# rootshell vs RatNest

The clearest difference is update cadence: RatNest at daily against rootshell's fortnightly. rootshell's advantage is chart position (#153 vs unranked). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

rootshell ships an update fortnightly, RatNest daily. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 25, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | rootshell | RatNest |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.9 (53 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rootshell-local-terminal-ssh/id6755794662/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **53** | — |
| Positive reviews | 91.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | **Daily** |
| Monetization | Free | — |
| Best chart rank | **#153** | — |
| Size | 376 MB | 4 MB |
| Requires iOS | 18.0 | **17.0** |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad** | iPhone |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Rootshell LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/1829197011) | [Maksym Kozlov](https://appshunter.io/developer/1891134779) |

## What reviewers say

### rootshell

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/rootshell-local-terminal-ssh/id6755794662)

**Currently charting:** #153 Top Free · Developer Tools (US App Store)

This app provides a powerful, desktop-class terminal emulator with GPU acceleration and native support for SSH, Mosh, and tssh. It offers features like system-wide VPN over SSH, native Git integration, and AI assistance for hands-free command execution and web searches.

**Highlights:** GPU-accelerated terminal, Native SSH and Mosh support, System-wide VPN over SSH, Native Git client, AI voice and text agents, Cloud and Kubernetes integration, Hardware security key support

**In-app purchases:** none


### RatNest

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ratnest/id6761730397)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is rootshell free?

rootshell is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Is RatNest free?

RatNest is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do rootshell or RatNest have ads?

Neither rootshell nor RatNest shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, rootshell or RatNest?

rootshell ships an update fortnightly, and RatNest daily. Most recently, rootshell was updated on October 30, 2026 and RatNest on October 25, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*