Pricing
What an iMessage API actually costs
Nearly everyone bills per line per month rather than per message — which inverts the instinct you have from SMS. And in two cases the published price is not the price you will pay, for reasons worth knowing before you budget.
The mistake that costs the most
Some published entry plans are reply-only — they let you answer people who text you first and cannot initiate a conversation. If you are buying this to send appointment reminders or review requests, confirm outbound is included before you pay.
| Provider | From | Transparency | Headline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photon | Free | Published | A real free tier, $25/mo Pro, $250/line Business — no setup fee, no per-message charge. |
 BlueBubbles | Free | Free | Free. You supply the Mac and operate it. |
| OpenBubbles | Free | Published | $16.99/month hosted, or free if you self-host — and neither is business infrastructure. |
| Texting Blue | $19/mo | Partly published | $19 per number per month — the lowest published price in the category, capped at 100 messages a day. |
 Blooio | $39/mo | Published | $39/mo shared or $289/mo dedicated, flat, with unlimited messages. |
| senderZ | $39/mo | Published | $39 to $599/mo billed annually, metered on unique new contacts rather than messages. |
 LoopMessage | $60/mo | Published | About $60/mo base, but add-ons materially change the real figure. |
| Contiguity | $70/mo | Published | $69.99/mo for the iMessage capability on a leased number — the cheap headline rates are SMS. |
| iBluSend | $79/mo | Published | $79 to $399/mo, no per-message fees — but you supply the Mac and the Apple Account. |
| Crypton.sh Blue Relay | $89/mo | Published | From €89/month flat, API included — and the only EU-hosted line in the category. |
 Miss Blue | $99/mo | Published | $99/mo per dedicated line on the current 50%-off sale, normally $198 — unlimited messages, contacts and seats. |
 Sendblue | $100/mo | Partly published | $100/line/mo for the reply-only plan; outbound is quote-only and reported near $1,000. |
| Blue Reacher | $162/mo | Published | $249/line/mo, $199 at four or more, or $1,949/line/year — unlimited messages, hard pacing. |
| Sendara | $249/mo | Published | $249 for the first line, $149 for each one after, $99 setup — no per-message charges. |
 Linq | Quote | Contact sales | Not published. Per line with no metering, sold through a sales conversation. |
| Chert | Quote | Contact sales | Not published. Book a call. |
Compiled August 24, 2026 from vendor pricing pages and public reporting. Several vendors do not publish pricing, and some figures circulating publicly are published by competitors rather than by the vendor — each provider page marks which is which. Verify directly before you budget.
Per provider
The full breakdown, including what is not on the pricing page
Setup fees, add-ons, reply-only limits and the gap between the entry tier and the tier you actually need.
Photon pricing
Published
A real free tier, $25/mo Pro, $250/line Business — no setup fee, no per-message charge.
Best value for: Developers who want to build and test for free, then pay only when they go to production.
BlueBubbles pricing
Free
Free. You supply the Mac and operate it.
Best value for: Developers and internal tools where the operational burden is genuinely acceptable.
OpenBubbles pricing
Published
$16.99/month hosted, or free if you self-host — and neither is business infrastructure.
Best value for: An Android owner who wants a blue bubble in their friends' group chats. Not a business.
Texting Blue pricing
Partly published
$19 per number per month — the lowest published price in the category, capped at 100 messages a day.
Best value for: A small team that already messages customers from one shop iPhone and just wants everyone to see the thread.
Blooio pricing
Published
$39/mo shared or $289/mo dedicated, flat, with unlimited messages.
Best value for: Small businesses and developers who want a published price, no sales call, and no per-message maths.
senderZ pricing
Published
$39 to $599/mo billed annually, metered on unique new contacts rather than messages.
Best value for: Teams with a defined prospect list they work repeatedly, where the same contacts receive many messages over time.
LoopMessage pricing
Published
About $60/mo base, but add-ons materially change the real figure.
Best value for: Teams who need only the base capability and genuinely will not add channels.
Contiguity pricing
Published
$69.99/mo for the iMessage capability on a leased number — the cheap headline rates are SMS.
Best value for: Developers who need one cheap API across SMS, email, WhatsApp and voice, with iMessage available when a particular thread warrants it.
iBluSend pricing
Published
$79 to $399/mo, no per-message fees — but you supply the Mac and the Apple Account.
Best value for: Agencies running client messaging in GoHighLevel who want to resell lines under their own brand at $399/month all-in.
Crypton.sh Blue Relay pricing
Published
From €89/month flat, API included — and the only EU-hosted line in the category.
Best value for: European buyers with a genuine data-residency requirement who can accept the vendor's privacy-telco positioning.
Miss Blue pricing
Published
$99/mo per dedicated line on the current 50%-off sale, normally $198 — unlimited messages, contacts and seats.
Best value for: Teams that need a shared inbox non-engineers can run as well as an API, and anyone who wants a dedicated line without paying $250–$289 for one.
Sendblue pricing
Partly published
$100/line/mo for the reply-only plan; outbound is quote-only and reported near $1,000.
Best value for: Funded teams building inbound AI agents, or enterprises with budget and a procurement process.
Blue Reacher pricing
Published
$249/line/mo, $199 at four or more, or $1,949/line/year — unlimited messages, hard pacing.
Best value for: Outbound teams in regulated or reputation-sensitive markets who would rather have the ceiling enforced than trusted to discipline.
Sendara pricing
Published
$249 for the first line, $149 for each one after, $99 setup — no per-message charges.
Best value for: Sales teams whose work already lives in GoHighLevel or HubSpot and who want the blue bubble inside the CRM rather than beside it.
Linq pricing
Contact sales
Not published. Per line with no metering, sold through a sales conversation.
Best value for: Teams with a procurement process, a compliance review, or volume that justifies a negotiation.
Chert pricing
Contact sales
Not published. Book a call.
Best value for: Engineering teams deploying AI agents on iMessage at a scale that justifies a procurement conversation.
Context
Why per line and not per message
A provider's scarce resource is not bandwidth — it is trusted Apple accounts on real hardware. Each line is a real identity that took effort to establish and can be flagged. Messages over it are close to free.