Comparison

Jayson vs Waycar

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

Head to head
About

Jayson

This app allows you to view and edit JSON files directly on your device. It offers features like tabbed browsing, split-screen comparisons, and integration with Siri Shortcuts and the Share Sheet for easy JSON parsing and management.

Highlights
  • Browse JSON files
  • Table or syntax highlighted text view
  • Tabbed interface
  • Multiple splits for comparison
  • Siri Shortcuts integration
  • Share Sheet Actions
  • URL schemes
Features
Read full description

Jayson is a JSON viewer and editor for iPhone and iPad. Browse JSON as a structure, edit values, and save your changes back to the file. Whether you're inspecting an API response, checking a config file, or making a quick fix on the go, Jayson turns raw JSON into something you can actually read and change. BROWSE AND EDIT - Open JSON files stored on your device or in iCloud Drive. - Toggle between a structured table view and syntax highlighted text. - Add new values and keys, and save your changes back to the file. - Parse text or the contents of a URL from your clipboard into JSON. - Highlight a key from a child of an array to get a quick overview of your data. TABS, SPLITS, AND WINDOWS - Switch between files, or different objects in a single file, using tabs. - Compare JSON in a single file or across files using multiple splits. - Open multiple windows on the iPad. WORKS WITH SHORTCUTS Jayson integrates with Shortcuts, which comes in handy for debugging API calls, previewing JSON files, and building workflows around JSON. - Pass a response from Get Contents of URL to Jayson to see how it is structured. - Open JSON as a document you keep working on, or as a temporary preview. - Format JSON and hand the result to the next action, using spaces or tabs. FREE, WITH AN OPTIONAL UPGRADE Jayson's core functionality is free. Browsing, editing, saving, splits, Shortcuts, and working with up to two tabs at a time cost nothing. A one-time in-app purchase enables having more than two tabs open at once, switching between light and dark themes, and personalizing the app icon, accent color and type icons. One purchase, no subscription.

About

Waycar

Control coding agents and shells on your Mac or Linux from your iPhone or iPad. Connect via Mosh or SSH to manage sessions, reply to prompts, and start new tasks remotely. Supports AI agents and integrates with tmux.

Highlights
  • Remote SSH/Mosh connection
  • Manage coding agents and shells
  • Live terminal session viewing
  • Dictation for replies
  • AI agent chat mode
  • tmux integration
  • iCloud sync for settings
Features
Read full description

Waycar is an iPhone and iPad app for the coding agents and shells running on your own Mac or Linux computer. It connects over Mosh or SSH, lists every session with the ones waiting for you on top, and lets you read, reply to and start them from wherever you are. WHAT YOU NEED A Mac or Linux computer you own or rent and can reach over SSH, running herdr (a free, open-source terminal workspace, herdr.dev) or tmux 3.2 or later. Your commands, agents and code run on that computer. Waycar shows its terminal text, replies and files on your device, like any SSH app. HOW IT WORKS - Add a computer by address, user and password or an on-device key, or scan a Pairing Code. - The Console lists every agent and shell on every computer. The ones that need you come first. - Open one to follow its terminal live. Reply by typing or by dictating. - Start a new agent or shell in any workspace, on a fresh git worktree if you like. CHAT MODE Turn on Chat Mode when you start Claude Code, Codex, omp, pi or OpenCode, and the agent opens as a simple chat: your messages, its replies and a line saying what it's doing. Tap Allow or Cancel when it asks. Images and videos it shows you appear above its reply. Touch and hold the Waycar icon and tap New Chat to start one right away. HERDR OR TMUX Already use tmux? Keep it. Your tmux sessions show up as workspaces, and you can start, open, message, rename and close agents from your phone. Run both? Everything appears in one list. ALSO IN WAYCAR - Mosh with automatic SSH fallback, so sessions survive network changes and sleep. - Closed Sessions: agents that ended in the last 30 days stay listed, and you can resume them. - Dictation in the Composer, on device, with a live waveform. - AI Usage: if CodexBar is installed on your computer, Waycar shows how much of each AI account's session and weekly limit is left. - iCloud sync of your hosts, keys and settings through end-to-end encrypted iCloud Keychain. - Notifications and Live Activities when an agent is blocked or done (needs Waycar's free tools on your computer). - Jump hosts, photo and file attachments over SFTP, Ghostty terminal rendering and iPad keyboard shortcuts. FREE AND WAYCAR PRO Waycar is free to download with 10 Launches in any rolling 30 days. A Launch is starting a new agent or shell from Waycar, resuming a closed agent, or starting an agent by typing its command in a Waycar shell. Opening and reading sessions that are already running never counts. Every feature works on the free tier. Waycar Pro removes the Launch limit. It costs $5/month or $40/year in the US, and prices in other countries are shown in the app before you buy. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm the purchase. The subscription renews automatically at the same price and period unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the current period ends. Manage or cancel it any time in your Apple Account settings. PRIVACY No sign-up and no Waycar account. Terminal content goes straight between your device and your computer. Usage analytics are sent only if you agree. AI Summaries stay off until you turn them on. herdr is an independent open-source project. Claude and Claude Code are trademarks of Anthropic, PBC. Codex and OpenAI are trademarks of OpenAI. Waycar is not affiliated with or endorsed by herdr, tmux, Ghostty, CodexBar, Anthropic or OpenAI. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://waycar.dev/privacy

Screenshots

Jayson4 screens
Waycar4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Waycar at 5.0 against Jayson's 4.5. Waycar also leads on iOS requirement (18.0 vs 26.0). Jayson's advantage is ratings volume (445 vs 5) and chart position (#86 vs unranked). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Jayson sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Waycar sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $5.00 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Waycar holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.5. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Jayson has 445 ratings behind it against 5, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
Jayson versus Waycar: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterJaysonWaycar
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.5 (445 ratings)5.0 (5 ratings) — better
Positive reviews80.7% of reviews—
Number of ratings445 — better5
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#86 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS26.018.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size41 MB82 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSimon B. StøvringOtreva, LLC

Customer experience

Jayson

All ratings425 ratings
Positive85.4%
Neutral6.1%
Negative8.5%
Written reviews83 reviews
Positive80.7%
Neutral7.2%
Negative12.0%

Waycar

All ratings5 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Bugs and requests

Jayson

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • App crashes when opening large JSON files (89MB+)
  • Crashes on regular use despite functionality
  • Device freezing for extended periods
  • Safari compatibility broken in recent updates
  • Navigation back through JSON structure is unreliable
Show 1 more
  • Accidental file exit when attempting to navigate

Requested features

9 requests
  • Search/find functionality within files
  • JSON editing and modification capabilities
  • XML format support
  • Split-view for comparing different arrays
  • Export functionality for edited JSON
Show 4 more
  • Comment recognition in JSON files
  • Plain text editor option
  • Improved file size handling for large documents
  • Better navigation controls on mobile devices

Waycar

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Jayson

One-time1
  • Unlock Everything$4.99
2 purchases

Waycar

Subscriptions2
  • Waycar Pro Monthly$5.001 Month
  • Waycar Pro Yearly$40.001 Year

Questions

Is Jayson free?
Jayson is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Waycar free?
Waycar is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Jayson or Waycar?
Waycar is rated higher. Jayson averages 4.5 out of 5 from 445 ratings, while Waycar averages 5.0 from 5 ratings.
Do Jayson or Waycar have ads?
Neither Jayson nor Waycar shows ads.

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