Kayabyte

The best way to export text messages for court

By Kayabyte · Last updated 31 October 2026

Short answer: screenshots are the weakest option (they crop context and hide timestamps and phone numbers). A better record is a complete export from an iPhone backup: every message with date, time and sender, in order, with attachments. Mac apps that do this include iMazing, TouchCopy, Decipher TextMessage and Exhibitly (made by Kayabyte, free preview, USD 39 or 69 once). For high-stakes cases, ask your lawyer whether they want a forensic extraction instead. Courts have their own rules, and no app can promise admissibility.

The options, from simplest to most formal

  1. Screenshots. Free and quick, but easy to challenge: missing context, cropped times, contact names instead of numbers.
  2. Printing from the Messages app on a Mac. Prints only what is loaded on screen, and the Mac often lacks older messages.
  3. An export app that reads your iPhone backup. Gets the full history, with dates, phone numbers and attachments, as PDF and spreadsheet. Tools: iMazing, TouchCopy, Decipher TextMessage, Exhibitly. For WhatsApp chats, Exhibitly reads WhatsApp export files and WhatsApp inside an iPhone backup (see WhatsApp export file vs iPhone backup). Compare them: Exhibitly vs iMazing, TouchCopy and Decipher TextMessage.
  4. A forensic extraction by a professional. The most formal option, paid, and sometimes what a court or opposing side expects.

What makes an export useful as evidence

Steps with Exhibitly

  1. Back up your iPhone to your Mac in Finder (how).
  2. Open Exhibitly, pick the conversation and date range.
  3. Preview, hide anything that should not be shared.
  4. Export the PDF, Excel file and attachments folder.

Everything stays on your Mac and works offline. Download the free preview