Comparison

ShellRelay vs Thumbdesk

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

Head to head
About

ShellRelay

Access and manage remote terminal sessions securely from your mobile device. Launch a personal server, connect to your own, and run commands with a touch-friendly interface. Share access with teammates and sign in easily without passwords.

Highlights
  • Remote terminal access
  • Docker playground server
  • Secure WebSocket relay
  • Touch-friendly interface
  • Team access sharing
  • Passwordless sign-in
Features
Read full description

ShellRelay — Terminal in Your Pocket ShellRelay lets you securely access and manage remote terminal sessions from your iPhone. Connect to any server, run commands, and stay productive — wherever you are. What you can do: - Launch a personal Docker-based playground server in seconds - Connect to your own servers via secure WebSocket relay - Run terminal sessions with a touch-friendly interface - Share server access with teammates using invite links - Sign in with Apple, Google or GitHub — no password required Pro Subscription: Upgrade to Pro to add more servers and unlock full access. Subscriptions are billed monthly through your Apple ID. Payment is charged at confirmation of purchase. Your subscription auto-renews unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your iPhone Settings → Apple ID → Subscriptions. Privacy & Legal: - Privacy Policy: https://www.shellrelay.com/privacy - Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.shellrelay.com/terms

About

Thumbdesk

Access and manage your servers and projects from your mobile device. This app offers a secure, mobile-first workspace with features like real terminals, file browsing, system monitoring, and a code editor-style environment for your projects.

Highlights
  • Real terminal sessions
  • ProjectSpace code editor
  • System monitoring (CPU, memory, disk)
  • File browsing and transfer
  • Encrypted peer-to-peer connections
  • Local web server previews
Features
Read full description

Reach every computer you own from your iPhone or iPad: terminals, the full screen, files, projects and live stats. Pair a machine by scanning a QR code, or connect to any SSH server with nothing to install. PocketShell is now Thumbdesk. Same app, same account, same hosts, with a new name. Install the lightweight Thumbdesk agent on a Mac, Windows or Linux machine, scan the QR code, and you're connected. No SSH keys to copy, no ports to forward, no VPN to set up. Connections go directly between your phone and your machine over encrypted peer-to-peer links whenever the network allows. Built for developers, on-call engineers, homelab users and self-hosters who need safe access to machines they own, from anywhere. SCREEN SHARING - See and control your Mac, Windows or Linux desktop - Trackpad-style gestures, pinch to zoom and direct touch - Soft keyboard with modifier keys and platform shortcuts - Pick a display and quality, and hear the computer's sound - Clipboard sync between phone and computer TERMINAL - Real terminal sessions with a mobile-friendly key bar - Sessions resume where you left off, even after switching networks - Snap a photo, crop it and drop it straight into the terminal - Works with tmux and long-running jobs SSH HOSTS, NOTHING TO INSTALL - Add any server you can reach over SSH: VPS, Raspberry Pi, NAS - Terminal, SFTP files, stats and projects without installing anything on the server - Host keys are verified before your credentials are sent FILES AND PROJECTS - Browse, preview, upload and download files - Transfers resume after a dropped connection and keep going in the background - Upload from any app with the share sheet - Open projects with a code editor, search, and Git status, diffs, staging and commits - Preview local dev servers in the built-in browser CODING AGENTS - Browse and resume Claude Code, Codex and Grok sessions running on your machines - See which agents are working with a Live Activity and widgets - Get notified when an agent finishes MONITORING - Live CPU, memory, disk, network and process stats for every host - Alerts for the disks and thresholds you care about - Stats history charts HOW IT WORKS 1. Install the Thumbdesk agent on your computer with one command, or add an SSH server 2. Scan the QR code to pair your phone 3. Open terminals, the screen, files, projects and stats from anywhere FREE - Up to 2 hosts - Terminals, files, projects, monitoring and dev previews - Screen sharing in 2-minute sessions - 2 alert rules and your latest 10 agent sessions THUMBDESK PRO - Up to 10 hosts - Unlimited screen sharing - Unlimited alert rules - Full agent session history - Stats history charts - Files over 5 MB - Direct host-to-host file transfers SECURITY Thumbdesk uses device-bound pairing, Ed25519 keys, biometric unlock and trusted-device approval. Terminal contents are never stored on our servers. Terminal I/O, files, screen video and stats flow directly between your phone and your machine whenever the network allows. Thumbdesk is for accessing machines you own or are authorized to operate. Privacy Policy: https://thumbdesk.com/privacy Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

ShellRelay4 screens
Thumbdesk4 screens

Verdict

The call

ShellRelay and Thumbdesk are too close to call on the numbers: across 6 compared parameters — price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. ShellRelay sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $4.99 per month and Thumbdesk sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ScorecardNo meaningful differences
ShellRelay versus Thumbdesk: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShellRelayThumbdesk
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (1 ratings) — better—
Positive reviews—0.0% of reviews
Number of ratings1 — better—
Update frequency—Monthly
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFreemiumFreemium
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad
Requires iOS17.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size5 MB105 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperProximaDigital LLCYash Agarwal

Customer experience

ShellRelay

All ratings1 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

Thumbdesk

Written reviews1 reviews
Positive0.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative100.0%

In-app purchases

1 purchases

ShellRelay

Subscriptions1
  • ShellRelay Pro$4.991 Month
3 purchases

Thumbdesk

Subscriptions2
  • PocketShell Pro Monthly$4.991 Month
  • PocketShell Pro Yearly$39.991 Year
One-time1
  • PocketShell Pro Lifetime$99.99

Questions

Is ShellRelay free?
ShellRelay is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Thumbdesk free?
Thumbdesk is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do ShellRelay or Thumbdesk have ads?
Neither ShellRelay nor Thumbdesk shows ads.

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