Best Apps to Spy on a Cell Phone

NOTE: Updated August 14, 2022

“Can I spy on a cell phone without having the phone I need to spy on?” That is the NUMBER ONE question I get. The answer is simple. Yes, you can! And it’s not nearly as hard as you may think.

Hello, My name is Pat Sanderson, and welcome to Safeguarde. I created this site eight years ago to help people like you solve the same problems I had. Of course, everyone has different reasons for monitoring a cell phone, and I am not here to tell you why you should, but rather to offer some direction and assistance so you can take advantage of all I have learned about phone spy apps.

I made a list and reviewed what I have found to be the best spy apps for the average person. Take a look and choose the one that is best for you.

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#1 – Auto Forward Spy

Excellent for all iPhones and Androids. No Possession Needed.

Our TOP PICK! Auto Forward Spy was introduced in 2012 and has been a market leader ever since. Over the years, the app has been improved with remote access and the ability to monitor a phone without having it in your possession. They also have an option to “clone a phone” which shows you how to create an exact copy of one phone to another. Very cool!

Spy on a Cell Phone Without Having it

The latest version now lets you use their exclusive OTA (over-the-air) link to download the app to your phone where it creates a remote connection over the internet to the phone you want to spy on. All you have to do is download the app, activate it using your license key, then enter the number of the cell phone you want to spy on.

How it Works

Auto Forward Spy works by establishing a remote connection over the internet with the target phone (the phone that is being spied on).

Three Easy Steps:

- Download – Use the OTA (over-the-air) link to download the app.
- Activate – Enter the license you get from Auto Forward to activate.
- Monitor – From your cell phone, tablet or computer view texts, calls, GPS and all available information from the target

Features

- OTA (over-the-air) link: Enables remote downloading for quick and easy monitoring of any cell phone.
- Undetectable: Activity is captured and uploaded silently.
- Text messages: See all texts that have been sent or received (even they have been deleted). Includes the date, sender and complete message.
- WhatsApp: Content of all messages sent and received with telephone number and contact of each message (photos and videos included).
- Social media: Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat messages. Records; Likes, Shares, Private messages, and more.
- Keylogger: Captures and records all keystroke entries performed on the phone.
- Calls: Records all incoming and outgoing phone calls.
- Remote listening: Activate the phones microphone to listen to surroundings.
- Stealth camera: Send a remote command to the phone to snap a picture.
- Low price: One-time fee of only $29.99 and no monthly subscription. Plus, you get free lifetime upgrades!
- Works with: All Android’s and iPhone’s

Using the OTA (over-the-air) link, you can remotely download the app and monitor the target phone without having it in your possession. Once a remote connection is established, Auto Forward continuously uploads activity from the target phone to your secure online account. You can monitor any phone from your own cell phone without being anywhere near it!

Read my Auto Forward Review

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#2 – Highster Mobile

Works with all Androids and iPhones.

Another app that allows you to spy on a cell phone without having it in your possession! That’s Highster Mobile in a nutshell. Great technology that’s easy to use for the average “Joe”. Downloaded over 1 million times and going strong, Highster Mobile is still one of the best cell phone spy apps you can buy.

Highster Mobile has been on the market since 2007. They helped pioneer the technology and remain the leader in cell phone spy applications. You just can’t go wrong with this app. Tried and true and up to date to work with the all Androids and iOS devices.

- Social media: Captures and records copies of both incoming and outgoing messages for Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat.
- Text messages: Get an exact copy of every text sent or received (deleted texts can be viewed).
- WhatsApp: Content of all messages sent and received with telephone number and contact of each message (photos and videos included).
- Keylogger: Captures all keystrokes performed on Androids and iPhones.
- GPS tracking: Tracks a phone to within a few feet of its actual location.
- Calls: Records all incoming and outgoing phone calls.
- OTA (over-the-air) link: Download the app remotely for fast and easy monitoring.
- Works with: All Android’s and iPhone’s

If you’re looking for a low-cost spy app for Android or iPhone, Highster Mobile should be at the top of your list. It’s competitively priced, offers many useful features, has a user-friendly web interface and it’s very easy to use, even for beginners.

Read my Highster Mobile Review

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#3 – DDI Utilities

DDI Utilities is a next-generation utility program that can extract and deliver large amounts of data and activity from any cell phone quickly, easily and silently without having the phone anywhere near you.

DDI is fast taking over space in the market once occupied by cell phone spy programs that just don’t work anymore. As new models and operating systems are introduced it has become more difficult to find a spy app that actually works. DDI Utilities works!

