Questions, plainly answered.

It reads the text messages and iMessages from your iPhone, through your Mac, and turns one conversation into a PDF: every message in order with the date and time to the second, the sender's name and number, photos where they were sent, page numbers, and a cover page that says how the export was made. It can also write a CSV spreadsheet and an HTML page, and it puts the original attachments and a SHA-256 hash list in the same folder.

We cannot promise that, and nobody honestly can. Whether text messages are admitted, and in what form, is decided by the court under the rules where you are, and it usually turns on testimony about who sent them, not on the file format. TextExhibit makes the export complete, readable and easy to check, with exact times, numbers and a cover page. Ask your lawyer or the court clerk what format they want. This is general information, not legal advice.

No. TextExhibit is a Mac app and needs macOS 14 Sonoma or later. An iPhone app cannot read the messages database, which is why phone apps ask for screenshots instead. If you only have a Windows PC, see our guide on exporting iPhone texts on Windows for the options we know of.

Yes. Download it and read, search and export as much as you like for free. Free exports carry a watermark on every page, so you see exactly what you will get. A license removes the watermark.

Yes. Green-bubble SMS and MMS texts are in the same database as iMessages, so they come along when the source has them. Group chats export with every participant's name and number. Photos are shown in the PDF where they were sent, and every attachment is copied into the export folder. If a file is not on the device or in the backup, the PDF says so instead of skipping it.

A header with the exhibit label and conversation, then one message per line: date and time to the second with the time zone, the sender's name and number or email address, and the message. Photos appear in place with the file name, size and SHA-256 hash. Reactions, replies, edited and unsent messages are marked. The footer has the page number, for example Page 3 of 12, and a Bates number if you turned them on.

Yes. Pick a start and end date, and the export holds every message in that range, in order. The cover page states the range and how many messages and attachments it contains.

Yes. Bates numbers use a prefix and a starting number that you choose, for example SMITH000001, and run across the pages. The exhibit label and case name go on the cover page and in the header. Your lawyer will know which prefix and starting number to use.

Apple stores message times in universal time. TextExhibit prints them in the time zone you choose, your Mac's by default, and writes the time zone next to every time and on the cover page, so nobody has to guess.

manifest.txt lists every file in the export folder with its SHA-256 hash, a fingerprint that changes if even one byte of the file changes. Anyone can recompute it later to show the PDF and attachments are the same files you exported.

No. If your iPhone syncs messages to this Mac with Messages in iCloud, TextExhibit can read them from the Messages app. If not, connect the iPhone with a cable and TextExhibit makes a fresh backup on your Mac and reads the messages from it. It can also open a backup you already made with Finder.

macOS keeps the Messages database and iPhone backups in folders that apps cannot open unless you allow Full Disk Access in System Settings, Privacy & Security. TextExhibit only reads those files; it does not change them. You can turn the permission off again when you are done.

No, but you need the backup password, the one you set when you turned on Encrypt local backup in Finder. TextExhibit asks for it once to open the backup on your Mac. If you have forgotten it, our guide on encrypted backup passwords explains the options Apple gives you.

It exports what is in the source you pick. Messages you deleted on the iPhone are usually gone from the device, but they may still be in an older backup made before you deleted them, or in Recently Deleted in the Messages app for a limited time. TextExhibit does not attempt forensic recovery.

No. It installs nothing on the phone and never changes or deletes messages. Making a backup over the cable is the same thing Finder does, and the iPhone may ask you to tap Trust and enter its passcode first.

No. TextExhibit reads and exports on your Mac. Messages, contacts and attachments are never sent to us or to anyone else, there is no account, and nothing is installed on your iPhone. The app goes online only to check a license key and to look for updates.

Into folders on your Mac that you choose or can see in the app. Nothing leaves the Mac unless you send the files yourself. A backup can take a lot of space; you can delete it once you have exported what you need.

Reading your messages, searching them and previewing the full export are free. Exports made without a license carry a watermark on every page. A license is $24.99 once, with no subscription, works on 3 Macs and comes with a 14-day refund.

Ask within 14 days of purchase for a full refund, without giving a reason. The license key then stops working, and the free features keep working.

Yes. One license works on 3 Macs that you own or use, for example a laptop and a desktop.