Termique vs Termius
Termique vs Termius:
which SSH client is right for you?
Termius is a polished SSH client with wide platform coverage and a long track record. It has real cloud sync, a mobile app, and a reasonably clean UI. The problems are architectural and commercial: its encryption model puts key material on the server, its free tier is capped at three hosts, its Pro plan is $10/month and still withholds SFTP and command audit logs, and those features require a $20/month Teams upgrade. Termique takes a different position. Key derivation happens entirely on-device via PBKDF2 and Web Crypto, the server stores only an opaque encrypted blob, SFTP is free on every plan, command audit logs ship at the $5/month Pro tier, and the free tier gives you unlimited hosts. For developers who connect to more than a handful of servers and care about where their credentials actually live, Termique is the more defensible choice on both privacy and cost grounds.
| Feature | Termique | Termius |
|---|---|---|
| Platform | macOS, Windows, Linux | macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android |
| Free tier host limit | Unlimited | 3 hosts |
| Credential storage | AES-GCM, on-device key derivation | AES encrypted, server-side key wrap |
| Cloud sync | ||
| No session telemetry | ||
| Multi-tab SSH sessions | ||
| SFTP file transfer | Free, all plans | Pro ($10/mo) |
| AI terminal assistant | Free tier + Pro | |
| SSH key manager | ||
| Command audit logs | Pro ($5/mo) | Teams ($20/mo+) |
| Host sharing | Pro ($5/mo) | Teams ($20/mo+) |
| Mobile app | iOS + Android | iOS + Android |
| Runtime | Tauri (native) | Electron |
| Price | Free + $5/mo Pro | Free (3 hosts) + $10/mo+ |
Key differences
On-device key derivation vs server-side key wrap
Termique derives your encryption key locally using PBKDF2 and the Web Crypto API. The master password never leaves your device, and the server stores only an AES-GCM ciphertext blob it cannot decode. Termius encrypts credentials too, but its architecture wraps the key on the server side, meaning the service provider holds material that could, under compulsion or breach, expose your credentials. For security-conscious teams connecting to production infrastructure, the difference between these two models is not academic. With Termique, a full backend compromise leaves an attacker with ciphertext they cannot decrypt without your master password.
Free tier: unlimited hosts vs three hosts
Termius Free caps you at three hosts. That is workable for a personal laptop with a single staging server, but it breaks down the moment you manage more than a small handful of machines, a situation that describes most developers within a few weeks of adopting a new tool. Termique's free tier is genuinely unlimited on hosts, and SFTP is free on every plan too. You can import your entire SSH config, organize hosts into groups with color labels, and connect to any of them without hitting a paywall. The upgrade to Pro adds command audit logs, host sharing, and expanded AI usage - it does not unlock basic connectivity you already expect.
Pricing breakdown: $5/mo vs $10/mo, and what each actually includes
Termius Pro is $10/month per user and includes SFTP and most sync features. Command audit logs and host sharing require the Teams plan at $20/month or more per user. Termique gives you SFTP free on every plan, including free - Pro is $5/month and adds the AI assistant, command audit logs, and host sharing, with no higher tier that unlocks features withheld from Pro. For a five-person team that wants audit logs, Termius Teams costs $100/month; Termique Pro costs $25/month for the same capability. The gap widens with headcount.
AI terminal assistant built in
Termique ships an AI assistant that is scoped to the active SSH session. It reads your terminal context - recent output, the current working directory, the host you are connected to - and suggests commands. You review the suggestion before anything executes; nothing runs automatically. The free tier includes a meaningful usage quota. Termius has no equivalent AI feature as of mid-2025. For developers who frequently need to recall flags, construct one-off find/grep pipelines, or troubleshoot unfamiliar services, having an assistant that understands session context is a qualitative workflow improvement.
Command audit logs at Pro vs Teams-only
Command audit logs record which commands were run in which session, by which user, on which host, with timestamps. In Termique, this feature is available at the Pro tier ($5/month). In Termius, it is a Teams-plan feature, which starts at $20/month per user. For small teams or individual developers who need an audit trail - for compliance, incident review, or simply tracking what was run on a shared host - the Termius pricing model makes this feature prohibitively expensive. Termique ships it at Pro as a first-class feature, not as an enterprise add-on.
Host sharing: Pro vs $20/month Teams
Sharing a host with a colleague in Termique requires Pro on your account - the recipient does not need a paid plan to receive the shared host. The share payload is AES-256-GCM encrypted in transit and at rest on the API. In Termius, host sharing is a Teams feature, putting it out of reach for individuals or small teams who are not on an organizational plan. For contractors, freelancers, or small teams that need to share server access without managing a full organizational account, Termique's approach is materially more practical.
Mobile: both iOS and Android, same E2EE model on your phone
Termius has a mature iOS and Android app with full SSH terminal support, SFTP, and synced host management - a real, long-standing advantage. Termique now ships both iOS and Android companion apps too, with host management, SSH terminal access, and the same on-device E2EE sync as the desktop. The difference isn't platform coverage anymore - it's what happens to your credentials once they're synced to a phone: Termius wraps the key server-side, Termique derives it on-device, on mobile the same as on desktop.
Native Tauri runtime vs Electron
Termius is built on Electron, which bundles a full Chromium rendering engine alongside the application. On a typical machine, Termius consumes 300–500 MB of RAM at idle. Termique uses Tauri, a Rust-based native runtime that delegates rendering to the OS WebView. Cold start time is under two seconds, and idle memory sits around 80 MB. For developers who keep their SSH client open all day alongside editors, browsers, and build tools, the memory difference is meaningful. Tauri also has a smaller attack surface than a bundled Chromium instance, which matters for an app that handles SSH credentials.
Migrating from Termius
Termius does not export to a standard format, but Termique provides an import path. If your hosts were originally sourced from an SSH config file, Termique can import directly from ~/.ssh/config. For hosts added manually in Termius, the migration path is re-entry via Termique's host form, which is designed to be fast: label, hostname, port, username, and authentication method on a single screen. Credentials stay in Termique's encrypted vault from first entry. Groups and tags created in Termius can be re-created in Termique's group system, which supports color labels and multi-host assignment.
Also compare
Ready to switch?
Try Termique free - no account needed
Your credentials stay on your device. No cloud required.
View pricing