Alternatives

Best Tabby alternatives in 2026

Tabby is terminal app with an SSH client, serial terminal and plugins. These 9 alternatives come from the same rankings, ordered by editorial score. Connected products carry a small, disclosed lift.

9 alternatives From best terminal emulators How we rank Share

Ranked alternatives

  1. WezTerm

    A cross-platform terminal and multiplexer with SSH, serial ports and copy mode built in, under the MIT license. Its configuration surface is large, so the first setup takes time.

    Best for One cross-platform terminal with multiplexing

    WindowsmacOSLinuxFree and open sourceOpen source

  2. iTerm2

    A long-standing macOS terminal with split panes, profiles and shell integration, free under the GPL v2. It runs only on macOS, so it cannot cover a mixed set of computers.

    Best for Power features on a Mac

    macOSFree and open sourceOpen source

  3. Ghostty

    A fast, native terminal for macOS and Linux with GPU acceleration and search through scrollback, under the MIT license. Its download page lists no Windows build, and it is a younger project.

    Best for Fast native terminal on macOS and Linux

    macOSLinuxFree and open sourceOpen source

  4. Windows Terminal

    Microsoft's MIT-licensed terminal for Windows, free from the Microsoft Store and built to host cmd, PowerShell and WSL sessions. It runs only on Windows.

    Best for Windows, WSL and command-line work

    WindowsFree and open sourceOpen source

  5. kitty

    A GPU-based terminal for Linux and macOS with window layouts, a remote control protocol and image display. It has no Windows build, and its GPL-3.0 license requires shared source for modified distributions.

    Best for Scripting and layouts on Linux or macOS

    LinuxmacOSFree and open sourceOpen source

  6. Warp

    A modern terminal with built-in AI agents, available for macOS, Linux and Windows, with a Free plan. Paid plans bill extra agent usage, and its focus on agents differs from a plain terminal.

    Best for Terminal work with built-in AI agents

    macOSLinuxWindowsFree plan, paid upgradesOpen source

  7. Alacritty

    A fast, minimal OpenGL terminal for BSD, Linux, macOS and Windows under Apache-2.0 or MIT. It has no built-in tabs or splits, and the project describes itself as beta-level software.

    Best for Minimal, fast terminal with a multiplexer

    LinuxmacOSWindowsFree and open sourceOpen source

  8. Hyper

    MIT-licensed plugin-driven terminal from Vercel with installers for macOS and Windows and a JavaScript config file. Its plugin and theme system is its main draw, and it lists fewer platforms than the leaders here.

    Best for Plugin-based terminal configured in JavaScript

    macOSWindowsFree and open sourceOpen source

  9. Terminator

    GPL-2.0 Linux terminal that combines and recombines several terminals in one window, aimed at people with many shells open. It is Linux-only and narrower than the cross-platform terminals here.

    Best for Several shells side by side on a Linux desktop

    LinuxFree and open sourceOpen source

About Tabby alternatives

What is the best alternative to Tabby?
On listme.name the highest-scored alternative is WezTerm, followed by iTerm2. The right choice depends on price, platform and whether you need open source.
Is there a free alternative to Tabby?
Yes. Free options include WezTerm, iTerm2, Ghostty.