Comparison

Tanuki for GitLab vs Shell Keyboard

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

Head to head
About

Tanuki for GitLab

A native client for interacting with GitLab repositories. Manage your projects, issues, and merge requests efficiently from your iOS device.

Highlights
  • Native GitLab client
  • Manage repositories
  • Track issues
  • Review merge requests
  • iOS compatible
Features
Read full description

Easy to use, native, GitLab client.

About

Shell Keyboard

This custom keyboard provides essential keys like Ctrl, Esc, and arrow keys that are missing from the standard iOS keyboard. It's designed for terminal applications, sending precise control codes and escape sequences for seamless command-line interaction on iOS and iPadOS devices.

Highlights
  • Dedicated terminal layer with Ctrl, Esc, Tab, arrow keys
  • Ctrl and Alt as proper modifiers with lock functionality
  • Full function-key layer (F1-F12)
  • Configurable arrow key behavior for different apps
  • Multiple keyboard layouts for iPad (60% and 75%)
  • Seven customizable themes (light and dark)
  • Privacy-focused, no Full Access required
Features
Read full description

Shell Keyboard adds the keys a terminal actually needs — the ones iOS's default keyboard leaves out. Working over SSH or in a local shell needs Ctrl, Esc, Tab, arrow keys, and function keys, none of which exist on the standard iOS keyboard. Shell Keyboard is a custom keyboard built specifically for terminal apps like Blink, Termius, Prompt, a-Shell and iSH — it sends the exact ASCII control codes and ANSI/VT escape sequences your terminal expects, the same bytes a physical keyboard would send. NEW ON IPAD: A REAL KEYBOARD Choose a 60% or 75% layout, the compact keyboards terminal users already type on. The 75% layout puts Esc, F1–F12, a number row, Caps Lock, Home, End, Page Up, Page Down and inverted-T arrow keys on one screen, and Shift types the symbol printed on each key, just like a physical keyboard. The 60% layout keeps the function keys, navigation and arrows one fn press away. iPad opens in the 75% layout; the original ShellKey layout is one tap away in Settings. WHAT'S INCLUDED • A dedicated terminal layer: Ctrl, Alt, Esc, Tab, arrow keys, Home/End/PgUp/PgDn, and the punctuation a shell prompt uses constantly • Ctrl and Alt as proper modifiers — latch one for a single keypress, or double-tap to lock it on, like a hardware keyboard • A full function-key layer: tap fn and the top row becomes F1 through F12, while every other row stays exactly where it was • Arrow keys that match the app you're in — Normal for shells, Application for vim, tmux, less and htop, or Move the Cursor for ordinary text fields • Return or Enter: long-press the Return key to switch between a carriage return and a line feed • A plain QWERTY layer and a complete symbols layer, for ordinary text — hostnames, paths, commit messages — without leaving the keyboard • Seven themes — Shell, Ember, Glacier, Dusk, Moss, Void (pure black) and High Contrast — each in light and dark, and an Appearance option to keep the keyboard light or dark everywhere • On iPad, 60% and 75% layouts (75% by default), described above • A searchable reference inside the app, listing every key alongside the exact escape sequence and hex bytes it sends • Every key emits the exact byte sequence a real terminal expects SETTINGS LIVE IN THE KEYBOARD Touch and hold the key with the small gear (or tap the gear key on the iPad's 60% and 75% layouts) for Haptic feedback, Theme, Appearance and, on iPad, Layout. They live in the keyboard itself because, without Full Access, iOS keeps a keyboard and its app apart, and Shell Keyboard never asks for Full Access. BUILT FOR PRIVACY Shell Keyboard never asks for Full Access. It cannot reach the network. It never reads, stores, or transmits anything you type — every key it sends is decided from the key you tapped, and nothing else. No analytics, no crash reporting, no account. GOOD TO KNOW In a terminal or editor running inside a web browser — code-server, Jupyter and the like — the keys that send a multi-character escape sequence don't get through: the arrow keys, F1 through F12, Home, End, Page Up, Page Down, Shift+Tab and Alt combinations. Everything that sends a single byte works there normally, including every Ctrl combination, Esc, Tab, Return and ordinary typing. Web pages listen for key press events and iOS only lets a keyboard extension insert text, so this is an iOS limitation that applies to every third-party keyboard, not something an app can work around. WHO IT'S FOR Anyone who SSHes from an iPhone or iPad — sysadmins, developers, and anyone tired of missing Ctrl+C.

Screenshots

Tanuki for GitLab4 screens
Shell Keyboard4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: Shell Keyboard at 100% against Tanuki for GitLab's 50%. Shell Keyboard also leads on rating (5.0 vs 4.0) and chart position (#9 vs #46). Tanuki for GitLab's advantage is price ($0.99 vs $1.99). On ratings volume, 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

Tanuki for GitLab costs $0.99 and Shell Keyboard $1.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Shell Keyboard holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.0. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 1 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 50% of Tanuki for GitLab's written reviews are positive against 100% of Shell Keyboard's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Tanuki for GitLab ships an update every 9 days, Shell Keyboard fortnightly. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and November 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 6 level
Tanuki for GitLab versus Shell Keyboard: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterTanuki for GitLabShell Keyboard
Price$0.99 — better$1.99
Rating4.0 (2 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews50.0% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 9 days — betterFortnightly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationPaidPaid
Best chart rank#46#9 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.016.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size34 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperFelix SchindlerNguyen Nguyen

Customer experience

Tanuki for GitLab

All ratings2 ratings
Positive50.0%
Neutral50.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews2 reviews
Positive50.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative50.0%

Shell Keyboard

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%
Written reviews1 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

Tanuki for GitLab

No in-app purchases

None

Shell Keyboard

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Tanuki for GitLab free?
Tanuki for GitLab costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is Shell Keyboard free?
Shell Keyboard costs $1.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Tanuki for GitLab or Shell Keyboard?
Shell Keyboard is rated higher. Tanuki for GitLab averages 4.0 out of 5 from 2 ratings, while Shell Keyboard averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do Tanuki for GitLab or Shell Keyboard have ads?
Neither Tanuki for GitLab nor Shell Keyboard shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Tanuki for GitLab or Shell Keyboard?
Tanuki for GitLab ships an update every 9 days, and Shell Keyboard fortnightly. Most recently, Tanuki for GitLab was updated on October 30, 2026 and Shell Keyboard on November 1, 2026.
Which is more popular, Tanuki for GitLab or Shell Keyboard?
Tanuki for GitLab currently peaks at #46 in the App Store charts, and Shell Keyboard at #9. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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