For busy medical providers and on-the-go patients, texting stands out as one of the most convenient and effective communication tools out there. With a staggering 98 percent open rate and impressive 45 percent response rate, it’s no secret that more healthcare organizations want to add SMS to their toolkit.
When powered by the right platform, texting isn’t just convenient, it’s also HIPAA-compliant. The biggest challenge? Finding the best secure messaging platform for your organization.
This blog will walk through the best HIPAA-compliant text messaging apps on the market in 2025 to help you narrow your search. These applications were selected for their top-rated security, excellent customer reviews, comprehensive feature set, and widespread adoption by healthcare organizations in the U.S.
Jump right to:
- What is a HIPAA-compliant texting app?
- What features do you need in a HIPAA-compliant texting app?
- The 7 best HIPAA-compliant texting apps in 2025
- Why Textline should be your top choice for HIPAA-compliant texting
<h2 id="What">What is a HIPAA-compliant texting app?</h2>
A HIPAA-compliant texting app is a secure messaging platform that enables healthcare providers and covered entities to communicate via SMS. These secure texting platforms have proper technical safeguards, legal policies, and features in place to ensure healthcare entities can text patients in a HIPAA-compliant manner.
<h2 id="Features">What features do you need in a HIPAA-compliant texting app?</h2>
Before you choose the best HIPAA texting app for your unique healthcare organization, you’ll want to ensure it has the following features and capabilities:
- Business Associate Agreement (BAA) availability
- Patient SMS opt-in process
- End-to-end platform data encryption
- Audit trails and message history
- Role-based permissions
- User access controls
- Data redaction capabilities
- EHR integration options
- Multi-factor authentication
- Single sign-on and automatic sign-off
- Mobile phone and desktop support
These are the core features that will help you protect patient information and text in accordance with HIPAA regulations.
<h2 id="Why">Why do you need a HIPAA-compliant texting app?</h2>
Standard text messaging from phone to phone is not HIPAA-compliant by default, which is why healthcare organizations need a HIPAA-compliant texting platform. There are also several key reasons why you should invest in text messaging as a healthcare entity. Let’s dive into the top reasons why you need — and should — invest in HIPAA-compliant texting.
- Protect patient data. The core reason any HIPAA-covered entity needs a secure app is to safeguard protected health information (PHI). HIPAA-compliant texting apps use top-notch encryption and other technical safeguards to shield unauthorized access to data.
- Avoid legal action. The right HIPAA-compliant texting platforms will help protect your organization from HIPAA-related breaches. They will sign a BAA to share liability, ensure you have patient consent to text stored, and offer end-to-end platform encryption.
- Reduce no-shows and streamline operations. Missed appointments cause operational and financial headaches. In fact, each missed appointment costs physicians up to $200 per time slot. Instead of missing out on revenue and experiencing scheduling gaps, take advantage of texting’s 98 percent open rate to send a quick reminder.
- Improve patient engagement. Patients desire more meaningful conversations and relationships with their healthcare providers. Text messaging has been shown to improve this gap, extending communication beyond the medical facility. Text messaging can help you answer patient questions, follow up with them, and improve scheduling.
<h2 id="Best">The 7 best HIPAA-compliant texting apps in 2025</h2>
Here are the top HIPAA-compliant text messaging apps in 2025. For our list, Textline conducted industry research, pored through review platforms like G2, consulted healthcare journalists, dug through Reddit threads, and scoured platform websites.
All of the platforms on our list meet the requirements to be HIPAA compliant and protect sensitive patient data. As a result, the Textline editorial team focused on standout features and capabilities beyond these security measures.
1. Textline
Textline is the most secure HIPAA-compliant texting platform on the market, helping healthcare professionals improve communication with patients. The Textline platform – which features a super-intuitive interface – is built to support multiple users, allows providers to text from their existing business phone number, and offers advanced automations.
