Sending or receiving faxes from an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch is easier today than it’s ever been before. Thanks to a wealth of software options and online faxing services, it’s never been easier to fax from Apple’s most popular devices.
Ready to learn how to send and receive faxes from your iOS device? Let’s get started.
There’s Only One Way to Fax from an iOS Device – Online Faxing
For whatever reason, Apple hardware and software has never been very friendly to faxing. The latest versions of Mac OS X haven’t supported any type of faxing capabilities for years.
Even the iTunes App Store – which is home to hundreds of thousands of apps – doesn’t have a single faxing app.
With that in mind, there’s only one way to send or receive faxes from your iOS device: online faxing.
Online faxing is a relatively new service that lets you send faxes in the form of an email. You email your online fax provider’s address with a document you wish to fax, and then that provider transforms the fax into binary data that can be sent through the phone lines.
Your recipient ultimately receives your online fax in the form of a standard fax: on the receiving end, there’s no difference between an online fax and a traditional fax (except, perhaps, for the higher quality on the online fax due to the fact that you didn’t need to copy the document twice).
Since iOS devices are some of the most popular in the world, all computer fax providers support iOS devices. Below, you’ll find specific instructions on faxing using your iOS device.
Online Fax Services for your iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch
Online fax services use a system very similar to an email platform. In fact, you can avoid this platform entirely and send your own virtual faxes through your email inbox.
Here’s what you need with this method:
- An iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch with an active internet connection (both cellular and Wi-Fi connections work). Ideally, your device will be updated to the latest version to ensure app compatibility, but this isn’t always necessary.
- Your online fax provider may require some basic setup over a computer with internet, as this configuration screen may not be accessible from mobile devices. These configuration options let you setup a cover page, signature stamp, and other important features.
- A subscription with an online fax service. Both free and paid subscriptions are available, although you won’t be able to send more than one or two online faxes with most free subscriptions. Fortunately, most paid subscriptions come with a free trial, which means you can sign up for a plan today, receive a free number, and then cancel it before the 30 days is over if you want to avoid any charges (this is useful if you only need to send a few faxes today and don’t anticipate needing online faxing in the future).
- A document you want to fax
Once you have those four things, you’re ready to proceed with online faxing.
Sending a fax from an online service varies from fax provider to fax provider. However, there are some common characteristics between all providers. Below, you’ll find out how to send an online fax through either email or the online fax provider’s app.
Sending a Fax on an iOS Device Using Apps or Web Platforms
Many electronic fax providers have taken the time to create mobile apps for iOS. Others have created web platforms that you can easily access from your mobile device.
First, check if your online fax provider has an app. Some of the most popular online fax providers with iOS apps include:
- iFax (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, iPod Touch)
- Fax Burner (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, iPod Touch)
- eFax (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, iPod Touch)
Most of these apps are free to download, but they do not let you actually fax for free. iFax, for example, lets you fax up to 5 pages for $1.19 USD, while you can apply to receive your own fax number for $20.99.
Fax Burner, on the other hand, has an annual fax service available for $89.99. You’ll need to subscribe to that fax service to send and receive faxes through the platform.
eFax, however, is free to use, although there is a “Plus” membership option available for a one-time fee of $16.99.
Nevertheless, each of the apps mentioned above is compatible for at least the iPhone. iPod Touch compatibility isn’t as common with faxing apps, but it typically works on iPod Touches running iOS 7 or later (the only restriction is that the apps are designed for the iPhone and iPad, which means they might not work as well on the iPod Touch).
Sending a fax using platforms like eFax is easy. You can actually take a picture of your faxed document using your built-in camera. Here’s the step by step guide:
Step 1) Download the eFax app
Step 2) Open the app and attach the fax document you wish to send
Step 3) Fill out your cover page information
Step 4) Add your recipient’s information to the fax (you can import directly from your contact list)
Step 5) Hit “Send”
That’s it! eFax also has additional features – like the ability to sign a fax from your iPhone. To do that, just swipe your finger across the screen to open the signature menu.
Then, you can sign with your finger inside the app, or you can take a photo of your handwritten signature and copy and paste it into he app.
There’s also the ability to take a picture of the document you’re trying to fax and then fax that document immediately – so if you don’t have the file on your iOS device already, then you can use your phone’s camera.
Note: Other online fax providers offer similar functionality. I just used eFax as an example because it tends to be the most popular online faxing app in the iTunes app store.
If your online fax service doesn’t have an app, then they probably have a mobile-optimized website or online platform through which you can send faxes. With most providers, this online platform looks nearly the same as a mobile app and offers the same functionality.
Sending a Fax on an iOS Device Using your Normal Email Platform
Not all online fax providers have mobile apps. If that’s the case, then you’ll want to send your virtual fax as a standard email. Here’s how that process works:
Step 1) Open your normal email inbox in your app or browser
Step 2) Compose a new email
Step 3) Address that email to your recipient’s fax number in the format of: 1235555@FaxProvider.com, where the numbers are your recipient’s fax number and the website is your online fax provider’s website
Step 4) Fill in cover letter information by typing out the body of the email. That information will automatically be sent as a cover letter.
Step 5) Click send!
Your faxed document will be sent as a normal email to your online fax provider, where it’s then sent through phone lines and delivered as a fax.
Ultimately, thanks to a wide range of options, sending or receiving faxes from an iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch has never been easier.