Claw Messenger vs messages.dev

Compare Claw Messenger and messages.dev side by side: iMessage features, channels, developer tools, pricing and compliance, checked on each provider's own site.

Claw Messenger

iMessage for personal AI agents, no Mac needed
Starting price
$5/month for 250 messages
Free plan
7-day free trial, card required

messages.dev

TypeScript-first iMessage, RCS and SMS API
Starting price
$99/month per line
Free plan
Sandbox: 50 messages a day to your own paired phone

Claw Messenger supports 32 of the 77 features compared here, and messages.dev supports 30.

Feature comparison

FeatureClaw Messengermessages.dev
iMessage messaging
iMessage
SupportedOnly phone numbers registered to the account can reach the agent
Supported
Group chats
PartialGrowth plan and up; every participant must be a registered number
SupportedSend into existing groups once someone in them has messaged; receive group messages.
Group management
PartialCreate a group by sending to several numbers; no add or remove member calls
Not supportedDocs say Apple does not let third-party software create groups; no member endpoints.
Group name and photo
Not listedDocs only describe receiving group rename events
Not listed
Mentions
Not listed
Not listed
Tapbacks
SupportedSend and receive, including custom emoji reactions
SupportedSix tapbacks; reaction.added and reaction.removed webhooks.
Threaded replies
SupportedreplyTo on send; inbound messages carry replyTo
Supportedreply_to with a message ID or GUID.
Typing indicators
Supported
SupportedSending works; inbound typing events are not delivered yet.
Read receipts
SupportedMark as read on send; read status events on receive
PartialYou can mark chats read; inbound read receipts are not delivered yet.
Edit and unsend
Not listed
Not listedNot in the endpoint list in llms.txt.
Message effects
Not listed
Not listed
Animated text effects
Not listed
Not listed
Stickers
Not listed
Not listed
Formatted text
Not listed
Not listed
Attachments
SupportedGeneric media attachments from HTTPS URLs
SupportedOne uploaded file per message.
Live Photos
Not listed
Not listed
Rich link previews
Not listed
Not listed
Voice messages
Not supportedFAQ: native voice-note bubbles are not verified; audio goes as a plain file
SupportedNative waveform voice messages; inbound memos include Apple's transcription.
Contact cards
Not listed
SupportedSDK helper builds the vCard, photo included.
Polls
Not listed
Not listed
Chat backgrounds
Not listed
Not listed
Location sharing
Not listed
Not listed
iMessage apps
Not listed
Not listed
Live app cards
Not listed
Not listed
Sender name and photo
Not listed
Not listed
FaceTime calls
Not supportedFAQ: no voice calls; text and media only
Not listed
Delivery status
Supportedaccepted, delivered, read and failed status events
PartialOutbox status pending, claimed, sent or failed; no separate delivered or read state.
iMessage availability check
Not listedRouting picks the channel automatically; no reachability check is documented
Not listed
Focus and Notify Anyway
Not listed
Not listed
Numbers and delivery
Managed lines
SupportedProvider runs the line; agents run on Linux, Docker, Windows or cloud
SupportedTerms say messages.dev runs the Mac hardware, Apple IDs and carrier links for each line.
Dedicated numbers
SupportedAgency tier ($199/month per subtenant); self-serve uses shared numbers
Supported$99/mo per line with a dedicated number.
Shared numbers
SupportedSelf-serve plans send from a shared number that may change between messages
SupportedShared sandbox line, 50 messages a day, only to your own paired phone.
Bring your own number
Not listedFAQ says numbers come from a pool; bringing your own is not mentioned
Not listed
Line pooling
Not listed
PartialMultiple lines supported, but you choose the line per user in your own code.
SMS fallback
SupportediMessage with automatic RCS and SMS fallback
Not listedLines can be iMessage, SMS or auto; fallback behaviour is not documented.
RCS fallback
Supported
Not listed
Outbound-first messaging
SupportedSelf-serve plans start up to 20 new conversations per rolling 24 hours
Not supportedContact-first: the recipient must message your line before you can send.
Calls on the iMessage number
Not supportedFAQ: voice calls are not supported
Not listed
Other channels
SMS
Supportedservice: SMS on send
SupportedSMS lines use the same endpoints; audio messages are iMessage only.
RCS
Supportedservice: RCS on send
