# Shelly vs MonkeySSH

The clearest difference is rating: MonkeySSH at 5.0 against Shelly's 4.4. MonkeySSH also leads on update cadence (every 2 days vs every 2 months). Shelly's advantage is ratings volume (277 vs 1) and chart position (#187 vs unranked). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Both are free to download. Shelly sells 1 one-off in-app purchase and MonkeySSH sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $4.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

MonkeySSH holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.4. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Shelly has 277 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two.

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, MonkeySSH every 2 days. The most recent releases landed on October 24, 2026 and October 10, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Shelly | MonkeySSH |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | [4.4 (277 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shelly-ssh-client/id989642999/reviews) | **[5.0 (1 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monkeyssh/id6758901191/reviews)** |
| Number of ratings | **277** | 1 |
| Positive reviews | 76.3% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | Every 2 months | **Every 2 days** |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Freemium |
| Best chart rank | **#187** | — |
| Size | 11 MB | 56 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Touch Foo](https://appshunter.io/developer/331891508) | [Depollsoft](https://appshunter.io/developer/539417301) |

## What reviewers say

### Shelly

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

**Currently charting:** #187 Top Grossing · 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


### MonkeySSH

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/monkeyssh/id6758901191)

This app provides a mobile SSH workspace for agentic coding, allowing users to connect to servers, manage remote windows, and resume coding sessions. It features a robust terminal, file browsing, port forwarding, and secure SSH key management for modern remote development.

**Highlights:** Mobile terminal with advanced features, MonkeyMux and tmux remote window management, Agent workflows for coding assistants, SFTP workspace for file management, SSH key management, Port forwarding with in-app browser, Local-first security with biometrics

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

**In-app purchases (2)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MonkeySSH Pro (Monthly) | $4.99 | per month |
| MonkeySSH Pro (Annual) | $49.99 | per year |


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Shelly free?

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

### Is MonkeySSH free?

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

### Which has better reviews, Shelly or MonkeySSH?

MonkeySSH is rated higher. Shelly averages 4.4 out of 5 from 277 ratings, while MonkeySSH averages 5.0 from 1 ratings.

### Do Shelly or MonkeySSH have ads?

Neither Shelly nor MonkeySSH shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Shelly or MonkeySSH?

Shelly ships an update every 2 months, and MonkeySSH every 2 days. Most recently, Shelly was updated on October 24, 2026 and MonkeySSH on October 10, 2026.

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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.*