Quick answer: To fax from an iPhone, open a fax app, add or scan your document, type in the recipient’s fax number and tap send — it takes about two minutes. There’s no fax feature built into the iPhone itself, so you’re always using a fax app or a fax website to do it. Below is the full walkthrough, screen by screen.
Faxing from an iPhone sounds fiddlier than it is. Once you’ve got a fax app installed, the whole thing — scan or attach, address it, send — is quicker than tracking down a fax machine ever was, and you get a delivery receipt at the end that a machine never gave you.
We’ll use a fax app for this guide, since it’s the smoothest route if you fax more than once. Prefer not to install anything? Skip to faxing without an app. Not sure which app to pick? Our tested rankings are in the best iPhone fax apps review.
Prefer to watch? Here’s the whole thing in under two minutes — then scroll on for the step-by-step.
How to Fax From an iPhone, Step by Step
Open to the send screen
The app opens straight onto a new fax, so you’re ready to go in seconds — no hunting through menus. Your inbox, sent history and help all sit a tap away.
Attach a document, or scan one
Pull in a PDF, image or file from your phone, iCloud, Google Drive or Photos — or use the built-in scanner to turn a paper page into a clean PDF on the spot.
Add a cover sheet (optional)
A short cover sheet says who the fax is for and why it’s arriving. It’s optional, but for medical or official paperwork it’s worth the ten seconds — it keeps things from getting misrouted.
Pick your fax number
Choose a number with a local area code so you look familiar to whoever you’re faxing. The same number receives faxes back, too — so you only need the one.
Check it before you send
Give it a quick once-over: page order, the right way up, nothing clipped at the margins.
Send and get your receipt
Tap send and the app tracks it in near real time, from pending to delivered. You get a timestamped receipt saved automatically — your proof it actually arrived.
Receiving faxes back
Anything sent to your number lands in your inbox as a PDF, with a notification the moment it arrives. View it, download it, forward it, or save it to the cloud — no phone line needed.
Prefer Not to Install an App?
An app isn’t the only way. You can fax straight from a fax service’s website in Safari — nothing to download — or send your document as an email attachment using email-to-fax. Both work on any iPhone, and we walk through each one, step by step, in our guide to faxing from an iPhone without an app. If you’d rather fax straight from your inbox, there’s a dedicated walkthrough for faxing from Gmail too.
Tips for a Clean Fax From Your iPhone
A few small habits make the difference between a fax that arrives crisp and one that turns up as a grey smudge on the other end.
Send a PDF where you can
PDFs keep their formatting and scale properly on the receiving machine. A photo sent as a JPG can come through skewed or pixelated.
Double-check the number
One wrong digit sends your document to a stranger. Confirm it, add the area code, and include the country code for international faxes.
Mind the contrast
Faxes transmit in black and white, so dark text on a white background reads best. Sharpen anything faint before you send it.
Add a cover sheet for official post
For medical, legal or government faxes, a cover sheet with your details is expected practice — and it keeps your pages from getting misrouted at the other end.
Keep an eye on length
Very long faxes can hit the receiving machine’s paper limits, and every page adds to the transmission time (and, on some services, the cost). If a document is huge, it’s worth splitting it into a couple of sends.
