TextMe Up Calling & Texts

Review by eFreeware

If you have ever wanted a second phone number without buying a second SIM, TextMe Up is built for exactly that. It gives you a free number when you sign up, then lets you pile on more numbers from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and France, all managed inside one account. The people I would expect to get the most from it are sellers on marketplace sites, freelancers juggling clients, and anyone living or working across borders who wants a local-looking number in another country.

What you get for nothing is a working line for calls and texts rather than a chat app that only talks to other users of the same service. The developer describes real SMS and real voice calls, and the app has been on Google Play since October 2015, which is a long run for this category. It has over 10 million installs and a 4.2 average from roughly 89,761 ratings, so plenty of people have given it a try. The download is free, with ads and in-app purchases in the mix.

A phone line that lives in an app

The core idea is simple: one account, several numbers, one inbox. You sign up and get a number, and from there you can add as many more as you like, switch between them from a single screen, and see every conversation in the same place. If a number stops being useful, you can change it for a different one or burn it entirely, which matters when a line has been used for listings you no longer want to be reachable through.

Signing in is handled through your Google or Facebook account, which keeps the setup short. Messaging supports group threads with photo and video sharing, so it behaves like the texting app you already use rather than a stripped-down tool. Calls between TextMe Up users are made in HD voice or over video, which gives the service a second role as a way to keep in touch with people who also have it installed.

The multi-number part is the feature that separates this from a standard messaging app. Your work line, your selling line and your personal line can all sit in the same app without you carrying two devices or swapping SIM cards. The developer pitches this as using your phone the way you use email, and that comparison holds up: separate addresses, one place to read them.

What free texting and calling actually covers

Free texting covers the United States, Canada and 40 other countries, and the texts are described as real SMS rather than messages confined to the app. Calling reaches the US, Canada, the UK and 200 countries, so the reach for voice is broader than the reach for free messages. Texts to those 200 countries are sent using credits instead of the free allowance.

That split is worth understanding before you commit a number to anything important. The free SMS offer is limited to users based in the US and Canada, and the developer notes that calls to some carriers or territories within the 200-country range may fall outside the offer. In other words, the headline numbers describe the reach of the service, not a blanket promise that every destination is free.

For heavier use there is a monthly subscription at US$2.99, or CA$3.49, that covers unlimited calling and texting to US and Canada numbers. It renews automatically unless you turn that off at least 24 hours before the current period ends, and the charge goes through your Google Play account. Canceling mid-period is not allowed, so the timing of a cancellation matters if you only need the unlimited plan for a short stretch.

Multiple numbers, one inbox

Managing several lines is where the app earns its keep. You can add numbers as you need them, keep them side by side, and move between them without signing out or opening a second app. Conversations from every number land in one inbox, so you are not hunting through separate screens to find who said what.

The choice of countries is narrower than the calling reach: numbers come from the US, Canada, the UK and France. Someone who needs a local number in Germany or Brazil will not find one here, even though calls can be placed to those countries. For a US-based seller who wants a Canadian line, or a UK freelancer who wants a US number, the four-country set covers the common cases.

Being able to change or delete a number is a practical touch. Numbers accumulate context, and one that has been printed on flyers, posted in listings or handed to a client is hard to retire gracefully. Here you can swap it out or burn it and start again, which keeps the rest of your account intact.

Calls, video and group threads

Beyond plain texting, the app handles group messages with photo and video sharing, so a thread with several people behaves much like the one in your default messaging app. HD voice and video calls are available between TextMe Up users, which makes the service useful for a regular circle of contacts who all install it.

The distinction between in-app calls and calls to ordinary phone numbers is the one to keep straight. If most of your calling is to people who already use the app, the free side of things goes a long way.

It is also worth noting what the service is not. It is a communication app rather than a full replacement for a carrier plan, and the free allowances carry geographic limits. Reading those limits before you hand the number to anyone who depends on reaching you is the sensible move.

What it asks of you

The app is free to download, but it carries ads and offers in-app purchases, and the unlimited US and Canada plan sits behind a monthly subscription. That is the shape of the deal: a free number and free messaging within the stated countries, with paid tiers for heavier or broader use. Anyone weighing the free tier should look at what it actually covers.

Calls to certain carriers or territories within the 200-country list may not be included, so the free calling picture is not uniform across every destination. Texts to those 200 countries run on credits rather than the free allowance, which means the cost of messaging internationally depends on where you are sending.

Signing in requires a Google or Facebook account, which is a small thing but worth knowing if you prefer to keep your messaging separate from those identities. The app was last updated on September 30, 2026, with the change note listing minor bug fixes and improvements, so it is being maintained rather than left to sit.

Who this fits

The people who will get the most from TextMe Up are those who need more than one number and do not want more than one device. The ability to add, switch, change and burn numbers inside a single account is the reason to choose it over a plain messaging app.

It also suits people who mostly message within the US and Canada and want a free number for that, since the free SMS offer is built around those two countries. If your calling is largely to other TextMe Up users, the app-to-app HD voice and video side covers that without touching the paid plan.

Where it is less of a fit is for anyone who needs a local number outside the four supported countries, or who sends a lot of texts to destinations beyond the free list and would rather not manage credits. Those limits shape what the app is good for.

A second line worth trying

TextMe Up does one thing well: it gives you a free phone number and lets you collect more of them in one place, with real SMS and real calls rather than a walled garden of in-app chat. The multiple-number management is the standout, and the four-country number pool covers the cases most people actually need. The free texting allowance for US and Canada users is generous enough to make the free tier worth trying before you consider the US$2.99 monthly plan.

The trade-offs are ads and in-app purchases, a free SMS offer limited to US and Canada users, some carriers and territories excluded from the calling offer, and texts beyond the free list running on credits. None of those are hidden, but they do mean the app is best suited to people whose messaging stays mostly within the free countries.

If you need a second line for selling, working or staying reachable across borders, this is a reasonable place to start, and the 10 million-plus installs and 4.2 rating suggest it has found a steady audience since 2015. If you need a local number in a country outside the four on offer, or you send most of your texts outside the free list, the fit is weaker.

What's new in version 3.56.2

- Minor bug fixes and improvements