Alternatives to Tera Term

Long-running Windows terminal emulator for SSH, Telnet and serial connections. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.

Replacements

Listings that take over the same core job as Tera Term.

  • PuTTY

    The small, stubbornly reliable SSH and Telnet client that has been on every Windows admin’s desktop for twenty-five years.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsLinuxmacOS

    PuTTY is a small MIT-licensed SSH, Telnet and serial client with PSCP, PSFTP and Pageant, stores settings in the registry and has an X11-based Unix build.

  • KiTTY

    A PuTTY fork for Windows that adds session filtering, automatic login scripts and portability.

    FreeOpen sourceWindows

    KiTTY is a Windows PuTTY fork with a session filter, per-session login scripts and a portable build, but based on PuTTY 0.76 without newer security fixes.

  • WindTerm

    A fast SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and tmux client for Windows, macOS and Linux, free for commercial use.

    FreeProprietaryWindowsmacOSLinux

    WindTerm is a native SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and tmux client for Windows, macOS and Linux with split views, though only partly open source.

  • Tabby

    A terminal, SSH client and serial console in one window, with a connection manager and an encrypted secret store.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Tabby is an open-source Electron app for Windows, macOS and Linux with tabs, SSH, Telnet, serial and Zmodem, using more memory than Tera Term.

  • MobaXterm

    A Windows remote-computing toolbox: tabbed SSH, an X11 server, RDP, VNC, FTP and Unix commands in one portable executable.

    FreemiumProprietaryWindows

    MobaXterm is a closed-source freemium Windows toolbox with tabbed SSH, serial, X11, RDP and VNC, where the free edition caps sessions and macros.

  • Electerm

    Manage terminal and remote-file connections in one application.

    FreeOpen sourceWindowsmacOSLinux

    Electerm is an MIT-licensed cross-platform app combining terminal sessions with SSH and SFTP file management, without Tera Term's macro language.

Similar software

Related functionality, not a direct replacement.