Using Terminal on Mac to perform different tasks is popular among many pro users, especially coders. However, if you are a user of Terminal on Mac, you must have found it lacking. This article will help you find the best Mac Terminal emulator for a better terminal experience. The terminals will be judged based on features, popularity, open-source or not, GitHub stars, and community support.
It will review the top 9 terminal emulators for Mac and help you choose the best one. By the end of the article, you will be able to find the replacement for the Mac default terminal.
1. Hyper
Supporting numerous plugins and extensions, Hyper is the best macOS terminal. Apart from Mac, this terminal also has wide support for Windows and Linux versions. It has a whopping 40.1K stars on GitHub with regular maintenance and a robust community of contributors. Being an open-source app, you can get it free from the official website or GitHub. It is compatible with HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
Pros
- Hyper Terminal allows you to split the terminal into two halves for an easy user experience.
- When using this terminal, you can easily integrate it with many apps to increase productivity.
Con
- This tool is resource intensive and can affect your Mac’s performance as it is based on Electron.
2. Alacritty
With 44.1K stars on GitHub, Alacritty is a simple and extremely fast Mac Terminal emulator. It doesn’t require any complex setup for installation and has a straightforward user interface. This best terminal emulator for Mac is popular among users due to its fast speed as it uses GPU to optimize the work processes. Though it doesn’t have a long list of features, this tool is still a great choice for most terminal tasks.
Pros
- Alacritty is an open-source terminal app for Mac and is available for free.
- This tool has an extremely powerful search feature to help you in your work.
Con
- It lacks an in-built package manager, which can be an issue for advanced users.
3. Tabby
Tabby is a terminal emulator that is routinely considered among the best terminal emulators for Mac. On its GitHub page, it has over 42.5K stars and a very loyal and active community. The tool has many unique features like smart tabs, customizable hotkeys, split tabs, careful pasting, quake mode, etc. It also supports a wide range of themes and color combinations for customization.
Pros
- Since this terminal app is coded in JavaScript, it makes Tabby a robust and stable terminal for Mac.
- You can fully customize the terminal interface to suit your needs.
Con
- This tool lacks many features and is less powerful than its many competitors.
4. Warp
Among the fastest terminal apps, Warp is a Rust-based Mac Terminal emulator. It has over 10.6K stars on GitHub and supports an enthusiastic and vibrant community. Similar to a code editor, using Warp makes you feel like a pro coder. Though still not fully open-sourced, it is available for free to use on Mac. Other major features include fast command execution, terminal sharing, easy customization, etc.
Pros
- Warp has a GPT-3 powered AI search that can convert descriptive commands to executable commands.
- This Mac terminal is designed to have an easy user interface to help new users.
Con
- It is only available for Mac and does not support other platforms like Windows or Linux.
5. iTerm2
A successor to the famous iTerm, iTerm2 is considered the best Mac Terminal emulator by many users. Although available only for users with macOS 10.14 and higher, it is an excellent replacement for Mac’s original Terminal. This tool currently has 13.1K stars on its GitHub and is fully maintained by an active community. Its main features include split panes, history windows, copy mode, etc.
Pros
- This terminal app allows you to open multiple tabs simultaneously for different processes.
- Its Replay feature allows you to view your previous work on the terminal.
Con
- iTerm2 has a complex interface and working, which can overwhelm new users.
6. Kitty
Don’t want to remove fingers from the keyboard? Then Kitty is one of the best terminal emulators on macOS. It is designed to be fully useable through the keyboard and supports mouse scrolling. Written in a mix of C and Python, it is an open-source and free tool. The Kitty GitHub page has 17.5K stars and is supported by a dedicated community. This Mac terminal emulator is also available for Windows and Linux.
Pros
- Kitty has a simple user interface and provides support hotkeys for easy use.
- In this Terminal app, you can easily create a new individual command.
Con
- It is not recommended if you want to open multiple large files simultaneously during your work, as it can become unresponsive.
7. Termius
The best choice for SSH clients and multiple-platform users, Termius is a great terminal emulator for Mac. It comes with an autocomplete feature which increases your work productivity. Using its terminal sharing feature, you can contribute to others in real time. Other significant features of the Termius terminal include command broadcast, terminal tabs, SFTP client, port forwarding wizard, etc.
Pros
- This terminal emulator tool is also available for Android and iOS devices.
- It offers you a cloud-encrypted vault to secure your sensitive information.
Con
- You will need to buy this Mac Terminal emulator to use its full features.
8. Commander One
Commander One is a popular file manager that also works as a terminal emulator and an FTP client. It has a dual-panel terminal where you can use hotkeys to run commands without ever needing to leave its interface. The in-built terminal is only available in its Pro Pack, which you will have to buy. This tool’s key features include unlimited tabs, an operations queue, customizable hotkeys, etc.
Pros
- The terminal supports many advanced protocols such as FTP, SFTP, FTPS, etc.
- It also works perfectly with iOS, Android, and MTP devices.
Con
- Commander One doesn’t have an auto-completion feature which makes typing commands a hassle.
9. eDEX-UI
Taking inspiration from the movie Tron Legacy, eDEX-UI takes the terminal experience to a whole new level. It is a full-window Mac Terminal emulator that also works as a system monitor. Using its system monitor, you can keep an eye on the CPU, RAM, and processes. This terminal is open-source and has over 36.5K stars on GitHub. You will love using it if you are into science fiction.
Pros
- This tool includes a sound-effect library that can create a Hollywood-style hacking vibe when working.
- It provides highly advanced customization options for themes, colors, fonts, etc.
Con
- eDEX-UI has been archived on GitHub and is no longer receiving updates. That means it may not work properly with the latest macOS versions.
Conclusion
There is no faster way to perform complex tasks and execute system commands than Terminal on Mac. That’s why moving to the best Mac Terminal emulator to get more features is a good idea. In this article, the 9 best terminal apps have been laid out for you. Select the terminal app best suited to you and start using your Mac in a more controlled and secure way.
FAQs
If you still got some questions regarding the best terminal emulator for Mac, we have answered some FAQs below:
Which terminal is best for macOS?
It is a hard question to answer since there many factors involved. On a personal level, it depends on what you need when answering the best terminal for macOS. Depending on your requirements, you can choose the best terminal from our list of top 9 Mac Terminal emulators in this article. In general, Hyper Terminal and Alacritty are considered to be the best terminal apps for macOS.
What is the fastest terminal emulator?
When it comes to the fastest terminal emulator, the answer, without a doubt, is Alacritty. A simple and lightweight tool, its performance mainly depends upon the GPU of your system. Using GPU can fully optimize its speed and increase your productivity.
