xterm Alternatives for Linux

There are many alternatives to xterm for Linux if you are looking for a replacement. The best Linux alternative is Tabby, which is both free and Open Source. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50 alternatives to xterm and many of them are available for Linux so hopefully you can find a suitable replacement. Other interesting Linux alternatives to xterm are Ghostty, Alacritty, Kitty terminal and Terminator.

xterm iconxterm
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The xterm program is a terminal emulator for the X Window System. It provides DEC VT102 and Tektronix 4014 compatible...

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xterm alternatives page was last updated Apr 25, 2025
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  1. Tabby icon

    Tabby

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

    102 Tabby alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • UA flagUkraine

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Tabby screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Customizable
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  SSH
    2.  Command line interface
    3.  Support for SFTP
    4.  Multiple Servers
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Electron based
    7.  Portable
    8.  Serial-port
    9.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    10.  Works Offline
    11.  Ad-free
    12.  Tabbed interface

    Tabby VS xterm

     

    • Tabby is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to xterm.

    • Tabby is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to xterm.

    • Tabby is Free and Open Sourcexterm is also Free and Open Source
    • Tabby is Customizablexterm is not according to our users
  2. Ghostty icon

    Ghostty

     36 likes
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    Cross-platform terminal emulator balancing speed, platform-native UI, and modern features. Designed for an enhanced interactive CLI environment, offering full standards compliance for seamless integration with shells and CLI tools.

    55 Ghostty alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Nix Package Manager
    • Homebrew
    Ghostty screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Customizable
    3.  Support for Themes
    4.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Cross-Platform
    2.  GPU Acceleration
    3.  Tabbed interface
    4.  Split-screen view
    5.  Dark Mode
    6.  Syntax Highlighting
    7.  Portable
    8.  Support for scripting
    9.  Ad-free
    10.  No registration required
    11.  No Tracking
    12.  Works Offline

    Ghostty VS xterm

     
  4. Alacritty icon

    Alacritty

     65 likes
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    Alacritty is a blazing fast, GPU accelerated terminal emulator. It’s written in Rust and uses OpenGL for rendering to be the fastest terminal emulator available. Alacritty is available on GitHub in source form.

    83 Alacritty alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • BSD
    Alacritty screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Optimal performance
    3.  Support for Themes

    Features

    1.  GPU Support
    2.  No input delay
    3.  Portable
    4.  Command line interface
    5.  Support for scripting
    6.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions

    Alacritty VS xterm

     
  5. Kitty terminal icon

    Kitty terminal

     50 likes
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    Kitty ( not to be confused with KiTTY ) is a powerful, cross-platform GPU-based terminal emulator. It offloads rendering to the GPU and uses OpenGL for fast, cross-platform performance with built-in tiling layouts as well as graphic, unicode...

    82 Kitty terminal alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • CA flagCanada

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    Kitty terminal screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Keyboard focused

    Features

    1.  GPU based
    2.  Font Ligature Support
    3.  Split-screen view
    4.  Command line interface
    5.  Tiling Layouts
    6.  Full keyboard shortcuts
    7.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    8.  Syntax Highlighting

    Kitty terminal VS xterm

     
  6. Terminator icon

    Terminator

     163 likes
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    Terminator enables the user to run and manage multiple terminal emulators side-by-side in the same window. The main focus is arranging terminals in a grid. (Tabs is the most common default method, which Terminator also supports.

    88 Terminator alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • GB flagUnited Kingdom

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • BSD
    • GNOME
    Terminator is running Vim, Bash, and Python side by side.

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Configurable

    Features

    1.  Support for Multiple Monitors
    2.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    3.  Split-screen view
    4.  Function Key Shortcuts
    5.  Tiling Layouts
    6.  Split windows
    7.  Multiple Terminal

    Terminator VS xterm

     
    Comments about Terminator as an Alternative to xterm
    Guest
    Positive Oct 24, 2017
    0

    Split windows and broadcasting commands across all windows.

    xterm Icon
    Terminator icon
    • Terminator is Free and Open Sourcexterm is also Free and Open Source
    • Terminator is Lightweightxterm is not according to our users
  7. GNOME Terminal icon

    GNOME Terminal

     158 likes
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    GNOME Terminal is a terminal emulator for the GNOME desktop environment written by Havoc Pennington and others. Terminal emulators allow users to execute commands using a real UNIX shell while remaining on their graphical desktop.

