For Messages on your Mac

Need proof? Find it in a keystroke.

Who promised to book the table. The date you both agreed on. The account number they sent. Search every conversation on your Mac — sent and received — by words, people and dates. Privately.

Coming soonTry free for 7 days

macOS 14 Sonoma or later · Apple silicon and Intel

The isift.app window with invented demo data: a search for “electricity bill” from Lucía Fernández, results grouped by conversation, and the conversation around the found message open on top.

Try it

Type a word. See it found.

A tiny, made-up inbox — the real app searches years of messages the same way. Accents don’t matter: “cafe” finds “café”.

Try:

    ↑ ↓ move between results · ↩ or click shows the conversation · Esc closes it — like in the app.

    Search

    Find it the way you remember it.

    A half-remembered word, a person, a month. Combine them, and the message you need is at the top.

    • Words, not exact sentences

      Partial finds “invoice” from “invo”. Exact finds the words together, in order. Case and diacritics never get in the way.

    • People, by name

      Search by name, phone or email — from them, to them, or both. Names come from Contacts, if you allow it.

    • Dates

      Narrow to a window — since, until, or both — when you remember roughly when it was said.

    • Links and attachments

      Show only the messages that contain a link, or only those with an attachment.

    • Received or sent

      Leave the person field empty and choose what you received, what you sent, or everything.

    • Messages in context

      Every result opens with surrounding messages and days marked. Open direct conversations in Messages with ⌘O.

    Made for the keyboard

    ⌘F
    Search
    ↑ ↓
    Move through results
    ↩
    Open context
    ⌘O
    Open in Messages
    Esc
    Clear

    Privacy

    Private isn’t a setting. It’s how it’s built.

    Your conversations are the most personal data on your Mac. isift.app treats them that way.

    • Your messages stay on this Mac

      isift.app makes its searchable copy on your Mac. Your messages are never uploaded, synced or sent anywhere.

    • Read-only

      It only reads the Messages database. It never changes, deletes or sends a message.

    • Encrypted copy

      The copy is encrypted with a key kept in your Keychain, so other apps and scripts can’t read it.

    • Every permission, explained

      Full Disk Access is needed to read Messages; Contacts is optional. Each one says why, every time it’s asked for. Turn access off and you can still search the copy you already have.

    Free trial

    Try it for 7 days.

    The full app, no limits, no account. If you like it, buy a license and enter it in the app — your copy and settings stay as they are.

    Apple silicon Your Mac

    Mac computers with an M-series chip

    Coming soon

    Intel Your Mac

    Mac computers with an Intel processor

    Coming soon

    Not sure which? Apple menu → About This Mac: a Chip line means Apple silicon, a Processor line means Intel. macOS 14 Sonoma or later.

    Pricing

    Buy a license.

    isift.app

    The price will be announced at launch.

    • Full search: words, people, dates, links, attachments
    Coming soonor try it free for 7 days

    Secure checkout by Lemon Squeezy, our Merchant of Record. Taxes are calculated at checkout and you get an invoice by email.

    Questions

    Good to know.

    How does the trial work?

    Download the app and use everything for 7 days, no account needed. To keep using it, buy a license and enter the key in the app. Nothing has to be reinstalled.

    How do I activate my license?

    The key arrives by email right after purchase. In isift.app, choose Enter License… and paste it — that needs an internet connection once. Only the license key is checked with Lemon Squeezy; your messages are never part of it. Lost the email? Find your key at app.lemonsqueezy.com/my-orders.

    Why does it need Full Disk Access?

    macOS protects the Messages database. isift.app needs Full Disk Access to read it and make its encrypted copy. You can turn access off at any time — searching the copy you already have keeps working.

    Can it change or send my messages?

    No. It only reads the Messages database. Nothing is changed, deleted or sent, and your messages never leave your Mac.

    I use Messages in iCloud. Will it find old messages?

    isift.app searches the messages that are stored on your Mac. If some older conversations live only in iCloud and haven’t been downloaded to this Mac, Messages has to download them before they can be found.

    Does it work on iPhone or iPad?

    No — isift.app is a Mac app. It searches everything your Mac has received through Messages, including what you sent from your iPhone, as long as it’s on the Mac.

    Which Mac computers are supported?

    macOS 14 Sonoma or later, on Apple silicon and Intel.

    Who handles payment?

    Lemon Squeezy, our reseller and Merchant of Record. They process the payment, handle sales tax and VAT, and email you the receipt. We never see your card details.