Comparison

Tel vs autoforward

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Tel

Communicate with customers using your business phone number for texts and picture messages across the continental US. Access your conversations from multiple devices, including computers, and allow team members to share a single business number for seamless customer interaction.

Highlights
  • Use business number for texts
  • Send/receive picture messages
  • Multi-device access
  • Browser access on computers
  • Shared team number
Features
Read full description

Make and receive text messages using your business phone number! • Use your business phone number to text instead of your personal number • Send and receive text and picture messages to/from any cell phone number in the continental US View your messages on multiple devices: • Use your account on multiple devices with one sign-in • Access your messages from any computer via your browser (Chrome/Firefox/Edge) • Multiple users can access the same number so you or your team can reply to any message Now your customers can communicate with you with the ease and convenience that they have when texting with friends and family. No need to download a separate messaging “app” to contact you - they can simply text your business number and get in touch.

About

autoforward

Automatically forward incoming SMS messages from your iPhone to an email address or another phone number. Never miss important alerts like two-factor authentication codes or delivery updates.

Highlights
  • SMS to Email Forwarding
  • SMS to SMS Forwarding
  • Reliable Message Delivery
  • Forward 2FA Codes
  • Forward Delivery Updates
  • Free to Use
Features
Read full description

autoforward forwards text messages to email automatically. Every incoming SMS or iMessage on your iPhone, or only the ones from a sender or with a keyword you choose, goes straight to any email address. Whether you’re managing two-factor authentication codes, delivery updates or appointment reminders, text message forwarding to email means you never miss one, and you can read your texts on a PC or Mac. Key Features: • SMS to Email Forwarding: Receive your text messages directly in your email inbox, perfect for archiving or managing SMS alongside emails. • Every Text or Just Some: Forward everything, or filter by sender or keyword right in the automation. • Sender in Subject: Show who texted you in the email subject, so your mail app groups every message from the same sender into one conversation. • Reliable Delivery: Messages are processed securely and are never stored longer than necessary for forwarding. • Your Own Mail Server: Optionally send through your own SMTP server (Gmail, iCloud or any mail server), so messages go directly through your infrastructure. Credentials stay encrypted on your iPhone. • History Without Contents: See recipient, time and status of every forward. The message itself is never logged. • Free to Use: autoforward has a free tier with daily and monthly limits. Common Uses: • Two-Factor Authentication (2FA): Reliably forward OTP and login codes by email, to yourself or a coworker. • Delivery & Appointment Updates: Forward delivery notifications and appointment reminders. • Texts on Your Computer: Read and search your SMS in your inbox on any device. How It Works: autoforward adds a “Forward as email” action to Apple Shortcuts. A Message automation runs it on every incoming text; set it up once, in a couple of minutes, with the guide and video in the app. No account, no jailbreak, nothing to keep open. If you have been looking for an SMS forwarder for iPhone, this is it. Privacy First: Your privacy is our priority. Messages are processed securely and are never stored longer than necessary for forwarding. With your own SMTP server, forwarding runs entirely on your iPhone. Privacy Policy: https://autoforward.app/en/privacy Terms of use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Tel4 screens
autoforward4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Tel at none against autoforward's 2. Tel also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.7) and device support (3 vs 1). autoforward's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 9 months) and ratings volume (21 vs 1). On price, ads and monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. autoforward sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Tel asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Tel holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.7. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: autoforward has 21 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tel ships an update every 9 months, autoforward fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 4 level
Tel versus autoforward: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTelautoforward
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better4.7 (21 ratings)
Positive reviews—94.1% of reviews
Number of ratings121 — better
Update frequencyEvery 9 monthsFortnightly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS15.0 — better18.4
Further details — not scored
Size55 MB6 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTextableabove the fold GmbH

Customer experience

Tel

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

autoforward

All ratings21 ratings
Positive95.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.8%
Written reviews17 reviews
Positive94.1%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.9%

In-app purchases

None

Tel

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

autoforward

Subscriptions2
  • Pro Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
  • Pro Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year

Questions

Is Tel free?
Tel is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is autoforward free?
autoforward is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Tel or autoforward?
Tel is rated higher. Tel averages 5.0 out of 5 from 1 ratings, while autoforward averages 4.7 from 21 ratings.
Do Tel or autoforward have ads?
Neither Tel nor autoforward shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tel or autoforward?
Tel ships an update every 9 months, and autoforward fortnightly. Most recently, Tel was updated on November 3, 2026 and autoforward on November 8, 2026.

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