Best Inmate Texting App for iPhone: What Works by Facility

On an iPhone, the best inmate texting setup is usually the one that lets you reply from your normal Messages app instead of a separate prison-only app. That works in federal prisons through the CorrLinks email system, and InmateDB is built on top of it: your loved one texts your regular phone number and you answer like any other text. What you can actually use, though, is decided by the facility, not by you or by any app. That single fact explains most of the confusion families run into.

Start with the facility, not the app

Every prison and jail chooses which messaging system its inmates may use. A federal Bureau of Prisons facility runs on TRULINCS terminals and the outside side of that system is CorrLinks. A state prison or county jail may run something else entirely, and the rules, prices and features there are set locally. So before you download anything or enter a card number, find out two things: which facility your loved one is in, and which messaging system that facility allows.

If you are not sure, check bop.gov for federal facilities or call the facility directly for state and county questions. Nobody on a review site can override what the facility permits, and no app can work around it.

Federal prison: the iPhone setup that actually works

In federal prison, inmates send electronic messages from TRULINCS terminals inside the facility. CorrLinks is the outside half of that email system, and it is what makes texting possible at all.

Here is the practical version for an iPhone user:

1. Find your loved one on InmateDB by name or by their BOP register number, which looks like 12345-678. If you do not have the number, the BOP inmate locator on bop.gov will give it to you.
2. Start the free trial or choose a plan. New accounts get a 3-day free trial.
3. Your loved one adds one InmateDB contact in TRULINCS. This is the step that stalls most first-timers, because it depends on when they next get to a terminal.
4. After that, they text by putting your phone number in the subject line and the message in the body.

Once they have sent the first message, you reply from your normal texting app on the iPhone. No separate app to keep open, no login every time. If you prefer, you can also use the InmateDB website, the InmateDB app or Telegram.

One honest limit: how quickly your loved one sees your reply depends on when they can get to a TRULINCS terminal. It is not instant, and it is not on your schedule. Facility staff can also monitor messages, so write as if someone else may read it, because someone might.

What the plans look like, and who each one fits

InmateDB has three plans, and the right one depends on how you want to use it:

• Texting, $9.99/month. Messages are sent from a shared number, so people can reply once the inmate has texted them first. Good if you mainly want back-and-forth texting.
• Texting + AI, $14.99/month. Adds AI chat with ChatGPT, Gemini and Grok, plus news, sports, weather and trivia apps.
• Full Access, $19.99/month. Adds a personal phone number anyone can text first, email and 15+ more apps. This is the one to consider if you want family members to be able to start a conversation without waiting for your loved one to text first.

Photos are separate: you upload up to 10 photos per order, and standard or glossy prints are printed and mailed to the facility. Letters work the same way, typed or uploaded online, printed and mailed, at $1.49 for the first page and $0.30 for each page after.

State prisons and county jails: what to expect on iPhone

InmateDB works with federal (BOP) facilities that use CorrLinks, about 93% of federal facilities. It does not work in state prisons or county jails. That is not a flaw in the app; it is how the systems are separated.

For a state or county facility, ask the facility which provider they use, then check that provider’s own site for current pricing and features. Prices vary by facility, and the same company can charge different rates in different places, so any number you read on a general article may not match your situation. CorrLinks, JPay, Securus and ViaPath all operate in this space, and which one applies to you is a facility decision.

If your loved one is in a state facility, the honest answer is that the best iPhone app is whichever one that facility has contracted with, and your job is to confirm it rather than shop around. If your loved one is later transferred to a federal facility, the setup above becomes available.

The mistakes that cost families the first week

The most common one is signing up before confirming the facility type. Families pay for a plan, then discover the facility does not use that system, and the refund process takes longer than the signup did.

The second is missing the register number. Searching by name alone can turn up several people, and a wrong match means your messages go nowhere. Get the number from bop.gov first if you can.

The third is expecting the inmate to add the contact the same day. That depends on when they next get to a terminal, and there is no way to speed it up from the outside. Send your setup instructions clearly, keep them short, and be patient for the first message.

If you are still comparing options overall, our guide to the best inmate texting app walks through how the major services differ, and the inmate contact apps comparison is useful when you are deciding between texting, email and mailed letters.

Quick answers

Do I need to install a special app on my iPhone?

No. With InmateDB, your loved one texts your normal U.S. or Canada phone number and you reply from your regular texting app, exactly like any other conversation. You can also use the InmateDB website, the InmateDB app or Telegram if you prefer one of those.

Can I text someone in federal prison if I only have an iPhone?

Yes. Federal inmates send electronic messages from TRULINCS terminals, and CorrLinks is the outside half of that system. The iPhone side is just ordinary texting once your loved one has added the InmateDB contact and sent the first message.

What if my loved one is in a county jail?

InmateDB does not work in state prisons or county jails. Ask the jail which messaging provider it uses, then check that provider’s site directly for current prices and features, since those are set locally and vary by facility.

If your loved one is in a federal facility, the next step is simple: look them up and start the 3-day free trial. Find your loved one on InmateDB. Best Inmate Texting App is made by the team behind InmateDB, so treat this as a starting point and confirm the facility’s rules yourself.