This article compares FlexiSPY and MSpy’s performance when monitoring Skype chats from your iPhone target phone. We test all features of Skype for iPhone and compare the results with screenshot examples. To understand our testing methods, click here.

Skype was released in 2003. If Internet years are anything like dog years, that is certainly a long time. Skype is the granddaddy of all Internet voice and video calling apps, and still maintains a strong popularity among its millions of global IM users. Skype hasn’t always provided user statistics, but by the end of 2010 Skype reported 663 million registered users. In 2011 Microsoft acquire Skype for $8.5 billion dollars, and by 2013 was reporting 300 million actively connected users. That’s a lot of people!

All those users also cross communicate and even sync history between Microsoft Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, Android, Blackberry, iPhone iOS, Symbian and Windows Phone. Skype doesn’t leave anyone out. Aside from offering standard IM communication plus free voice and video calls, easy access between all platforms has helped to keep Skype very popular. There’s a good chance your target uses Skype, and if so you’ll probably want to monitor it.

Skype iPhone Options

We used each of these to evaluate both FlexiSPY and MSpy. In the screenshot Fig. 1 you can see a screenshot from Skype as it appears in use on an iPhone. The image here shows text chat and some of these other chat elements being shared.

Is shared content really so important?

Is a picture worth a thousand words? It may be worth everything you’re monitoring the target for in the first place, if it gives you the proof or the confidence you need. Shared content is as much a part of the IM chatting experience as is text itself, and virtually all popular IM apps support a number of ways to express emotion. Sharing pictures and other content provides a more lively conversation and a way to discuss, plan, share and react to things that words alone do not convey. Such content communicates even more than words, without the words.

Imagine if a picture is sent by a contact and your target user replies “I can’t wait to taste that!” Do these conversations happen? Of course they do, and if your spy software isn’t capturing pictures you won’t know if that response was about an Italian cheesecake, or something much more carnal for desert. Shared content may confirm your suspicions or make the difference between doubt and confidence. If your monitoring software captures only text, it may only increase your frustrations. If they say “Meet me here” and send location data, or a video clip that says “I want you now,” you’ll miss this entirely if location and videos aren’t also being captured. These missing gaps in your chat logs can leave the conversation less meaningfull, or even mislead you without the full context.

It’s important that a cell phone monitoring app such as FlexiSPY captures much more data than text alone, which you’ll absolutely need in order to understand the full meaning of what is really said in those chats.

How does MSpy capture Skype?

MSpy claims simply to “Track Skype calls” and “Read Skype chats,” but does not provide any information on exactly what is captured in those logs. No mention of the actual phone calls, video conversations or any shared content. We put both MSpy and FlexiSPY to the test in this comparison review.

MSpy captured the Skype Name only; no profile photos or any shared media between contacts, and only a small percentage of the actual text was randomly captured. We thought there may be an issue with the software, the phone or even the Internet connection. However we verified our connection and reinstalled everything, but never received more than what is shown here after several days of testing. From our tests, MSpy’s capturing of Skype chat logs was completely unreliable.

MSpy also claims to capture WhatsApp, Viber and iMessage for iPhone. We take a look at how MSpy captures these IM apps in other reviews from this series.

How does FlexiSPY capture Skype?

FlexiSPY reliably captured 6 of 7 chat and media elements that were shared in our conversations; this is everything except the small emoticon graphics. While FlexiSPY does not record the actual Skype calls, it does capture the Skype call logs. Skype chat logs are also laid out in the convenient style of alternating text on each side of the screen to more easily follow the conversation. Shared content such as pictures and video clips are also captured and can be downloaded.

FlexiSPY vs MSpy – Who Captures More Skype?

MSpy captured only a few random lines of our Skype chats over the course of several days, and never captured any pictures or shared content. After reinstalling everything MSpy’s performance did not improve, therefore we have to rate MSpy’s Skpye logging as unreliable.

FlexiSPY reliably captured 6 of 7 possible Skype communication types – all text plus pictures and other chat information listed above. It did not capture emoticon icon graphics or record audio from Skype calls, but it does capture these as Skype call logs. Capturing all but the actual emoticon graphics, FlexiSPY reliably offers more complete logs of your monitored Skype chats, including all text and images shared.

Monitoring more than text alone is necessary to understand what each contact is actually discussing whenever a photo, video clip, shared contact, audio message or location is being shared. This shared content often provides an underlying context for the surrounding conversation, and may indicate the difference between an innocent chat and something of more concern. If you really need to know what’s being shared with others, gaps in the MSpy chat logs are unsettling and leave you guessing about what is missing.

FlexiSPY captures more of your Skype chat logs and clearly identifies all contacts your target is communicating with. It displays this information along with other shared content in an easy to follow manner (See Fig. 3). There’s clearly more to track and follow with FlexiSPY. If you need more complete Skype monitoring, FlexiSPY is the only choice.

FlexiSPY also monitors other popular IM services which are summarized in the table below and in the blog article here. These are compared in other articles from this series.