Cell phone spying apps allow you to collect detailed information saved on others’ phones.
These include everything from text messages and emails to media files and locations.
Spying apps are usually frowned upon and considered an invasion of privacy.
But it becomes inevitable in some cases, like when you are parenting teens and see them spending excessive time on screens.
You would surely want to ensure that they are safe and not indulging in inappropriate activities.
Similarly, employers use such apps to keep an eye on employees’ digital activities on company-owned phones.
Today, we are going to cover the most popular spy apps in the market, both for Android and iOS devices.
These apps are ranked according to their compatibility, pricing plans, and their variety of features.
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1. Xnspy:
Xnspy happens to be an advanced monitoring solution that works smoothly on both Android and iOS devices.
This app features an array of advanced features. Let’s take a look at its compatibility and pricing plans.
Compatibility:
- Xnspy supports all Android devices that run version 4.0 and above.
- The app runs seamlessly on iOS versions 6.0 and above.
Price:
Users are given two pricing packages.
The Basic edition costs $4.99/month, but the feature is rather limited.
To enjoy all the advanced functionalities, you should subscribe to the premium version which is $7.49/month.
XNSPY Features:
1. Messages & Calls Monitoring:
You can use the app to monitor all the text messages and calls along with their contact details, date, and time.
You can access all the data remotely.
Xnspy records all the calls automatically that you can download and listen to later on.
2. Instant Messenger and Social Media Chats:
The app effectively tracks all social media and instant messaging apps, including WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Instagram, Viber, Line, Skype, Tinder, and others.
This allows parents to know if their child is being bullied, body-shamed, or harassed.
3. Real-time Location Tracking with Geofencing:
Xnspy lets you know the location of the phone user in real time.
You can also know the recent location history of the phone.
Coupled with geofencing, you can create virtual boundaries on the map and know when the phone enters or leaves the specified areas.
Logistics and delivery services can get a lot out of this feature.
4. Access to Multimedia:
This feature lets you access all the multimedia files such as photos, videos, and audio files stored on the phone you are monitoring.
You can even access the calendar entries and address book through this app.
5. Web Browsing and Online Activities:
Using Xnspy, you can monitor all online activities, such as bookmarked pages, emails, and web browsing history.
You can see the top 10 most visited websites by the phone user, letting you in on the kind of content they look up on the internet.
Both parents and employers can benefit from this feature.
6. Remote Features:
With Xnspy, you can remotely control the phone in several ways and perform various functions such as locking the phone, wiping off its data, recording phone surroundings, and taking screenshots.
7. Watchlist Alerts:
You can add words, contacts, and locations to the app’s Watchlist, and the app will notify you the moment the words or contacts come up in the chats or the phone user enters or exits that location.
The app also makes device use reports, and along with these, Xnspy offers keylogger and Wi-Fi log features for Android devices.
Pros:
- Over 30 smart monitoring features
- Affordable price
- Supports offline monitoring
- Advanced instant alerts feature
Cons:
- There is no app or website-blocking feature
- There is no trial version
- Remote access to the camera is not available
Remarks:
Xnspy ranks on top because it is affordable and compatible with all OS.
The variety of features is pretty extensive for both parents and employers.
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2. Spyera
Another phone monitoring app is Spyera which also has a lot to offer to both parents and employers.
Spyera is compatible with both Android and iOS devices as well as Windows and macOS users.
Compatibility:
- Spyera supports all Android OS.
- The apps support all iOS versions.
Price:
Spyera offers two price packages for Android and iOS users.
The Premium version is for $13.99/month. However, this package does not allow the users access to all features.
On the other hand, the Premium Plus version lets the users use all the features of the app at $31.99/month.
Spyera Features:
1. Text Message & Call Monitoring:
The call log feature of the app lets you monitor all the calls.
You can also listen to live calls. Spyera lets you remotely access text messages.
Apart from text messages, you can even monitor chat conversations on Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Viber, and Skype.
