# Pinger vs magicApp Calling & Messaging

The clearest difference is ads: magicApp Calling & Messaging at none against Pinger's shown. Pinger's advantage is chart position (#187 vs unranked). On price, rating, review sentiment and ratings volume there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Pinger sells 11 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and magicApp Calling & Messaging sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $3.49 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Pinger against 4.7 for magicApp Calling & Messaging. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 71K and 26K respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 50% of Pinger's written reviews are positive against 49% of magicApp Calling & Messaging's.

Pinger ships an update every 8 days, magicApp Calling & Messaging fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Pinger | magicApp Calling & Messaging |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.7 (71K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pinger-call-plus-texting-app/id444741112/reviews)** | [4.7 (26K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/magicapp-calling-and-messaging/id463926997/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **71K** | 26K |
| Positive reviews | **50.2% of reviews** | 49.1% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | Yes | **No** |
| Update frequency | **Every 8 days** | Fortnightly |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | **#187** | — |
| Size | 223 MB | 67 MB |
| Requires iOS | 16.0 | **15.0** |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad | **iPhone, iPad, iPod** |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Pinger, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/299102705) | [MAGICJACK VOIP SERVICES LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1534194883) |

## What reviewers say

### Pinger

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pinger-call-plus-texting-app/id444741112)

**Currently charting:** #187 Top Grossing · Utilities (US App Store)

This app provides a free U.S. phone number for unlimited calling and texting to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. It offers features like voicemail, group chat, and MMS messaging, functioning as a reliable alternative to a traditional phone line.

**Highlights:** Free U.S. phone number, Unlimited calling, Free texting (SMS), Voicemail, Group chat, MMS picture & video messaging

**Features:** Siri integration

**In-app purchases (11)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Remove Ads | $2.99 | per month |
| Voicemail to Text | $2.99 | per month |
| Pinger Plus Weekly | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Pinger Plan | $4.99 | per month |
| Pinger Plus Weekly | $6.99 | per 7 days |
| Pinger Plus Monthly | $9.99 | per month |
| Pinger Plus Half Yearly | $39.99 | per 6 months |
| Pinger Plus Yearly | $69.99 | per year |
| 100 minutes | $1.99 | one-time |
| 400 minutes | $9.99 | one-time |
| 1000 minutes | $18.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great app
- 👍 Simple and functional
- 👍 Good app
- 👍 Works pretty good
- 👍 Great service, user friendly

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Constantly lock your account due to supposed shady activity
- 💰 You have to pay $10 a month to receive SMS from apps
- 🐛 Does not even let you create an account
- 🔍 Why so many ads since last update??!
- 🐛 Issues with Pinger

**Reported bugs**

- Constantly lock your account due to supposed shady activity
- Does not even let you create an account
- Microphone doesn't work, can't hear me on calls
- Inconsistent, can't make calls sometimes
- Not dependable, messages don't go through

**Requested features**

- Ability to receive verification codes
- Option to turn off sounds/notifications
- Fix for not being able to send more than one picture at a time


### magicApp Calling & Messaging

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/magicapp-calling-and-messaging/id463926997)

Get a second phone number for personal or business use without needing a new SIM card. Enjoy unlimited calling and texting to the U.S. and Canada, even while traveling abroad over Wi-Fi. Manage calls with features like caller ID, voicemail, and call blocking.

**Highlights:** Second phone number, Unlimited U.S. & Canada calling, Unlimited U.S. & Canada texting, Wi-Fi calling for travel, Caller ID, voicemail, call blocking, Choose U.S. area code

**In-app purchases (12)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Incoming-only calls + texting | $3.49 | per month |
| Outgoing-only calls + texting | $3.49 | per month |
| Incoming and Outgoing calls | $3.99 | per month |
| magicJack Premium | $4.99 | per month |
| magicJack Canadian | $5.99 | per month |
| $4.99 magicJack International minutes credit | $4.99 | one-time |
| SMS for Canadian Numbers | $4.99 | one-time |
| Texting and SMS upgrade | $9.99 | one-time |
| $9.99 magicJack International minutes credit | $9.99 | one-time |
| $20.00 magicJack International minutes credit | $19.99 | one-time |
| $19.99 magicJack International minutes credit | $19.99 | one-time |
| $40.00 magicJack International minutes credit | $39.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 💯 Excellent call quality
- 💰 Affordable pricing
- 🌍 Works internationally
- 🔍 Useful for maintaining a US number
- 🤖 Reliable service for over 15 years

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🤖 Frequent app crashes and bugs
- 🤖 Unreliable connectivity issues
- 🤖 Poor customer support
- 🤖 Deactivation of accounts without notice
- 🤖 Inability to transfer or port out numbers

**Reported bugs**

- App freezes phone when answering calls
- Missed calls not showing up in the app
- Text messages getting deleted or out of order
- Inability to log in or access account
- Subscription issues and billing problems

**Requested features**

- Add support for MMS and texts from short codes
- Implement two-factor authentication for security
- Allow users to sign in on multiple devices
- Provide more ringtone options
- Improve integration with native iOS features


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Pinger free?

Pinger is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is magicApp Calling & Messaging free?

magicApp Calling & Messaging is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Pinger or magicApp Calling & Messaging?

Pinger is rated higher. Pinger averages 4.7 out of 5 from 71K ratings, while magicApp Calling & Messaging averages 4.7 from 26K ratings.

### Do Pinger or magicApp Calling & Messaging have ads?

Pinger shows ads; magicApp Calling & Messaging does not.

### Which is updated more often, Pinger or magicApp Calling & Messaging?

Pinger ships an update every 8 days, and magicApp Calling & Messaging fortnightly. Most recently, Pinger was updated on October 24, 2026 and magicApp Calling & Messaging on October 23, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*