SMS Forwarder vs Cairn
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SMS Forwarder
Automatically forward incoming SMS messages to your preferred destinations like email, Telegram, or Slack. Set up custom rules to filter messages by sender or keywords, ensuring you never miss important texts, OTPs, or 2FA codes.
- Automatic SMS forwarding
- Forward to email, Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, Teams, Discord
- Filter by sender and keywords
- Schedule forwarding rules
- OTP and 2FA code forwarding
- On-device processing for privacy
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Forwardly automatically forwards your incoming SMS to the destinations you choose — so you never miss an important text while away, traveling, or working from another device.Set up a rule in under a minute. Forwardly runs in the background and delivers messages where you need them — email, Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, or another phone number. FORWARD SMS TO ANYWHERE YOU WORK – Email — Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo, iCloud, or any address – Telegram — personal chats or group channels – WhatsApp — individual or shared conversations – Slack — route alerts to your workspace channels – Microsoft Teams — keep your team in the loop – Discord — forward to any server or DM – Another phone number — SMS relay to any number SMART RULES. TOTAL CONTROL. – Filter by sender — forward only from specific contacts – Filter by keywords — match "OTP", "code", "verify", or any word – Schedule forwarding — active only during work hours or weekdays – Multiple rules — separate rules for each destination – Test before enabling — verify delivery works first – Instant toggle — pause or resume any rule with one tap BUILT FOR OTP & 2FA CODES – Auto-forward OTP and 2FA codes to a shared inbox – Never lose access because the code landed on the wrong device – Route verification texts from banks and payment apps – Works with codes from any sender IDEAL FOR BUSINESS & TEAMS Forward bank alerts to a shared email or Slack channel Route delivery and appointment notifications automatically Manage a secondary SIM without carrying two devices Keep your team updated on critical messages YOUR PRIVACY IS NON-NEGOTIABLE – All processing happens on your device – Message content is never uploaded or stored on our servers – No analytics on message content – Uses only Apple-approved, iOS-native methods FAQ Can I forward SMS to email on iPhone? Yes — Forwardly forwards SMS to any email automatically. Can I forward OTP codes to my team? Yes — use keyword filters to route codes to a shared inbox or Slack. Does Forwardly store my messages? No — all processing is on your device. Nothing is uploaded. Do I need to keep the app open? Your iPhone needs to be on and connected. The app runs in the background. SUBSCRIPTION Forwardly offers a free tier. Premium unlocks: – Unlimited forwarding rules – Advanced keyword and sender filters – Custom schedules – Priority support Payment is charged to your Apple ID at confirmation. Subscriptions renew automatically unless canceled at least 24 hours before renewal. Manage in Apple ID Settings > Subscriptions. Terms of Use: https://fwrdly.app/terms Privacy Policy: https://fwrdly.app/privacy WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, and Microsoft Teams are trademarks of their respective owners.
Cairn
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Cairn is a text export tool that turns a text conversation into a clean, printable record you can keep or hand to someone who needs it. It works from screenshots of the chat that you add, then rebuilds the conversation in order so you can export text messages to PDF & CSV in a few taps. - Add screenshots of a conversation and let the app read the bubbles and sort them by time - See the conversation rebuilt in order, with sender labels and any gaps flagged, never silently reordered - Save messages to PDF & CSV: a crisp PDF with selectable text you can print text messages from, or a CSV with date, time, sender, and message - Reactions and inline images are carried into the export - Everything happens on your device, and your screenshots never leave your phone iOS does not let apps read your SMS or Messages history directly, so Cairn works from the screenshots you provide, turning them into a fast, accurate backup or recovery record you can print or file away. Privacy Policy: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vTDX9pxPOlUJl_skVUHPi99mAw0y2B2BYd_v1mJkoF3xW3rlOcW5KlYd4t93MMbbGhctSTnBTy7d_l6/pub Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is iOS requirement: SMS Forwarder at 18.0 against Cairn's 26.0. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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. SMS Forwarder sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days and Cairn sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
| Parameter | SMS Forwarder | Cairn |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (3 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 3 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Every 5 days | — |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | — |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 30 MB | 8 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Sergei Neprimerov | Andrii Bashta |
In-app purchases
SMS Forwarder
- Weekly plan$3.997 Days
- Special offer$17.991 Year
- Yearly offer$34.991 Year
Cairn
- Threadkeeper Lifetime$9.99





