Comparison

rootshell vs Termini

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

Head to head
About

rootshell

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
Read full description

rootshell is a desktop-class terminal emulator built on libghostty — the GPU-accelerated engine behind the Ghostty desktop terminal. A local shell on every platform, Mac screen sharing, native SSH, mosh-compatible roaming, tssh, system-wide VPN, native git, and Metal rendering in a single app. NEW: SCREEN SHARING Reach your Mac's screen, not just its shell, from your iPhone or iPad. High Performance mode streams up to 4K at 60 FPS, fully encrypted. Match Client sizing spins up a virtual display sized exactly to your device: no panning, no letterboxing, with remote system audio. Standard VNC mode covers Linux and headless machines, and tunnels over SSH jump hosts. Nothing to install on the Mac — turn on Screen Sharing and connect. Touch, trackpad, hardware keyboard, and two-way clipboard all work, in tabs, splits, or full screen. METAL-ACCELERATED TERMINAL Built on libghostty's Zig core with direct Metal rendering. Smooth scrolling, zero-flicker synchronized output, and full mouse capture for tmux, vim, and zellij. Tabs, split panes, and persistent scrollback across app restarts. THREE REMOTE PROTOCOLS, ONE APP • SSH — Native Swift SSH client with Ed25519, ECDSA, RSA, and post-quantum ML-KEM + ML-DSA. Jump hosts, port and agent forwarding, and Keychain password storage. • Rootshell Roam — Mosh-compatible sessions survive network changes and app restarts. Multipath TCP bonds WiFi and cellular. Predictive local echo keeps typing responsive. STUN-based NAT traversal punches through firewalls. • tssh with QUIC (TLS 1.3) and KCP transport for lower latency, full native scrollback, and session resumption. NATIVE TMUX INTEGRATION Attach in control mode (tmux -CC) and tmux windows become native tabs, panes become real splits — copy, search, and scroll with native gestures. A dashboard shows live window previews, and tabs survive restarts over tssh. SSH VPN Turn any SSH or tssh session into a system-wide VPN. Route all device traffic through your remote server. No extra software on the server — if you can SSH to it, you can VPN through it. NATIVE GIT Clone, commit, diff, log, blame, rebase, cherry-pick, and worktree — in native Swift with SSH transport. Syntax-highlighted pager output and optional AI-generated commit messages. VOICE AI AGENT Talk to an always-on assistant over Gemini Live. It reads scrollback, runs SSH commands hands-free, searches the web, and asks permission before anything risky. OPTIONAL TEXT AI Chat with Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini, or 400+ models via OpenRouter. Bring your own API key. HARDWARE SECURITY KEYS Private keys never leave hardware. FIDO2/WebAuthn authentication with touch-to-sign. SANDBOXED LOCAL SHELL A full local shell with vim 9.1, Helix, SFTP, SCP, curl, jq, mtr, and standard Unix utilities. The rf browser offers yazi-style miller columns with image previews and git indicators. croc peer-to-peer file transfer, flag-aware tab completion, and prompt themes. CLOUD & KUBERNETES Connect to AWS, Azure, DigitalOcean, Akamai (Linode), and Tailscale. Browse instances, access serial consoles, generate EKS kubeconfigs, and debug Kubernetes nodes with ephemeral pods. 450+ THEMES & VISUAL EFFECTS Over 450 color themes with location-based day/night switching. Animated backgrounds — solar, ocean waves, starfields, fireflies — plus Shadertoy-compatible shaders and custom fonts. CUSTOMIZABLE TOOLBAR Drag, reorder, and hide 45+ built-in keys. Create custom keys that send text, key combos, or sequences. Sticky modifiers with tap and double-tap lock. Separate iPhone and iPad layouts. CONNECTION MANAGEMENT Save profiles with folders, tags, and iCloud sync. Quick Connect autocompletes from history and cloud instances. Background SSH tunnels with auto-start. Siri Shortcuts integration. KEYBOARD POWER FEATURES QMK-style mod-tap keys, dictation and CJK input, customizable shortcuts, and Option key as Alt for international layouts.

About

Termini

This app provides a mobile SSH client for managing remote servers. It offers terminal access, file management via SFTP, system status monitoring, and Docker integration. It also includes features like LAN discovery and a Linux command library.

Highlights
  • SSH terminal with control keys
  • SFTP file browsing and editing
  • Server and credential management
  • Linux system status monitoring
  • Docker container inspection
  • LAN network scanning for SSH services
  • Linux command lookup library
Features
Read full description

**Termini** is a mobile SSH tool designed for developers and operations personnel. It allows you to manage authorized servers on iPhone and iPad, handling everyday tasks such as connections, terminal operations, file management, and status monitoring. **Key Features** - **SSH Terminal**: Connect to servers and use an interactive terminal with common control keys and display settings for daily operations. - **SFTP File Management**: Browse remote directories; upload, download, rename, and delete files; and edit text files directly. - **Servers & Credentials**: Manage servers with tags, sorting, and connection profiles. Passwords and private keys are stored only in the iOS Keychain. - **System Status**: View key metrics on Linux servers, including CPU, memory, disk, load, and uptime. - **Docker & Logs**: Inspect containers and logs, and run confirmed common operations tasks. - **LAN Discovery**: Scan the current network for SSH services to quickly add authorized servers. - **Linux Command Library**: Look up usage, examples, and tips for common commands. - **Multi-Device Workspace**: Optimized for one-handed use on iPhone and landscape workspace on iPad. **Termini Pro & Subscription Details** Termini Pro unlocks unlimited servers, iCloud sync & backup, ad-free experience, and exclusive themes. It offers monthly and annual auto-renewable subscriptions, as well as a one-time permanent purchase. Specific prices and subscription periods are shown on the in-app purchase page and in the App Store. Monthly and annual subscriptions are charged to your Apple ID account and automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can manage or cancel subscriptions in your Apple ID account settings after purchase, or restore purchases within the app. The permanent version is a one-time purchase and does not auto-renew. Subscription benefits can be restored on devices using the same Apple ID. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/ Privacy Policy: https://lianjianjie.github.io/termini/privacy.txt

Screenshots

rootshell4 screens
Termini4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: rootshell at none against Termini's shown. rootshell also leads on monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and chart position (#196 vs unranked). Termini's advantage is update cadence (daily vs fortnightly). On price, review sentiment, 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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

rootshell ships an update fortnightly, Termini daily. The most recent releases landed on October 17, 2026 and October 9, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard4 real differences · 7 level
rootshell versus Termini: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterrootshellTermini
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (45 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews94.7% of reviews100.0% of reviews — better
Number of ratings45 — better—
Update frequencyFortnightlyDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree — betterFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#196 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS18.017.0 — better
Further details — not scored
Size364 MB17 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRootshell LLCjianjie lian

Customer experience

rootshell

All ratings45 ratings
Positive95.6%
Neutral0.0%
Negative4.4%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive94.7%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.3%

Termini

Written reviews3 reviews
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

None

rootshell

No in-app purchases

None

Termini

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is rootshell free?
rootshell is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Termini free?
Termini is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do rootshell or Termini have ads?
Termini shows ads; rootshell does not.
Which is updated more often, rootshell or Termini?
rootshell ships an update fortnightly, and Termini daily. Most recently, rootshell was updated on October 17, 2026 and Termini on October 9, 2026.

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