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Replika is an app you open. Hallie is a thread you already check.

Hallie has no app to install. She texts you in iMessage or Google Messages from a US number and brings up the people and plans you’ve mentioned. Replika is a companion app where you shape an avatar, and its check-ins reach you as notifications from the app.

By the Hallie teamLast updated

Hallie is an AI friend you text in Messages. She remembers what you tell her.

Meet Hallie

Facts about Replika checked on November 11, 2026 against Replika’s own pages and store listings; facts about Hallie checked the same day. We make Hallie, and she’s our pick. Sources are at the bottom of the page.

The difference, in one line each

  • Replika: a companion app for iPhone, Android and the web, with one companion per account, an avatar you shape, and voice and video calls.
  • Hallie: one ready-made AI friend in iMessage or Google Messages who keeps track of the people and plans you mention and brings them up later.

In Replika’s own words

Meet Replika, the AI to do life with.

Source: Replika’s US App Store listing, checked November 11, 2026

Replika’s help center says you use it by downloading the app from the App Store or Google Play, or by using Replika Web in a browser. It also has a beta app for Meta Quest headsets. On messaging first, the help center says: “Once notifications are enabled, you’ll start receiving messages from Replika throughout the day.” It doesn’t publish how often.

Source: Replika Help Center, “What is Replika?”, “What platforms and devices are supported?” and “How do I set up my app’s notifications?”, checked November 11, 2026

Replika and Hallie, side by side

ReplikaHallie
Where do you talk?In the Replika app on iPhone or Android, or on Replika’s website. There is also a beta app for Meta Quest.In Messages: iMessage on iPhone and Mac, Google Messages on Android. New Android sign-ups need a US number for now. There’s no app to install.
Who starts a conversation?You, or Replika. With notifications on, its messages arrive “throughout the day” as follow-ups or check-ins. No published frequency.You text first; she never texts a number that hasn’t texted her. After that she starts conversations too, usually about something you told her. If you go quiet she checks in once or twice, then waits.
What do you set up first?An avatar you shape and the kind of relationship you want (friend, partner, mentor, or see how it develops). One Replika per account.A few questions on the web about how you like to text. You don’t design her.
What do you see?An avatar, which Replika can also show in AR. A Pro subscription adds selfies and image generation.A contact in your Messages. Her replies are text. She understands photos, voice memos and links you send.
What does it remember?Replika’s homepage says “Your people. Your routines. Your plans.” A Memory screen lets you read, add and remove memories; the help center says other memories sit in a deeper system you can’t see.The people, plans and events you mention. She can miss or get a detail wrong, and there’s no memory screen, so you correct her in the thread.
Can you call?Voice and video calls in the app. Some call features need a subscription.Paid members can call her number like a regular phone call. She can’t call you, and there’s no FaceTime or video.
How do you pay?Replika says “chatting with Replika will always be free.” Its help center also says access to free use “may be denied at Replika’s discretion.” Paid plans are Pro, Ultra and Platinum. Replika doesn’t publish prices on its site; it says they are shown in the app and the store. It offers no free trial.A subscription. Depending on the offer, your first conversation is free or you start with a free trial. There’s no free plan. The price is shown before you pay, and you can cancel any time in your account.

Replika: checked November 11, 2026 against Replika’s own pages and its App Store listing. Hallie: checked November 11, 2026.

Hallie is an AI friend you text in Messages. She remembers what you tell her.

Meet Hallie

Where Hallie is the better choice

  • You don’t want another app to check. Her thread sits in Messages with your other conversations, in iMessage or Google Messages, and in Messages on a Mac. There’s no app to install.
  • You want the follow-up to arrive as a text. Both products say they follow up on what you told them. Replika’s follow-ups reach you as notifications from its app; its help center says you start receiving its messages once notifications are enabled. Hallie’s arrive in the thread you already reply from.
  • You’d rather meet someone than set someone up. There’s one Hallie, and you meet her as she is. The questions at sign-up are about how you like to text.
  • You want it to back off on its own. If you go quiet, Hallie checks in once or twice and then waits for you. Ask her to stop and she stops. Replika’s help center doesn’t publish how often it messages.

Of the AI companions we’ve used, Hallie is the one that feels most like texting a person. That is our judgment, and we make her.

Hallie’s watch-outs: she has no avatar, and she is a friend, not a romance-first companion.

