Comparison

Shelly vs SSH Client

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

Head to head
About

Shelly

A powerful and user-friendly SSH client for mobile devices. It offers robust terminal emulation, gesture controls, and customizable keyboard shortcuts for efficient remote server management. Supports key-based authentication and iCloud sync.

Highlights
  • Hardware accelerated text rendering
  • Robust terminal emulation
  • Gesture control for navigation
  • Customizable keyboard toolbar
  • Key file authentication
  • iCloud sync support
  • Terminal color themes
Features
Read full description

SSH client designed for usability and performance. RELIABLE AND FAST • Hardware accelerated text rendering. • Robust terminal emulation based on the PuTTY engine. • Works great with programs such as 'screen' and 'irssi'. CONTROL WITH GESTURES • Default gestures optimized for irssi. Just swipe to switch channels or to scroll up and down. • Fully customizable. Any keypress or action can be attached to any gesture. EASY CONNECTING • Save user credentials and configure a remote command such as ‘screen -rd’ to connect with one tap. • 3D touch support. Connect directly from the iOS home screen. CUSTOMIZABLE KEYBOARD • Easily bind custom actions to buttons on the keyboard toolbar. • Works with custom iOS keyboards such as SwiftKey. OPEN LINKS AND SELECT TEXT • Familiar iOS text selection experience. Long-press on text to show the selection controls. • Copy and paste text. • Select a URL to easily open it in the web browser. OTHER FEATURES • iCloud sync support. • Terminal color themes. Choose your favorite from the several themes included or make your own. • Key file authentication support. Import an existing private key, or create a new key and export the public key. • Host key verification and management. • Agent forwarding (OpenSSH servers only). • Keep connections alive while the app is in the background. • Connection history with optional realtime location data. • Plenty of other configuration options. Please note that some features require a paid upgrade. You can try all features for free for a limited time.

About

SSH Client

This app provides a fast SSH terminal and remote file access, seamlessly integrating your SSH servers with your iOS device. It offers advanced text editing gestures, drag-and-drop file management, and built-in tmux support for persistent sessions. Access your server's file system directly within the Files app and automate transfers via Shortcuts.

Highlights
  • Lightning fast SSH terminal
  • Remote file access and management
  • Standard and custom text editing gestures
  • Drag-and-drop file transfer
  • Built-in tmux support for session persistence
  • Files app integration for server file system
  • Shortcuts app integration for automation
Features
Read full description

Lightning fast SSH terminal with remote file access. No other app fuses your SSH servers and iOS devices as well as Secure ShellFish. Tap Get and see for yourself. Terminal supports standard text editing gestures for selection, scrolling and copy/paste as well as custom gestures to send arrow keys and tabulator making shell entry and full screen editing with vim or emacs delightful. Bar above the keyboard makes it easy to type special keys and insert snippets. Select and drag filenames out of the terminal as actual files and drag files from other apps into the terminal to upload. Use built-in tmux support to persist terminal sessions if you lose Internet access, pick existing sessions with thumbnails and Handoff sessions between devices. Server file system is available in the Files app and recently accessed files and directories are cached to make them available when offline. Use apps like Textastic and iA Writer for a native editing experience working on your remote server files. Upload files or entire directories from the share sheet with minimal friction as the last destination directory for each kind of file is remembered or automate file transfers in the Shortcuts app. Connect to your Mac, Synology NAS and any other SSH server or create new Digital Ocean droplets right from the app. Secure ShellFish is useful as a free app and paying pro users can disable ads in the terminal, upload through the Files app and configure unlimited number of servers.

Screenshots

Shelly4 screens
SSH Client4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: SSH Client at 4.8 against Shelly's 4.4. SSH Client also leads on update cadence (weekly vs every 2 months) and review sentiment (94% vs 76%). Shelly's advantage is iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.4). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model 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. Shelly sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and SSH Client sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

SSH Client holds the better App Store score, 4.8 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: SSH Client has 1.5K ratings behind it against 273, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 76% of Shelly's written reviews are positive against 94% of SSH Client's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, SSH Client weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Shelly versus SSH Client: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShellySSH Client
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (273 ratings)4.8 (1.5K ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.2% of reviews94.3% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2731.5K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsWeekly — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFreemium
Best chart rank#182#29 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch — better
Requires iOS13.0 — better17.4
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB117 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTouch FooAnders Borum

Customer experience

Shelly

All ratings273 ratings
Positive83.5%
Neutral4.4%
Negative12.1%
Written reviews353 reviews
Positive76.2%
Neutral8.8%
Negative15.0%

SSH Client

All ratings1,509 ratings
Positive95.8%
Neutral1.3%
Negative3.0%
Written reviews614 reviews
Positive94.3%
Neutral1.8%
Negative3.9%

User reviews

Shelly

From 273 App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Lightweight and fast
  • 👍 Customizable keyboard and gestures
  • 🔒 Supports SSH key authentication
  • 💡 Useful shortcuts and toolbar
  • 👍 Reliable background connections

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional connection drops when switching apps
  • 🐛 Toolbar issues with hardware keyboard
  • 🐛 Garbled display with some terminal programs
  • 🐛 Lack of support for newer SSH key formats
  • 🐛 Inconsistent behavior with password managers

SSH Client

From 1.5K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Turns iPad into productivity machine
  • 🚀 Seamless SSH experience
  • 👍 Excellent integration with Files app
  • 👍 Robust key management and syncing
  • 👍 Powerful terminal with great features

Room to improve

  • 🐛 Occasional crashes or freezes
  • 🐛 Inconsistent behavior with some commands
  • 🔒 Concerns about data privacy and security

Bugs and requests

Shelly

Reported bugs

4 issues
  • Saved profiles get overwritten unexpectedly
  • Toolbar persists even with auto-hide enabled
  • Cursor movement issues with hardware keyboard
  • Inability to copy/paste with Magic Keyboard

Requested features

5 requests
  • Add support for port forwarding
  • Implement Mosh protocol support
  • Allow customization of default font
  • Provide option for multiple app instances
  • Add ability to remap hardware keyboard keys

SSH Client

Reported bugs

2 issues
  • Crashes when running certain commands
  • Issues with file transfer progress reporting

Requested features

4 requests
  • Improved documentation and tutorials
  • Support for additional authentication methods
  • Customizable keyboard shortcuts and layouts
  • Tabbed terminal interface

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Shelly

One-time1
  • Upgrade To Pro$3.99
3 purchases

SSH Client

Subscriptions2
  • ShellFish Monthly subscription14 Days trial$2.991 Month
  • ShellFish Annual subscription$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • ShellFish Lifetime Pro Unlock$29.99

Questions

Is Shelly free?
Shelly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is SSH Client free?
SSH Client is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Shelly or SSH Client?
SSH Client is rated higher. Shelly averages 4.4 out of 5 from 273 ratings, while SSH Client averages 4.8 from 1.5K ratings.
Do Shelly or SSH Client have ads?
Neither Shelly nor SSH Client shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Shelly or SSH Client?
Shelly ships an update every 2 months, and SSH Client weekly. Most recently, Shelly was updated on September 24, 2026 and SSH Client on September 23, 2026.
Which is more popular, Shelly or SSH Client?
Shelly currently peaks at #182 in the App Store charts, and SSH Client at #29. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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