Alternatives to WindTerm
A fast SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and tmux client for Windows, macOS and Linux, free for commercial use. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
WindTerm
A fast SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and tmux client for Windows, macOS and Linux, free for commercial use.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as WindTerm.
Tabby
A terminal, SSH client and serial console in one window, with a connection manager and an encrypted secret store.
Tabby is a fully open-source MIT terminal with SSH, Telnet, serial and an encrypted secret store, but its Electron base uses more memory and starts slower.
MobaXterm
A Windows remote-computing toolbox: tabbed SSH, an X11 server, RDP, VNC, FTP and Unix commands in one portable executable.
MobaXterm adds an X11 server, RDP, VNC and a graphical SFTP browser, but it is closed source, Windows only, and its free edition caps saved sessions.
PuTTY
The small, stubbornly reliable SSH and Telnet client that has been on every Windows admin’s desktop for twenty-five years.
PuTTY is an MIT-licensed SSH and Telnet client with PSCP, PSFTP and Pageant, regularly updated, but with a dated interface and no official Mac port.
Electerm
Manage terminal and remote-file connections in one application.
Electerm is a fully open-source MIT app for SSH, SFTP and other protocols on Windows, macOS and Linux, with features varying by platform.
Tera Term
Long-running Windows terminal emulator for SSH, Telnet and serial connections.
Tera Term is a BSD-licensed Windows-only client for SSH, Telnet and serial with a macro language, but has a dated interface and no classic tabs.
KiTTY
A PuTTY fork for Windows that adds session filtering, automatic login scripts and portability.
KiTTY is a portable Windows-only PuTTY fork adding session filtering and login scripts, based on PuTTY 0.76 and last released in September 2023.
Wave Terminal
A terminal with file previews, a remote file editor, web browsing and AI assistance arranged as blocks in one window.
Wave Terminal is an Apache-2.0 Electron terminal with resilient SSH sessions, a remote file editor and optional AI, heavier than WindTerm's native client.
SecureCRT
A commercial SSH and Telnet client with session management and scripting for Windows, macOS and Linux.
SecureCRT is a paid, closed-source SSH and Telnet client for Windows, macOS and Linux with tab groups, keyword highlighting and scripting.
Also worth comparing
These listings name WindTerm as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.
Bitvise SSH Client
A Windows SSH client combining a terminal, SFTP file transfer and port forwarding.
WindTerm is a free native SSH, SFTP, telnet and serial client for Windows, macOS and Linux, with only part of its source published.
C-Kermit
A scriptable command-line program for serial and network connections, terminal sessions and file transfer.
WindTerm is a native graphical client for SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and raw TCP on all desktops, free for commercial use but only partly open source.
Solar-PuTTY
A free tabbed SSH, Telnet, SCP and SFTP session manager for Windows, built on PuTTY.
WindTerm is a free native SSH, SFTP, telnet and serial client that adds macOS and Linux builds and split views, with only part of its source published.
Termius
A cross-platform SSH client for desktop and mobile that syncs hosts, keys and snippets between devices.
WindTerm is free for commercial use on Windows, macOS and Linux with SSH, SFTP, serial and tmux support, but has no mobile apps and no device syncing.
Xshell
A tabbed SSH, Telnet and serial terminal client for Windows from NetSarang.
WindTerm is free for commercial use with SSH, SFTP, telnet, serial and tmux on Windows, macOS and Linux, though only part of its source is published.
ZOC Terminal
A commercial SSH, Telnet and serial terminal emulator for Windows and macOS.
WindTerm covers SSH, SFTP, telnet and serial on Windows, macOS and Linux, free for commercial use, though only partly open source.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
tmux
Keeps terminal sessions alive on a server after you disconnect, and splits one window into many.
Wishlist
Choose SSH destinations from an interactive directory.
assh
Wrapper that adds regex hosts, templates, gateways and hooks to SSH configuration.
Windows Terminal
Microsoft’s tabbed terminal for Windows, hosting Command Prompt, PowerShell and WSL in one GPU-rendered window.
OpenSSH
The standard SSH client and server suite for encrypted remote login, file copying and tunnelling.
Mosh
A remote shell that replaces interactive SSH and survives roaming, sleep and dropped connections.
