Comparison

Termius vs a

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

Head to head
About

Termius

This app provides a modern, productive, and collaborative SSH client experience for remote access. It offers one-tap connections, a desktop-grade terminal, multi-tab support, and advanced security features. Enhance your command-line workflow with smart autocompletion and AI-powered command generation.

Highlights
  • One-tap SSH, SFTP, Mosh, Telnet connections
  • Desktop-grade terminal with virtual keyboard
  • Multi-tab interface and split-view support
  • Customizable themes and fonts
  • AI-powered command generation
  • Hardware FIDO2 key authentication
  • Encrypted cloud vault for credentials
Features
Read full description

Termius is a modern SSH client designed for productivity and collaboration. Connect with one tap from desktop and mobile. No re-entering IP addresses, ports, and passwords. With a free Termius Starter plan, you can: · Connect from your mobile and desktop devices with SSH, SFTP, Mosh, Telnet, Port Forwarding, Serial and through Proxy and jump servers. · Get a desktop-grade terminal experience with a virtual keyboard covering all the special keys required, or connect your Bluetooth keyboard. · Use gestures or shake the device while in the terminal to emulate stroking of Tab, arrows, PgUp/Down, Home, and End, etc. · Work in several sessions simultaneously with a multi-tab interface and split-view support. · Customize your terminal themes and fonts for each connection. · Set custom environment variables. · Save your frequently used commands and shell scripts to execute them with one tap. · Execute your saved commands on multiple sessions or servers at once, or instantly get them autocompleted in the terminal. · Get smart autocomplete for commands, paths, and history, and turn plain-language descriptions into shell commands with AI. · Quickly access the global history of your terminal commands. · Authenticate using hardware FIDO2 keys. · Generate SSH keys in the Secure Enclave, confirm each connection with Face ID or Touch ID, and protect your account with two-factor authentication. · Ad-free. With the Termius Pro plan, you can also: · Access your connection settings and credentials from any device at any time with an encrypted cloud vault. · Sync your data across all your desktop and mobile devices. · Bookmark session logs with notes to your vault. · Integrate with AWS, DigitalOcean, and Azure. Termius reinvents the command-line experience. We strive to make remote access for admins and engineers more productive and enjoyable. Please review our privacy policy https://termius.com/privacy_policy.html and terms of use https://termius.com/terms_of_use.html

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.

Screenshots

Termius4 screens
a4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: a at none against Termius's 4. a also leads on iOS requirement (15.0 vs 17.0). Termius's advantage is ratings volume (20K vs 568) and update cadence (fortnightly vs monthly). On price, rating, review sentiment and ads 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. Termius sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $15.00 per month. a asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.7 for Termius against 4.6 for a. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Termius has 20K ratings behind it against 568, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 81% of Termius's written reviews are positive against 78% of a's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Termius ships an update fortnightly, a monthly. The most recent releases landed on November 4, 2026 and November 3, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Termius versus a: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTermiusa
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.7 (20K ratings) — better4.6 (568 ratings)
Positive reviews80.7% of reviews — better78.3% of reviews
Number of ratings20K — better568
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterMonthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFreemiumFree — better
Best chart rank#4 — better#21
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS17.015.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size229 MB2.1 GB
Age rating4+17+
DeveloperTermius CorporationNicolas Holzschuch

Customer experience

Termius

All ratings19,573 ratings
Positive93.3%
Neutral1.8%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews2,518 reviews
Positive80.7%
Neutral4.6%
Negative14.7%

a

All ratings568 ratings
Positive88.4%
Neutral4.6%
Negative7.0%
Written reviews392 reviews
Positive78.3%
Neutral9.4%
Negative12.2%

User reviews

Termius

From 20K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Smooth and fast
  • 👍 Intuitive and easy to use
  • 🔒 Secure with SSH/SFTP support
  • 💡 Useful features like port forwarding
  • 👍 Customizable keyboard and themes

Room to improve

  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🔋 Drains battery quickly
  • 🤔 Aggressive upselling of premium features

a

From 568 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Powerful terminal with Linux commands
  • 👍 Useful for programming and development
  • 🔒 Secure and reliable
  • 💡 Impressive capabilities for an iOS app
  • 👍 Helpful documentation and developer support

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes and bugs
  • 🔍 Limited customization options
  • 🔍 Missing some basic terminal features
  • 🔍 Compatibility issues with certain packages

Bugs and requests

Termius

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Syncing issues causing data loss
  • Keyboard and cursor issues on iPad
  • Freezing and unresponsiveness after background use

Requested features

4 requests
  • Add support for ProxyCommand
  • Improve keyboard handling and arrow key functionality
  • Implement iCloud sync instead of proprietary cloud
  • Provide a one-time purchase option for individual users

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

In-app purchases

4 purchases

Termius

Subscriptions4
  • Termius Pro Monthly3 Days trial$15.001 Month
  • Termius Pro Monthly$15.001 Month
  • Termius Pro Annual14 Days trial$119.001 Year
Show 1 more
  • Termius Pro Annual$119.001 Year
None

a

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Termius free?
Termius is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is a free?
a is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Termius or a?
Termius is rated higher. Termius averages 4.7 out of 5 from 20K ratings, while a averages 4.6 from 568 ratings.
Do Termius or a have ads?
Neither Termius nor a shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Termius or a?
Termius ships an update fortnightly, and a monthly. Most recently, Termius was updated on November 4, 2026 and a on November 3, 2026.
Which is more popular, Termius or a?
Termius currently peaks at #4 in the App Store charts, and a at #21. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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