# autoMessage — Full Content Reference

*Machine-readable full-text version for LLM ingestion. Last updated 2026-07-16.*

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## What autoMessage is

autoMessage is a macOS menu bar application plus a hosted Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that lets AI agents read and send iMessages from a user's own Apple ID. It is the first iMessage automation platform designed from the ground up for AI clients like Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT Desktop, Cline, Codex, and n8n.

Unlike competitors (Tuco, Sendblue, Linq, Project Blue) who provision hosted Mac mini clusters in farms and charge $150–$1,000 per line per month, autoMessage uses a bring-your-own-device model: the customer installs the Mac app on their own Mac and connects their own Apple ID. This eliminates the vendor's device costs, Apple-ID ban liability, and per-line pricing pressure — enabling a flat $29/month price point.

## How autoMessage works

1. **Install the Mac app.** Download the menu bar app, grant Full Disk Access (required to read `~/Library/Messages/chat.db`), and sign in with an autoMessage account. Setup takes about two minutes.
2. **Connect your AI.** Add the autoMessage MCP server to Claude Desktop, Claude Code, Cursor, ChatGPT Desktop, Cline, Codex, or n8n with a single configuration line. Or use the hosted MCP endpoint over Streamable HTTP.
3. **Let it run.** The Mac app polls the local `chat.db` for inbound messages and writes them to a cloud sync layer. Outbound sends go through AppleScript to Messages.app, guaranteeing they originate from the user's own Apple ID and iMessage account.

## Pricing

- **Solo — $29/month.** Everything autoMessage ships: Mac app, hosted MCP server, REST API, webhooks, native HubSpot and GoHighLevel connectors, cloud sync, web dashboard, drafts queue with scheduling, deliverability health guidance, email support. One account, one Apple ID.
- **Enterprise — Custom.** Managed Mac hosting on request, multiple Apple IDs per account, custom integrations, contract-backed SLA, dedicated support.

Every plan includes a 7-day free trial. Credit card required at signup. Cancel any time before day 7 and no charge is applied. No per-message fees on any plan. No annual contract required (annual billing available at a discount).

## MCP server details

The autoMessage MCP server exposes 10 tools:

- Send an iMessage to a phone number or email
- Send an iMessage to a group chat
- Read the most recent messages in a conversation
- Search conversations by contact, keyword, or date range
- List all conversations, ordered by most-recent activity
- Create, list, update, and delete draft messages
- Retrieve status information about the connected Mac and Apple ID

Two transports are supported: stdio (for local clients like Claude Code) and Streamable HTTP (for remote clients and web-based agents). Authentication uses an API key issued at signup, passed via the `AUTOMESSAGE_API_KEY` environment variable or `X-API-KEY` HTTP header.

## REST API surface

- `POST /v1/messages` — Create a draft that becomes an outbound iMessage
- `GET /v1/messages` and `GET /v1/messages/{guid}` — Read message history
- `GET /v1/conversations` — List and inspect conversations
- Full CRUD on `/v1/drafts` and `/v1/contacts`
- `GET /v1/status` — Health check plus current agent-online status

Phone numbers are normalized to E.164 at the write boundary. The complete OpenAPI 3.1 specification is published at [/openapi.yaml](https://automessage.app/openapi.yaml).

## Rate limiting philosophy

Apple does not publish official rate limits for iMessage. Community observation across every hosted vendor converges on approximately 50 new conversations per Apple ID per day as the sustainable ceiling. Short bursts above 200 messages per hour tend to trigger temporary throttling. Content-similarity across recipients (e.g., blasting the same template to many contacts) is a stronger predictor of Apple-ID flagging than raw volume alone.

Because autoMessage uses the customer's own Apple ID and Mac, we do not enforce hard caps — the customer is in control of their own account and its consequences. Instead we surface a "deliverability health" panel with soft warnings: a warning appears at 40 new conversations per day (below the observed ~50/day soft ceiling) and at 150 sends per hour (below the reported 200/hr short-burst throttle). Send-to-reply ratios and identical-body-message collisions are also tracked and surfaced.

## How autoMessage compares to competitors

| Vendor | Starting price | Trial | Annual contract | MCP server | Own device | Per-message fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| **autoMessage** | **$29/mo** | 7 days | No | **Yes** | **Yes** | No |
| Tuco | $59/mo + $335 setup | No | No | No | No | No |
| Sendblue | $100/mo (AI Agent tier) | No | No | No | No | No |
| Linq | ~$167/mo + $500 setup | No | Forced | No | No | No |
| Project Blue | $250/mo flat | No | No | No | No | No |
| myCRMSIM | $29/mo | No | No | No | Yes | No |
| BlueBubbles | Free (open source, DIY) | — | — | No | Yes | — |

## Requirements

- macOS 14 or newer
- Full Disk Access granted to the autoMessage Mac app (system permission)
- An Apple ID actively signed in to Messages.app on the same Mac
- The Mac must be powered on and logged in for outbound messages to send. Outbound queues and delivers when the Mac wakes.

## Security and privacy

- The chat.db is opened read-only. autoMessage never writes to Apple's local message store.
- Messages sync to a cloud backing store so the dashboard and REST API work across devices. Customers can delete any individual message or their full history at any time.
- We do not have access to a customer's Apple ID password. Authentication runs through Messages.app on the customer's own Mac.

## Company

autoMessage is a product of Stockman Digital. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Apple Inc.

Contact: hello@automessage.app