BlueBubbles vs Texting Blue
Compare BlueBubbles and Texting Blue 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)
Texting Blue
Shared team iMessage inbox on your own iPhone number
- Starting price
- $19/month per number
- Free plan
- 3-day free trial
BlueBubbles supports 45 of the 77 features compared here, and Texting Blue supports 20.
Where BlueBubbles is ahead
- Group chats
- Group management
- Group name and photo
- Mentions
- Tapbacks
- Threaded replies
- Typing indicators
- Read receipts
and 22 more in the table below.
Where Texting Blue is ahead
Feature comparison
| Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
| iMessage messaging | ||
| iMessage | ||
| Group chats | Not listedAPI only documents one-to-one sends | |
| Group management | Not listed | |
| Group name and photo | Not listed | |
| Mentions | Not listedGroup chats are not documented | |
| Tapbacks | Not listed | |
| Threaded replies | Not listed | |
| Typing indicators | Not listed | |
| Read receipts | Not listedMarketing mentions read receipts, but the API has no read status | |
| Edit and unsend | Not listed | |
| Message effects | Not listed | |
| Animated text effects | Not listed | Not listed |
| Stickers | ||
| Formatted text | Not listed | |
| Attachments | ||
| Live Photos | ||
| Rich link previews | Not listed | |
| Voice messages | ||
| Contact cards | Not listed | |
| Polls | ||
| Chat backgrounds | Not listed | |
| Location sharing | ||
| iMessage apps | ||
| Live app cards | Not listed | |
| Sender name and photo | Not listed | |
| FaceTime calls | ||
| Delivery status | ||
| iMessage availability check | Not listed | |
| 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 | Not listed |
| SMS fallback | Not listedNot documented; FAQ says SMS is unsupported, the fit quiz says forwarded texts work | |
| RCS fallback | Not listed | Not listed |
| Outbound-first messaging | ||
| Calls on the iMessage number | ||
| Other channels | ||
| SMS | ||
| RCS | Not listed | |
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 | |
| Apple Messages for Business | Not supportedNot offered | Not supportedNot offered |
| Unified channel API | ||
| Developer tools | ||
| REST API | ||
| TypeScript SDK | Not listedSite mentions SDKs, but docs show only raw HTTP examples | |
| Python SDK | Not listed | |
| Other SDKs | Not listed | |
| CLI | Not listed | Not listed |
| Webhooks | ||
| Signed webhooks | ||
| MCP server | Not listed | |
| Open source | Not listedOnly the free website contact widget is described as open source | |
| Self-hosting | Not listedHosted dashboard and API; only the widget script can be self-hosted | |
| Local testing | Not listed | Not listedtb_test_ sandbox keys are listed as coming soon |
| Custom channel providers | Not listed | 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 listedAbout page mentions 'SOC 2 practices'; no report or certification stated |
| GDPR | Not listed |
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
SourceTexting Blue
One plan on sale: Lite at $19 per number per month for text-only messaging up to 100 messages a day; Standard and Business are listed as coming soon.
Pricing model: flat per number, with a daily message cap
SourceWhich should you choose?
Choose BlueBubbles if you need group chats, group management, group name and photo and mentions.
Choose Texting Blue if you need SMS fallback, signed webhooks, human handoff and audit logs.
Frequently asked questions
BlueBubbles supports 45 of the 77 features compared here, and Texting Blue supports 20. BlueBubbles adds group chats, group management, group name and photo, mentions and tapbacks. Texting Blue adds SMS fallback, signed webhooks, human handoff, audit logs and GDPR.
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. Texting Blue: One plan on sale: Lite at $19 per number per month for text-only messaging up to 100 messages a day; Standard and Business are listed as coming soon.
Texting Blue does not list group chats on its site or in its docs.
Texting Blue does not list group management on its site or in its docs.
Texting Blue does not list group name and photo on its site or in its docs.