Comparison

a vs GIT

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

GIT

Features
Read full description

GIT-Worker is the native GitLab client for iPhone and iPad. Manage projects, merge requests, issues and CI/CD pipelines directly from iOS — whether on gitlab.com or your own self-hosted GitLab instance. PROJECTS & GROUPS Browse all your projects and groups. Direct access to repositories, branches, tags, releases, and commits with full diffs. MERGE REQUESTS Stay on top of all open, closed, and merged MRs. Read diffs, comments, and discussions — on the go. ISSUES Manage issues with scope filters: assigned to you, created by you, or all. Labels, milestones, and comments at a glance. PIPELINES & JOBS Monitor your CI/CD pipeline status. View job logs, spot failures immediately, and trigger pipelines directly from the app. AI ASSISTANT Built-in AI assistant with support for Claude (Anthropic), ChatGPT (OpenAI), Groq, and local LLMs. Let AI analyze pipeline failures, summarize issues, or help prepare code reviews. PUSH NOTIFICATIONS Get notified about pipeline status changes, new issues, and MR activity — always up to date without opening the app. TODOS Your GitLab todos at a glance. Never miss an action item again. SEARCH Cross-project search for issues, merge requests, commits, branches, and more. MORE FEATURES - Manage snippets - Browse branches & tags - Team members & roles - Runner overview - Track releases SECURE & PRIVATE Your Personal Access Token is stored encrypted in the iOS Keychain. No data is shared with third parties. COMPATIBILITY - gitlab.com - Self-hosted GitLab instances (including self-signed certificates) - GitLab Community & Enterprise Edition Sign in with your Personal Access Token (PAT).

Screenshots

a4 screens
GIT4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: GIT at every 9 days against a's monthly. a's advantage is chart position (#18 vs unranked) and iOS requirement (14.0 vs 17.0). 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

a ships an update monthly, GIT every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 10, 2026 and October 11, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
a versus GIT: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameteraGIT
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.6 (553 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews78.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings553 — better—
Update frequencyMonthlyEvery 9 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaid—
Best chart rank#18 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS14.0 — better17.0
Further details — not scored
Size1.9 GB3 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperNicolas HolzschuchJan Hendrik Ellermann

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

GIT

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

a

No in-app purchases

None

GIT

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is a free?
a is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is GIT free?
GIT is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do a or GIT have ads?
Neither a nor GIT shows ads.
Which is updated more often, a or GIT?
a ships an update monthly, and GIT every 9 days. Most recently, a was updated on October 10, 2026 and GIT on October 11, 2026.

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