Comparison

tunlr vs OctaLab

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

Head to head
About

tunlr

This app provides a full SSH terminal experience on your mobile device. It offers advanced features like biometric-protected keys, tmux session management, and on-device voice dictation for commands. Designed for developers and sysadmins, it prioritizes privacy with no accounts or tracking.

Highlights
  • Full PTY terminal emulation
  • xterm-256color support
  • Biometric-protected keys
  • Tmux session attach
  • On-device voice dictation
  • Customizable keyboard toolbar
  • 24 color themes
Features
Read full description

SSH terminal in your pocket. Full xterm-256color emulation, biometric-protected keys, tmux session attach, and on-device voice dictation. No accounts, no tracking β€” everything stays on your device. tunlr is built for developers, sysadmins, and DevOps engineers who need real terminal access on iPhone and iPad. β€” TERMINAL β€” Full PTY terminal emulation powered by SwiftTerm. xterm-256color support. Configurable scrollback buffer up to 50,000 lines. Optional Metal GPU-accelerated rendering. Works in portrait and landscape on both iPhone and iPad. β€” TMUX SESSIONS β€” Pick up right where you left off. After connecting, tunlr lists the tmux sessions running on the server: attach to one, start a new one, or set a connection to always open the same session. When you return to the app, tunlr reconnects and re-attaches to the same session. Experimental support for zmx and agterm sessions. β€” AUTHENTICATION β€” Three ways to authenticate, all protected by Face ID or Touch ID: Secure Enclave keys β€” generate a P-256 ECDSA key that never leaves your device's Secure Enclave. The private key is inaccessible even to the app itself. Imported keys β€” bring your own Ed25519, ECDSA, or RSA keys. Stored in the iOS Keychain with biometric protection. Passwords β€” stored in the Keychain, never in plain text. β€” HOST VERIFICATION β€” Trust-on-first-use (TOFU) host key verification. tunlr saves the server fingerprint on first connection and warns you if it ever changes. Import fingerprints by scanning a QR code to skip the initial trust step. β€” VOICE INPUT β€” Dictate terminal commands with on-device speech recognition powered by WhisperKit. All audio processing happens on your device β€” nothing is sent to any server. β€” KEYBOARD TOOLBAR β€” Customizable keyboard toolbar with sticky modifier keys. Shortcut packs for Shell, Tmux, Vim, and Claude Code workflows. Save your own favorites. β€” CONNECTIONS β€” Save server profiles with hostname, port, username, and authentication method. Connect with a single tap. Auto-reconnect restores your session when you return to the app, with configurable keepalive intervals. β€” APPEARANCE β€” 24 color themes, dark and light: Default Dark, Solarized Dark, Solarized Light, Dracula, Nord, Monokai, One Dark, One Light, GitHub Dark, GitHub Light, Gruvbox Dark, Gruvbox Light, Catppuccin Mocha, Catppuccin Latte, Tokyo Night, Tokyo Night Day, RosΓ© Pine, RosΓ© Pine Dawn, Everforest Dark, Ayu Mirage, Night Owl, Tomorrow Night, Synthwave, and Kanagawa. Four monospace fonts and adjustable font size. β€” PRIVACY β€” No accounts. No analytics. No tracking. No data collection. Everything runs on your device. SSH connections go directly to your servers β€” tunlr never contacts any third-party service.

About

OctaLab

Read full description

OctaLab is a visual app builder. Design, prototype, and preview app ideas for iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, directly on your device, no code required. Place SwiftUI components on a device canvas, wire up navigation between screens, define your data and actions, then run a live, interactive preview to feel how your app works. DESIGN VISUALLY β€’ Drag and drop from a library of SwiftUI components onto a device canvas β€’ Resize, position, and style each component with a property inspector β€’ Add real photos from your library to image components β€’ Build for iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch, the canvas adapts to each CONNECT YOUR SCREENS β€’ Lay out screens on a visual flowchart canvas β€’ Connect them with navigation links: push, sheet, full screen, tab, and alert β€’ Mark an entry screen and see the whole flow at a glance DATA AND LOGIC β€’ Define data models with typed fields and custom enums β€’ Two-way bindings between components and live context variables β€’ Build reusable actions: change state, navigate, call APIs, and more β€’ Import OpenAPI specs to model real API endpoints PREVIEW INSTANTLY β€’ Run your prototype in a simulated device frame β€’ Tap through real interactions: buttons, fields, toggles, sliders β€’ Switch between iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch as you go β€’ Light and dark mode ORGANIZE YOUR WORK β€’ Start blank or from a built-in template (Todo, Login, Dashboard, Chat, Social, Banking) β€’ Rename, duplicate, and manage all your projects in one place β€’ Projects are saved locally on your device OctaLab is built for designers, makers, students, and anyone who wants to shape an app idea quickly and see it run without writing a line of code.

Screenshots

tunlr4 screens
OctaLab4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: OctaLab at every 4 days against tunlr's every 5 weeks. On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price Β· Rating Β· Positive reviews Β· Number of ratings Β· Update frequency Β· Ads Β· In-app purchases Β· Monetization Β· Best chart rank Β· Devices Β· Requires iOS

CostPrice Β· In-app purchases Β· Ads Β· Monetization

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

UpkeepUpdate frequency

tunlr ships an update every 5 weeks, OctaLab every 4 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard1 real difference Β· 7 level
tunlr versus OctaLab: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParametertunlrOctaLab
PriceFreeFree
Positive reviews100.0% of reviewsβ€”
Update frequencyEvery 5 weeksEvery 4 days β€” better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeβ€”
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, Mac β€” better
Requires iOS17.0 β€” better18.0
Further details β€” not scored
Size11 MB8 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperAnastasiia TrofimovaNovin dokht Elmi

In-app purchases

None

tunlr

No in-app purchases

None

OctaLab

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is tunlr free?
tunlr is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is OctaLab free?
OctaLab is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do tunlr or OctaLab have ads?
Neither tunlr nor OctaLab shows ads.
Which is updated more often, tunlr or OctaLab?
tunlr ships an update every 5 weeks, and OctaLab every 4 days. Most recently, tunlr was updated on October 31, 2026 and OctaLab on October 31, 2026.

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