Comparison

a vs Proxyman

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

Head to head
About

a

Run a full Unix-like terminal environment on your iOS device. Execute a wide range of commands, edit files, and even program using included interpreters and compilers. Supports multitasking and integration with Shortcuts.

Highlights
  • Local Unix terminal emulator
  • SSH client
  • File transfer (scp, curl)
  • Text editing (vim, ed)
  • Scripting languages (Python, Lua, Perl, JS)
  • C/C++ compiler
  • TeX distribution
Features
Read full description

a-Shell is a complete local terminal emulator, allowing to run most Unix commands on your iOS device. You can transfer files using scp and curl, edit them with vim and ed, process them using grep, awk and sed. You can work with git repositories using lg2.  Most commands are compiled for iOS native Arm64 format, making them fast and well integrated with the BSD Unix that powers iOS/iPadOS. a-Shell includes Python, Lua, Perl, JavaScript, C, C++ for programming and TeX (texlive 2025, with Tikz and LuaTeX) for text processing. There are also multiple network utilities: nslookup, ping, whois, ifconfig... Type help for help, help -l to get the full list of commands. a-Shell can be controlled from Shortcuts: run commands in order, process files in a-Shell, get the results as text or files, transfer files to other apps... a-shell uses iOS 13+ “multiple windows” ability, so you can run multiple shells at the same time, with different commands, in different directories. You can edit a file in one window with vim and process it in the other with python. Compile your C or C++ programs to webAssembly using clang or clang++, and execute the resulting binary. A complete webAssembly SDK is included (WASI-libc). a-Shell is the complete version. If you need a smaller app, and you don't need a C compiler, a TeX engine, or numpy and matplotlib, there is a-Shell mini.

About

Proxyman

This app acts as a web debugging proxy, allowing you to capture and inspect HTTP/HTTPS traffic directly from your iPhone or iPad. It decrypts requests and responses, offers advanced debugging tools, and ensures your sensitive data remains on your device.

Highlights
  • Capture & Inspect HTTP/HTTPS from iOS devices
  • Decrypt and view requests/responses
  • JSON syntax highlighting
  • Quick filtering by URL, header, body
  • Advanced debugging tools (SSL Proxying, Block List)
  • Secure with FaceID/TouchID/Passcode
Features
Read full description

Meet a superb Web Debugging Proxy that can act like a middleman, aka Proxyman.  ### Features - Directly Capture & Inspect HTTP/HTTPS from your iOS/iPad Devices without using MacBooks. - Decrypt and View HTTP/HTTPS Request/Response in plain text - JSON Syntax Highlighting - Exclusively designed for iPhone and iPad (Landscape and Two Columns) - Share traffic to Proxyman macOS - a native macOS app for better inspection - Pin working domains - Quick filter with URL, Header Body, and Type of Request/Response (e.g., JSON, Form, HTML, CSS, Document, etc) - Better Request/Response Previewer: Multiple columns, JSON Preview, JSON TreeView, etc - Safe Lock: Protect your sensitive data with FaceID / TouchID / Passcode - Advanced Debugging Tools: SSL Proxying, Block List, Map Local, Breakpoint, etc - Rewrite & Scripting ### Proxyman macOS Proxyman for iOS works perfectly with Proxyman for macOS (native macOS app, supports macOS 26 and M4 Chip) ### How it works Proxyman iOS creates a local VPN on your device and then forwards all traffic to a Local Man-in-The-Middle Server. As long as the VPN is active, Proxyman iOS can capture all traffic over Wi-Fi and cellular Data. ### How about my sensitive data? - Proxyman Root Certificate is a self-signed certificate that is generated on your local machine. Thus, all requests and responses are captured and stored on your devices and Proxyman does not have access to your data. - There are no remote servers involved. What’s in your devices, it’s in your devices. ************* - Support: https://proxyman.com/support - Privacy Policy: https://proxyman.com/privacy - Terms of Services: https://proxyman.com/terms-of-use

Screenshots

a4 screens
Proxyman4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: a at none against Proxyman's 5. a also leads on iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). Proxyman's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs monthly) and rating (4.8 vs 4.6). On price, review sentiment, ratings volume and ads 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. Proxyman sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $8.99 per month. a asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Proxyman holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.6. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 553 and 800 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 79% of a's written reviews are positive against 81% of Proxyman's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

a ships an update monthly, Proxyman weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 29, 2026 and September 27, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
a versus Proxyman: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteraProxyman
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (553 ratings)4.8 (800 ratings) — better
Positive reviews78.6% of reviews80.9% of reviews — better
Number of ratings553800 — better
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
Best chart rank#19#8 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS14.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.9 GB72 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperNicolas HolzschuchProxyman LLC

Customer experience

a

All ratings553 ratings
Positive88.1%
Neutral4.5%
Negative7.4%
Written reviews294 reviews
Positive78.6%
Neutral10.2%
Negative11.2%

Proxyman

All ratings800 ratings
Positive94.9%
Neutral2.0%
Negative3.1%
Written reviews152 reviews
Positive80.9%
Neutral4.6%
Negative14.5%

User reviews

a

From 553 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Powerful terminal with Linux commands
  • 👍 Useful for programming and development
  • 🔒 Secure and reliable
  • 💡 Impressive capabilities for an iOS app
  • 👍 Helpful documentation and developer support

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Limited customization options
  • 🔍 Missing some basic terminal features
  • 🔍 Compatibility issues with certain packages

Proxyman

From 800 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 👍 Easy to use
  • 🚀 Powerful networking tools
  • 🔒 Secure and reliable
  • 💡 Helpful for debugging and development
  • 🤖 Great for reverse engineering APIs

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive premium version
  • 🔋 High data usage reported by some users
  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or bugs
  • 🤖 Confusing user experience for free version

Bugs and requests

a

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Toolbar buttons not accessible in portrait mode on some devices
  • Pasting from clipboard can insert unexpected characters
  • Sourcing certain script files causes crashes

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for package managers like Homebrew or APT
  • Implement more advanced shell features like job control and better tab completion
  • Integrate Git for version control
  • Allow installing additional packages and libraries
  • Improve clipboard and file management integration

Proxyman

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Breakpoint functionality not working properly
  • Losing session state when relaunching the app
  • Incompatibility issues with certain apps and websites
  • Crashes when trying to view large response bodies

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for Simplified Chinese
  • Implement scripting capabilities like the desktop version
  • Improve handling of WebSocket and MQTT traffic
  • Allow grouping of related requests
  • Add an option to change DNS settings within the app

In-app purchases

None

a

No in-app purchases

5 purchases

Proxyman

Subscriptions3
  • Premium Monthly Subscription$8.991 Month
  • PROJECT PASS Quarterly Subscription$19.993 Months
  • Premium Annual Subscription$49.991 Year
One-time2
  • Proxyman Lifetime with Black Friday$69.99
  • Lifetime Access$99.99

Questions

Is a free?
a is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Proxyman free?
Proxyman is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, a or Proxyman?
Proxyman is rated higher. a averages 4.6 out of 5 from 553 ratings, while Proxyman averages 4.8 from 800 ratings.
Do a or Proxyman have ads?
Neither a nor Proxyman shows ads.
Which is updated more often, a or Proxyman?
a ships an update monthly, and Proxyman weekly. Most recently, a was updated on September 29, 2026 and Proxyman on September 27, 2026.
Which is more popular, a or Proxyman?
a currently peaks at #19 in the App Store charts, and Proxyman at #8. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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