Comparison

SSH Client vs MuxPad

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

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.

Highlights
  • 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
Features
Read full description

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.

About

MuxPad

This app provides a native tmux terminal experience for iPads, leveraging tmux control mode to map sessions, windows, and panes to an intuitive iPad UI. It offers full hardware keyboard control, a dual-pane SFTP file manager, and seamless session persistence across devices.

Highlights
  • Native tmux pane and window mapping
  • Full hardware keyboard control
  • Dual-pane SFTP file manager
  • Session persistence and cross-device reconnection
  • iCloud synchronization for hosts and sessions
  • Live Activity for session status
Features
Read full description

MuxPad is a native tmux terminal built from the ground up for iPad. Unlike ordinary SSH apps that draw a single terminal screen, MuxPad runs tmux control mode (tmux -CC) over SSH and maps tmux sessions, windows, and panes directly onto a native iPad interface. NATIVE TMUX PANES & WINDOWS Windows become tabs and splits become real split views. Every pane has native scrollback, selection, and copy, with flow control that stays smooth under heavy output. FULL HARDWARE KEYBOARD CONTROL Drive tmux from an external keyboard exactly like the desktop. Control characters, Option as Meta, arrow and function keys, Home/End/Page Up/Down, the tmux prefix (Ctrl-b), and vi/emacs copy-mode keys are all sent as the correct bytes. Fine-tune with Option as Meta and Caps Lock as Ctrl/Esc. On the software keyboard, a horizontally scrolling accessory bar gives you Esc, Ctrl, arrows, the prefix, and a dismiss key. DUAL-PANE SFTP FILE MANAGER Put a local folder or any remote host in each of the two panes and move files by drag and drop. Transfer local-to-remote and remote-to-remote (relayed through your device). Long-press to multi-select and copy or move files in bulk. A transfer queue handles progress, resume, and conflicts. TMUX-NATIVE SCROLLING Two-finger and trackpad scrolling is forwarded to tmux as mouse-wheel input, so scrolling drives tmux copy-mode just like on the desktop (requires tmux mouse mode). SESSION PERSISTENCE & CROSS-DEVICE RECONNECT tmux sessions live on the server. Quit the app completely or switch devices and your session is still there. Reconnect manually or automatically with no loss, and pick up an iPad session on your iPhone. iCLOUD SYNC Hosts, reusable users, mux sessions, and groups all sync through your private iCloud (SwiftData + CloudKit) — on change and on launch. Credentials never touch CloudKit: passwords and keys stay in the Keychain (and iCloud Keychain, end-to-end encrypted), and only a reference is synced. Protect access with Face ID / Touch ID. LIVE ACTIVITY See your connected sessions on the Lock Screen and in the Dynamic Island. Tap a session to deep-link straight back into the app. One unified activity that ends automatically when you close the app. ENGLISH & KOREAN The interface is in English and switches to Korean automatically on Korean devices. ALSO INCLUDED - Host chaining (ProxyJump) through a jump host into private networks - ed25519 / RSA key and password authentication, known_hosts fingerprint verification (MITM warning) - Preset and custom themes, monospaced and Nerd Font support - Sidebar host management: inline rename, drag to reorder, groups IMPORTANT — YOUR SERVER NEEDS TMUX MuxPad is built on tmux control mode. The remote server you connect to must have tmux installed (detected automatically on connect); if it is not, the connection is blocked and installation guidance is shown. There is no local shell emulation. MuxPad does not collect your data. It has no ads and no analytics or tracking SDKs. Your server credentials and activity are never sent to the developer.

Screenshots

SSH Client4 screens
MuxPad4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is price: SSH Client at Free against MuxPad's $5.99. SSH Client also leads on chart position (#26 vs unranked) and device support (4 vs 2). MuxPad's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 3) and update cadence (every 2 days vs weekly). On review sentiment, ads and iOS requirement 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

SSH Client is free to download; MuxPad costs $5.99 up front. SSH Client sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. MuxPad asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

SSH Client ships an update weekly, MuxPad every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 14, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
SSH Client versus MuxPad: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSSH ClientMuxPad
PriceFree — better$5.99
Rating4.8 (1.5K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews94.4% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings1.5K — better—
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 2 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemium — betterPaid
Best chart rank#26 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.417.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size132 MB67 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAnders BorumYou Dohyuk

Customer experience

SSH Client

All ratings1,545 ratings
Positive95.8%
Neutral1.2%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews628 reviews
Positive94.4%
Neutral1.8%
Negative3.8%

MuxPad

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

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

MuxPad

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

3 purchases

SSH Client

Subscriptions2
  • ShellFish Monthly subscription14 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • ShellFish Annual subscription$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • ShellFish Lifetime Pro Unlock$29.99
None

MuxPad

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is SSH Client free?
SSH Client is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is MuxPad free?
MuxPad costs $5.99, with no in-app purchases.
Do SSH Client or MuxPad have ads?
Neither SSH Client nor MuxPad shows ads.
Which is updated more often, SSH Client or MuxPad?
SSH Client ships an update weekly, and MuxPad every 2 days. Most recently, SSH Client was updated on October 14, 2026 and MuxPad on October 11, 2026.

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