The Best PuTTY AlternativesTop Terminal Emulators & SSH Clients like PuTTY

PuTTY is described as 'Free and open-source terminal emulator supporting SSH, Telnet, and SCP. Portable, lightweight, and works offline to connect to remote systems securely' and is a leading terminal emulator in the os & utilities category. There are more than 100 alternatives to PuTTY for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, Linux, Android and iPhone apps. The best PuTTY alternative is KiTTY, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like PuTTY are OpenSSH, MobaXterm, Tabby and Termux.

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PuTTY alternatives are mainly Terminal Emulators, but if you're looking for SSH Clients or Shells you can filter on that. Other popular filters include Mac, Linux, iPhone, Windows, iPad, Google Chrome and Chrome OS. These are just examples - use the filter bar below to find more specific alternatives to PuTTY.
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Alternatives list

  1. KiTTY icon
     190 likes

    KiTTY is an opensource terminal emulator, forked from PuTTY , that adds many extra features to the original software.

    100 KiTTY alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
    |
    4
    KiTTY vs PuTTY Comments
    Sean
    Positive
    2

    It's a more actively developed fork.

    Guest
    Positive
    1

    It's pretty much stock Putty, but upgraded to modern standards.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Vlad
    Positive
    3

    Fork of putty. But more recently updated and fresher.

    3 of 4 comments
    • KiTTY is Free and Open SourcePuTTY is also Free and Open Source
  2. OpenSSH icon
     388 likes

    OpenSSH is a free version of the SSH connectivity tools that technical users rely on. OpenSSH encrypts all traffic (including passwords) to effectively eliminate eavesdropping, connection hijacking, and other attacks.

    60 OpenSSH alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • iPhone
    • BSD
    • Cygwin
    • Haiku
     
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    10
    OpenSSH vs PuTTY Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    Brioni1988
    10

    Up to date. One of the most trustworthy dev teams on the intenet.

    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    17

    There is no gui for connection management.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    ntrain5555
    Negative
    0

    It's not terminal emulator, it's a utility to ssh'd to other mechine.

    3 of 10 comments
    • OpenSSH is Free and Open SourcePuTTY is also Free and Open Source
  3. MobaXterm icon
     228 likes

    MobaXterm is an enhanced terminal app that brings the advanced features of a Unix-like command-line to Windows. It takes the power of Cygwin and wraps it in a sleek, visual interface that's super easy to use, lightweight and portable.

    118 MobaXterm alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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    3
    MobaXterm vs PuTTY Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Arguably the best remote access program out there. Great compact interface, most features I've ever seen, works amazingly fast out of the box. The 10 session limit is what makes this Freemium, so if that is not a big deal for you, this is the software for you.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    It's never let me down and is feature rich.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    tihedomecu
    Negative
    -5

    It's okay, but sessions are constantly disconnected after like a few minutes later. it also has some random cartoons all over the screen so annoying. not recommended.

    • MobaXterm is Freemium and ProprietaryPuTTY is Free and Open Source
    • MobaXterm is CustomizablePuTTY is not according to our users
  4. Tabby icon
     120 likes

    Tabby is an infinitely customizable cross-platform terminal app for local shells, serial, SSH and Telnet connections.

    109 Tabby alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
     
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    1
    Tabby vs PuTTY Comments
    takavar
    Positive
    0

    I think Tabby is overall easier and more smoother to work with. Specially since you get tabs, themes etc. If you just want to ssh into this than that I don't know why you wouldn't switch to tabby.

    • Tabby is Free and Open SourcePuTTY is also Free and Open Source
    • Tabby is CustomizablePuTTY is not according to our users
  5. Termux icon
     116 likes

    Experience a powerful Unix terminal on Android without the need for rooting. Customize with packages via Apt, run command-line tools, SSH, and program in C, Python, and more. Enjoy a full Unix environment with bash, zsh, mouse support, and external display compatibility.

    105 Termux alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • F-Droid
    • zsh
    • GNU Bourne Again SHell
     
  6. mRemoteNG icon
     228 likes

    Manage remote connections efficiently with this open-source tool, featuring a tabbed interface supporting RDP, VNC, SSH, Telnet, HTTP, and more protocols, without any ads.

