# Shelly vs Prompt 3

Shelly and Prompt 3 both sit at 4.4 stars, but that hides the real split: 76% of Shelly's written reviews are positive against 22% of Prompt 3's. Shelly also leads on monetization model (free with in-app purchases vs paid) and iOS requirement (13.0 vs 17.0). Prompt 3's advantage is chart position (#22 vs #186). On price, rating, ratings volume and update cadence there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Shelly sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and Prompt 3 sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $9.99 per year. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.4 for Shelly against 4.3 for Prompt 3. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 273 and 349 respectively. Written reviews are what separate them: 76% of Shelly's written reviews are positive against 22% of Prompt 3's.

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, Prompt 3 every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 24, 2026 and September 23, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Shelly | Prompt 3 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | **[4.4 (273 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelly-ssh-client/id989642999/reviews)** | [4.3 (349 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prompt-3/id1594420480/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | 273 | **349** |
| Positive reviews | **76.2% of reviews** | 22.0% of reviews |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 6 weeks** |
| Monetization | **Free with in-app purchases** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | #186 | **#22** |
| Size | 11 MB | 43 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | **iPhone, iPad, Mac, Vision Pro** |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Touch Foo](https://appshunter.io/developer/331891508) | [Panic, Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/403388568) |

## What reviewers say

### Shelly

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelly-ssh-client/id989642999)

**Currently charting:** #186 Top Free · Developer Tools (US App Store)

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:** macOS Compatibility, Family Sharing, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (1)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Upgrade To Pro | $3.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

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

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 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

**Reported bugs**

- 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**

- 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


### Prompt 3

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/prompt-3/id1594420480)

**Currently charting:** #22 Top Grossing · Developer Tools, #171 Top Free · Developer Tools (US App Store)

A fully-native terminal emulator for Apple devices, offering robust connectivity for SSH, Mosh, and more. It features fast emulation, customizable clips, secure authentication, and cross-device syncing for a seamless experience.

**Highlights:** Native terminal emulator, SSH, Mosh, Eternal Terminal, Telnet support, Panic Sync for cross-device server syncing, Superfast emulation with GPU acceleration, Customizable clips for commands, FaceID/TouchID authentication, Jump Hosts and Agent Forwarding

**Features:** Family Sharing

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Prompt 3 iOS + Mac (Annual) | $9.99 | per year |
| Prompt 3 One Time | $49.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Fast and powerful
- 🔒 Secure with Secure Enclave support
- 👍 Great admin tool
- 👍 Continues to improve over time
- 👍 Fantastic terminal emulator on iPad

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Crashes frequently
- 🐛 Buggy and unreliable
- 🚫 Subscription required for full functionality
- 💰 Extremely expensive, especially for existing users
- 🤔 Lacks features compared to competitors

**Reported bugs**

- Server list randomly disappears with Panic Sync
- Crashes when connected to external monitor
- Black screen issues with custom font configurations
- Sync issues causing data loss
- Vertical display sync issues

**Requested features**

- Shortcuts support on macOS
- Ability to click and select within commands
- Local shell option
- Run clips on server connection
- Export/backup clips


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Shelly free?

Shelly is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Prompt 3 free?

Prompt 3 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Which has better reviews, Shelly or Prompt 3?

Shelly is rated higher. Shelly averages 4.4 out of 5 from 273 ratings, while Prompt 3 averages 4.3 from 349 ratings.

### Do Shelly or Prompt 3 have ads?

Neither Shelly nor Prompt 3 shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Shelly or Prompt 3?

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, and Prompt 3 every 6 weeks. Most recently, Shelly was updated on September 24, 2026 and Prompt 3 on September 23, 2026.

### Which is more popular, Shelly or Prompt 3?

Shelly currently peaks at #186 in the App Store charts, and Prompt 3 at #22. Chart position reflects recent download velocity rather than total install base.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*