Comparison

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal vs shellin

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

Head to head
About

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal

A professional SSH and Mosh terminal application offering robust features like xterm compatibility, secure authentication via keys and certificates, and smart port forwarding. It includes a code snippet library for batch execution and background connection monitoring.

Highlights
  • Full-featured SSH terminal
  • xterm compatibility
  • tmux support
  • Secure authentication (keys, certs)
  • Smart port forwarding
  • Code snippet library
  • Background connection monitoring
Features
Read full description

ShadowTerm is a full-featured SSH and Mosh terminal built natively for iPhone and iPad. Manage servers, debug code, and keep tmux & herdr sessions alive across networks with a desktop-quality terminal and a keyboard built for the work. KEY FEATURES Connections that survive - SSH with passwords, SSH keys, and certificate authentication - Mosh for roaming connections that survive network drops, app backgrounding, and device sleep - Smart port forwarding (local and remote) for secure tunneling - Auto-connect on launch and geofence-based auto-connection - Background connection monitoring with notifications and Live Activities Terminal experience - Native SwiftTerm with xterm-256 color compatibility - First-class tmux, GNU screen, and Herdr support with automatic detection - Full mouse-mode support for mouse-driven TUIs: tap to left-click, long-press to right-click, and scroll to navigate - Multi-window on iPadOS: open Terminal, Files, Monitor, Markdown, or Text Editor in their own windows - Five terminal themes: Midnight, Oceanic, Solar, Neon, Classic - Pinch-to-zoom font sizing and live cursor-tracked scrolling Custom keyboards built for terminals - 15 built-in layouts: Tmux, Herdr, Screen, Files, OpenCode, Productivity, DevOps, Git, Kubernetes, Python, Node.js, macOS, Database, Security, Terminal Classic - Fully editable: drag-and-drop keys, custom snippets, sticky modifiers - Adjustable double-tap window for Ctrl/Alt locking, with an interactive test pad in Settings - Mic input bar for voice-to-text command entry - Smart keyboard switching when tmux or Herdr is detected SFTP and files - Full SFTP browser with multi-select and bulk copy/move/delete - Paste-to-upload: paste a screenshot, image, or file into the input bar to SFTP it straight to your server - Built-in text editor with syntax highlighting and undo/redo - Live Markdown preview - Transfer progress HUD with tap-to-copy destination paths - Per-host startup snippets that auto-run on connect AI command helper - OpenAI (GPT-4o Mini), Anthropic (Claude 3.5 Haiku), Google Gemini (2.0 Flash), Ollama (local), OpenRouter - Inline AI assistant in the text editor with chat-style refinement - Safety validator blocks fork bombs, rm -rf /, and similar dangerous patterns before they ever leave your device Claude Code and AI control - ntfy.sh-based notification polling for Claude Code permission requests - Approve or deny remote Claude Code actions from your iPhone or iPad - Session templates for repeatable workflows - Built-in MCP server: let Claude Code and other MCP clients open sessions, run commands, read output, and check host status ... with every risky command approval-gated, plus per-host always-allow for machines you trust - AI can even author and edit your custom keyboards over MCP Live server monitoring - CPU, memory, network, filesystem, disk I/O - Nvidia GPU monitoring when available - Reads /proc directly for accurate, low-overhead metrics - Background updates with optional notifications Productivity - Snippet library with batch execution - Recent connections with one-tap reconnect - Quick Actions on the app icon - iOS widgets for server status and recent hosts - Searchable Settings with auto-expand and live-tunable preferences - Universal clipboard sync iCloud and privacy - CloudKit sync across devices for machines, identities, snippets, port forwards, keyboard layouts, and settings - Encrypted credential storage in iOS Keychain - All AI requests use your own API keys, or run fully local with Ollama - No telemetry, no analytics, no data collection ShadowTerm is built by a developer who lives in tmux on iPad. Every keyboard layout, every gesture, every detail comes from real terminal use. If you've fought with mobile SSH apps that disconnect, lose your prompt, or feel cramped on small screens, this one will feel different. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://shadowterm.app/privacy

About

shellin

Access and control your Mac terminal from your iPhone or iPad. Monitor AI coding agents, run commands, and stay connected to your workflow remotely via an encrypted peer-to-peer connection.

Highlights
  • View Mac terminal live on iPhone/iPad
  • Monitor AI coding agents remotely
  • Real-time interaction with keyboard input
  • Connect without SSH setup
  • End-to-end encrypted peer-to-peer session
Features
Read full description

shellin lets you view and interact with your Mac terminal from iPhone or iPad. Run the shellin CLI on your Mac, open the iOS app, and your terminal appears live over an encrypted peer-to-peer connection. Whether you are running Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Gemini CLI, or a long command in Terminal, shellin helps you stay connected when you step away from your desk. Check progress, approve actions, and send commands right from your phone or tablet. An active shellin subscription is required to connect to your Mac from the iOS app. Why shellin  • View your Mac terminal live from iPhone or iPad  • Monitor AI coding agents while you are away  • Interact in real time with keyboard input and terminal output  • Connect without SSH setup, port forwarding, or firewall changes  • End-to-end encrypted peer-to-peer session  How it works  1. Install the shellin app on iPhone or iPad  2. Choose and activate a shellin subscription in the app  3. Install the shellin CLI on your Mac  4. Sign in with a one-time key  5. Run shellin in the terminal you want to access  6. Open the app and connect to your live session  shellin is built for people who want lightweight remote access to an existing Mac terminal session, especially when monitoring AI-assisted workflows on the go. Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula Privacy Policy: https://shellin.dev/privacy

Screenshots

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal4 screens
shellin4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: shellin at 5.0 against ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal's 4.3. ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal's advantage is monetization model (paid vs subscription) and ratings volume (17 vs 1). 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. ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month and shellin sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per 7 days. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

shellin holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.3. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal has 17 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal ships an update every 4 days, shellin every 10 days. Both last shipped on September 21, 2026.

Scorecard4 real differences · 6 level
ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal versus shellin: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminalshellin
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.3 (17 ratings)5.0 (1 ratings) — better
Positive reviews62.5% of reviews—
Number of ratings17 — better1
Update frequencyEvery 4 days — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationPaid — betterSubscription
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.6 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size104 MB14 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperCarlos SavcicJoonhyung Cho

Customer experience

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal

All ratings17 ratings
Positive76.5%
Neutral11.8%
Negative11.8%
Written reviews8 reviews
Positive62.5%
Neutral12.5%
Negative25.0%

shellin

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal

Subscriptions2
  • ShadowTerm Premium Monthly7 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • ShadowTerm Premium Yearly$19.991 Year
One-time1
  • Lifetime Premium$29.99
2 purchases

shellin

Subscriptions2
  • Shellin Lite7 Days trial$0.997 Days
  • Shellin Pro$8.991 Month

Questions

Is ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal free?
ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is shellin free?
shellin is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal or shellin?
shellin is rated higher. ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal averages 4.3 out of 5 from 17 ratings, while shellin averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.
Do ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal or shellin have ads?
Neither ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal nor shellin shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal or shellin?
ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal ships an update every 4 days, and shellin every 10 days. Most recently, ShadowTerm ssh & mosh Terminal was updated on September 21, 2026 and shellin on September 21, 2026.

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