With Textline’s solution, patients are not directed to an external browser or required to download a separate application. Instead, text messages are sent directly from providers to the patient’s native texting app. Textline is also a pioneer in the healthcare texting space, having earned a patent for its patient consent process.
Users across platforms like G2 love Textline’s ease of use, shared inbox, team collaboration features, helpful customer support, and impressive return on investment.
Textline’s standout features
Here are a few of the features that differentiate Textline from the competition:
- Secondary Consent. A patented process for collecting and storing patient consent to text, for utmost protection.
- Team SMS Inbox. Textline’s texting inbox is easy to navigate, intuitive to use, and supports team collaboration.
- Multiple phone numbers. Whether you want to use a single office phone number and collaborate, or set up multiple text lines for each provider, you have complete flexibility with Textline.
- Webchat to SMS. Textline offers a webchat-to-SMS hybrid solution, enabling healthcare providers to convert any abandoned website chat into a text to continue the conversation.
- Robust Automations. Textline offers truly robust automation capabilities. You can trigger messages based on time lapsed, user actions, message contents, and more.
- Two-Way Messaging. When it comes to two-way messaging at scale, Textline supports it best. It’s the most intuitive platform for two-way messaging with patients.
- Access Controls. Create completely customizable user roles and even redact specific data for certain users.
- Security features. Textline’s enterprise-grade security is unmatched, featuring end-to-end encryption, multi-factor authentication, automatic sign-out, data redaction, and more.
- API for customization. Textline’s API is simple to use, letting users quickly connect their electronic health record (EHR).
Textline is best for
- Franchise healthcare organizations.
- Healthcare organizations that want multiple textable phone lines.
- Providers who seek true two-way texting with patients.
- Healthcare teams handling a high volume of back-and-forth patient messages.
- Patient Care Coordinators in need of better communication tools.
Some of Textline’s well-known healthcare clients
Textline has several well-known healthcare clients, including:
- Amazon’s One Medical
- Baylor College of Medicine
- Arizona Care Network
- Ochsner Health
2. TigerConnect (formerly TigerText)
TigerConnect is a secure healthcare communication platform that enables care teams to communicate securely via messaging, voice calls, and video. When it comes to its texting capabilities, TigerConnect enables providers to send patients an SMS link to their phones that takes them to a secure chat window in their browser. With this browser messaging session, TigerConnect enables patients and providers to message and clinicians to message back and forth.
On G2, users praise TigerConnect’s seamless transitions between messaging and video, platform security, and ease of use. While some users have complained about occasional glitches, notification overload, and difficulty in finding specific groups.
TigerConnect’s standout features
Some of the standout features of TigerConnect, according to its website and Reddit users.
- Auto-deletion of messages. Unsend messages instantly if a message was accidentally sent to the wrong person.
- Delivery and read receipts. Since the platform enables secure messaging on a browser, you can see read receipts and delivery confirmations.
- Telehealth functionality. TigerConnect lets providers seamlessly start a video call with patients on the browser to virtually diagnose patients.
- Software integrations. TigerConnect offers a suite of native integrations to ensure that physician scheduling software and EHRs are connected to the communication platform.
TigerConnect is best for
- Clinician-to-clinician mobile messaging as it enables providers to create secure group chats with other clinicians and share patient images, videos, and files.
- Providers in need of a combined secure video and messaging solution.
Some of TigerConnect’s healthcare clients
TigerConnect serves several healthcare systems in the U.S., including:
- Geisinger
- Universal Health Services
- Innovation Care Partners
3. OhMD
OhMD is a well-respected HIPAA-compliant SMS platform that integrates with most popular EHRs. It’s largely focused on setting up two-way compliant text messaging from an already established office number. It’s great for medical providers that have landline phone numbers they wish to text-enable.
Users on G2 praise its ease of use, ability to improve patient communication, and customer support. However, others have reported technical issues and very manual processes.
