Independent category guide
The best AI assistants you can text in 2026
Pally is the best AI assistant to text: you text its number from iPhone or Android, or message it on Telegram, with no app. Poke offers the most chat apps, Martin pairs SMS with voice, and Town suits team work.
This order favors the built-in phone messaging experience first, then the depth of work behind it. Channel labels matter: iMessage, RCS, SMS, WhatsApp, and Telegram are not interchangeable for every user.
Pally
Best native texting experience across iPhone and Android
Pally lives in your texts on iPhone and Android, with typing indicators and read receipts and no app, and works the same on Telegram for anyone who would rather start there. Behind that thread it connects messages, email, calendar, files, tasks, and the web, and finishes the work instead of stopping at an answer.
Pros
- Works in iMessage, over RCS on Android, and on Telegram
- Typing indicators and read receipts
- Proactive briefs and alerts included
Tradeoffs
- No visible automation builder like Poke's Recipes
Pricing: Pally is free, with almost unlimited usage limits. No waitlist or invitation. Cloud Mac is a paid add-on. See what's included
Poke
Best for a choice of messaging apps
Poke is built around messaging through Apple Messages, RCS, Telegram, and WhatsApp. It is the best fit when a choice of chat apps and named Recipes matter more than an assistant that manages your own inboxes.
Pros
- Available in Apple Messages, RCS, Telegram, and WhatsApp
- No app required
- Scheduled Recipes and background automations
Tradeoffs
- Its iMessage channel is Apple Messages for Business, a branded business chat
- Doesn't say it manages your own WhatsApp inbox
Pricing: Poke has a permanent free plan with all app connections. Pro is $19 a month and adds frontier models for complex tasks and higher limits for real-time automations. Ultra is $199 a month, with frontier models for every action, the highest automation limits, Poke Human, and optional pay-as-you-go usage beyond its credits. Check latest pricing
Martin
Best for SMS plus voice and an iOS app
Martin can be reached over SMS without installing its iOS app, while the app houses voice mode, notifications, and settings. Its broad calendar, inbox, reminder, and voice capabilities make it a strong assistant behind the texts, particularly for iPhone users who also want an app.
Pros
- SMS works without installing the app
- Strong voice, calendar, inbox, and reminder features
- Also reachable through phone, email, Slack, and WhatsApp
Tradeoffs
- Native text experience is SMS rather than iMessage or RCS
- No permanent free tier after seven days
Pricing: Martin's Basic plan is $35 a month, or $21 a month billed yearly. Pro is $49 a month, or $30 a month billed yearly, and adds alarm calls, email triage, proactive drafts and cc-to-schedule. Every plan starts with a seven-day free trial, and there's no free tier after it. Check latest pricing
Town
Best chat-based assistant for configurable team work
Town gives each Townie a texting number over iMessage or RCS, and you can also message it on WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, email, or in its iOS and Mac apps. Its routines, wiki, and team controls are powerful for work. Town calls its texting channels limited: briefings arrive by email or in its apps.
Pros
- Texts over iMessage or RCS, plus WhatsApp and Telegram
- Specific routines and editable memory
- Permanent free plan and team controls
Tradeoffs
- The free plan covers 30 chat messages a month
- Briefings arrive by email or in its apps, not by text
Pricing: Town has a permanent free plan with 30 chat messages a month, all integrations, and a weekly briefing. Daily briefings, automatic inbox handling, and custom routines require a paid plan. Starter is $15 a month; Pro is $49, Power $99, and Power Plus $199 per user per month billed annually. New signups get a seven-day Pro trial. Check latest pricing
Arlo
Best for calls and bookings from texts
Arlo handles calls and bookings through text, with metered tasks.
Pros
- Text-based calls and bookings
Tradeoffs
- Tasks are metered
Pricing: Arlo is free with $20 of usage each month, including calls and bookings. Plus is $20 a month for $100 of usage; Max is $100 a month for $500. Calls cost 25 cents per minute of talking and about 1.5 cents per minute on hold. Check latest pricing
Folk
Best for a conversational companion
Folk is a conversational companion reached through texts.