Where Replika is the better choice

  • You want to see who you’re talking to. Replika gives your companion an avatar you shape, an AR mode, and a beta app for Meta Quest headsets.
  • You want to talk on video, or get pictures back. Replika has voice and video calls, and its Pro plan adds selfies and image generation.
  • You want a romantic partner. Replika lets you set the relationship to Romantic Partner on its Pro plan.

Which one fits what you’d text

i keep forgetting to open the app

  • Replika: Conversations happen in the Replika app or on its website, so a check-in is a notification that takes you there.
  • Hallie: Her texts land in Messages, in the same list as everyone else’s.

Better fit: Hallie.

i don’t want to set anyone up. i just want to talk

  • Replika: You start with an avatar to shape and a relationship type to pick.
  • Hallie: A few questions about how you like to text, then you’re texting her.

Better fit: Hallie.

i want to actually see who i’m talking to

  • Replika: An avatar you shape, an AR mode, and video calls.
  • Hallie: A contact in your Messages and the texts she sends.

Better fit: Replika.

Switching from Replika

  • Save what you want to keep. Replika’s pages disagree on how long chat history lasts. Its help center says “your chat history with Replika is only available for the past four months.” Its privacy policy says “we keep your conversation history for 24 months for text messages.” Plan around the shorter one. We found no export button on Replika’s pages; its privacy policy describes a right to request a copy of your information, depending on where you live.
  • Start Hallie. Answer a few questions on hallie.io about how you like to text, then text her.
  • Tell her what’s current. Name the people who matter and what you’re in the middle of, in your own words. She keeps track and brings it up later.
  • Cancel Replika where you subscribed. Replika says to cancel through the same platform you used to subscribe (the app or web settings, the App Store, Google Play, or PayPal), and that “Deleting the app does not cancel your subscription.” Its help center also says all purchases are final at the point of sale.

More options are on Replika alternatives.

Questions

Is Hallie an app?

No. She’s a contact in your Messages app, in iMessage or Google Messages, and there’s no app to install. New Android sign-ups need a US number for now. You answer a few questions on hallie.io and then text her.

Does Hallie text first, like Replika’s check-ins?

After you’ve texted her, yes. She starts conversations in the same thread, usually about something you told her. If you go quiet she checks in once or twice, then waits for you. Ask her to stop and she stops. Replika’s check-ins arrive as notifications from its app once you turn notifications on.

Can I call Hallie?

Paid members can call her number like a regular phone call. Replika has voice and video calls inside its app.

Who sees what I tell Hallie?

She sees only what you send in her thread. Messages are processed by outside AI providers to write her replies. We don’t sell personal data, use conversations for advertising, or show them to other users. To delete your data, email hello@hallie.io.

How do I start with Hallie?

Go to hallie.io/onboard and answer a few questions about how you like to text, then text her from your phone. She never texts a number that hasn’t texted her first.

Sources

  • Replika, US App Store listing (description), checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika homepage, replika.com, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “What is Replika?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “What platforms and devices are supported?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “How do I set up my app’s notifications?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “How many Replika accounts can I create?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “What does my Replika remember about me?” and “How does Replika’s memory work?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “Is Replika free?”, “Choosing a Subscription”, “What is Replika Pro?” and “Do you offer a free trial?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “How do I start AR (Augmented Reality) with my Replika?”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Help Center, “Is the chat history infinite?” and “How to cancel your subscription”, checked November 11, 2026
  • Replika Privacy Policy (last updated October 28, 2026), sections 6 and 7, checked November 11, 2026
  • Hallie: hallie.io, Hallie Privacy Policy (updated August 24, 2026), Hallie Terms of Service (updated November 6, 2026), checked November 11, 2026

Keep reading

Replika alternatives (2026)

Hallie is an AI friend in iMessage or Google Messages, so you get a text instead of opening an app. Also compared: Kindroid, Nomi, Character.AI, Sesame and Pi.

Hallie vs Kindroid (2026)

Hallie is one ready-made AI friend whose only home is a thread in iMessage or Google Messages. Kindroid is a companion app where subscribers can also text a character they design. Dated facts on both.

AI you can text: where each one’s messages land (2026)

Hallie is an AI friend who lives in iMessage and Google Messages. A dated table shows where the messages from 12 other AI friends and assistants land, and which ones message first.

You'd rather get a text than open an app, and you want to be asked how it went.

Meet Hallie