OhMD’s standout features
Here are a few of OhMD’s features that help its customers:
- Video visit via a text link. Initiate a video with a patient via a text message link sent from your landline.
- Call-to-text. Allow patients to opt into a text conversation instead when they call your phone number.
- Live webchat. Provide website visitors with an easy way to contact your medical practice.
- Autopilot. Set up automated messages to trigger when patients message in various keywords like “book” or “check-in”
OhMD is best for
- Small and mid-sized medical practices seeking to text-enable their existing office phone number.
- Cost-conscious medical practices.
A list of OhMD’s healthcare clients
Here are a few of OhMD’s healthcare clients, as listed on its website.
- Cadena Family Practice
- Pediatric Care of Ogden
- Farmington Family Practice
4. Spruce Health
Spruce Health enables HIPAA-compliant messaging between patients and providers, with both in-app and SMS channel options. Providers can invite patients to download the Spruce Health app for messaging and video calls, or use Spruce-managed phone numbers to send SMS texts to patients. To use the texting functionality, patients must consent to receiving text messages.
Customers on G2 rave about Spruce Health’s ability to consolidate their communications in one place, but complain about the lack of human support and the need for patients to download a separate app.
Spruce Health’s standout features
Spruce Health has a few features that are unique and stand out from the competition.
- Mobile app for patients. Patients can download the Spruce Health app for free, allowing them to message their providers securely if they prefer not to use their native texting functionality.
- Delete, remove, and restore messages. On the mobile application, users can delete and restore messages.
- Self-service phone trees. Decide what happens when someone calls your Spruce phone number, such as creating a phone tree, automating a text-back, and more.
- Faxing. Spruce Health is one of the few platforms that enable faxing documents directly within its application.
- Digital payments. The communication platform enables patients to make in-app payments.
Spruce Health is best for
- Medical teams seeking a health messaging mobile app.
- Practices seeking to bundle messaging, telemedicine, calling, and faxing into a single service.
Spruce Health’s healthcare customers
According to Spruce Health’s website, here are a few of its happy healthcare clients:
- Strock Medical Group
- The Eating Disorder Center of Montana
- Fox and Kit Chiropractic
5. Klara
Klara's SMS platform is a HIPAA-compliant, two-way patient texting solution for healthcare practices. It enables patients to communicate with their providers via SMS – without logins, passwords, or external app downloads. Klara also offers telemedicine functionality, such as video visits and virtual waiting rooms.
Customers on G2 love that Klara is easy to use and allows them to text patients directly. A few others have reported troubles with undelivered messages and difficulty searching in past conversations.
Klara’s standout features
A few of Klara’s features that make it a top contender on our list:
- Integrated telemedicine. The platform offers the ability to set up telemedicine functionality as well as messaging.
- Unified inbox. All texts, voicemail transcripts, and videos are stored in a single inbox that multiple users can access and manage.
- Voicemail transcription. Voicemails left on their texting phone number get automatically transcribed and sent to the team's message inbox
- EHR integrations. The platform offers native EHR integrations, making it seamless to set up.
Klara is best suited for
- Specialty clinics seeking to streamline administrative workflows and patient communication via text.
A few of Klara’s happiest medical clients
Here are a few organizations that completed case studies with Klara:
- Schweiger Dermatology Group
- OB/GYN Associates of Erie
- Forest Lane Pediatrics
6. Luma Health
Luma Health is a HIPAA-compliant text messaging platform with the ultimate goal of streamlining patient access to healthcare. The platform offers tools to simplify appointment management and streamline administrative-related communication. Luma Health recently launched an AI-powered toolset to make patient scheduling communications more intuitive and automated.
Users on G2 love how easy it is to set up, confirm, and automate appointments using Luma Health’s platform. However, they do mention that there is some delay in message and data syncing.
Luma Health’s standout features
Here are a few of the core offerings from Luma that users love.
- Automated referral management. Set up text messages to send to patients when they are referred to a different medical department.
