MessageBlue vs Linq

MessageBlue supports 38 of the 77 features compared here, and Linq supports 63.

Feature comparison

Feature	MessageBlue	Linq
iMessage messaging
iMessage	Supported	Supported
Group chats	SupportedSend text, attachments and voice notes to groups; receive group messages.	SupportedPro plan. Up to 31 recipients. No read or delivery receipts in groups.
Group management	PartialCreate groups of 2 to 31 by API; no add or remove participant endpoints.	SupportedAdd and remove participants and leave a group, iMessage groups only, 3-member minimum.
Group name and photo	Not listed	SupportedSet display_name and group_chat_icon on group chats.
Mentions	Not listed	SupportedGroup chats only. Notifies iMessage recipients even in a muted chat.
Tapbacks	SupportedSend or remove emoji or tapbacks; inbound tapbacks arrive by webhook.	SupportedSix classic tapbacks or any emoji, send and receive via reaction webhooks.
Threaded replies	Not listed	Supportedreply_to with optional part_index. iMessage only.
Typing indicators	SupportedSend and stop, up to 20 seconds; no inbound typing webhook documented.	SupportedSend and receive, in direct and group chats. iMessage only.
Read receipts	SupportedSend read receipts; outbound messages report a read status.	SupportedMark chats read and receive message.read. One-to-one chats only.
Edit and unsend	Not listed	PartialEdit text up to 5 times within 15 minutes. Delete does not unsend from the recipient's device.
Message effects	Not listed	Supported11 screen and 4 bubble effects.
Animated text effects	Not listed	Supportedtext_decorations animations: big, small, shake, nod, explode, ripple, bloom, jitter.
Stickers	Not listed	SupportedPeel emoji or images onto messages, send stickers, or place them inline in text.
Formatted text	Not listed	SupportedBold, italic, underline and strikethrough ranges, plus animated text. iMessage only.
Attachments	SupportedAttachments by public URL.	SupportedUp to 10MB by URL, 100MB with pre-upload.
Live Photos	Not listed	Not listed
Rich link previews	Not listed	Supportedlink parts render as rich previews on iMessage and RCS.
Voice messages	SupportedTo individuals and groups.	SupportedDedicated voice memo endpoint renders the native iMessage voice bubble.
Contact cards	Not listed	SupportedSend .vcf files as media parts.
Polls	Not listed	SupportedCreate, add options, vote and read tallies, with poll webhooks. Not as a chat's first message.
Chat backgrounds	Not listed	SupportedColor, animated or photo backgrounds, in direct and group chats.
Location sharing	Not listed	SupportedRequest, read and stop Find My shares. Live location is a $79/mo add-on on Pro.
iMessage apps	Not listed	SupportedPro plan. Cards from your own Messages extension, or Linq-hosted cards (Experiences).
Live app cards	Not listed	SupportedUpdate App Card replaces a delivered iMessage app or Experience card in place.
Sender name and photo	Not listed	SupportedContact card API sets name and photo, shared per chat via Name and Photo Sharing.
FaceTime calls	Not listedInbox video call button is marked coming soon; voice calls need the team to enable.	Not supportedDocs say the API does not place or answer calls.
Delivery status	Supportedsent, delivered, read, SMS_FALLBACK and failed via status webhook.	Supportedsent, delivered, read and failed webhooks. Groups report sent only.
iMessage availability check	SupportedCheck a number, or a whole group's participants, before sending.	Supportedcheck_imessage and check_rcs endpoints.
Focus and Notify Anyway	Not listed	Not listed
Numbers and delivery
Managed lines	SupportedRequest a number and the team provisions it, typically in 3 to 5 business days.	Supported
Dedicated numbers	Supported$100/mo per line on Startups & SMB.	SupportedPaid lines are dedicated. Provisioned by Linq, no self-serve number API.
Shared numbers	Not listed	SupportedFree Hobby tier uses a Shared Line, inbound-first, 20 contacts.
Bring your own number	SupportedPair your own Mac and its Apple ID number with the MessageBlue agent.	Not listed
Line pooling	SupportedAssigns the least-mapped number per contact and remaps contacts if a number is blocked.	SupportedManaged load balancing (Pro): send without from and Linq picks and fails over lines.
SMS fallback	SupportedStatus event reports SMS_FALLBACK; not available for group creation.	Supported
RCS fallback	Not listedMarketing pages say SMS or RCS fallback; docs only describe SMS.	SupportedOrder is iMessage, then RCS, then SMS.
Outbound-first messaging	SupportedStart chats with any iMessage-capable number; warns after 5 unanswered messages.	SupportedFree Hobby tier is inbound-first. Docs recommend inbound-first flows to avoid flagging.
Calls on the iMessage number	Not listedInbox voice call button says to contact the team; number used is not stated.	PartialAPI forwards inbound calls on the line; outbound needs caller-ID masking via another provider.
Other channels
SMS	PartialOnly as fallback; new chats need an iMessage-capable recipient.	Supported
RCS	Not listedMentioned only as a fallback on marketing pages.	Supported
