Comparison

ShelveApp vs CekTerm

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

Head to head
About

ShelveApp

Features
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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

CekTerm

Features
Read full description

Carry your remote tmux session in your pocket. Close the app; the work keeps running. CekTerm is an SSH terminal for iPhone and iPad. It never owns your work — the real thing is the tmux session on the remote host, and the app is just a client you can throw away and reattach at any time. So switching apps, running out of battery, losing signal underground, even swiping the app out of the multitasking list: that build, training run, deploy or AI agent is still going. Open it again and the screen picks up exactly where you left off. Features • Sessions live in remote tmux Disconnects, app switches and dead batteries do not matter — come back, attach to the same session, and the half-finished work is still there. • Local scrollback, scrolling never hits the network tmux control mode returns a linear output stream, so history is stored on the phone and scrolling back feels like scrolling any other page. • Session names stay on the phone If the remote tmux session is gone, its entry remains in the list — one tap rebuilds it with the same name and settings. • Keys are generated on the device Ed25519 or ECDSA, straight into the Keychain — no copying a private key across machines, which is where keys usually leak. • Input built for a phone A dedicated row for Ctrl/Alt/arrows, frequent commands as reorderable tabs, and floating Enter and clear buttons you can drag anywhere. • An exit key that reads the context It asks the remote what is running first: q for less, Ctrl-D for python, Ctrl-C twice for an agent — and for vim it asks whether to save. • Pick the remote folder and shell Browse the remote directory tree while creating a session; the shell list is read from that host, so you do not have to remember paths. • Upload files over SFTP Send several files at once to any remote folder and leave the page while it transfers. The file only appears at its final path once complete, so an interruption never leaves half a file behind. • Voice input Speak a line, get text, review it before sending — or run it straight away. Long commands are painful to type on a phone. • Six interface languages and multiple themes The interface language is independent of the system setting, and the terminal has six colour schemes of its own. Security • Private keys, passphrases and passwords live in the Keychain, readable only after the device is unlocked, and never leave this device via iCloud Keychain or encrypted backups. • Host keys use TOFU: the key is recorded on first connect and must match exactly every time after; a mismatch aborts the connection and shows both fingerprints. • Biometric lock: protect the app with Face ID or Touch ID and lock it the moment it goes to the background. • Remote clipboard reads are refused: OSC 52 is implemented for writing only and never answers a read query. • Settings export contains no private keys or passwords — those stay in the Keychain. What you need A remote host you are authorised to log into, with tmux installed (Linux or macOS). Please use Ed25519 keys: RSA private keys can no longer authenticate against OpenSSH 8.8 and later. This app does not try to be a full SFTP browser or a port-forwarding tool — a desktop SSH client is better at those. It focuses on one thing: watching a long-running session from a phone.

Screenshots

ShelveApp4 screens
CekTerm4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: CekTerm at none against ShelveApp's 1. CekTerm also leads on update cadence (daily vs weekly). ShelveApp's advantage is ads (none vs shown). On price, device support and iOS requirement 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. CekTerm asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

ShelveApp ships an update weekly, CekTerm daily. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences Ā· 3 level
ShelveApp versus CekTerm: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShelveAppCekTerm
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyWeeklyDaily — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size29 MB18 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperRefael Yerusalmiå¼µ 文展

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ShelveApp

One-time1
  • Unlock 2+ Servers$2.99
None

CekTerm

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is ShelveApp free?
ShelveApp is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is CekTerm free?
CekTerm is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do ShelveApp or CekTerm have ads?
CekTerm shows ads; ShelveApp does not.
Which is updated more often, ShelveApp or CekTerm?
ShelveApp ships an update weekly, and CekTerm daily. Most recently, ShelveApp was updated on October 1, 2026 and CekTerm on October 15, 2026.

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