SSH Client vs meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
SSH Client
This app provides a fast SSH terminal and remote file access, seamlessly integrating your SSH servers with your iOS device. It offers advanced text editing gestures, drag-and-drop file management, and built-in tmux support for persistent sessions. Access your server's file system directly within the Files app and automate transfers via Shortcuts.
- Lightning fast SSH terminal
- Remote file access and management
- Standard and custom text editing gestures
- Drag-and-drop file transfer
- Built-in tmux support for session persistence
- Files app integration for server file system
- Shortcuts app integration for automation
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Lightning fast SSH terminal with remote file access. No other app fuses your SSH servers and iOS devices as well as Secure ShellFish. Tap Get and see for yourself. Terminal supports standard text editing gestures for selection, scrolling and copy/paste as well as custom gestures to send arrow keys and tabulator making shell entry and full screen editing with vim or emacs delightful. Bar above the keyboard makes it easy to type special keys and insert snippets. Select and drag filenames out of the terminal as actual files and drag files from other apps into the terminal to upload. Use built-in tmux support to persist terminal sessions if you lose Internet access, pick existing sessions with thumbnails and Handoff sessions between devices. Server file system is available in the Files app and recently accessed files and directories are cached to make them available when offline. Use apps like Textastic and iA Writer for a native editing experience working on your remote server files. Upload files or entire directories from the share sheet with minimal friction as the last destination directory for each kind of file is remembered or automate file transfers in the Shortcuts app. Connect to your Mac, Synology NAS and any other SSH server or create new Digital Ocean droplets right from the app. Secure ShellFish is useful as a free app and paying pro users can disable ads in the terminal, upload through the Files app and configure unlimited number of servers.
meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale
A private SSH and SFTP client designed for engineers, featuring built-in Tailscale integration for secure connections. It offers persistent terminal sessions that sync across devices and a custom keyboard optimized for command-line use.
- Built-in Tailscale stack
- Persistent terminal sessions
- Customizable command-line keyboard
- Predictive command suggestions
- SSH and SFTP support
- Multi-client named sessions
- Privacy-focused design
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A fast, private SSH and SFTP client for engineers. meshTerm brings its own Tailscale with it, so your servers are reachable from anywhere without a separate app and without exposing a port. And with built in persistence your sessions keep running when your phone does not: roam from cellular to WiFi, background the app, or come back tomorrow, and your shell and scrollback are still there. BUILT-IN TAILSCALE, MULTIPLE TAILNETS meshTerm has its own Tailscale stack, running entirely in-app. No separate Tailscale app to install, and no conflict with any other VPN you use. Sign in to your Tailscale account, or add an auth key, and your device joins your tailnet over WireGuard; SSH, SFTP and port forwarding all route through the encrypted tunnel natively. Browse your tailnet and add a device as a host in one tap. Tailscale SSH nodes need no passwords and no keys at all. Multiple profiles switch between work and personal tailnets, and a host can bind to one so it switches on connect. SESSIONS THAT SURVIVE Out of the box meshTerm is tmux-aware, so you get solid reconnect with nothing extra to install. If you want more, mtroamd is an optional open-source service for your own server: one tap to install, just as easy to remove, and it lets a session follow you from phone to laptop. Either way, backgrounding the app, losing cellular or switching devices does not end your session. MULTI-CLIENT, NAMED SESSIONS Open named sessions per host: dev, logs, tests. Attach exclusively, or read-only to watch a session someone else is driving. Per-host idle timeouts from 1 hour to Never. A Sessions tab keeps every live session one tap away. AI AGENTS, NATIVE Run Claude Code, Codex, and Gemini on your own servers and drive them from a native chat: streaming replies, per-tool approvals that stay pinned until you answer, plan mode, token-usage chips, slash commands, and file attachments from iOS. Agent sessions survive app restarts, and you can resume any past conversation, including ones you started in the terminal. DOCKER AND PODMAN Manage containers on any host you have already added: browse containers, images, volumes and networks, start and stop and remove, bring Compose stacks up and down, follow logs or exec into a shell, and prune. Nothing to install and nothing to expose, just the docker or podman CLI already on your server, over SSH. A KEYBOARD BUILT FOR THE TERMINAL A three-page palette: features, a keys page built from your own key groups, and one-tap session switching. Assign actions to the volume buttons. A predictive strip suggests commands from your remote shell history as you type, and a floating pill jumps you back to the live prompt in full-screen tools. PORT FORWARDING AND SFTP Local forwards and SOCKS5 proxies per host with live status. Browse, upload, download, rename and delete files on any server, with iOS Files integration. SNIPPETS, MACROS, SECRETS A searchable Snippet Vault and a one-tap macro bar. Secret macros back values with the iOS Keychain, optionally gated by Face ID. Secret Profiles inject your environment and keys into a running session on tap, with nothing typed and nothing left on screen. Mark a key hidden and its value is brokered only to the commands you allow, so an agent can use it without ever reading it. SSH KEYS, SEARCH, TAGS Generate Ed25519 or ECDSA keys on-device, import passphrase-protected keys, and install public keys in one tap. Search scrollback with a live match count. Tag and filter hosts. Full Spanish throughout. PRIVACY BY DESIGN No analytics, no telemetry, no tracking SDKs. Credentials and keys live in the iOS Keychain, hardware-encrypted and device-only. Nothing routes through us. meshTerm Pro Every feature works in the free tier. Pro lifts the 1-host, 1-session and 1-agent limits to unlimited and adds Docker and Podman, Secret Profiles, and iCloud Sync, which keeps hosts, keys, macros and preferences on every device, end-to-end encrypted.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ratings volume: SSH Client at 1.5K against meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale's 1. SSH Client also leads on chart position (#22 vs unranked) and device support (4 vs 2). meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale's advantage is rating (5.0 vs 4.8). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. SSH Client sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SSH Client has 1.5K ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.
SSH Client ships an update weekly, meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 5, 2026 and September 21, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | SSH Client | meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (1.5K ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 94.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 1.5K — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Weekly — better | Every 9 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Freemium | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | #22 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 17.4 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 128 MB | 49 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Anders Borum | AG Applications Ltd |
Customer experience
SSH Client
meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale
Bugs and requests
SSH Client
Reported bugs
2 issues- Crashes when running certain commands
- Issues with file transfer progress reporting
Requested features
4 requests- Improved documentation and tutorials
- Support for additional authentication methods
- Customizable keyboard shortcuts and layouts
- Tabbed terminal interface
meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
SSH Client
- ShellFish Monthly subscription14 Days trial$2.991 Month
- ShellFish Annual subscription$14.991 Year
- ShellFish Lifetime Pro Unlock$29.99
meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale
- Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
- Pro Annual$12.991 Year
Questions
Is SSH Client free?
Is meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale free?
Which has better reviews, SSH Client or meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale?
Do SSH Client or meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale have ads?
Which is updated more often, SSH Client or meshTerm SSH FTP via Tailscale?
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