You can add particular words to the app, and it would restrict it from reaching the phone user.
2. GPS Location Tracking:
The app lets you gain access to the device location.
Spyera does not have a geofencing feature.
3. Online activity monitoring:
You can browse the phone user’s online activities and see the bookmarked pages, web browsing history, and emails as well.
You can even access the search engine queries.
4. Access to Multimedia:
You can view and download audio, images, and videos remotely.
Along with that, you can access the notes and calendar entries of the phone user.
5. Remote Control:
With Spyera, you can also have remote control of the phone.
You can remotely access the camera and take photos and videos, take screenshots, and view the installed apps on the phone.
You can also restart the device, check the battery status, and track USB connections.
Pros:
- The app offers many advanced remote control features
- You can listen to live calls
- Expansive options for compatibility
Cons:
- No functionality of geofencing
- You cannot block sites
- The premium version is costly
Remarks:
The feature range of Spyera is pretty good and has enough advanced features.
The compatibility aspect makes it rank among the best spy apps. But it is expensive.
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3. Flexispy:
Last on our list is the renowned phone monitoring app Flexispy which is compatible with both Android and iOS devices.
You can use an array of features and monitor phones remotely.
Compatibility and Price:
- Flexispy supports all Android versions above 4.0.3.
- Flexispy supports iOS versions 6.0 and above.
Price:
Flexispy does a good job of catering to a larger audience.
The app is available in three subscription packages.
There is the Lite version that offers a very limited number of features at the cost of $29.95/month.
The Extreme version comes with a complete range of features at $349/month which makes the app the most expensive one in the market.
Flexispy Features:
1. Text messages monitoring:
This function helps you in accessing all the incoming and outgoing messages.
Flexispy effectively monitors all the popular instant messaging apps as well, such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, LINE, Skype, Tinder, and Kik.
You can also block a particular word in the text messages and prevent it from reaching phone users.
The app also lets you enjoy the SMS-spoofing feature.
This is a unique feature that lets you send an SMS to any contact from the address book of the phone.
It may look like the text message was sent from the phone but the sent messages history would show otherwise.
2. Call Monitoring:
Similar to the other spy apps covered in this list, Flexispy also monitors all the calls made to and from the phone you are keeping tabs on.
You can find all the details regarding the call activity in the calls’ log section.
You can both record and listen to live calls with this app. What’s more? The app can also access VoIP calls.
3. Monitor Internet Activity:
Flexispy tracks the internet activities and lets you access the browsing history and bookmarked URLs.
You can also see the sent and received emails remotely.
4. Access Multimedia:
This feature lets you access all audio, video, and images stored on the monitored phone.
Flexispy also lets you view the wallpaper images and calendar entries.
5. Location Tracking:
You can track the location of the monitored phone with Flexispy.
The app also provides a geofencing feature that lets you track the phone user’s movements and whereabouts.
6. Instant Alerts:
You can set alerts on specific words, contacts, and locations and get prompt alerts whenever there is phone activity related to them.
7. Remote commands and control of the phone:
Flexispy also allows you to remotely send commands and control the device.
You can switch on the mic, monitor app usage, and even take screenshots of the phone activities.
These remote functionalities also let you restart the phone and prevent the uninstallation of the app.
There are SMS commands that can also enable some of these features.
8. Additional Features:
Flexispy also offers a few other features such as a keylogger, visibility/hidden option, and giving you access to network connections.
Pros:
- Listen to live calls
- SMS spoofing functionality
- Device control with SMS commands
Cons:
- Flexispy is extremely expensive.
- Some of the Android and iOS features require rooting
- Does not work on non-jailbroken devices
- No option to filter content
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Remarks:
The feature variety is impressive, and the compatibility options are great as well.
However, Flexispy is not an affordable option for most.
You cannot use it on non-jailbreak devices.
And jailbreaking is never recommended.
So what do we recommend then?
Xnspy, of course.
The app has a good set of features and we find its price just right for anyone with phone monitoring needs.
