Comparison

a vs DevBox

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

Head to head
About

a

This app provides a local Unix terminal emulator for iOS devices, enabling users to run various Unix commands, edit files, and process data. It includes support for multiple programming languages and network utilities, with integration for iOS Shortcuts and multi-window functionality.

Highlights
  • Local Unix terminal emulator
  • Run Unix commands
  • File transfer (scp, curl)
  • Text editing (vim, ed)
  • Programming languages (Python, Lua, C)
  • Network utilities (ping, nslookup)
  • iOS Shortcuts integration
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

DevBox

Features
Read full description

DevBox is a code editor and IDE that runs PHP, Python, Node.js and Go on your phone or tablet, with a local web server, a MySQL database and a Linux terminal. No laptop and no remote server. Open a project, tap Run, and your site opens in the built-in browser at localhost. Change a file, refresh, and see the result. Write code, run it, and preview it: a full web development IDE on the device. WHAT YOU CAN BUILD • PHP sites on PHP 8.5 with .htaccess support, or a Laravel app with Composer • A Node.js server or API, or a React, Vue, Angular or Svelte app with npm install and npm run dev • Python scripts and web apps, with libraries from pip • Go programs and web servers • HTML, CSS and JavaScript websites with live preview • Apps backed by a MySQL database, managed with phpMyAdmin CODE EDITOR • Syntax highlighting for PHP, JavaScript, TypeScript, Python, Go, HTML, CSS and more • Find and replace, go to line, code formatting and tabs for open files • A key row above the keyboard for brackets, quotes and symbols LOCAL WEB SERVER AND PREVIEW • PHP, Node.js, Python and Go dev servers on localhost, with output and request logs • Built-in browser with Eruda DevTools to inspect your pages LINUX TERMINAL • A real Linux terminal (Alpine) with command history and scrollback • npm, pip, composer, go and git, plus more tools and compilers from apk MYSQL AND PHPMYADMIN • A MariaDB server on the device that works with any MySQL library • Create databases and users, run SQL, import and export dumps in phpMyAdmin GIT • Clone, commit, branch, push and pull over HTTPS or SSH • GitHub, GitLab or your own server; search GitHub and import a repo as a new project MORE • Open projects from local storage, FTP or SSH, and iCloud Drive on iPhone and iPad • Start a project from a template, an empty folder or an AI prompt • AI tools to improve, refactor or comment your code • Offline docs for PHP, Node.js, Python and Go Pick a language, write your code in the code editor, and tap Run to start coding with an IDE that fits in your pocket. The terminal and MariaDB are available as one-time purchases or with DevBox Pro. Installing packages, Git remotes and the AI assistant need an internet connection; writing, running and previewing code work offline. --- Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://devbox.porizm.com/privacy?lang=en

Screenshots

a4 screens
DevBox4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: a at none against DevBox's 3. a also leads on chart position (#25 vs #198). DevBox's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs monthly). On price, ads, device support 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

Both are free to download. DevBox sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. a asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

a ships an update monthly, DevBox weekly. The most recent releases landed on November 3, 2026 and November 5, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
a versus DevBox: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteraDevBox
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (568 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews78.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings568 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
Best chart rank#25 — better#198
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS15.015.0
Further details — not scored
Size2.1 GB412 MB
Age rating17+17+
DeveloperNicolas HolzschuchFiras Moussa

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

DevBox

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

a

No in-app purchases

3 purchases

DevBox

Subscriptions1
  • DevBox Pro$2.991 Month
One-time2
  • MariaDB Server$4.99
  • Integrated Terminal$9.99

Questions

Is a free?
a is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is DevBox free?
DevBox is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do a or DevBox have ads?
Neither a nor DevBox shows ads.
Which is updated more often, a or DevBox?
a ships an update monthly, and DevBox weekly. Most recently, a was updated on November 3, 2026 and DevBox on November 5, 2026.
Which is more popular, a or DevBox?
a currently peaks at #25 in the App Store charts, and DevBox at #198. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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