Comparison

Codex Relay vs Orca IDE

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

Head to head
About

Codex Relay

Manage your Codex workflow remotely from your phone. Track active threads, send prompts, review output, and respond to requests. Designed for developers to stay connected to their work without being at their desk.

Highlights
  • Follow Codex conversations remotely
  • Send prompts and follow-up instructions
  • Respond to approval and input requests
  • Attach images for context
  • Review workspace and thread activity
  • Manage relay server state
  • Check usage statistics
Features
Read full description

Codex Relay brings your Codex workflow to your phone. Connect to your local Codex Relay server and keep track of active threads, responses, approvals, and workspace activity without staying at your desk. Send follow-up prompts, review assistant output, attach images for context, and respond when Codex needs input before it can continue. Built for developers who use Codex as part of real work, Codex Relay keeps the mobile experience focused, fast, and close to the terminal workflow. Key features: - Follow Codex conversations from your phone - Send prompts and follow-up instructions - Respond to approval and input requests - Attach images as context - Review workspace and thread activity - Manage connected relay server state - Check usage - Designed for local developer workflows Codex Relay requires a running Codex Relay server on your computer. Start the server with `npx codex-relay@latest`, then connect your device over your local network. GitHub: https://github.com/gronxb/codex-relay Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

About

Orca IDE

This app mirrors your desktop terminal sessions, including AI agent interactions, directly to your iPhone. It provides full keyboard input and multi-terminal support for seamless remote coding management. All processing remains on your desktop, ensuring your data stays secure.

Highlights
  • Live desktop terminal mirror
  • AI agent session management
  • Full keyboard input
  • Multi-worktree, multi-terminal support
  • Phone-fit zoom and smart keyboard
  • Background command execution
  • End-to-end encrypted pairing
Features
Read full description

Orca Mobile is the companion app for Orca, the open-source agentic coding workspace for macOS, Linux, and Windows. Pair your iPhone to your desktop in seconds and pick up a terminal session from the couch, the kitchen, or across the office. WHAT IT DOES • Live mirror of your desktop terminal, including running AI agent sessions (Claude Code, Codex, custom CLIs). • Full keyboard input — type, tab-complete, Ctrl-C, scroll back, all from the phone. • Multi-worktree, multi-terminal: jump between projects with a tap. • Phone-fit zoom and a smart on-screen keyboard with quick Ctrl/Alt accessory keys and shortcuts. • Background long-running commands and get a notification when a TUI goes idle (e.g. when Claude finishes thinking). HOW IT WORKS Orca Mobile is a thin client. Nothing runs on your phone except the viewer. Your code, your shells, your AI agents — all of that stays on your desktop. The phone shows you what's happening and forwards your keystrokes back over an encrypted local-network connection. Pairing is end-to-end encrypted. Your desktop generates a one-time keypair and shows a QR code; you scan it from the app. After that, all traffic between phone and desktop is sealed with that pair's keys. PRIVACY • No analytics SDK, no crash reporter, no third-party SDKs of any kind in the iOS app. • Pairing tokens and your preference list live in the app's own sandbox. The app's traffic to your desktop is end-to-end encrypted on your local network only. • The Orca desktop app collects anonymized usage metrics per the policy at https://www.onorca.dev/privacy. The mobile app itself does not. • Open source: every line is auditable at https://github.com/stablyai/orca. REQUIREMENTS • An iPhone (iOS 16+) on the same Wi-Fi as your desktop. • The Orca desktop app, free, from https://www.onorca.dev/ or https://github.com/stablyai/orca/releases.

Screenshots

Codex Relay4 screens
Orca IDE4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: Orca IDE at 4.7 against Codex Relay's 4.2. Orca IDE also leads on review sentiment (84% vs 63%) and update cadence (every 3 days vs every 9 days). On price, ratings volume, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

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. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

Orca IDE holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.2. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 56 and 38 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 63% of Codex Relay's written reviews are positive against 84% of Orca IDE's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Codex Relay ships an update every 9 days, Orca IDE every 3 days. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Codex Relay versus Orca IDE: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterCodex RelayOrca IDE
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.2 (56 ratings)4.7 (38 ratings) — better
Positive reviews63.2% of reviews83.8% of reviews — better
Number of ratings56 — better38
Update frequencyEvery 9 daysEvery 3 days — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
Best chart rank#36#17 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, iPad, iPod — better
Requires iOS16.415.1 — better
Further details — not scored
Size118 MB41 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperKang SungyuLovecast LLC

Customer experience

Codex Relay

All ratings56 ratings
Positive78.6%
Neutral3.6%
Negative17.9%
Written reviews19 reviews
Positive63.2%
Neutral0.0%
Negative36.8%

Orca IDE

All ratings38 ratings
Positive89.5%
Neutral7.9%
Negative2.6%
Written reviews37 reviews
Positive83.8%
Neutral10.8%
Negative5.4%

In-app purchases

None

Codex Relay

No in-app purchases

None

Orca IDE

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Codex Relay free?
Codex Relay is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Orca IDE free?
Orca IDE is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Codex Relay or Orca IDE?
Orca IDE is rated higher. Codex Relay averages 4.2 out of 5 from 56 ratings, while Orca IDE averages 4.7 from 38 ratings.
Do Codex Relay or Orca IDE have ads?
Neither Codex Relay nor Orca IDE shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Codex Relay or Orca IDE?
Codex Relay ships an update every 9 days, and Orca IDE every 3 days. Most recently, Codex Relay was updated on October 16, 2026 and Orca IDE on October 15, 2026.
Which is more popular, Codex Relay or Orca IDE?
Codex Relay currently peaks at #36 in the App Store charts, and Orca IDE at #17. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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