Comparison

Blink Shell, Build & Code vs Storm Sniffer

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

Head to head
About

Blink Shell, Build & Code

Transform your iOS device into a powerful terminal for coding and development. Leverage Mosh and SSH for stable, fast connections. Integrate with VS Code and manage your entire development workflow from your pocket.

Highlights
  • Mosh and SSH connections
  • VS Code integration (Blink Code)
  • Remote runtime creation (Blink Build)
  • Full SSH toolset
  • Hardware keyboard support
  • External display support
  • SFTP transfers
Features
Read full description

Do Blink! Transform your iOS device into a pro-grade terminal. Blink is the first professional, desktop-grade terminal for iOS that leverages the support of Mosh and SSH. Thus, we can guarantee stable connections, crazy-fast speeds, and full configurations. It can and should be your all-day-long tool.  **Start your 14-day free trial now!** But, Blink is much more. Now with Blink Code and Blink Build**, your entire development workflow fits in your pocket. What the Blink community is saying: “In some ways, I prefer my iPad / Blink / Digital Ocean setup to coding on my Mac“ - TheVerge "I have tried a number of terminals on iOS and this is really The One." - Twit.tv “Connections still come up when I get back to a client project after a weekend off.“ - The Sweet Setup “The way to use VS Code on the iPad” - programminglife.io What our users love the most from Blink Shell: - Mosh connections that even survive a device reboot. - Most complete SSH implementation on iOS. - Code command for VS Code integration. - Blazingly fast terminal and SFTP transfers. - Includes Pragmata Pro with ligatures. Blink Shell has a fully loaded SSH toolset: - SSH with PKI support: DSA, RSA, ECDSA & ED25519 keys. - Support for Secure Enclave Keys and Certificates. - Port forwarding with local, remote & dynamic tunnel support. - SOCKS5 proxy for a private VPN. - Agent Forwarding. - Complete SSH Config file support. - ControlMaster and pooled connections. - Files.app integration for SFTP remote hosts. - SFTP with copy-on-change. Blink has been the leading developer tool in the AppStore for +5 years, so there is a lot more: - External Display support. - Legendary Hardware Keyboard support, even remap shortcuts and keyboard codes. - Local & iCloud Blink Shell folders for Files.app access across devices. - Host sync over iCloud. - Link-files from other applications and work with them in Blink. - Cool themes and fonts, and install your own! - Smart Keys on SW Keyboard to navigate with touch. - FaceCam command to create tutorials and streams. - Bell notifications. - Supports multiple windows and multiple tabs. - Network & UNIX CLI tools, check our docs for more information. Blink Code integrates with VS Code: - Code on local projects, or seamlessly on remote machines. - Fully-loaded code editor. - A coding experience fitted to your device, that connects to VS Code for web, GitHub Codespaces, GitPod or your own VS Code server. Blink Build (Requires a $7.99/month subscription) Creates remote runtimes that can be accessed on all your devices. You can use Build in your day-to-day workflows whether you need to do development, DevOps or just play around with new tooling. Participate in our community, and don’t forget to leave us your feedback and your feature(s) requests. Enjoy! http://blink.sh http://twitter.com/blinkshell http://GitHub.com/blinksh Terms of Use: https://blink.sh/blink-gpl Privacy Policy: https://blink.sh/pp * Blink Code is not affiliated nor endorsed by Microsoft. ** Blink Build requires a separate subscription to make use of our Virtual Machines.

About

Storm Sniffer

Capture and inspect HTTP/HTTPS traffic directly on your iOS device. Debug network issues, rewrite requests and responses in real-time, and replay HTTP requests. Offers advanced scripting capabilities for enhanced scalability.

Highlights
  • Packet capture via local VPN
  • HTTP/HTTPS request/response inspection
  • Real-time request/response rewriting
  • HTTP request replay with cron support
  • JavaScript scripting for scalability
Features
Read full description