How DDI works:

DDI Utilities download procedure is simple. All you have to do is text the download link to the phone you want to monitor. When the link is activated (tapped on) the automatic install begins and within minutes stored data and activity from the phone uploads to your secure online account. Log into your account using the user/pass provided and you can see all captured files and activity.

Features:

Text messages: An exact copy of every text that was sent or received. Deleted texts can also be recovered.
iMessages: All iMessages sent and received.
Keylogger: Captures all keystrokes executed on target phone.
Social Media: Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter messages posts.
GPS location: The GPS tracking system of DDI Utilities will track the phone to within 50 feet of its actual location.
Photos: All photos, new, old and deleted.
Videos: All videos residing on phone.
Undectectable: DDI is undetectable on the phone. Data and activity is uploaded silently.
Works with: All Android’s and iPhone’s

If you have tried regular cell phone spy apps with no success, you will want to buy DDI Utilities. It has been shown to succeed where the older, more traditional spy programs no longer can.

Visit their website: https://ddiutilities.com/

Read our review: DDI Utilities review

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#4 – PhoneSpector

PhoneSpector is among the latest, cutting edge utility apps that can be used to spy on a cell without actually having the phone in your possession. More powerful and easier to use and set-up, it has become the choice of thousands who need help learning how to spy on a phone. It has no monthly fees. Unlimited lifetime upgrades and comes with full support for all phones. Check it out!

Visit their website: www.phonespector.com

Read my Phonespector Review

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Can you spy on a cell phone without installing anything to the target phone?

When looking for spy apps for phones, the question that always comes up is: Is it possible to spy on text messages without installing software on the target phone? While many think this impossible, I would urge you to think again and to read this article I found, and reposted, about a woman who’s estranged boyfriend was able to spy on her cell phone without having the phone. You’ll learn how to spy on someone’s phone remotely using the best phone spy apps.

What You Need To Know Before You Buy

You must have access to the target phone so you can download and install the mobile spy and text tracker app directly onto their phone. You don’t need to install anything on your phone or computer. Using the OTA link greatly simplifies and speeds up this process. In most cases, installation can be done in less than a minute.
The phone you are monitoring determines which version you buy. If you want to monitor an iPhone, you buy the iPhone version and hence the same for Android. Your personal phone does not matter.
Monitoring a cell phone is a serious endeavor and should never be done in an illegal manner. Proper authorization is always required. Before attempting to monitor any cell phone always check with your local and state laws and federal law to ensure you are not violating any laws.

Guide To Spying On A Cell Phone

Today two types of devices dominate the mobile market: Androids and iPhones. Through independent research, I have narrowed down the best cell spy software for both. While there are many reasons someone would need to spy on texts (if you are an employer or a parent for instance,) catching a cheating spouse is the most popular.

Over the years, I have learned a lot (mostly I learned what not to do!) and what I have learned is that you need to find a text message spying app from a company that has three basic but very important features. They are:

Telephone Number – When you have a question, or a problem, isn’t great when you can pick up the phone and speak to someone? I never buy anything from any website that does not have a working telephone number with an actual person answering. Make sure the website has a working telephone number. This is a good sign that the company is legitimate. Any website that does not have a telephone number is likely a fly-by-night and not very good.
No Monthly Fees – Don’t get involved with any program that has monthly fees! Most of us have all been caught by a scam that initially bills for a small amount which then results in the never ending nightmare of trying to cancel. During that time monthly charges continue to pile up! Don’t do it! Our reviews include only those programs that can be bought for a one-time charge. All come with free lifetime upgrades, which will enable you to spy on any cell phone well into the future regardless of software updates or phone changes.
Customer Support – Make sure the company offers full telephone customer support. Email is not enough with this type of application. I can almost guarantee that you will need help along the way and it will be a huge plus to get a live person on the phone who can solve any issue you may have. This will be invaluable to you…Trust me!

Now that we’ve covered the basics of what you want in a company, let’s talk about the Android and iPhone spy apps themselves.

With the emergence of more powerful utility apps that are now being used to spy on cell phones, I have altered my top picks to better reflect the latest technology. Here they are:

Top Apps to Spy on Text Messages

So, how do you sort through the junk? Below, I’ve provided a list of the top five cell phone spyware apps available today (I have actually tested and used each one of them). Each of these will enable you to read someone’s text messages and just about all activity of virtually any mobile device. Read carefully and know that whichever of these you choose, you’ll gain peace of mind with your purchase.