    71 GNOME Terminal alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • BSD
    • GNOME
    GNOME Terminal screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Background transparency

    GNOME Terminal VS xterm

     
  9. Tess icon

    Tess

     14 likes
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    Tess is a terminal emulator. It lets you have a full access to your computer, use command line based programs and many more.

    59 Tess alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • FR flagFrance
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Linux
    Tess screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Support for Themes
    2.  Lightweight
    3.  Privacy focused
    4.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Portable
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    4.  Support for scripting
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  Works Offline
    8.  Command line interface
    9.  No Tracking
    10.  Tabbed interface

    Tess VS xterm

     
  10. Wave Terminal icon

    Wave Terminal

     14 likes
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    Wave is an open-source, AI-native terminal built for seamless developer workflows with inline rendering, a modern UI, and persistent sessions.

    63 Wave Terminal alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Windows
    Render images inline with Wave plugins.

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused
    2.  Lightweight

    Features

    1.  Syntax Highlighting
    2.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    3.  Support for MarkDown
    4.  No registration required
    5.  Command line interface
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  Ad-free
    8.  Dark Mode
    9.  Comma Separated Values
    10.  AI-Powered

    Wave Terminal VS xterm

     
  11. Konsole icon

    Konsole

     64 likes
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    Konsole is a terminal to run a command shell. It provides a command line interface for directly controlling your computer.

    67 Konsole alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application type

    Country of Origin

    • DE flagGermany
    • European Union flagEU

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • BSD
    • Flathub
    • KDE
    Konsole screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Lightweight
    2.  Support for Themes
    3.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Multi-tabs
    2.  Dual Pane Support
    3.  Color Palette
    4.  Tiling Layouts

    Konsole VS xterm

     
  12. Hyper icon

    Hyper

     81 likes
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    Hyper™ is a beautiful and extensible, cross-platform terminal built on open web standards. It provides an elegant command-line experience that is consistent across all supported platforms which includes macOS, Windows and various Linux distributions like Fedora and Debian.

    94 Hyper alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • US flagUnited States

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Electron / Atom Shell
    Splitting terminals

    Properties

    1.  Support for Themes
    2.  Clean design
    3.  Customizable

    Features

    1.  Extensible by Plugins/Extensions
    2.  Command line interface
    3.  Electron based
    4.  Split-screen view
    5.  Tiling Panes
    6.  Uses Packages
    7.  Plugin API
    8.  Divisible
    9.  Skinnable

    Hyper VS xterm

     
  13. Termius icon

    Termius

     34 likes
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    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.

    54 Termius alternatives

    License model

    • Freemium • Proprietary

    Application types

    Country of Origin

    • NZ flagNew Zealand

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Chrome OS
    • iPad
    • Flathub
    Termius screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Security-focused

    Features

    1.  Support for SFTP
    2.  Mosh client
    3.  Keychain
    4.  Port Forwarding
    5.  Unix-like
    6.  SSH
    7.  User Session Recording
    8.  Cloud Sync
    9.  FTP Server Migration
    10.  Server Monitoring
    11.  Secure Copy (SCP)

    Termius VS xterm

     

    • Termius is the most popular iPhone & iPad alternative to xterm.

    • Termius is Freemium and Proprietaryxterm is Free and Open Source
  14. Termora icon

    Termora

     7 likes
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    Termora is developed using Kotlin/JVM and partially implements the XTerm protocol (with ongoing improvements). Its ultimate vision is to achieve full platform support (including Android, iOS, and iPadOS) through Kotlin Multiplatform.

    53 Termora alternatives

    License model

    • Free • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Homebrew
    Termora screenshot 1

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Command line interface
    2.  Ad-free
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Portable
    5.  No registration required
    6.  Works Offline
    7.  Syntax Highlighting
    8.  SSH
    9.  Gist support
    10.  Port Forwarding
    11.  Support for SFTP
    12.  WebDAV Sync

    Termora VS xterm

     
12 of 44 xterm alternatives