---
title: "Tabby - a terminal for a more modern age"
source: "https://tabby.sh/"
author:
published:
created: 2026-04-17
description: "Tabby is a free and open source SSH, local and Telnet terminal with everything you'll ever need."
tags:
  - "clippings"
---
## A terminal for the modern age█

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

Here's a demo 👇

![[4d19291d75720139fabcf706cb3b7a1a_MD5.png]] ![[3abcbe3f5f6fccace601134575cb5b4e_MD5.png]] ![[3abcbe3f5f6fccace601134575cb5b4e_MD5.png]]

## The important stuff

- Runs on **Windows, Mac and Linux**
- Integrated **SSH client** with a connection manager
- Integrated **serial terminal**
- PowerShell, PS Core, WSL, Git-Bash, Cygwin, Cmder and CMD support
- