The Relay vs Pushbullet: how do they differ?

Pushbullet is an account-based service that sends notes, links, files, mirrored notifications, copied text, and SMS between your devices through Pushbullet's servers. The Relay is a Mac-and-Android app that does its work directly between the two devices on your own network. Pick Pushbullet if you want to send things to a phone that is not on your network, or if you already use it everywhere. Pick The Relay if you want one Mac app on your own Wi-Fi with clipboard images, login codes, incoming calls, and a webcam. One thing we could not settle: whether Pushbullet currently has a Mac app, so check that before anything else.

Publisher note: The Relay publishes this guide and is one of the products discussed. Details about other products come from each maker's own pages, checked on 2 October 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm before you buy.

What could we confirm about Pushbullet?

pushbullet.com returns an empty page to an ordinary fetch, so we could not read its home, download, or pricing pages. This article uses two Pushbullet sites that did open: the developer API documentation and the Help Central. They describe what the service does. They do not give a current list of apps, so we could not confirm a Mac app, and we could not read a Pro price. Where the table says "Not stated", that is the reason.

How do Pushbullet and The Relay compare side by side?

A cell says "Yes" only where the maker's own page lists the feature. "Not stated" means the pages we read do not mention it. It does not mean we tested the product and found it missing.

What does Pushbullet do, in its own terms?

The API documentation describes pushes of three kinds, note, file, and link, and "ephemerals" that the apps use "for notification mirroring and universal copy/paste". It documents sending SMS through an Android phone, and says one older method is deprecated in favour of a "more reliable" one. The Help Central lists questions about notifications on a computer, text messages, and file size. The file-size answer says that files "need to be under 25 MB in order to be pushed" and that Pro raises the limit to 1GB. It also mentions an app called Portal, which it says transfers files over your Wi-Fi network with no file-size limit; we did not open Portal's own page.

Because pushes go through Pushbullet's servers, it should not depend on the phone and the computer sharing a network, although we could not read a page that says so in those words. If that holds on your setup, it is the main advantage over a local tool.

When Pushbullet is the better choice

• The phone is not on your network. Pushbullet routes pushes through its service. The Relay does nothing across the internet.
• You want to send text from the computer to the phone as a text message. Its docs describe sending SMS and MMS through the phone. The Relay does not send texts.
• You use it on more than one computer or browser already. An account-based service follows you. The Relay is for one Mac and one Android phone at a time.
• You want to start free. Pushbullet's docs describe a free tier with a monthly push limit. The Relay has a 7-day free trial, then it is paid.
• You want end-to-end encryption through a service. The docs describe it for three features. We cannot say how the apps present it, so read the settings before relying on it.

When The Relay is the better choice

• You want it to stay on your network. The privacy wording in the table is the point. There is no account or sign-up with The Relay, since the subscription is bought through Google Play, but the website uses analytics; see the privacy policy.
• You do not want a monthly push allowance. Pushbullet's free accounts have 500 pushes a month, and the file limit is 25 MB unless you pay. The Relay's app sets no file-size limit.
• You want to browse the phone's storage from the Mac rather than push files one at a time.
• You want a webcam, a codes feature, or incoming calls on the Mac. None of these appears in the Pushbullet pages we read.
• You want a Mac app you can confirm exists today. The Relay installs on the Mac and on the phone from its download page.

What The Relay will not do

• It does not send texts. Google Messages for web is the free route for two-way texting; see Android messages on a Mac.
• It does not mirror or control the phone's screen.
• It does not place calls.
• It is not remote. Both devices must be on the same network or in Bluetooth range.
• It is wireless only, with no USB mode.
• It needs Android 8.0 or later and macOS 13 Ventura or later, with no iPhone, Windows, or Linux version.
• It is not free: after the 7-day trial it is a subscription through Google Play unless you cancel in Google Play before the trial ends. Refunds go through Google Play; see the terms.

How do I check before deciding?

Open Pushbullet's own site in a browser and look for a Mac download, the current Pro price, and its privacy page. We could not read them. Then give each product ten minutes with the thing you do most. We have not tested either, so we will not rank them for speed.

Questions people ask

Does Pushbullet have a Mac app?

We could not confirm it. Pushbullet's main site would not load for us, and the documentation and help pages we could read do not list current apps. Check Pushbullet's own download page. See also Pushbullet for Mac.

Is Pushbullet free?

Its API docs say free accounts are limited to 500 pushes a month, and its help page says files must be under 25 MB unless you upgrade to Pro. We could not read the Pro price. More in Pushbullet pricing and free limits.

Is The Relay safer than Pushbullet?

We have not measured either, so we will not say so. The difference is in the route: Pushbullet goes through its servers, with optional end-to-end encryption described in its docs, and The Relay's clipboard, files, texts, and notifications travel directly between your devices on your local network. See Is Pushbullet safe?.

What are other Pushbullet alternatives for a Mac?

KDE Connect is free, and AirDroid is account-based. See Pushbullet alternatives for Mac.