GettingOut Visits

Review by eFreeware

GettingOut Visits is built around one clear idea: instead of traveling to a facility, you open an app on your Android phone or tablet and join a video call with someone who is incarcerated. The person on the other side uses a wireless tablet, and the developer says the experience works much like a standard video call. That framing matters, because it tells you this is not a general messaging app with a prison feature bolted on. It is a single-purpose tool for remote visits.

The detail that stands out to me is Visit Now. Rather than booking a slot days ahead, you can try to start a visit on the spot and begin within minutes if the other person is free. If they are not available, you get a notification and can arrange a visit for later. For families whose schedules rarely line up in advance, that removes a lot of the friction that usually surrounds prison visits.

This is not a service every family can use today. The developer notes that it works only at select facilities, so the first question is whether your loved one's location participates. If it does, and you have an Android device, the app is the kind of thing you would keep installed for the moments when a visit becomes possible.

Who ends up using this app most

The people I would expect to get the most from GettingOut Visits are those already approved to communicate with someone at a participating facility. That includes partners, parents, siblings and close friends who want more contact than occasional phone calls allow, and who would rather see a face than hear a voice. A video call carries more than a phone call does, and the app is designed to make that the default way to connect.

It also suits people whose lives make travel difficult. If you work shifts, care for children, or live far from the facility, a remote visit that fits around your day is a genuine alternative to a long drive. The developer pitches flexibility as a core benefit, and it is easy to see why: visits no longer have to be planned around a single appointment time.

The app is less relevant to anyone whose loved one is held somewhere that has not adopted the service. Availability is the gate, and it is set by the facility rather than by anything you can change in the app. If your location is not on the list, the app simply has nothing to offer you yet.

How a video visit actually works

The core function is a remote video call between your Android device and the incarcerated person's tablet. It works much like the video calling you already do, which suggests a familiar pattern: you connect, you see each other, you talk. The practical difference is that you can use your Android device.

The Visit Now feature is the part that changes the rhythm of using it. You do not have to reserve a time in advance; you can attempt a visit whenever it suits you. If the other person is unavailable, the app notifies you and you can schedule something for later instead. That two-path approach covers both spontaneous calls and planned ones, and it means a failed attempt is not a dead end.

Because the connection depends on the facility's equipment and the person's availability, I would treat Visit Now as an opportunity rather than a guarantee. It is a way to try when the moment is right, with a scheduled visit as the fallback.

What the visits cost

The app itself is free to download, and it carries no ads and no in-app purchases. The money side sits with the visits rather than the software: you are charged only for the actual time you spend on a call. There is no upfront charge, no connection fee, no penalty, and no minimum or maximum cost tied to a visit.

That structure is worth understanding before you start. A short call costs less than a long one, since billing follows the duration of the visit you actually have. The developer also points out that because Visit Now removes the need to book, there are no missed-visit penalties to worry about, and less reason to contact customer service about scheduling problems.

For budgeting, the practical implication is that you control the spend by controlling the length of the call. The free download means you can set it up and see whether your facility is supported before any visit takes place.

How it compares with the alternatives

The obvious comparison is with an in-person visit. Travel costs money and time, and it usually comes with a fixed schedule and a waiting period. A remote video visit trades the physical presence for convenience, and the pay-per-minute billing means a brief call can be cheaper than a day's trip. What you give up is the room itself, which no app can replace.

The other comparison is with a standard video calling service. Those are built for people who can pick up a phone whenever they like. GettingOut Visits exists precisely because ordinary video chat does not fit this situation. The trade-off is that you are limited to participating facilities rather than calling anyone, anywhere.

A traditional phone call from the facility is the third option. The app's advantage is simply that it adds a face to the conversation, a change from the usual arrangement.

What to keep in mind before installing

The main limitation is coverage. The service is available only at select facilities, so the app is useful only if your loved one's location is among them. That single fact decides whether everything else here matters to you.

The second thing to note is that the app is a single-purpose tool. It handles video visits and the scheduling around them, and that is the whole scope. If your contact with an incarcerated person happens through other channels, this app adds one more way to connect when the facility supports it.

It is also worth setting expectations around availability. Visit Now depends on the other person being free and on the facility's setup, and the app's own fallback is to notify you and let you schedule later. That is a reasonable design, but it means not every attempt will turn into a call. The app has been on Google Play since September 2017 and was last updated in August 2026 with feature updates and bug fixes, so it is an established service rather than a new experiment.

A focused tool for families at participating facilities

GettingOut Visits does one job and does it in a way that fits how families actually live: call when you can, pay for the minutes you use, and fall back to a scheduled visit when the timing does not work. The absence of ads and in-app purchases keeps the app itself out of the way, and the pay-as-you-go model means a short check-in is not an expensive commitment. With over 1 million installs and a 3.3 average from 28,524 ratings, it has a sizable user base and a mixed reception, which is worth weighing alongside your own facility's support.

If that describes your situation, the app is free to install and the cost only begins when a visit does. If your facility is not covered, there is nothing here to use, and that is the deciding factor rather than anything about the app's design.

For the right household, this is a straightforward way to turn a phone or tablet into a visit. For everyone else, the coverage list settles the question quickly.

What's new in version 5.0.0

Feature updates and bug fixes.