Tel vs autoforward
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- Use business number for texts
- Send/receive picture messages
- Multi-device access
- Browser access on computers
- Shared team number
Read full descriptionHide 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.
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.
- SMS to Email Forwarding
- SMS to SMS Forwarding
- Reliable Message Delivery
- Forward 2FA Codes
- Forward Delivery Updates
- Free to Use
Read full descriptionHide 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
Verdict
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
Both are free to download. autoforward sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Tel asks for nothing beyond the download.
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.
Tel ships an update every 9 months, autoforward fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 8, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tel | autoforward |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better | 4.7 (21 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | — | 94.1% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 1 | 21 — better |
| Update frequency | Every 9 months | Fortnightly — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No — better | Yes |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 18.4 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 55 MB | 6 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Textable | above the fold GmbH |
Customer experience
Tel
autoforward
In-app purchases
Tel
No in-app purchases
autoforward
- Pro Monthly7 Days trial$4.991 Month
- Pro Yearly7 Days trial$24.991 Year