WhatsApp	Not supportedNot offered	BetaSeparate WhatsApp API in beta. Access by request, no SLA.
Telegram	Not supported	Not supportedNot offered
Slack	Not supported	Not supported
Email	Not supported	Not supportedNot offered. iMessage can be sent to Apple ID email handles.
Phone calls	Not listedInbox voice call button says to contact the team; call type and number not stated.	PartialAPI does not place or answer calls; it forwards inbound calls. Calling lives in the Linq Blue app.
Apple Messages for Business	Not supportedNot offered	Not listedAI context page mentions it, but no product page or docs were found.
Unified channel API	PartialOne API for iMessage and its SMS fallback only.	PartialiMessage, RCS and SMS share one API. WhatsApp is a separate API with its own keys and SDKs.
Developer tools
REST API	SupportedOpenAPI 3.1 spec published.	Supported
TypeScript SDK	Supportednpm messageblue (0.0.7), generated from the OpenAPI spec.	Supported@linqapp/sdk
Python SDK	Not supportedDocs say only TypeScript is published today; other languages on request.	Supportedlinq-python
Other SDKs	Not supported	SupportedOfficial Go SDK.
CLI	Not listedThe API page mentions a CLI, but none is documented.	Supported@linqapp/cli: signup, sending, and a local webhook listener.
Webhooks	SupportedInbound and status URLs with retries and dead-lettering.	Supported
Signed webhooks	SupportedX-MB-Signature: HMAC-SHA256 over timestamp and raw body.	SupportedHMAC-SHA256, Standard Webhooks format, with replay protection.
MCP server	PartialDocumentation-only MCP server at docs.messageblue.ai/_mcp/server.	Supported@linqapp/sdk-mcp with docs search and code execution tools.
Open source	Not listed	PartialSDKs, CLI and adapters are Apache-2.0 or MIT on GitHub. The messaging platform is closed.
Self-hosting	SupportedEnterprise plan: your cloud (BYOC), VPC or on-prem	Not supportedLinq describes itself as fully managed, in contrast to self-hosted options.
Local testing	PartialBrowser test bench runs the no-code agent without sending an iMessage.	Not listedThe CLI streams webhooks locally, but tests still use a real phone.
Custom channel providers	Not listed	Not listed
Event replay	SupportedFailed and dead-lettered deliveries are kept and can be replayed.	PartialRetries for 30 minutes; after that, re-fetch chats or ask Linq for a manual replay.
OpenTelemetry	Not listed	PartialW3C trace IDs on every response and webhook for OTel backends. No export of Linq spans by default.
No-code integrations	SupportedZapier, plus a no-code agent builder.	SupportedLinq Blue works as a GoHighLevel messaging provider. No n8n, Make or Zapier found for the API.
CRM integrations	SupportedAgent connects to Salesforce, HubSpot and others; HubSpot inbox sync is private beta.	SupportedVia Linq Blue: GoHighLevel, HubSpot and Salesforce.
Built for AI agents
Agent framework	SupportedNo-code agent with model choice, prompt, knowledge, tools, memory and multi-step tasks.	PartialNo own framework. Maintains a Vercel Chat SDK adapter and OpenClaw and Hermes plugins.
Agent framework integrations	Not listedSite says it works with LangChain and the Vercel AI SDK via webhooks; no official integration.	SupportedLinq-maintained Vercel Chat SDK adapter, plus OpenClaw and Hermes Agent plugins.
Streaming replies	Not listed	Not supportedDocs say the Chat SDK adapter buffers streams into one final message.
Agent group chats	Not listed	Not listed
Human handoff	SupportedTeam inbox for manual replies; pause the agent or block it per contact.	Not listed
Audit logs	SupportedOn the Business and Enterprise plans	SupportedDashboard Activity page plus account-change webhooks with actor and origin.
Message history API	SupportedConversation by phone number.	Supported
Plans and compliance
Free plan	Supported$0 when you bring your own number on your own Mac; every feature included.	SupportedHobby: $0, up to 20 contacts, through the CLI.
Public pricing	SupportedFree and $100/mo listed; Business and Enterprise are contact sales.	SupportedPro from $260/mo. Enterprise is custom.
No per-message fees	SupportedFlat $100/mo per line.	Supported
Uptime SLA	Supported99.9% SLA listed from the $100 plan; the API page says enterprise plans	SupportedContractual SLAs on the Enterprise plan; marketing cites 99.95%
Isolated infrastructure	SupportedEnterprise plan: single-tenant or self-hosted stack	SupportedDedicated lines across 4 data centers on paid plans; Hobby uses a shared line
SOC 2 Type II	PartialEnterprise page claims audited SOC 2 Type II; pricing says SOC 2 ready; no report found.	SupportedType I and Type II, reports for 2022, 2024, 2025 and 2026.
GDPR	Not listed	SupportedDPA covers GDPR and UK GDPR, with Standard Contractual Clauses.

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

Pricing

Which should you choose?

Choose MessageBlue if you need bring your own number, self-hosting, local testing and human handoff.

Choose Linq if you need group name and photo, mentions, threaded replies and edit and unsend.

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