Comparison

Conduit vs Pockterm

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

Head to head
About

Conduit

Connect to your servers, workstations, and development environments from your iPhone using SSH, Mosh, and SFTP. Offers local credential storage, hardware security key support, and tmux integration without requiring an account or subscription.

Highlights
  • SSH terminal sessions
  • Password, private key, and hardware security key authentication
  • SFTP file browsing and export
  • Saved machine profiles with tags
  • Local credential storage
  • Tabbed terminal workspace
Features
Read full description

Conduit is a local-first SSH, Mosh, and SFTP client for iPhone. It is built for people who need to reach real machines from a phone without creating an account, syncing credentials through a service, or paying a subscription just to open a shell. Use Conduit to connect to your own servers, workstations, homelab machines, VPS instances, and development environments from a mobile terminal. Features: • SSH terminal sessions • Password, private key, and hardware security key (FIDO2) authentication • Hardware security key auth over NFC, tested with YubiKey • SSH agent forwarding to reach further hosts from a machine you connect to • Per-host tmux integration with auto attach/create, start directories, prefix key selection, action shortcuts, and scrollback mode. • Experimental Mosh roaming for unreliable mobile networks • SFTP file browsing and export • Saved machine profiles with tags and search • Local credential and trusted host key storage • Trusted host key prompts and key management • Optional app lock with device authentication • Tabbed terminal workspace • Mobile-friendly modifier, navigation, and function keys • Fullscreen terminal mode • Built-in terminal themes With SSH agent forwarding, a host you connect to can use your key to authenticate onward to other machines, without copying private keys to the server. Forwarded hardware keys stay protected: every onward signature still requires your PIN and a physical tap. Conduit does not require a Conduit account and does not use a Conduit sync service. Saved connection profiles, credentials, and trusted host keys are stored on your device using platform secure storage. Conduit is free and open-source software licensed under the Apache License 2.0. Source code is available at github.com/gwitko/Conduit. Mosh requires mosh-server on the remote host and reachable UDP ports. Predictive echo is marked as experimental. You can support the project here: https://ko-fi.com/gwitko

About

Pockterm

Features
Read full description

Pockterm is a native SSH and SFTP client built for iPhone. Free and open source. CONNECT - SSH into your servers with passwords or Ed25519/RSA keys - Trusted host-key verification warns you if a server's key ever changes - Multiple live sessions; minimize one and pick it back up from the tab bar BIG SCREEN - Plug in video glasses like VITURE, or a monitor or TV, and the terminal fills that screen - Your phone keeps the keyboard and key bar, and shows the session's files where the terminal was - Its own text size for the glasses, a Paste button, and PgUp/PgDn through the scrollback MANAGE - Organize hosts into groups - Save reusable command snippets - Generate and store SSH keys in the iOS Keychain - Set up local and remote port forwards TRANSFER - Browse, upload, and download files over SFTP - Upload from Files, iCloud Drive or your photo library, several files at once AI ASSISTANT (optional) - Ask an AI assistant about terminal output and get suggested commands - Bring your own API key: Anthropic, OpenAI, OpenRouter, or Hugging Face - Off by default; you're told which provider receives data before anything is sent PRIVACY - No account, no Pockterm servers, no tracking or analytics - Credentials and keys live in the iOS Keychain - Your connection data stays on your device OPEN SOURCE - The full source is on GitHub under the Apache 2.0 licence: github.com/jhancock1975/pockterm

Screenshots

Conduit4 screens
Pockterm4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is update cadence: Conduit at every 2 days against Pockterm's every 10 days. Conduit also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 18.0). On price, ads, in-app purchases and device support 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.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Conduit ships an update every 2 days, Pockterm every 10 days. Both last shipped on October 31, 2026.

Scorecard2 real differences · 7 level
Conduit versus Pockterm: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterConduitPockterm
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
Update frequencyEvery 2 days — betterEvery 10 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhone, iPod — betteriPhone
Requires iOS13.0 — better18.0
Further details — not scored
Size26 MB13 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperGrzegorz WitkowskiJohn Hancock

In-app purchases

None

Conduit

No in-app purchases

None

Pockterm

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Conduit free?
Conduit is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Pockterm free?
Pockterm is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Conduit or Pockterm have ads?
Neither Conduit nor Pockterm shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Conduit or Pockterm?
Conduit ships an update every 2 days, and Pockterm every 10 days. Most recently, Conduit was updated on October 31, 2026 and Pockterm on October 31, 2026.

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