a vs SSH Easy Terminal
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
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.
- 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
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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.
SSH Easy Terminal
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SSH Easy Terminal is a fast, native SSH client for people who manage their own servers and are tired of renting their tools. 3-DAY FREE TRIAL, THEN MONTHLY Start with a 3-day free trial. After that it continues as a monthly subscription. Every feature — including the on-device AI copilot — is included, and you can cancel anytime. AN AI COPILOT THAT STAYS ON YOUR PHONE Explain a command, or describe what you want and get a command to run — powered by Apple's on-device models. Nothing is sent to a server. It works offline, with no inference cost and no account. A built-in guard flags destructive commands before you run them. (Requires an Apple Intelligence device; the SSH client works fully without it.) PRIVATE BY CONSTRUCTION Private keys are generated and stored in the iOS Keychain and never leave your device. No telemetry, no analytics SDKs, no cloud. The only network activity is the SSH connections you start. BUILT FOR REAL TERMINAL WORK - Full VT100/xterm terminal with vim, htop, and tmux support - Keyboard accessory bar: Esc, Ctrl, Tab, arrows, pipe, function keys - Ed25519 and ECDSA keys — generate on device or import your OpenSSH keys - Host-key verification with trust-on-first-use and a clear warning if a key changes - SFTP file browser: upload, download, rename, delete - Command snippets, jump host (ProxyJump), and optional Face ID lock - Themes, adjustable font size, and scrollback Localized in 19 languages. Universal — iPhone and iPad.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: SSH Easy Terminal at every 2 days against a's monthly. a's advantage is chart position (#20 vs #199) and iOS requirement (15.0 vs 26.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
a ships an update monthly, SSH Easy Terminal every 2 days. Both last shipped on November 10, 2026.
| Parameter | a | SSH Easy Terminal |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.6 (570 ratings) — better | — |
| Positive reviews | 78.4% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 570 — better | — |
| Update frequency | Monthly | Every 2 days — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Best chart rank | #20 — better | #199 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 2.1 GB | 10 MB |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Nicolas Holzschuch | Kaan Taskiner |
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
SSH Easy Terminal
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
a
No in-app purchases
SSH Easy Terminal
No in-app purchases