Storm Sniffer lets you capture and inspect HTTP / HTTPS requests &responses on your iOS device. It's easy to debug your app’s networking issues without a computer. * Features Packet capture: capture http / HTTPS traffic from iOS devices using local VPN. View http / HTTPS requests and responses in text form, and support HTML, JS, CSS formatting preview; Rewrite: modify http / HTTPS requests and responses in real time. Including URL redirection, custom header, local / remote file mock, etc; Replay: Perform arbitrary HTTP requests with cron support; Scripts: Use local/remote Javascript for more scalability. * How it works Storm Sniffer creates a local VPN on your device, then forwarding all traffic to a Local Man-in-The-Middle Server. As long as the VPN is active, Storm Sniffer can capture all HTTP / HTTPS traffic over Wi-Fi or Cellular Data. * About the sensitive data Storm Sniffer's Root Certificate is a self-signed certificate that is generated in your device. All HTTP / HTTPS requests & responses are captured and stored on your devices WITHOUT ANY REMOTE SERVERS involved. * About Subscription After subscription, you can unlock all advanced functions. Currently, there are three kinds of auto-renewable subscription: Annual $17.99、Quarterly $3.99、 Monthly $1.99 * Terms of Use https://sniffer.x-storm.com/terms/ * Privacy Policy https://sniffer.x-storm.com/privacy/

Screenshots

Blink Shell, Build & Code4 screens
Storm Sniffer4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Storm Sniffer at 3.9 against Blink Shell, Build & Code's 3.1. Storm Sniffer also leads on review sentiment (76% vs 37%) and iOS requirement (10.0 vs 17.6). Blink Shell, Build & Code's advantage is monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs subscription) and ratings volume (418 vs 121). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases 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. Blink Shell, Build & Code sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month and Storm Sniffer sells 7 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Storm Sniffer holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 3.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 418 and 121 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 37% of Blink Shell, Build & Code's written reviews are positive against 76% of Storm Sniffer's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Blink Shell, Build & Code ships an update every 3 weeks, Storm Sniffer monthly. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Blink Shell, Build & Code versus Storm Sniffer: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBlink Shell, Build & CodeStorm Sniffer
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.1 (418 ratings)3.9 (121 ratings) — better
Positive reviews36.8% of reviews76.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings418 — better121
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeks — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases — betterSubscription
Best chart rank#10 — better#16
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPod
Requires iOS17.610.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size211 MB47 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperBlink Shell, IncHunan Storm Technology Co.,Ltd

Customer experience

Blink Shell, Build & Code

All ratings418 ratings
Positive51.7%
Neutral2.6%
Negative45.7%
Written reviews348 reviews
Positive36.8%
Neutral2.3%
Negative60.9%

Storm Sniffer

All ratings121 ratings
Positive68.6%
Neutral5.8%
Negative25.6%
Written reviews148 reviews
Positive76.4%
Neutral4.1%
Negative19.6%

Bugs and requests

Blink Shell, Build & Code

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

Storm Sniffer

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Frequent app crashes
  • Subscription/account issues
  • Incompatibility with certain devices/OS versions

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add support for web server monitoring
  • Integrate VPN functionality
  • Improve HTTPS traffic capture
  • Provide more customization options

In-app purchases

5 purchases

Blink Shell, Build & Code

Subscriptions4
  • Build Basic - 50 credits/month1 Month trial$7.991 Month
  • Blink+Build Basic7 Days trial$9.991 Month
  • Blink Plus$19.991 Year
Show 1 more
  • Blink+14 Days trial$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Blink Shell ClassicFree
7 purchases

Storm Sniffer

Subscriptions3
  • Monthly Auto-renew VIP$1.991 Month
  • Quarter Auto-renew VIP$3.993 Months
  • Annual Auto-renew VIP$12.491 Year
One-time4
  • Packet Capture - LiftTime$2.99
  • Full Unlock$14.99
  • Full Unlock$22.99
Show 1 more
  • Full Unlock$24.99

Questions

Is Blink Shell, Build & Code free?
Blink Shell, Build & Code is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Storm Sniffer free?
Storm Sniffer is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Blink Shell, Build & Code or Storm Sniffer?
Storm Sniffer is rated higher. Blink Shell, Build & Code averages 3.1 out of 5 from 418 ratings, while Storm Sniffer averages 3.9 from 121 ratings.
Do Blink Shell, Build & Code or Storm Sniffer have ads?
Neither Blink Shell, Build & Code nor Storm Sniffer shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Blink Shell, Build & Code or Storm Sniffer?
Blink Shell, Build & Code ships an update every 3 weeks, and Storm Sniffer monthly. Most recently, Blink Shell, Build & Code was updated on October 16, 2026 and Storm Sniffer on October 14, 2026.
Which is more popular, Blink Shell, Build & Code or Storm Sniffer?
Blink Shell, Build & Code currently peaks at #10 in the App Store charts, and Storm Sniffer at #16. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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