SmartFilter for SMS vs AuthentiKate
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SmartFilter for SMS
This app intelligently filters unwanted SMS messages using machine learning. It offers extensive customization options to tailor filtering rules and ensures user privacy by analyzing messages directly on the device.
- Machine learning spam detection
- Customizable filtering options
- Filter unknown sender messages
- Filter messages with URLs
- Filter messages from email addresses
- On-device message analysis
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Spam texts are annoying, and sometimes dangerous. SmartFilter works with your iPhone's built-in message filtering to sort them out before they land in your inbox — turn it on once and it runs automatically from then on. Set your own rules, or install ready-made packs for toll scams, fake tax notices, gift card cons, crypto pitches, delivery scams, job and loan scams, phishing, and election spam. Two more packs route marketing texts and receipts into their own folders. Messages can go to Junk, Promotions, Transactions, or straight to your inbox — you decide. Paste in a real message and tap the words that matter, and SmartFilter writes the rule for you. Save test messages so you can check your setup any time you change something. And if you want to know why a message ended up where it did, SmartFilter shows you the exact path it took. Your rules sync across your devices with iCloud. Report junk, or tell SmartFilter it got one wrong, right from the Messages app — no extra steps. SmartFilter also catches spam that tries to sneak past filters using lookalike letters and hidden characters. Every message is analyzed on your phone. Nothing you receive is ever sent to a server — that's not a policy, it's how the app works. SmartFilter is free to use, with a limit on how many filters you can save. Subscribe monthly, yearly, or once for good to unlock unlimited filters, every premium pack, regex and case-sensitive matching, test messages, and alternate app icons. Already a supporter from an earlier version? You're covered — no need to buy again. SmartFilter is made by one independent developer. If it's working for you, a review goes a long way. For in-app purchases and subscriptions, see https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
AuthentiKate
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Someone reached out to you claiming to be a celebrity, an athlete, a public figure, or someone known to the public. Before you reply, before you do anything they ask: why not check if it's really them? That is what AuthentiKate is for. Impersonation scams are not new, and they are not slowing down. Someone uses a famous person's name, photo, and reputation to earn your trust — then they use that trust to cause harm. They ask for money, personal information, or access to things you would never give a stranger. The harm is real. We built AuthentiKate because there was no simple, reliable way for an ordinary person to know for certain who they were talking to. Now there is. HOW IT WORKS Search the name of the person who contacted you. Select the channel — social media, phone, email — and then ask that person to send you a verification code. Every verified figure on AuthentiKate has been identity-confirmed before their account is activated. When they need to prove their identity, they open the AuthentiKate Verified companion app and generate a 6-digit code. It can only come from their verified device. You enter it here. If it passes, it is them. There is no other way to get a passing code. Nothing to screenshot, nothing to reuse, nothing a scammer can replicate. If the code passes, you see the person's verified title and their public profile links, the information they chose to share with the world. That is the first time any of that information appears. Before a valid code, you see their name and nothing else. If the code does not pass, you get one clear result: we could not verify this person or contact. ACCESS TO USE (with no hidden agenda) AuthentiKate is open to everyone. No account. No sign-up. No tracking. We do not collect your personal information, store your searches, or sell your data. Your verification history stays on your device and goes nowhere else. WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT FROM A VERIFIED BADGE A verified badge on a social platform tells you that platform approved that account at some point. It does not tell you who is sitting behind the screen right now, in this conversation, today. AuthentiKate uses a live code that can only be generated by the real, verified person at the moment you ask for it. A badge can be bought and copied onto a lookalike account. An on-demand verification cannot. OTHER THINGS TO KNOW If the person you are trying to verify is not yet in our directory, you can recommend we reach out to them. We are grateful for every recommendation and will do our best to bring them aboard! If something feels off or strange about a conversation even before you check, trust your instincts. AuthentiKate can help confirm if a public figure is who they say they are, but your own judgment is also a powerful tool. If you can't verify someone and believe you have encountered an impostor, report them directly in the app. We do our best to share these alerts with the public figures themselves.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: AuthentiKate at none against SmartFilter for SMS's 4. AuthentiKate also leads on update cadence (fortnightly vs every 2 months) and device support (3 vs 1). On price and ads there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. SmartFilter for SMS sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $1.49 per month. AuthentiKate asks for nothing beyond the download.
SmartFilter for SMS ships an update every 2 months, AuthentiKate fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 23, 2026 and October 22, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SmartFilter for SMS | AuthentiKate |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.3 (169 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 75.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 169 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | No — better |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | — |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.0 | 15.6 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 25 MB | 4 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Jacob Grant | Authentikate Inc. |
Bugs and requests
SmartFilter for SMS
Reported bugs
10 issues- Keyword blocking only sometimes works
- Keyword function stopped working
- Letting through texts with block words
- Spam-detection model not working well
- ML not working, legitimate messages filtered as spam
Show 5 moreShow fewer
- Allow Words filter not working
- Report SMS doesn't work
- Spam still shows notification icon
- Spam still comes in to inbox with alerts
- False positives inevitable at the start, retraining could be easier
Requested features
8 requests- Sort into personalized folders
- Ability to filter specified short numbers
- User defined regex
- Delete all button for junk
- Immediately delete setting for certain words
Show 3 moreShow fewer
- Report functionality directly in message app
- Mark messages sent to junk as safe
- Option to be blissfully unaware of junk notifications
AuthentiKate
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
SmartFilter for SMS
- Monthly$1.491 Month
- Yearly7 Days trial$8.991 Year
- Leave a Tip!$4.99
- One time$19.99
AuthentiKate
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is SmartFilter for SMS free?
Is AuthentiKate free?
Do SmartFilter for SMS or AuthentiKate have ads?
Which is updated more often, SmartFilter for SMS or AuthentiKate?
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