Comparison

ShelveApp vs Terminal W

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

Head to head
About

ShelveApp

Features
Read full description

Shelve is a powerful SSH client for iOS with a built-in AI coding agent. Connect to your servers, run terminals, and let Claude or Codex work on your codebase — all from your iPhone. AI AGENT OVER SSH Run Claude or Codex directly on your remote servers. Multi-session conversations organized by working directory, with git-aware context, image attachments, safety approvals, and model selection. FULL TERMINAL Native terminal emulator with color support, keyboard shortcuts, and smooth scrolling. Manage tmux sessions and keep your work running. HOST WORKSPACE A complete toolkit for every server: • Terminal — Interactive shell access • Tmux — Session management • Browser — Discover and access web services by port • Files — Browse and manage remote files • Services — Monitor Docker, PM2, and system processes • System — View server metrics and resource usage • Logs — Tail and search remote log files SECURITY FIRST • SSH keys generated in the Secure Enclave • Biometric authentication (Face ID / Touch ID) • Full audit log of all key signing operations • Safety approval system for AI agent commands Built for developers who manage servers on the go

About

Terminal W

Features
Read full description

Terminal W is a native SSH client for iPhone, iPad, and Apple silicon Mac. Connect to remote servers, keep several shells open, and return to your sessions as you move around the app. CONNECTIONS AND SECURITY • Save hosts, organize them into groups, and connect with a tap. • Authenticate with passwords, imported Ed25519 or ECDSA keys, or device-generated P-256 keys. • Import supported passphrase-protected private keys without saving the passphrase. • Verify SSH host keys with stable SHA-256 fingerprints. • Reach servers through SSH jump hosts and local port forwards. • Keep passwords and private keys in the device Keychain, with Secure Enclave support for generated keys on supported hardware. • Protect access with Face ID, Touch ID, or your device passcode. YOUR TERMINAL • Open multiple sessions, including several shells on the same server. • Use a terminal with UTF-8, ANSI colors, copy and paste, scrollback, and search. • Customize the special key bar with Esc, Tab, Ctrl, Alt, arrows, Home, End, and Page Up or Down. • Use hardware keyboard shortcuts for sessions, search, text size, and reconnecting. • Save command snippets with {{variable}} placeholders and reuse commands from history. • Upload photos and files over SFTP and insert their remote paths at the prompt. • Choose a terminal theme or follow your device's Light and Dark appearance. MADE FOR IPHONE AND IPAD • See connected sessions in a Live Activity on the Lock Screen and, on supported iPhones, the Dynamic Island. • Open separate terminals in multiple iPad windows. • Return to an open session from Hosts, Sessions, or a Live Activity. • Enable Keep Sessions Alive when you want connections to continue in the background. This optional setting is off by default. ICLOUD AND PRIVACY Saved hosts, host groups, snippets, and trusted host-key fingerprints sync through your private iCloud database. Passwords and private keys remain in the Keychain on each device, so set up credentials separately on every device. Terminal W uses Apple SwiftNIO SSH and CryptoKit. It has no analytics or tracking, requires no app account or subscription, and has no developer-operated credential vault. All shell commands run on your remote server. Requires iOS or iPadOS 26 or later. The iPad app also runs directly on Macs with macOS 26 or later and an Apple M1 chip or later.

Screenshots

ShelveApp4 screens
Terminal W4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Terminal W at none against ShelveApp's 1. ShelveApp's advantage is iOS requirement (17.0 vs 26.0). On price, update cadence, ads and device support there is nothing between them.

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

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

Both are free to download. ShelveApp sells 1 one-off in-app purchase. Terminal W asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShelveApp ships an update weekly, Terminal W every 4 days. The most recent releases landed on October 31, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard2 real differences Ā· 4 level
ShelveApp versus Terminal W: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShelveAppTerminal W
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyEvery 4 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.0 — better26.0
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB9 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRefael YerusalmiWeiming Chen

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ShelveApp

One-time1
  • Unlock 2+ Servers$2.99
None

Terminal W

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ShelveApp free?
ShelveApp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Terminal W free?
Terminal W is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do ShelveApp or Terminal W have ads?
Neither ShelveApp nor Terminal W shows ads.
Which is updated more often, ShelveApp or Terminal W?
ShelveApp ships an update weekly, and Terminal W every 4 days. Most recently, ShelveApp was updated on October 31, 2026 and Terminal W on October 24, 2026.

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