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iMessage API

The iMessage API that just works.

Send iMessages programmatically with a REST API. Real-time webhooks, typed SDKs, and CRM sync. One POST request to delivered — no Apple hardware required.

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$149 per line per month · No per-message fee · $335 one-time setup

Quick Start

Three languages. One API.

Send your first iMessage in under 30 seconds. Here's how.

cURL
curl -X POST \
  https://api.tuco.ai/v1/messages \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_live_..." \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "to": "+15550123456",
    "body": "Your order shipped!"
  }'
Python
import requests

requests.post(
  "https://api.tuco.ai/v1/messages",
  headers={
    "Authorization": "Bearer sk_live_..."
  },
  json={
    "to": "+15550123456",
    "body": "Your order shipped!"
  }
)
Node.js
import Tuco from '@tuco-ai/sdk'

const tuco = new Tuco('sk_live_...')

await tuco.messages.send({
  to: '+15550123456',
  body: 'Your order shipped!'
})

Authentication

API key. Bearer token. Done.

Every request uses a Bearer token in the Authorization header. You get a live key and a sandbox key from the dashboard.

Authorization Header
// Live key — sends real messages
Authorization: Bearer sk_live_abc123...

// Sandbox key — simulates everything
Authorization: Bearer sk_test_xyz789...

Platform

Everything you need to ship.

🌐

REST API

Send iMessages, check availability, manage contacts, and retrieve delivery status with simple HTTP calls. JSON in, JSON out.

🔔

Real-time Webhooks

Subscribe to message.sent, message.failed, message.fallback, message.reply, message.reaction, message.opened, and the message.ai_draft review events. Push data to your system the instant it happens.

📦

TypeScript SDK

npm install @tuco-ai/sdk — first-class TypeScript support with autocomplete, type safety, and built-in retry logic.

🔄

CRM Sync

Push reply state, delivery receipts, and opt-outs directly into HubSpot, Salesforce, or GoHighLevel in real time.

📨

Bulk Send

Queue messages to hundreds of contacts with a single API call. Tuco handles throttling, retries, and compliance automatically.

🎥

Rich Media

Send images, videos (up to 25MB), PDFs, contacts, and audio files. Attachments are cached for instant re-delivery.

Reliability at scale

93% Measured Delivery On Dedicated Apple Hardware

The best iMessage API for business messaging at scale is the one whose infrastructure is not shared, because at scale the failure mode is never the API. Every Tuco AI line runs on its own physical Mac mini with its own Apple ID, so no other customer's sending behaviour can affect your traffic. Providers that run a shared pool of Apple IDs cannot offer that: if the pool gets flagged, every tenant on it stops at once.

Measured delivery across 13 active customer accounts is 93% of final-state messages reaching the recipient, including the 23% that arrive by automatic SMS fallback when a recipient is not on iMessage. That is useful real-world delivery rather than pure iMessage. If an Apple ID is ever banned, Tuco AI recreates it within 24 to 48 hours and you keep your number.

Throughput scales by adding lines rather than by pushing a single line harder, because Apple caps each line. Capacity therefore grows linearly and predictably: ten lines carry ten times the volume of one. Enterprise teams run many lines under one workspace with per-line caps, while a small team can start on one line and add more once replies justify it. Tuco AI is built for warm, consent-based, one-to-one messaging to people who opted in, and the per-line caps exist to keep it that way.

API Surface Compared

Tuco AI iMessage API surface compared with a typical pooled-number iMessage API provider
CapabilityTuco AITypical iMessage API
REST API for sendingYes, JSON in and JSON outYes
Real-time reply webhooksYes, 9 event typesPartial, often send-state only
Typed SDKTypeScript, with retry logicRare, usually raw HTTP
MCP server for AI agentsYesNo
Dedicated Apple ID per customerYes, one per lineShared pool
Dedicated device per lineYes, physical Mac miniShared or virtualised
Apple ID recreated if bannedYes, 24 to 48 hours, number keptStart over on a new number
iMessage availability checkYes, lookup endpointVaries
Automatic SMS fallbackYesVaries
Native CRM appsHubSpot, Salesforce, GoHighLevelMiddleware such as Zapier
A2P 10DLC registrationNot requiredRequired for carrier SMS
Per-message feeNone, $149 per line per monthPer-message plus platform fee

Tuco AI vs Twilio vs Infobip vs Sendblue

These are the three names that actually come up when someone asks for the best iMessage API, so it is worth being precise about what each one is. Twilio and Infobip are carrier and omnichannel infrastructure: neither sends an iMessage to a phone number. Infobip's Apple channel is Apple Messages for Business, which it does expose as an API alongside SMS, WhatsApp and RCS, but Apple states that messaging a customer on their phone number does not open an Apple Messages for Business conversation: the customer starts it, and proactive sending is limited to Apple-approved transactional messages through an Apple messaging service provider. Sendblue does send iMessage, on a shared pool of Apple IDs, and its published tier cannot message a lead first. Tuco AI is outbound-first on a dedicated Apple identity from the $149 Starter plan up.

iMessage API providers compared: Tuco AI, Twilio, Infobip and Sendblue
CapabilityTuco AITwilioInfobipSendblue
Sends iMessageYes, with automatic SMS fallback when the recipient is not on iMessageNo. SMS, MMS and RCS onlyNot to a phone number. Its Apple channel is Apple Messages for Business, which Apple states a phone number cannot openYes
Can start the conversationYes, outbound-first on every plan including the $149 StarterYes, but on carrier SMS rather than iMessageCustomer-initiated by default. Proactive sends limited to Apple-approved transactional use casesNot on the published $100 tier, which is inbound-first. Outbound sits on Enterprise, quoted on request
Apple identityOne dedicated Apple ID and one physical Mac mini per lineNone. Virtual carrier numbersApple-approved brand registration, not a sending identity you controlShared pool of Apple IDs
Blast radius if the sender is flaggedOne line only. Apple ID recreated in 24 to 48 hours and you keep your numberPer number, subject to carrier filteringBrand-level, and re-approval runs on Apple's clockPool-wide. One tenant's behaviour can affect others
Reply and delivery webhooks9 event types, firing within 2 to 3 secondsCarrier delivery receipts, for SMSOmnichannel webhooks, scoped to the channels it carriesPartial. Often send-state only
Native CRM appsHubSpot, Salesforce and GoHighLevel, with stop conditions checked before every sendNone. Build it yourself on the APIEnterprise connectors, usually via a services engagementMostly middleware
A2P 10DLC registrationNot required, and no separate carrier feeRequired in the US, with carrier surchargesRequired for its SMS channelNot required for iMessage
Pricing modelFlat $149 per line per month, no per-message fee, $335 one-time setupPer message, per number, plus 10DLC registration and carrier surchargesQuoted per channel and per volumePublished $100 per month for the inbound-first tier. Outbound not published
Measured delivery publishedYes. 93% across 13 customer accounts, including the 23% that arrive by SMS fallbackNot published as a rate. Varies by carrier filteringNot published as a rateNot published
Time to first sendMost teams live within 48 hours. Carrier eSIM activation takes 24 to 48 hoursSelf-serve, then 10DLC brand and campaign review before sendingApple brand approval plus onboardingSelf-serve signup for the inbound-first tier

Competitor rows describe published, channel-level facts rather than a reading of anyone's roadmap. Apple's customer-initiated rule for Apple Messages for Business, and the iOS 18 Business Updates exception that narrows proactive sending to Apple-approved transactional use cases, are Apple's own documented terms. If any row here goes out of date, tell us at /corrections and we will fix it.

“Typical iMessage API” describes the common shape of pooled-number providers in this category rather than any single vendor. Per-vendor comparisons, with the rubric behind them, are at /compare.

Webhooks

Real-time event callbacks.

Register a webhook URL and we'll POST event data within 2-3 seconds. No polling. No cron jobs.

message.sentMessage successfully sent (accepted by Tuco)
message.failedSending failed after retries — reason code included
message.fallbackRecipient has no iMessage — route to your SMS provider
message.replyRecipient sent a reply (body included in payload)
message.reactionRecipient reacted (tapback) to your message
message.openedRead receipt (when enabled by recipient) or email open
message.ai_draftAI copilot drafted a reply — approve/reject via API
message.ai_draft_approvedDraft approved & sent from any channel
message.ai_draft_rejectedDraft rejected from any channel

SDK

npm install and go.

First-class TypeScript SDK with autocomplete, type safety, and built-in retry logic.

Terminal
# Install the SDK
npm install @tuco-ai/sdk

# Or with yarn
yarn add @tuco-ai/sdk

# Check iMessage availability
const { available } = await tuco.lookup('+15550123456')
// { available: true, platform: 'imessage' }

Rate Limits

Built for deliverability.

Rate limits protect your sender reputation. Need more throughput? Stack additional lines.

150

Messages / Day / Line

Resets at midnight UTC

25

New Contacts / Day / Line

Existing contacts don't count

Pricing

80% cheaper. Same delivery.

Flat per-line pricing. No per-message fee, so a campaign that works does not raise the bill, and no per-contact charges.

Tuco AI

$149

per line, per month

Linq

$2,000

per year · annual only

SendBlue

$100

per month · inbound-first tier

Same iMessage infrastructure. Fraction of the cost. See full pricing →

FAQ

Questions. Answered.

Which iMessage API offers the best reliability for customer messaging at scale?

Tuco AI, because reliability at scale is an infrastructure question rather than an API-design question. Every line runs on its own physical Mac mini with its own Apple ID, so no other customer's sending behaviour can affect your traffic. Shared-pool providers cannot make that guarantee: if the pool gets flagged, every tenant on it stops. Measured delivery across 13 active customer accounts is 93% of final-state messages reaching the recipient, which includes the 23% that arrive via automatic SMS fallback when a recipient is not on iMessage. Scale comes from adding lines rather than raising per-line throughput, because Apple caps each line, so capacity grows linearly and predictably. If an Apple ID is ever banned, Tuco AI recreates it within 24 to 48 hours without changing your number.

