Agent Station vs Shellby
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side ā with what reviewers say about each.
Agent Station
Read full descriptionHide full description
Agent Station is an SSH terminal client built for the AI era. Connect to your own servers, manage tmux sessions, and drive AI coding agents like Claude Code and Codex with your keyboard or voice ā from your commute, a cafe, anywhere. Key features: ⢠Real SSH terminal: modern xterm.js-based UI with large, high-contrast text; multi-hop ProxyJump support reaches hosts behind bastions ⢠AI agent command deck: a project list shows each agent's live status (working / waiting / disconnected); tap in for a live terminal ⢠Voice input: hold to talk, mixed Chinese/English recognition with optional LLM correction, transcripts injected straight into the remote terminal ⢠Persistent tmux sessions: network drops, app switches, device changes ā your session survives ⢠Private by design: SSH credentials never leave your device, zero data collection; optional SSH-over-443 tunneling for restricted networks Who it's for: ⢠Engineers running AI agents like Claude Code or Codex on remote servers ⢠Developers who need to check on long-running server tasks from anywhere ⢠Anyone who wants a clean, modern, ad-free SSH client Requirements: you need your own SSH server. Voice input requires your own speech-recognition API key (Volcengine Doubao ASR supported).
Shellby
A native SSH client for Apple devices that offers SFTP, tunnels, and server monitoring. It features an AI assistant to translate plain language tasks into commands and Mosh-compatible transport for resilient sessions.
- AI-powered command generation
- Mosh-compatible sessions
- SFTP file transfer
- Port forwarding and tunnels
- Server monitoring (CPU, memory)
- On-screen key bar
Read full descriptionHide full description
Shellby is a modern, native SSH client for iPhone, iPad, and Mac ā one app, one experience across all your Apple devices. It does more than connect: a built-in AI agent turns plain-language ops tasks into commands you approve one by one, Mosh-compatible transport keeps sessions alive across network changes, and on Mac your AI coding tools reach your servers read-only, fully audited. Built for developers, sysadmins, and anyone who manages remote servers. No account, no tracking. AI ASSISTANT & AGENT (BRING YOUR OWN KEY) ⢠Describe an ops task in plain language ā the agent plans and runs it step by step ⢠Every command passes an approval gate; destructive ones need explicit confirmation ā nothing runs behind your back ⢠Customizable allow/deny lists; approve & allowlist in one tap ⢠Standard chat-completion APIs, so you pick the service ā DeepSeek, Kimi, GLM, Qwen, or a local Ollama model ⢠Off by default; bring your own key and endpoint ā no AI service is built in EXTERNAL AGENTS ā MCP (macOS) ⢠Let claude-code, codex, and other MCP clients use hosts you already configured ā no passwords, keys, or jump-host setup handed over ⢠Read-only: list hosts, run read-only commands, read files, fetch metrics; mutating commands are refused with a reason ⢠Loopback only, token-checked per request, token in the Keychain, every call audited ⢠Runs only while Shellby is open ā no background daemon MOSH-COMPATIBLE CONNECTIONS ⢠Switch Wi-Fi to cellular, roam, ride through a tunnel ā the session survives and resumes instantly ⢠Typing stays responsive even on slow, high-latency links ⢠Connection test detects a missing mosh-server and gives install steps for your distro TERMINAL ⢠Fast, standards-compliant terminal (xterm-256color) ⢠Password and SSH key authentication (Ed25519 / RSA / OpenSSH) ⢠On-screen key bar: Esc, Tab, Ctrl combos, arrows, symbols ⢠Full hardware-keyboard mapping on iPad and Mac ⢠Terminal themes and font size ⢠Scrollback buffer up to 50,000 lines SNIPPETS & COMMAND TOOLBAR ⢠Save commands you use daily; run, insert, or copy them from a toolbar above the terminal ⢠Shell syntax highlighting and line numbers; review before running DESKTOP-CLASS ON MAC & iPAD ⢠Three-column layout: hosts, sessions, and content each in place ⢠Multiple windows and session tabs, with live terminal previews ⢠Split view, and command broadcast ā type once, send to many sessions ⢠Native menu bar, shortcuts, and window toolbar on Mac FILES (SFTP) ⢠Browse, upload, download, rename, move, delete, create folders ⢠One transfer queue both ways ā progress, resume, choice of destination ⢠Drag & drop on Mac; notification when background transfers finish ⢠Integrates with the Files app PORT FORWARDING & TUNNELS ⢠Local (-L), remote (-R), and dynamic SOCKS5 (-D) forwarding ⢠Jump hosts / ProxyJump (-J) with multi-hop chains ⢠Standalone tunnels that stay up and auto-reconnect, with live bandwidth ⢠For reaching services inside your own server network (databases, internal dashboards) ā not for bypassing network restrictions SERVER MONITOR ⢠Live CPU, memory, swap, disk, load, and top processes SYNC ā YOUR DATA, YOUR STORAGE ⢠Optional iCloud sync of hosts, groups, and rules (CloudKit); passwords and keys only via the end-to-end-encrypted iCloud Keychain ⢠Or bring your own storage: hosts, keys, snippets, AI settings & chats via any WebDAV or S3-compatible service you control ⢠Pair a new device by scanning a QR code SECURITY & PRIVACY ⢠Credentials stored only in the device Keychain ā never in plaintext ⢠Host fingerprint verification (TOFU), with a strong warning if one ever changes ⢠Face ID / Touch ID app lock ⢠No account, no tracking, no data collection You bring your own SSH servers; Shellby connects only to machines you own or are authorized to access. Languages: English, ē®ä½äøę, ē¹é«äøę. Privacy Policy: https://shellby.app.mahui.me/privacy/ Terms of Use (EULA): https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Agent Station at none against Shellby's 3. Shellby's advantage is device support (3 vs 1). On price, ads 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
Both are free to download. Shellby sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $1.99 per month. Agent Station asks for nothing beyond the download.
| Parameter | Agent Station | Shellby |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Positive reviews | ā | 100.0% of reviews |
| Update frequency | ā | Every 11 days |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No ā better | Yes |
| Monetization | ā | Freemium |
| Devices | iPhone | iPhone, iPad, Mac ā better |
| Requires iOS | 17.0 | 17.0 |
| Further details ā not scored | ||
| Size | 18 MB | 15 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | å“å£ å | č 马 |
In-app purchases
Agent Station
No in-app purchases
Shellby
- Pro Monthly$1.991 Month
- Pro Yearly7 Days trial$9.991 Year
- Pro Lifetime$29.99









