On ParakeetInmate (powered by InmateDB), the Texting plan at $9.99/month sends your loved one’s messages from a shared number. That means you can reply once they have texted you first, but you cannot text them out of the blue. Full Access at $19.99/month gives them a personal phone number that anyone can text first, plus email and more apps. For most families, the shared number is enough. The personal number matters when the conversation needs to start from your side.
Here is the part that trips people up: neither plan changes what happens inside the facility. The inmate still sends from a TRULINCS terminal, and how soon they see your reply depends on when they next get to one. What you are choosing between is who gets to open the conversation, not how fast it moves.
What the shared number actually does
When your loved one sends a message, it arrives on your phone from one of the service’s shared numbers. You reply from your normal texting app, like any other text. Your reply goes back to them the same way.
The catch is the first move. With the shared number, the inmate has to text you before you can text them. If you try to start a conversation cold, it will not reach them. This is not a punishment or a glitch; it is how a number that many families use at once stays workable.
In practice, most families settle into a rhythm without noticing the limit. The inmate sends a line when they sit down at the terminal, you answer, and the thread continues from there. If they go quiet for a while and the thread goes cold, you wait for their next message rather than sending a nudge.
What the personal number changes
Full Access assigns a personal phone number to your loved one. Anyone with that number can text first, without waiting for the inmate to open the thread. That includes you, a sibling, a grandparent, or a friend who wants to check in.
That first-move freedom is the real difference. It is not about speed, and it is not about a better connection. It is about who can begin. If your situation involves several people who each want to reach out on their own schedule, the personal number removes a coordination problem you would otherwise solve by group chat and guesswork.
Full Access also adds email and 15+ more apps. If you want to understand how a dedicated number behaves day to day, our guide on a personal phone number for an inmate walks through it.
How to set up either plan
The steps are the same at the start, whichever plan you pick.
- Find your loved one on InmateDB by name or BOP register number. A federal register number looks like 12345-678, and you can confirm it with the BOP inmate locator on bop.gov.
- Start the 3-day free trial or choose a plan.
- Your loved one adds one InmateDB contact in TRULINCS.
- They text by putting a phone number in the subject line and the message in the body.
You do not need an app. Your normal texting app works, and you can also use the InmateDB website, the InmateDB app, or Telegram if you prefer.
What usually goes wrong the first time
The most common first-week problem is a family member on the Texting plan trying to start a conversation. They send a message, hear nothing, and assume something is broken. Nothing is. They need to wait for the inmate’s first message, then reply inside that thread.
The second is expecting a reply within minutes. Federal inmates send from TRULINCS terminals inside the facility, and access to those terminals varies. Your message sits until they next sit down at one. Facility staff can monitor messages, so keep that in mind when you write.
The third is a setup mismatch. The inmate has to add the InmateDB contact in TRULINCS before anything flows. If messages are not arriving at all, check that step before you change plans or open a support ticket.
One more: this works with federal Bureau of Prisons facilities that use CorrLinks, about 93% of federal facilities. It does not work in state prisons or county jails. If your loved one is not in the federal system, the plan question is moot.
How to decide without overpaying
Ask yourself one question: does anyone need to reach them without waiting for them to write first?
If the answer is no, start with Texting at $9.99/month. One person, one thread, replies inside it. That covers a lot of families, and the 3-day free trial lets you test the rhythm before you commit.
If the answer is yes, look at Full Access at $19.99/month. The clearest cases are a parent who wants to send a short note on their own schedule, or several relatives who each want their own line to the same person. If you mostly want the AI chat, news, sports, weather and trivia apps, the middle plan at $14.99/month gives you those without the personal number.
Pick the plan that matches who starts the conversation, not the one that sounds most complete. You can change later.
Quick answers
Can I text my loved one first on the shared number?
No. On the Texting plan, the inmate has to text you first, and then you reply in that thread. If starting the conversation matters to you, that is the reason to look at Full Access.
Does a personal number mean faster replies?
No. Speed depends on when your loved one can get to a TRULINCS terminal, and that is true on every plan. The personal number changes who can text first, not how quickly messages are read.
Can more than one family member use the same plan?
On the shared number, replies happen inside the thread the inmate started. With Full Access, the personal number can be shared with relatives so each of them can text first. Decide as a family who holds the number before you set it up.
If you are still unsure, the honest next step is to find your loved one, start the trial, and see how the conversation actually runs for a few days. Find your loved one to get started.