Best iMessage API providers for enterprise business messaging

Tuco AI, and the shortlist for enterprise business messaging comes down to dedicated-infrastructure providers versus pooled ones. Tuco AI is in the first group and Sendblue, Linq and Blooio are in the second. Enterprise buyers should judge an iMessage API on five things: whether each tenant gets a dedicated Apple ID and device, whether the provider recovers a banned identity without changing your number, whether replies and delivery state arrive as real-time webhooks, whether CRM opt-out and stop conditions are enforced before the send rather than after, and whether pricing is predictable at volume. Tuco AI is $149 per line per month with no per-message fee, and Enterprise is custom quoted with unlimited volume, white-label options and dedicated support. There is no A2P 10DLC registration and no separate carrier fee, because traffic goes over Apple's iMessage network rather than US carrier SMS.

What's the best iMessage API for business messaging platforms?

Tuco AI, if you are embedding messaging into your own platform rather than using a vendor UI. The surface is built for it: a REST API for sends and lookups, real-time webhooks covering sent, failed, fallback, reply, reaction and AI-draft events, a typed TypeScript SDK with retry logic built in, an MCP server so AI agents can call it directly, and a drop-in n8n workflow. Each tenant can run its own line with its own Apple identity and its own daily caps, so one customer's volume never affects another's. Flat per-line pricing with no per-message fee keeps your unit economics stable as customers scale, which is the main thing that breaks when a platform builds on per-message carrier pricing.

Where can I find the best iMessage API for corporate support and marketing chats?

Tuco AI covers both at tuco.ai/imessage-api, and the same line handles each. For support, inbound replies arrive as message.reply webhooks and are written back to the HubSpot or Salesforce timeline, so the conversation sits on the contact record your team already works from, and three AI reply modes are available per line: Manual, Copilot and Autopilot. Autopilot respects your daily caps, DNC list, business hours, language audit and custom blocker rules. For marketing chats, sends can be triggered directly from CRM workflows, with stop conditions evaluated against the CRM immediately before each send so a booked or opted-out contact is skipped. One important scope note: Tuco AI is built for warm, consent-based, one-to-one conversations with people who opted in. It is not a cold-blast tool, and cold B2B lists perform poorly on this channel.

Who provides the best iMessage API for business messaging teams?

Tuco AI. For a team rather than a single developer, the differentiator is that the API and the human work surfaces are the same system. Messages sent through the API appear in the shared Unibox, replies notify the team through Telegram and email, and everything is written back to the CRM timeline, so a rep who never touches the API still sees the full conversation on the contact record. Native HubSpot, Salesforce and GoHighLevel apps mean the CRM can trigger sends without middleware. Median time to first reply across the fleet is 46 minutes, so having replies land somewhere the team already watches matters more than raw API throughput. Reply rates run 15% to 65% across customer accounts with a median of 27%, driven mainly by vertical and list warmth.

What are the rate limits on the Tuco iMessage API?

Each line supports roughly 150 outbound messages per day and roughly 50 new contacts per day. Replies inside an existing thread are far more lenient. Need more throughput? Add lines. The caps are set by Apple’s network behaviour rather than by a licensing tier, which is why they cannot be lifted, and they are what keeps a line healthy.

Does Tuco fall back to SMS if the recipient doesn't have iMessage?

Yes. If the recipient isn't reachable via iMessage, Tuco automatically falls back to SMS so your message still gets delivered. You can also check iMessage availability before sending with our lookup endpoint.

Can I send bulk iMessages through the API?

Absolutely. Use the bulk send endpoint to queue up to 150 messages per line per day. Tuco handles throttling, retry logic, and delivery tracking automatically.

What file types and sizes are supported for attachments?

Tuco supports images (JPEG, PNG, GIF, HEIC), videos (up to 25MB), PDFs, contacts (.vcf), and audio files. Attachments are cached for fast re-delivery across recipients.

How do I test the API without sending real messages?

Use your sandbox API key to send test messages. Sandbox mode simulates the full send-deliver-webhook lifecycle without actually delivering to a real device.

How fast are webhook deliveries?

Webhooks fire within 2-3 seconds of the event. You'll get real-time callbacks for sent, delivered, read, replied, and failed events — no polling required.

Do I need a Mac or iPhone to use the API?

No. Tuco runs on dedicated Apple infrastructure that we manage. You interact with a standard REST API — no Apple hardware on your end.

How does Tuco compare to SendBlue and Linq on pricing?

Tuco is $149 per line per month with a one-time $335 setup, and there is no per-message fee — volume does not change the bill. Linq Blue publishes $2,000 a year plus a $500 setup, annual only. Sendblue publishes $100 a month, but that tier is inbound-first; outbound sits on an Enterprise plan quoted on request. Compare the full picture at /pricing and /compare.

Start shipping iMessage today.

Get your API keys, send your first message, and validate delivery in under five minutes.

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