Comparison

Blink Shell, Build & Code vs hot.keys

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

hot.keys

Enhance your mobile typing experience with a specialized keyboard designed for developers and content creators. It provides quick access to essential symbols, a dedicated number row, and navigation keys to streamline coding and writing.

Highlights
  • Always-on number row
  • Dedicated symbol strip
  • Left/right arrows and tab
  • Backspace repeat on hold
  • Live shift/caps labels
  • Offline-first data collection
  • Typing practice drills
Features
Read full description

hot.keys is a desktop-style keyboard for people who write code, Markdown, JSON, XML, and structured prompts on mobile. It keeps symbols visible so you stay in flow. - Always-on number row plus a dedicated symbol strip for brackets, braces, angle brackets, slash, equals, question mark, semicolon, and apostrophes - Left and right arrows, tab inserts spaces, backspace repeat on hold, shift/caps labels update live - Haptics toggle shared between app and keyboard; works in any app that accepts text - Offline-first: no typing data collected; Full Access only needed briefly to sync settings - Built-in 30 second practice drills with WPM, CPM, and accuracy so you can track progress Setup: Settings -> General -> Keyboard -> Keyboards -> Add New Keyboard -> hot.keys, then switch with the globe key.- Built-in 30-second practice drills with WPM/CPM/accuracy so you can track progress

Screenshots

Blink Shell, Build & Code4 screens
hot.keys4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: hot.keys at 3.7 against Blink Shell, Build & Code's 3.1. hot.keys also leads on in-app purchases (none vs 5) and update cadence (daily vs every 3 weeks). Blink Shell, Build & Code's advantage is ratings volume (418 vs 3) and chart position (#11 vs unranked). 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. Blink Shell, Build & Code sells 5 in-app purchases, starting at $7.99 per month. hot.keys asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

hot.keys holds the better App Store score, 3.7 against 3.1. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Blink Shell, Build & Code has 418 ratings behind it against 3, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Blink Shell, Build & Code ships an update every 3 weeks, hot.keys daily. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 14, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Blink Shell, Build & Code versus hot.keys: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBlink Shell, Build & Codehot.keys
PriceFreeFree
Rating3.1 (418 ratings)3.7 (3 ratings) — better
Positive reviews36.9% of reviews—
Number of ratings418 — better3
Update frequencyEvery 3 weeksDaily — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree — better
Best chart rank#11 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.616.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size211 MB3 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperBlink Shell, IncTing-Chun Matthew Man

Customer experience

Blink Shell, Build & Code

All ratings418 ratings
Positive51.7%
Neutral2.6%
Negative45.7%
Written reviews344 reviews
Positive36.9%
Neutral2.3%
Negative60.8%

hot.keys

All ratings3 ratings
Positive66.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative33.3%

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
None

hot.keys

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Blink Shell, Build & Code free?
Blink Shell, Build & Code is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is hot.keys free?
hot.keys is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Blink Shell, Build & Code or hot.keys?
hot.keys is rated higher. Blink Shell, Build & Code averages 3.1 out of 5 from 418 ratings, while hot.keys averages 3.7 from 3 ratings.
Do Blink Shell, Build & Code or hot.keys have ads?
Neither Blink Shell, Build & Code nor hot.keys shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Blink Shell, Build & Code or hot.keys?
Blink Shell, Build & Code ships an update every 3 weeks, and hot.keys daily. Most recently, Blink Shell, Build & Code was updated on September 24, 2026 and hot.keys on September 14, 2026.

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