Photon vs TextGrid
Compare Photon and TextGrid side by side: iMessage features, channels, developer tools, pricing and compliance, checked on each provider's own site.
Photon
Open-source agent framework with managed iMessage
- Starting price
- $25/month (Pro)
- Free plan
- Free: shared iMessage lines, up to 10 users (2.0 beta: 25 shared iMessage assignments and $100 credit)
TextGrid
Low-cost SMS, MMS, voice and email API
- Starting price
- $0.0035 per outbound SMS segment, no minimum
- Free plan
- Free signup with trial credits (amount not stated)
Photon supports 75 of the 77 features compared here, and TextGrid supports 13.
Where Photon is ahead
- iMessage
- Group chats
- Group management
- Group name and photo
- Mentions
- Tapbacks
- Threaded replies
- Typing indicators
and 55 more in the table below.
Where TextGrid is ahead
Feature comparison
| Feature | ||
|---|---|---|
| iMessage messaging | ||
| iMessage | Not supportedNo iMessage support | |
| Group chats | Not supported | |
| Group management | Not supported | |
| Group name and photo | Not supported | |
| Mentions | Not supported | |
| Tapbacks | Not supported | |
| Threaded replies | Not supported | |
| Typing indicators | Not supported | |
| Read receipts | Not supported | |
| Edit and unsend | Not supported | |
| Message effects | Not supported | |
| Animated text effects | Not supported | |
| Stickers | Not supported | |
| Formatted text | Not supported | |
| Attachments | Not supported | |
| Live Photos | Not supported | |
| Rich link previews | Not supported | |
| Voice messages | Not supported | |
| Contact cards | Not supported | |
| Polls | Not supported | |
| Chat backgrounds | Not supported | |
| Location sharing | Not supported | |
| iMessage apps | Not supported | |
| Live app cards | Not supported | |
| Sender name and photo | Not supported | |
| FaceTime calls | Not listed | Not supported |
| Delivery status | Not supported | |
| iMessage availability check | Not supported | |
| Focus and Notify Anyway | Not supported | |
| Numbers and delivery | ||
| Managed lines | Not supportedNo iMessage support | |
| Dedicated numbers | ||
| Shared numbers | Not listed | |
| Bring your own number | ||
| Line pooling | ||
| SMS fallback | Not supportedNo iMessage support | |
| RCS fallback | Not supported | |
| Outbound-first messaging | ||
| Calls on the iMessage number | Not supportedNo iMessage support | |
| Other channels | ||
| SMS | ||
| RCS | Not supportedNot offered | |
Not supported | ||
| Telegram | Not supported | |
| Slack | Not supported | |
| Phone calls | ||
| Apple Messages for Business | Not supportedNot offered | |
| Unified channel API | Not listed | |
| Developer tools | ||
| REST API | ||
| TypeScript SDK | Not listedSite says existing Twilio code works with a base URL change; no TextGrid SDK found | |
| Python SDK | Not listed | |
| Other SDKs | Not listed | |
| CLI | Not listed | |
| Webhooks | Not listedSite mentions real-time delivery receipts; the Developer Docs page has no content | |
| Signed webhooks | Not listed | |
| MCP server | Not listed | |
| Open source | Not listed | |
| Self-hosting | Not listed | |
| Local testing | Not listed | |
| Custom channel providers | Not listed | |
| Event replay | Not listed | |
| OpenTelemetry | Not listed | |
| No-code integrations | ||
| CRM integrations | Not listed | |
| Built for AI agents | ||
| Agent framework | Not listed | |
| Agent framework integrations | Not listed | |
| Streaming replies | Not listed | |
| Agent group chats | Not listed | |
| Human handoff | Not listed | |
| Audit logs | Not listed | |
| Message history API | Not listedSLA says customer data is retained for 30 days | |
| Plans and compliance | ||
| Free plan | ||
| Public pricing | ||
| No per-message fees | ||
| Uptime SLA | ||
| Isolated infrastructure | Not listed | |
| SOC 2 Type II | ||
| GDPR |
Checked on each provider's own site and docs on 2026-10-25. “Not listed” means the provider does not mention it.
Pricing
Photon
Free plan, Pro at $25/month, Business at $250 per dedicated line per month, and custom Enterprise; the 2.0 beta adds metered SMS, voice and email.
Pricing model: plan tiers plus flat fee per dedicated line
SourceTextGrid
Pay as you go with no commits: outbound SMS $0.0035 per segment (lower above 1 million a month) with free inbound, MMS $0.014 out, voice $0.0064 a minute out and $0.004 in, numbers $0.50 a month and email $0.00063 each, plus carrier surcharges.
Pricing model: pay as you go per segment, per minute and per number, plus carrier surcharges
SourceWhich should you choose?
Choose Photon if you need iMessage, group chats, group management and group name and photo.
Choose TextGrid if you need CRM integrations.
Frequently asked questions
Photon supports 75 of the 77 features compared here, and TextGrid supports 13. Photon adds iMessage, group chats, group management, group name and photo and mentions. TextGrid adds CRM integrations.
Photon: Free plan, Pro at $25/month, Business at $250 per dedicated line per month, and custom Enterprise; the 2.0 beta adds metered SMS, voice and email. TextGrid: Pay as you go with no commits: outbound SMS $0.0035 per segment (lower above 1 million a month) with free inbound, MMS $0.014 out, voice $0.0064 a minute out and $0.004 in, numbers $0.50 a month and email $0.00063 each, plus carrier surcharges.
TextGrid does not support iMessage.
TextGrid does not support group chats.
TextGrid does not support group management.