Tether vs GitBoba
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Tether
Seamlessly integrate your mobile device with your Linux desktop. Share clipboards, transfer files, and discover your desktop locally over Wi-Fi. All communication is secured with end-to-end encryption, with no cloud servers or accounts needed.
- Shared Clipboard Sync
- Bi-directional File Transfers
- Local Network Discovery
- End-to-End Encryption
- No Cloud Services Required
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Tether is an app designed for Linux users running custom desktop environments (Wayland). It provides essential ecosystem integration between your mobile device and your workstation, operating entirely over your local Wi-Fi. There are no cloud servers, third-party services, or accounts required. All data is routed strictly on your local network and secured with end-to-end mTLS encryption. Features: • Shared Clipboard: Sync clipboard text bi-directionally between your iPhone and your Linux machine. • File Transfers: Send documents, photos, and archives directly to your desktop, or receive files from it. • Local Discovery: Uses mDNS/Bonjour to automatically find your desktop - no static IP configuration needed. • Encrypted Connections: Device pairing and all network traffic are secured via mutual TLS certificates. Note: Tether is the iOS client app. To use it, simply run the free, open-source Tether desktop application (available as a CLI or GTK app) on your Linux machine. Visit the project's repository to download it and get started.
GitBoba
A native iOS and iPadOS client for Gitea, a self-hosted Git service. Manage your daily work directly from your mobile device without needing to access a desktop.
- Native iOS and iPadOS client
- Connects to Gitea servers
- Personal access token authentication
- Manage day-to-day work
- Mobile Git management
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GitBoba is a fast, native iOS and iPadOS client for Gitea + Forgejo. Connect to your own self-hosted instance and get a full git workflow, no browser required. • Repos - Browse code, branches, and commits • Pull Requests - Full diffs, reviews, merges • Issues - See what's open across every repo. • Actions - Trigger a workflow, watch it run, check on your runners. • Releases & Packages - Cut and publish a package • Dashboard & Notifications: Everything that needs you in one place • And much more! Self-hosted software shouldn't come with a locked-down client. GitBoba won’t lock open-source behind a paywall. We strive to bring new functionality and provide feature parody with existing backend.
Screenshots
Verdict
Tether and GitBoba are too close to call on the numbers: across 9 compared parameters — price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence among them — neither pulls far enough ahead to decide it. What separates them is feature set and interface, not measurable difference.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 5.0 for Tether against 5.0 for GitBoba. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 2 and 1 respectively.
Both ship on a similar rhythm, roughly weekly. The most recent releases landed on October 1, 2026 and September 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Tether | GitBoba |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 5.0 (2 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | — |
| Number of ratings | 2 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Weekly | Weekly |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad — better |
| Requires iOS | 26.1 | 26.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 6 MB | 28 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Zack Bartel | Miguel Perez |
Customer experience
Tether
GitBoba
In-app purchases
Tether
No in-app purchases
GitBoba
No in-app purchases









