Comparison

Shelly vs xTerminal

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

xTerminal

Manage servers remotely with a fast and secure SSH terminal client. Features include a powerful editor, multi-session management, file transfer, and advanced security options. Ideal for IT professionals and developers needing to control servers from anywhere.

Highlights
  • Interactive SSH terminal
  • Built-in vi/vim editor
  • Multi-session management
  • Command snippets
  • SFTP file management
  • Secure port knocking
  • Batch command execution
Features
Read full description

xTerminal - Your Ultimate SSH Terminal Shell xTerminal is your all-in-one SSH terminal client for managing servers with speed and security. Whether you're an IT professional or a developer, xTerminal gives you the tools to easily connect, control, and manage your servers from anywhere. Key Features: * Interactive SSH Terminal: A fast, reliable terminal for executing commands on your servers. Eg: Use top to monitor system status or follow logs with tail -f. * Powerful Editor: Edit documents with vi/vim just like on a desktop, with full support for CTRL and arrow keys, making your SSH terminal experience smooth. * Multi-Session Management: Manage multiple SSH connections at once. Add, remove, and switch between sessions with ease, boosting your productivity. * Snippets: Save and organize frequently used SSH commands. Quickly search by name, command, or label, making repeated tasks quicker and simpler. * Device Management: Add your SSH servers, group them by labels, and search by name, host, or labels. Connect via password or public key authentication. * Advanced SSH Options: Support for SSH jump hosts and SOCKS5 proxies for enhanced security and flexible connections. * SFTP for File Management: Upload, download, edit, move, and delete files using the built-in SFTP, allowing you to manage files on your servers directly from the terminal. * Keep Sessions Alive: Use “Keep Awake” and “Keep Alive” features to maintain persistent SSH connections without interruptions. * User-Friendly Interface: Simple navigation with pull-to-refresh, search highlights, sortable lists, and drag-and-drop to reorder devices or snippets. * Live Ping Monitoring: Check device connectivity in real-time with ping stats, including ms and TTL, helping you monitor the health of your network. * Discover Network Devices: Easily find and save neighboring network devices for quick access later. * Secure Port Knocking: Add an extra layer of protection by using port knocking to guard your servers from unauthorized access. * Enhanced Security: Use TouchID/FaceID to protect your SSH sessions, ensuring secure access to your terminal on app launch or resume. * iCloud Sync: Backup and restore your device and snippet lists across all iOS devices, ensuring seamless access to your settings anywhere. * Copy & Paste: Effortlessly run commands from the clipboard or copy terminal output, streamlining your workflow in the terminal. * Universal App: Optimized for both iPhone and iPad, giving you a consistent experience across devices. * Secure Data Storage: All credentials and data are stored securely on your device, so you can rest assured your information is safe. * Batch Execution: Execute commands on multiple servers at once and view all the outputs in one go. * Startup Snippets: Set up essential commands to run on app startup, giving you immediate access to critical tasks as soon as you connect. xTerminal is built for anyone needing a fast, reliable, and secure SSH terminal. It’s perfect for managing remote servers on various platforms, including macOS, Linux, OpenBSD, FreeBSD, NetBSD, Solaris, and OpenVMS. Payment will be charged to iTunes Account at confirmation of purchase. Subscription automatically renews unless auto-renew is turned off at least 24-hours before the end of the current period. Account will be charged for renewal within 24-hours prior to the end of the current period, and identify the cost of the renewal. Subscriptions may be managed by the user and auto-renewal may be turned off by going to the user's Account Settings after purchase. Any unused portion of a free trial period, if offered, will be forfeited when the user purchases a subscription to that publication, where applicable. Terms of use https://septudio.com/terms-of-use and privacy policy https://septudio.com/privacy-policy

Screenshots

Shelly4 screens
xTerminal4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: Shelly at none against xTerminal's shown. Shelly also leads on iOS requirement (13.0 vs 15.1). xTerminal's advantage is rating (4.7 vs 4.4) and update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 2 months). On price, review sentiment, 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 xTerminal sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $6.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

xTerminal holds the better App Store score, 4.7 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: xTerminal has 1.9K ratings behind it against 273, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 76% of Shelly's written reviews are positive against 69% of xTerminal's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, xTerminal every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard6 real differences · 5 level
Shelly versus xTerminal: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterShellyxTerminal
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.4 (273 ratings)4.7 (1.9K ratings) — better
Positive reviews76.2% of reviews — better68.6% of reviews
Number of ratings2731.9K — better
Update frequencyEvery 2 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsNo — betterYes
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
Best chart rank#192#30 — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS13.0 — better15.1
Further details — not scored
Size11 MB26 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperTouch Foo婉媚 邵

Customer experience

Shelly

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

xTerminal

All ratings1,919 ratings
Positive93.7%
Neutral1.4%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews172 reviews
Positive68.6%
Neutral2.3%
Negative29.1%

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

xTerminal

From 1.9K App Store ratings

What we love

  • 🚀 Fast connections
  • 👍 Easy to navigate
  • 💡 Useful app
  • 👍 Great support team

Room to improve

  • 🔒 Security risks with storing credentials
  • 💰 Expensive subscription model
  • 🐛 Occasional bugs
  • 🔒 Lack of secure credential entry

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

xTerminal

Reported bugs

3 issues
  • Blank screen on connection
  • Incompatibility with older devices
  • Nano text editor issues

Requested features

3 requests
  • Dark mode option
  • Import key functionality
  • Improved ANSI support

In-app purchases

1 purchases

Shelly

One-time1
  • Upgrade To Pro$3.99
3 purchases

xTerminal

Subscriptions2
  • xTerminal Pro Monthly$6.991 Month
  • xTerminal Pro7 Days trial$29.991 Year
One-time1
  • xTerminal Pro2 variants$59.99

Questions

Is Shelly free?
Shelly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is xTerminal free?
xTerminal is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Shelly or xTerminal?
xTerminal is rated higher. Shelly averages 4.4 out of 5 from 273 ratings, while xTerminal averages 4.7 from 1.9K ratings.
Do Shelly or xTerminal have ads?
xTerminal shows ads; Shelly does not.
Which is updated more often, Shelly or xTerminal?
Shelly ships an update every 2 months, and xTerminal every 3 weeks. Most recently, Shelly was updated on September 24, 2026 and xTerminal on September 23, 2026.
Which is more popular, Shelly or xTerminal?
Shelly currently peaks at #192 in the App Store charts, and xTerminal at #30. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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