Comparison

Pyto IDE vs iSH Shell

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

Head to head
About

Pyto IDE

This app offers a powerful integrated development environment for Python, C, and C++ on iOS devices. It includes a Python interpreter with extensive libraries, a C/C++ compiler, a terminal, and a code editor with advanced features like code completion and debugging.

Highlights
  • Python 3.10 Interpreter
  • C/C++ Compiler
  • Code Editor with Completion
  • Terminal with UNIX Commands
  • Graphical Interface Builder
  • Debugging Support
  • Shortcuts and Picture in Picture
Features
Read full description

Pyto is an IDE for iPhone and iPad with a Python 3.10 Interpreter and all of the standard libraries plus more than 100 third party packages, as well as a C & C++ compiler and bitcode interpreter. Includes a terminal with standard UNIX commands, a code editor with code completion, support for Shortcuts, Picture in Picture, a graphical interface builder and a debugger. * Full version exclusive third party modules * - Cython, cryptography, typed_ast, cv2, _cffi_backend, kiwisolver, matplotlib, numpy, pandas, lxml, Bio, sklearn, skimage, scipy, erfa, pywt, nacl, bcrypt, statsmodels, zmq, regex, gensim, astropy, emd, wasm3, yaml * Built-in UNIX commands * - alias, awk, cat, chflags, chmod, cksum, clang, compress, cp, curl, date, diff, dig, du, egrep, env, fgrep, find, grep, gunzip, gzip, head, host, ifconfig, link, lli, llvm-link, ln, ls, md5, mkdir, mv, nc, nslookup, open, openurl, pbcopy, pbpaste, ping, printenv, pwd, readlink, rlogin, rm, rmdir, say, scp, sed, sftp, sort, ssh, ssh-keygen, stat, sum, tail, tar, tee, telnet, touch, tr, unalias, uname, uncompress, uniq, unlink, uptime, wc, whoami, whois, wol Take advantage system features with the following modules: - pyto_ui - Build an user interface - widgets - Home Screen Widgets - file_system - iOS file system - notifications - Schedule notifications - remote_notifications - Receive remote notifications - background - Run code in background - pasteboard - Clipboard access - userkeys - Save values on disk - sound - Play sounds - music - Access the Apple Music library - photos - Accessing photos and the camera - location - Access user's location - motion - Motion sensors - multipeer - Peer to peer wireless connection - apps - Open third party apps - xcallback - Interact with other apps - sf_symbols - A list of SF Symbols names - watch - Complications and static user interfaces for the Apple Watch

About

iSH Shell

Experience a Linux-like command-line environment directly on your iOS device. This application allows you to perform common Linux operations such as editing, moving, and manipulating files using familiar commands.

Highlights
  • Linux-like shell environment
  • File editing with sed and cat
  • File manipulation
  • Command-line operations
  • Pocket Linux experience
Features
Read full description

A Linux-like shell on iOS. You can edit files with sed and cat, move them around, and more! https://github.com/ish-app/ish/

Screenshots

Pyto IDE4 screens
iSH Shell1 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: iSH Shell at 80% against Pyto IDE's 35%. iSH Shell also leads on rating (4.7 vs 3.7) and in-app purchases (none vs 4). Pyto IDE's advantage is update cadence (every 8 days vs every 3 weeks). On price, ratings volume, ads and chart position 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

Both are free to download. Pyto IDE sells 4 one-off in-app purchases. iSH Shell asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

iSH Shell holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 3.7. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 995 and 1.2K respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 35% of Pyto IDE's written reviews are positive against 80% of iSH Shell's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Pyto IDE ships an update every 8 days, iSH Shell every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 30, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Pyto IDE versus iSH Shell: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPyto IDEiSH Shell
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.7 (995 ratings)4.7 (1.2K ratings) — better
Positive reviews35.3% of reviews80.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings9951.2K — better
Update frequencyEvery 8 days — betterEvery 3 weeks
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#38#17 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS14.011.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size922 MB6 MB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperDevelobile S.p.A.Theodore Dubois

Customer experience

Pyto IDE

All ratings995 ratings
Positive64.8%
Neutral6.0%
Negative29.1%
Written reviews563 reviews
Positive35.3%
Neutral11.9%
Negative52.8%

iSH Shell

All ratings1,230 ratings
Positive92.8%
Neutral2.6%
Negative4.6%
Written reviews400 reviews
Positive80.3%
Neutral8.3%
Negative11.5%

User reviews

Pyto IDE

From 995 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Great app for Python development on iOS
  • 👍 Supports many Python libraries like Pandas, NumPy
  • 💡 Integrates well with Shortcuts and Apple Watch
  • 👍 Paid version offers good value

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Frequent crashes and stability issues
  • 👎 Confusing user interface and poor documentation
  • 🔒 Difficult to cancel subscription/trial
  • 💰 Paid-only access to core functionality

iSH Shell

From 1.2K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Excellent Linux environment
  • 👍 Great for SSH and network utilities
  • 💡 Allows running Linux apps on iOS
  • 🔒 Secure and sandboxed
  • 👍 Customizable and flexible

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Crashes and freezes
  • 🔋 Battery intensive
  • ⚠️ Limited functionality compared to full Linux
  • ⚠️ Outdated packages and dependencies

Bugs and requests

Pyto IDE

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Inability to run scripts after a few executions
  • Inconsistent behavior when switching between apps
  • Paywall issues - app asking to repurchase after prior purchase

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved code editor with better keyboard support
  • Ability to read/write external files (CSV, TXT, etc.)
  • Support for more Python libraries like Selenium, Tensorflow
  • Longer trial period for new users

iSH Shell

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Cursor focus issues
  • Incompatibility with certain commands and packages
  • Mounting issues with iOS file system

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add support for more Linux distributions
  • Improve performance and stability
  • Implement GUI support
  • Add shortcuts and automation features

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Pyto IDE

One-time4
  • 3-day TrialFree
  • Upgrade to Full Version$6.99
  • Lite Version$7.99
Show 1 more
  • Full Version$14.99
None

iSH Shell

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Pyto IDE free?
Pyto IDE is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is iSH Shell free?
iSH Shell is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Pyto IDE or iSH Shell?
iSH Shell is rated higher. Pyto IDE averages 3.7 out of 5 from 995 ratings, while iSH Shell averages 4.7 from 1.2K ratings.
Do Pyto IDE or iSH Shell have ads?
Neither Pyto IDE nor iSH Shell shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Pyto IDE or iSH Shell?
Pyto IDE ships an update every 8 days, and iSH Shell every 3 weeks. Most recently, Pyto IDE was updated on September 30, 2026 and iSH Shell on October 2, 2026.
Which is more popular, Pyto IDE or iSH Shell?
Pyto IDE currently peaks at #38 in the App Store charts, and iSH Shell at #17. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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