| Typing indicators | ||
| Read receipts | ||
| Edit and unsend | Not listed | |
| Message effects | ||
| Animated text effects | Not listed | Not listed |
| Stickers | Not listed | |
| Formatted text | Not listed | |
| Attachments | ||
| Live Photos | Not listed | |
| Rich link previews | ||
| Voice messages | ||
| Contact cards | Not listed | |
| Polls | Not listed | |
| Chat backgrounds | Not listed | |
| Location sharing | Not listed | |
| iMessage apps | Not listed | |
| Live app cards | Not listed | Not listed |
| Sender name and photo | ||
| FaceTime calls | ||
| Delivery status | ||
| iMessage availability check | ||
| Focus and Notify Anyway | Not listed | |
| Numbers and delivery | ||
| Managed lines | ||
| Dedicated numbers | Not supportedNot offered; uses your own Apple ID | |
| Shared numbers | Not supported | |
| Bring your own number | ||
| Line pooling | Not listed | |
| SMS fallback | Not listedNot documented; FAQ says SMS is unsupported, the fit quiz says forwarded texts work | |
| RCS fallback | Not listed | |
| Outbound-first messaging | ||
| Calls on the iMessage number | ||
| Other channels | ||
| SMS | ||
| RCS | ||
Not supportedNot offered | ||
| Telegram | Not supported | Not supportedNot offered |
| Slack | Not supported | Not supported |
Not supported | Not supported | |
| Phone calls | Not supportedNot offered; FaceTime only | Not supportedNot offered; calls are FaceTime audio only |
| Apple Messages for Business | Not supportedNot offered | Not supportedNot offered |
| Unified channel API | ||
| Developer tools | ||
| REST API | ||
| TypeScript SDK | Not listedNone found; docs say no SDK is needed | |
| Python SDK | Not listed | |
| Other SDKs | Not listed | |
| CLI | Not listed | Not listed |
| Webhooks | ||
| Signed webhooks | ||
| MCP server | ||
| Open source | ||
| Self-hosting | ||
| Local testing | Not listed | Not listed |
| Custom channel providers | Not listed | |
| Event replay | ||
| OpenTelemetry | Not listed | Not listed |
| No-code integrations | ||
| CRM integrations | Not listed | |
| Built for AI agents | ||
| Agent framework | Not listed | Not listed |
| Agent framework integrations | Not listedOnly community projects are listed, such as a ChatGPT agent and Clawdbot | Not listed |
| Streaming replies | Not listed | Not listed |
| Agent group chats | Not listed | Not listed |
| Human handoff | Not listed | |
| Audit logs | Not listed | |
| Message history API | ||
| Plans and compliance | ||
| Free plan | ||
| Public pricing | ||
| No per-message fees | ||
| Uptime SLA | ||
| Isolated infrastructure | ||
| SOC 2 Type II | Not listedSelf-hosted; compliance is up to whoever runs the Mac | Not listed |
| GDPR | Not listed | Not listedPrivacy policy mentions GDPR rights where applicable; no DPA found |
Checked on each provider's own site and docs on 2026-10-25. “Not listed” means the provider does not mention it.
Pricing
BlueBubbles
The software is free and open source; an optional BlueBubbles Pro subscription for the upcoming 2.x server costs $3/month, $30/year or $55 once.
Pricing model: free self-hosted software, optional Pro subscription
SourceiBlueText
Hosted lines cost $99 a month each plus a one-time setup fee from $249, self-hosted Bridge plans run from $29 a month for 1 line to $999 for 100 lines, and lookups cost $0.005 each.
Pricing model: flat per line, plus prepaid credits for lookups and verifications
SourceWhich should you choose?
Choose BlueBubbles if you need group chats, group management, group name and photo and mentions.
Choose iBlueText if you need contact cards, managed lines, dedicated numbers and shared numbers.
Frequently asked questions
BlueBubbles supports 45 of the 77 features compared here, and iBlueText supports 43. BlueBubbles adds group chats, group management, group name and photo, mentions and edit and unsend. iBlueText adds contact cards, managed lines, dedicated numbers, shared numbers and line pooling.
BlueBubbles: The software is free and open source; an optional BlueBubbles Pro subscription for the upcoming 2.x server costs $3/month, $30/year or $55 once. iBlueText: Hosted lines cost $99 a month each plus a one-time setup fee from $249, self-hosted Bridge plans run from $29 a month for 1 line to $999 for 100 lines, and lookups cost $0.005 each.
iBlueText does not list group chats on its site or in its docs.
iBlueText does not list group management on its site or in its docs.
iBlueText does not list group name and photo on its site or in its docs.