- Waitlist offers. Strategically timed waitlist texts for patients to schedule appointments faster
- Support for 30+ languages. Messages can be translated automatically into over 30 languages, making them widely accessible to patients from diverse backgrounds.
- Patient intake and post-visit support. The platform enables providers to create checklists, ensuring that patients complete all necessary tasks both before and after the visit.
Luma Health is best for
- Medical providers seeking appointment management communications.
Top healthcare clients for Luma Health
Some of the organizations that have used Luma Health include:
- Montefiore Health System
- Virtua Health
- University of Arkansas Medical System
7. Emitrr
Rounding off our list of best HIPAA-compliant patient texting tools is Emitrr. The SMS platform aims to simplify and automate appointment scheduling and communication in the healthcare sector. The platform’s primary objective is to minimize no-shows, streamline workflows, and enhance overall operational efficiency through features such as reminders, two-way texting, and online booking. The platform places a strong emphasis on affordability, transparency, and seamless EMR integrations.
Customers on review platforms like Capterra and G2 highlight its user-friendly design, efficient onboarding process, and real-time analytics capabilities. Other users have reported experiencing lag time and a limited number of auto-response options.
Emitrr’s standout features
Beyond traditional features that make this system HIPAA compliant, here are a few of its other unique offerings.
- AI agent: Emitrr offers a trained AI agent that can assist health systems in handling simple patient inquiries, scheduling appointments, follow-ups, and providing automated replies.
- EHR integrations. Emitrr reportedly offers integrations with 1,000+ EHR and scheduling systems, ensuring that your texting becomes part of your desired workflow.
- Online booking. The SMS platform features an online scheduling tool that allows patients to book appointments directly through a provider’s website.
- Group messaging. Emitrr is one of the only platforms on the market, in addition to Textline, that offers true group messaging for healthcare teams.
Emitrr is best for
- Practices in need of unique healthcare integrations.
- Practices interested in seeing real-time data on conversations.
Emitrr’s top healthcare clients
A few of Emitrr’s healthcare clients, according to case studies on its website:
- Niagara Falls Urgent Care
- Pinnacle Medical Group
- Spa Creek Health
<h2 id="Textline">Why Textline is the best HIPAA-compliant texting app</h2>
Textline is a top-rated HIPAA-compliant texting app on the market, earning remarkable ranks from G2 in the HIPAA messaging category. Here are a few reasons why Textline consistently ranks highly.
- Ease of use. Textline’s platform is highly intuitive and easy for anyone to use. Its design is clean, the inbox is easy to organize, and advanced search functionality ensures you find what you’re looking for.
- Breadth of features. Textline surpasses the competition in terms of its breadth of features. Whether you’re looking for advanced automations, team collaboration tools, photo messaging, two-way texting, group messages, or webchat, Textline has it all.
- Dedicated support. Textline offers users genuine, comprehensive human support. You’ll never have to wait hours for a response or deal with help bots to speak to someone directly. We take support seriously to ensure our customers stay happy.
- Unified inbox. No matter which channels you use to contact patients (website, social media, text, or voicemail), all messages will be collected in one unified inbox, allowing you to always keep track of messages.
- Patented consent process. Textline ensures that all of our healthcare clients comply with HIPAA with our patented texting consent process. This process ensures that providers obtain the necessary permission from patients to text them in a HIPAA-compliant manner.
- Built-in integrations and API. Build the custom workflow you need with Textline’s native integrations and SMS API. You’ll be able to integrate and build exactly what you need.
But, don’t just take our word for it, read real customer reviews on Textline’s G2 profile.
Get your free Textline quote today
Ready to see how HIPAA-compliant texting can elevate your medical practice? Get your free Textline consultation and HIPAA plan pricing quote today. You’ll see our HIPAA-compliant texting app and patented consent process in action.
Request your demo using this form, or just text us at 415-849-4349 to learn more.
