how to check texts on another phone?

There are exactly four lawful ways to read someone else's texts, and all four depend on whose phone it is. Anything else - spyware pushed by a link, a "text message forwarder", a service that asks for the number - is either fraud or a crime.

1. It is your child's iPhone and you control the Apple ID

Messages sync through iCloud. Sign in to the same Apple ID on a Mac or iPad (or iCloud.com) and the thread appears. This is the cleanest method because nothing is installed and nothing needs a jailbreak. It requires that Messages in iCloud is enabled on the phone, and it stops working the moment the child changes the Apple ID password.

2. It is your child's Android phone you set up

Google Messages for web pairs with a QR code scanned from the phone - so you need the device in hand once. After that the thread is readable in a browser until the phone is restarted or unpaired. Family Link does not show message contents; it manages the account, not the conversations.

3. A monitoring app with consent

For a full picture - SMS, WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, call logs, keystrokes on Android - the tool has to be installed (Android) or connected to iCloud (iPhone). mSpy covers the widest set of messengers; Eyezy is the simpler setup with the same core coverage. Affiliate links; the price does not change for you.

4. The line is on your carrier account

Carrier family plans (Verizon Smart Family, T-Mobile FamilyMode, AT&T Secure Family) give you SMS and call metadata - who, when, how long - not contents. Useful for pattern-spotting, not for reading.

What does not work, whatever the ads say

Texts are not readable by phone number, by IMEI, or through a "sync" link sent by SMS. SMS is carried by the network in plain transit but stored on the handset; there is no public lookup. The "send this link to read their texts" trick is either a phishing page that steals the target's credentials or malware aimed at you.

The line

A partner's, ex's or employee's phone without consent: illegal, in every jurisdiction we can name, and increasingly detectable. Your minor child's phone: normally fine - and far more effective when they know it is there.

One dashboard for the devices you actually own: Ultimate Phone Spy covers Android phones, Windows PCs and Macs — SMS, call logs, location history, geofences, web history and installed apps in a single account (plans and pricing, system requirements). It is installed openly on devices you administer, and it does not cover iPhone because iOS does not permit that level of access.