IMPORTANT: Each of the programs below is capable of retrieving more than just text messages from a cell phone or tablet. They will retrieve phone activities such as; Calls, GPS location, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, websites visited, photos, videos and much more.

These programs are very powerful and will enable you to spy on a mobile device much like any government or private investigator might and should be used only for legal purposes.

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#1 Auto Forward Spy (Recommended: Best for Android phones and tablets)

Inexpensive and user friendly, Auto Forward Spy is—without a doubt—the best choice for Android and iPhone devices! It allows users to view a targeted device’s browser history, text messages, take photos remotely and much more all without having the phone in your possession. From its simple installation to its ease of use, Auto Forward Spy gives you all the benefits of mobile monitoring software with none of the hassle. It’s just download, install and monitor!

With Auto Forward, you’ll be able to:

- SMS Spy on a phone, even if the phone’s logs are deleted. With Auto Forward Spy installed, you’ll be able to view the content of every text, the phone numbers associated with them and the time and date of each message.
- Monitor social media in real time! Ideal for parents, this feature lets you check on children’s social interactions on Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, and more! It lets you see who they’re talking to, what they’re saying and what they are sharing.
- View all phone calls received and dialed. View the phone number(s) involved and phone date and timestamps.
- Track via GPS: Whether the device you’re tracking belongs to a loved one or an employee—or is stolen or lost—the GPS tracking app feature can pinpoint its location on a map in 5-minute intervals.
- Monitor and record email: Instantly access all incoming and outgoing emails on the mobile device in which the app is installed and time-stamp and store all the data on the platform of your choice.
- See all incoming and outgoing calls as they occur: The Call Log feature of Auto Forward Spy lets you see every phone number dialed and the duration of each call—even if the call logs have been deleted—and allows you to retrieve and download the data.
- Access contacts: Auto Forward Spy gives you instant access to all of the names, phone number, email addresses and more contained within the designated mobile device.
- View the browser history: Monitor your child or employee’s internet access to safeguard against them viewing inappropriate websites, videos or photos.
- Take photos remotely from the device’s viewfinder and download and save the images with Auto Forward Spy’s Remote Camera.
- Observe all activities – incoming or outgoing -in real-time through any device with the Real-Time Control Panel in order to see how the device is being used. Need to see a chat message? A call? Need to monitor texts? The Real-Time Control Panel gives you this information instantly.

Customer Support

Excellent customer support with LIVE people answering the phone. Of course, I called just to see if real people would actually answer the phone and if they knew what they were talking about, which they did. I was very pleased with how helpful they were.

Price

As I stated above, “stay away from monthly fees”. After trying their 3-Day Free Trial, Auto Forward Spy has a price tag of only $29.99 with no monthly fees and no additional charges. Honestly, for the money you really can’t go wrong. It’s fast, simple and easy-to-use, but most of all, it’s powerful enough to get just about anybody all the information they would ever need.

Auto Forward Spy has been on the market for over 5 years and has done an excellent job in surpassing the competition. The development team of Auto Forward Spy has proven to be extremely capable of producing one of the best apps for spying on texts you will find anywhere.

Visit their site: http://auto-forward.com/

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#2 Highster Mobile (Best spy app for iPhones and iPads)

Highster Mobile is an SMS tracker and text message spy software that has been on the market for nearly 8 years. It has helped literally hundreds of thousands of people to spy on cell phones and in particular, gather text messages from just about any mobile device on the market.

A superior text message spy, Highster Mobile not only enables a user to retrieve new text messages from any cell phone, it will also extract old and deleted text messages as well. It does this by scouring the memory of the mobile device and extracting all available old and deleted text messages that haven’t been overwritten. The astonishing thing is that you can do all this without actually having the phone in your possession. It is not uncommon for users to report the extraction of text messages from up to one-year-old.

The Best NO-JAILBREAK Program

If you are spying on an iPhone and you are either unwilling or unable to jailbreak it, Highster Mobile is for you!

Their No-Jailbreak program is tops in the industry and, in my opinion, is by far the easiest to use and most powerful. I found that it captures more data, in less time, than any of the competing programs. Access to the monitored device is not necessary, meaning it’s possible for you to monitor the target iPhone without installing software on it.

Highster Mobile will also extract loads of data from virtually any cell phone Including; calls, GPS location (within 50 feet of the phone’s actual location), photos, videos, social media messages (Facebook, Twitter, etc.), web browsing history and much more.