Need to forward your iPhone texts to another app or device? This guide covers every method available in 2026 — from Apple’s built-in options to third-party apps for power users.
Does iPhone Have Built-In SMS Forwarding?
Yes — but with limits. iOS has two native forwarding features:
Text Message Forwarding (to other Apple devices) In Settings → Messages → Text Message Forwarding, you can enable SMS forwarding to other iPhones, iPads, or Macs signed into the same Apple ID. This forwards SMS messages to Apple devices only, and only works within your Apple ecosystem.
This does NOT let you forward to:
- Email addresses
- Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, or other apps
- Android phones
- Custom webhooks or APIs
- People with different Apple IDs
For anything beyond Apple devices, you need a third-party app.
Method 1: Forward SMS to Another Apple Device (Built-In)
- Go to Settings → Messages → Text Message Forwarding
- Toggle on the Apple devices you want to receive SMS on
- Enter the verification code shown on the other device
Best for: Mac users who want iPhone texts on their laptop. Completely free, no setup.
Limitations: Only works between your own Apple devices, same Apple ID.
Method 2: Forward SMS to Email, Telegram, Slack, and More (Fwrdly)
For forwarding to any destination — email, Telegram, Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams, another phone number, or a custom webhook — Fwrdly is the best iOS app in 2026.
How Fwrdly Works
Fwrdly runs entirely on your iPhone. When an SMS arrives:
- Fwrdly detects it using iOS’s notification extension
- It checks your forwarding rules (filters, destinations)
- Sends the message to your configured destinations — instantly
Everything happens on-device. Fwrdly doesn’t have servers that store or process your messages.
Setting Up Fwrdly
- Download Fwrdly from the App Store
- Open the app → tap “Add destination”
- Choose your destination (Email, Telegram, Slack, etc.)
- Follow the platform-specific setup (takes 2–5 minutes)
- Toggle “Enable forwarding” ON
- Done — your next SMS will be automatically forwarded
Supported Destinations
| Destination | Setup Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 min | Works with any email address | |
| Telegram | 3 min | Instant delivery via bot |
| Slack | 5 min | Requires creating a webhook |
| Discord | 5 min | Requires creating a webhook |
| Microsoft Teams | 6 min | Via Power Automate or legacy connector |
| 2 min | Deep link method | |
| Another phone | 1 min | Standard SMS forwarding |
| Webhook / API | 5 min | Any HTTP endpoint, Zapier, Make, n8n |
Method 3: Email-Based Forwarding via Shortcuts
Apple’s Shortcuts app can forward SMS to email — but requires manual triggering or an awkward automation that doesn’t run reliably in the background.
How to set it up:
- Create a Shortcut with trigger “When I share…” → “Run Shortcut”
- Action: Send Email with the message text
- Share a message from the Messages app to trigger it
Verdict: Too manual for everyday use. Good for occasional one-off forwarding, not automatic forwarding.
Method 4: Using Google Voice
If you already use Google Voice, you can have texts to your GV number forwarded to email automatically from Google Voice settings. However:
- This only works for texts to your Google Voice number
- Your regular iPhone carrier number is NOT forwarded
- Requires using a separate GV number for receiving texts
Which Method Should You Use?
| Goal | Best Method |
|---|---|
| Forward to your Mac | Built-in Text Message Forwarding |
| Forward to email | Fwrdly |
| Forward to Telegram | Fwrdly |
| Forward to Slack/Discord | Fwrdly |
| Forward to Android phone | Fwrdly |
| Build SMS automation | Fwrdly Webhooks |
| Google Voice users | Google Voice email forwarding |
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I forward iMessage (blue bubbles) as well as SMS (green bubbles)? Fwrdly forwards SMS. iMessage can only be forwarded to other Apple devices via Apple’s built-in feature. Because iMessage is end-to-end encrypted, third-party apps cannot intercept it.
Does SMS forwarding work when my iPhone is locked? Yes. Fwrdly uses iOS notification extensions which can process incoming notifications even when your screen is locked, as long as the phone is on and connected.
Will forwarded messages appear in my Messages app too? Yes. Forwarding with Fwrdly doesn’t change how Messages works — you still receive and see every SMS normally in the Messages app.
Does this drain my battery? Fwrdly is optimized for minimal battery impact. It only activates when an SMS arrives, not continuously in the background.
Is SMS forwarding legal? Forwarding your own messages (messages received by your SIM) is legal in virtually all jurisdictions. Forwarding someone else’s messages without consent is not — but that’s a different scenario not applicable here.
Can I forward only specific messages? Yes. Fwrdly’s filtering lets you forward only messages from specific contacts, numbers containing specific keywords, or messages from unknown numbers.
