How to send messages, photos, and packages
Staying in touch with someone at Hilltop Unit usually starts with phone setup. Register your telephone number at texasprisonphone.com—have the inmate's TDCJ ID ready, as you may need it to link your account. For electronic messaging, Hilltop uses JPay e-messages. Purchase electronic stamps through jpay.com, and your message gets reviewed before delivery to the inmate's tablet or email. JPay is scheduled to transition to Securus as tablets continue rolling out. Inmate tablets can include informational, educational, and recreational apps, though some recreational options come with vendor-set fees. Access depends on custody level and disciplinary history. Availability varies by unit, so follow each vendor's registration and payment steps for the services you plan to use.
Search for a loved one and send messages and photos in minutes.
Mail to Hilltop Unit doesn't work the way it used to. TDCJ switched to a digital mail platform, so most personal letters now go to a processing center where they're scanned and delivered through the inmate's secure tablet. No tablet? They'll get printed copies instead.
Register your telephone number at texasprisonphone.com to receive calls from Hilltop Unit. You may also need the inmate’s TDCJ ID during signup or to link your account.
Create a JPay account and buy electronic stamps on jpay.com before you send an e-message. Messages are reviewed and then delivered to the inmate’s tablet or email, and JPay is scheduled to transition to Securus as tablets roll out.
Tablets at Hilltop Unit can offer informational, educational, and recreational apps. Some recreational apps have vendor-set fees, and access depends on the inmate's custody level and disciplinary history.
Address it to Texas Department of Criminal Justice and include the inmate’s full first and last name plus their TDCJ number. Mail it to PO Box 660400, Dallas, TX 75266-0400.
Letters are scanned at a central processing center and uploaded to the inmate’s secure tablet. If they don’t have a tablet, the unit provides a black-and-white printed copy of the scanned mail.
Yes, but only if they’re mailed by the publisher, a publication supplier, a bookstore, or an online bookseller. Personal shipments of books, magazines, or newspapers from individuals aren’t accepted.
Who can visit at Hilltop Unit depends on the inmate's approved Visitors List. Here's how the list works, how often changes are allowed, and what to do if you're removed and want to appeal.
To schedule your first visit at Hilltop Unit, you'll use the TDCJ Online Visitation Scheduler. Create an account, add your loved one with their 8-digit ID number, wait for relationship verification, then book the first available slot.
Mailing funds to a Hilltop Unit inmate? The money order or cashier's check needs to be written a specific way. Make it payable to