    87 mRemoteNG alternatives

    Cost / License

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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    2
    mRemoteNG vs PuTTY Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    If multiwindow (think 10+ ssh sessions at a time) is your thing this is the best alternative by far -- as a Linux admin and typically on 25+ servers at a crack this free app managed all servers no sweat.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Free with premium features

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • mRemoteNG is Free and Open SourcePuTTY is also Free and Open Source
  7. Termius icon
     36 likes

    Termius is more than a mere SSH client – it’s a complete command-line solution that’s redefining remote access for sysadmins and network engineers. Securely access Linux or IoT devices and quickly fix issues from the comfort of your couch via laptop or phone.

    58 Termius alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Freemium
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Chrome OS
    • iPad
    • Flathub
     
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    1
    Termius vs PuTTY Comments
    Guest
    Positive
    0

    Can be used on Linux, has a cleaner Interface compared to PuTTY & it's free for students.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    • Termius is Freemium and ProprietaryPuTTY is Free and Open Source
    • Termius is Security-focusedPuTTY is not according to our users
  8. PowerShell icon
     200 likes

    PowerShell (including Windows PowerShell and PowerShell Core) is a task automation and configuration management framework from Microsoft, consisting of a command-line shell and associated scripting language built on the .NET Framework.

    68 PowerShell alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Snapcraft
     
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    6
    PowerShell vs PuTTY Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    Guest
    3

    Since recently Microsoft has integrates OpenSSH in Windows 10 natively, so PowerShell (and Windows terminal) may now connect to SSH hosts from the command line, as you would do from LINUX or OS/X. PuTTY however has many more functions.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Top Negative Comment
    Guest
    11

    PuTTY is for remote terminal access, via SSH, Telnet, serial, etc.. Powershell is a shell for scripting not SSH or Telent access.

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    Guest
    Negative
    0

    as stated by others here PuTTY is a TTY/network serial control application, and PowerShell is a local "terminal-like" application with no remote/TTY capabilities. there is no similarity here

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 6 comments
    • PowerShell is Free and Open SourcePuTTY is also Free and Open Source
  9. ReTerminal icon
     19 likes

    ReTerminal is a sleek, Material 3-inspired terminal emulator designed as a modern alternative to the legacy Jackpal Terminal. Built on Termux's robust TerminalView.

    58 ReTerminal alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source (MIT)

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Android
    • Android Tablet
    • F-Droid
     
  10. SSH client for file transfer, terminal and tunneling.

    63 Bitvise SSH Client alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free Personal
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
     
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    2
    Bitvise SSH Client vs PuTTY Comments
    Oktay Mercan
    Positive
    0

    Easy to use also have sftp

    akanealw
    Positive
    0

    Very handy program. I have my ssh connection connect automatically at login. Does my reverse ssh tunnel and socks proxy and stays minimized in the system tray.

    • Bitvise SSH Client is Free Personal and ProprietaryPuTTY is Free and Open Source
  11. ZOC icon
     70 likes

    ZOC is a powerful and well-established terminal emulator and telnet client, well known for its outstanding user interface with tabbed multi session support.

    74 ZOC alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Paid
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
     
    |
    8
    ZOC vs PuTTY Comments
    Top Positive Comment
    hansolo1988
    3

    Just let me say one thing: Try managing 200 hosts for 10+ clients in the host directory of Putty and ZOC.

    Foworax J. Smith
    Positive
    0

    Much nicer user interface.

    grercl
    Positive
    0

    tabs, ease of use, very easy to customize

    Review by a new / low-activity user.
    3 of 8 comments
    • ZOC is Paid and ProprietaryPuTTY is Free and Open Source
  12. ConnectBot icon
     102 likes

    ConnectBot is a Secure Shell client for the Android platform. Its ultimate goal is to create a secure connection through which you can use a shell on a remote machine and transfer files back and forth to your phone.

    45 ConnectBot alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Android
     
12 of 115 PuTTY alternatives