Local Unix terminal for iOS. Run C, C++, Python, JS, sh & all Unix commands locally on your phone, no network connection required.
Powerful when combined with Shortcuts.
a-Shell is a complete local terminal emulator, allowing to run most Unix commands on your iOS device. You can transfer files using scp and curl, edit them with vim and ed, process them using grep, awk and sed. You can work with git repositories using lg2.
Most commands are compiled for iOS native Arm64 format, making them fast and well integrated with the BSD Unix that powers iOS/iPadOS.
a-Shell includes Python, Lua, Perl, JavaScript, C, C++ for programming and TeX (texlive 2025, with Tikz and LuaTeX) for text processing.
There are also multiple network utilities: nslookup, ping, whois, ifconfig... Type help for help, help -l to get the full list of commands.
a-Shell can be controlled from Shortcuts: run commands in order, process files in a-Shell, get the results as text or files, transfer files to other apps...
a-shell uses iOS 13+ “multiple windows” ability, so you can run multiple shells at the same time, with different commands, in different directories. You can edit a file in one window with vim and process it in the other with python.
Compile your C or C++ programs to webAssembly using clang or clang++, and execute the resulting binary. A complete webAssembly SDK is included (WASI-libc).
a-Shell is the complete version. If you need a smaller app, and you don't need a C compiler, a TeX engine, or numpy and matplotlib, there is a-Shell mini.
Most of the features I want all free. I’m in love.
AMAZING!
rstolberg
I cannot sing the praises of this terminal enough. The person who made this could have soooooo easily monetized certain features of this like all the other ios terminals out there but they didn't. They made it minimal (or capable of being minimal), which I love, and it allows me to use my ipad as my school development machine (that I can connect to my home machine via ssh--thank you), keeping me from sinking money into buying a laptop. I've never written a review for anything on the app store before. I love this app.
Amazing!
bjrichardson999
It looks like iSH is no longer in development and now runs an emulated x86 Linux shell based on an old version of Alpine. This, however, is a different animal altogether. While there are vastly fewer packages available at this time, it appears to still be in active development, and already has many important dev tools available. A must-have for any Unix guy — a full-blown Unix shell on your iPad is probably the only missing feature out of the box.
- updated certificate files for the main app and for Python to fix for the eMudhra CA Key Compromise issue.
- support for user fonts
- support for color themes
- new commands: node, npm, npx, helix, fzf, rg, fd, ruff, gix, ein, navi
- bug fixes: the terminal remains above the keyboard, the terminal gets the focus back on its own after you dismiss a "view" or a "play" window, matching the toolbar color with the terminal color, fixed several places where the app would crash...
Version 2.3.0
The developer, Nicolas Holzschuch, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Privacy practices may vary, for example, based on the features you use or your age. Learn More
The developer indicated that this app supports the following accessibility features. Learn More
Supported Features
VoiceOver
Larger Text
Dark Interface
Sufficient Contrast
Information
Seller
Nicolas Holzschuch
Size
2.3 GB
Category
Developer Tools
Compatibility
Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
iPhone Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
iPad Requires iPadOS 14.0 or later.
iPod touch Requires iOS 14.0 or later.
Mac Requires macOS 12.0.0 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later.