Not listedHomepage and terms mention RCS; the API docs do not document it.
WhatsApp
Not supportedNot offered
Not supportedNot offered
Telegram
Not supported
Not supported
Slack
Not supported
Not supported
Email
Not supported
Not supported
Phone calls
Not supportedFAQ: voice calls are not supported
Not supported
Apple Messages for Business
Not supportedNot offered
Not supported
Unified channel API
SupportedOne send call routes across iMessage, RCS and SMS
SupportediMessage and SMS lines share the same endpoints.
Developer tools
REST API
SupportedREST for sends and number routes; WebSocket is the main event channel
Supported
TypeScript SDK
PartialOnly framework packages on npm (OpenClaw plugin, n8n node, MCP); no general SDK
Supported@messages-dev/sdk, MIT.
Python SDK
PartialOnly LangChain and CrewAI tool packages on PyPI; no general SDK
Not supportedOnly a TypeScript SDK; docs point other languages to the REST API.
Other SDKs
Not supportedProvider lists its SDK story as REST and WebSocket from any language
Not supported
CLI
Not listed
Supportedmessages-dev CLI: send, list, manage webhooks and stream events.
Webhooks
PartialDocs: self-serve inbound is WebSocket only; webhooks are for approved managed setups
Supportedmessage.received, message.sent, reaction.added and reaction.removed.
Signed webhooks
SupportedHMAC-signed
SupportedHMAC-SHA256 over timestamp and raw body, 5-minute replay window.
MCP server
Supported@emotion-machine/claw-messenger-mcp, five tools
Not listed
Open source
Not supportedCore service is not published; only MIT starter repos and plugins
PartialTypeScript SDK and CLI are MIT on GitHub; the service is closed.
Self-hosting
Not supportedProvider lists itself as hosted
Not listed
Local testing
Not listedSetup test sends a real message to a phone you control
PartialSDK builds signed test webhook deliveries; real messaging still needs your phone.
Custom channel providers
Not listed
Not listed
Event replay
SupportedInbound messages are stored and redelivered on reconnect; sync replays since a time
Not listed
OpenTelemetry
Not listed
Not listed
No-code integrations
Partialn8n node for self-hosted n8n, send only; no Zapier or Make
Not listed
CRM integrations
Not supportedProvider: no native HubSpot, Salesforce or GoHighLevel connector
Not listed
Built for AI agents
Agent framework
PartialPlugins for OpenClaw, Hermes, LangChain and CrewAI; no framework of its own
Not listed
Agent framework integrations
SupportedOwn packages for LangChain, CrewAI, OpenClaw, Hermes and n8n
Not listed
Streaming replies
Not listed
Not listed
Agent group chats
Not listed
Not listed
Human handoff
Not listed
Not listed
Audit logs
Not listed
Not listed
Message history API
Partialsync replays saved inbound messages since a timestamp; no history API
SupportedCursor-paginated chats and messages per line.
Plans and compliance
Free plan
Not supportedNo free tier; 7-day trial with a card
SupportedSandbox: 50 messages a day to your own paired phone.
Public pricing
Supported
Supported
No per-message fees
PartialFlat plans with hard monthly message caps; Agency charges $0.005 per extra message
Supported$99/mo per line with unlimited messages.
Uptime SLA
Not supportedTerms: high availability is a goal, uptime is not guaranteed
PartialCustom SLAs on Enterprise only; terms say no formal uptime SLA at launch.
Isolated infrastructure
SupportedAgency subtenants get their own line, key and routing
SupportedDedicated infrastructure on the Enterprise plan
SOC 2 Type II
Not supportedProvider: no public certifications yet
Not supportedSite footer lists SOC 2 as in progress.
GDPR
Not listed
SupportedSite says GDPR compliant; a DPA is available on request.

Checked on each provider's own site and docs on 2026-10-25. “Not listed” means the provider does not mention it.

Pricing

Claw Messenger

Monthly plans sized by message count, from $5 for 250 messages to $50 for 15,000, plus an invite-only Agency tier and custom Enterprise.

Pricing model: monthly message bundles (inbound and outbound both count)

Source

messages.dev

The sandbox is free for 50 messages a day; a production line is $99 a month with unlimited messages, and Enterprise is custom.

Pricing model: flat per line, no per-message fees

Source

Which should you choose?

Choose Claw Messenger if you need group management, SMS fallback, RCS fallback and outbound-first messaging.

Choose messages.dev if you need voice messages, contact cards, line pooling and CLI.

Frequently asked questions