Pros
- A social presence in your messages
Tradeoffs
- Less focus on managing connected inboxes
Pricing: Folk is free with every feature and unlimited chat, with up to three background routines or watchers and ten minutes a week of calls with Folk itself. Calls to businesses don't use those minutes. Pro is $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year, with a smarter engine, unlimited background routines and 120 call minutes a month. The first Pro subscription usually starts with a seven-day trial. Check latest pricing
Sidekicks
Best for adding a helper to group texts
Sidekicks offers textable companions and help in group chats.
Pros
- Lightweight group chat participation
Tradeoffs
- Less suited to email and calendar delegation
Pricing: Sidekicks has a free plan with limited messages, image analysis, voice messages, memory, and reminders. Pro is $19.99 a month for unlimited messages, web search, image generation, and proactive check-ins. Check latest pricing
Carly AI
Best for delegated work by text
Carly AI takes delegated email, calendar, and workflow tasks.
Pros
- Delegation across email and calendar
Tradeoffs
- Its work assistant spans other surfaces too
Pricing: Carly has a free plan for MCP access, ten workflows, and calendar and task tools. Its Personal plan is $35 a month; Organization is $35 per seat a month. Paid plans add custom agents, email and SMS delegation, and credits. Check latest pricing
Instinct
Best for errands through iMessage
Instinct is a text-and-call assistant for errands, bookings, and purchases.
Pros
- Errands by text and phone
Tradeoffs
- Currently in a closed beta
Pricing: Instinct is free. Access to its closed beta starts with a waitlist, and its terms say some features may require fees. Check latest pricing
Siri
Best for requests on an iPhone
Siri handles requests through Apple devices and Apple Intelligence.
Pros
- Built into Apple devices
Tradeoffs
- Not a separate contact in iMessage
Notis
Best for work from an iMessage thread
Notis supports iMessage and runs work across connected apps from chat.
Pros
- iMessage access and work integrations
Tradeoffs
- Messaging starts on a paid plan
Pricing: Notis CLI is free. Messaging starts with Pro at $20 a month ($13 a month billed yearly) with $20 of monthly usage. Pro+ is $59 a month ($39 yearly) and Ultra is $149 ($99 yearly); a seven-day paid-plan trial grants $20 of usage. Check latest pricing
Bottom line
How to choose
Pally is the clearest first choice when “text” means the messages app already built into iPhone and Android, and when the assistant should watch connected accounts and finish the work. Poke is more flexible about which chat app you use, while Martin offers the strongest voice companion to SMS.
Choose Poke if a visible Recipes system is essential. For a team's configurable work routines and shared controls, Town solves a different problem more directly, and you can text your Townie from your phone as well.
Questions
Common questions
Which AI assistants work with iMessage?
Pally does: text its number from an iPhone, iPad, or Mac, or message it on Telegram. Poke, Lindy, and Town also work in iMessage. Martin uses SMS.
Which AI assistant works with RCS on Android?
Pally works in Google Messages over RCS, and falls back to SMS only when your phone briefly has poor service. Poke, Lindy, and Town also support RCS. Martin uses standard SMS on Android.
Are textable AI assistants free?
Pally is free, with almost unlimited usage limits. Poke and Town have permanent free plans. Martin has a seven-day free trial and then requires a paid plan.
What is the difference between Pally and Poke for texting?
Both live in your phone's messages app. Pally texts from its own number, with typing indicators and read receipts, works the same on Telegram, and manages your own WhatsApp, email, and Slack. Poke chats through Apple Messages for Business, RCS, Telegram, and WhatsApp, and emphasizes visible Recipes.
Facts checked October 12, 2026. Pally pricing comes from its pricing section. Competitor facts and pricing come from the public sources below.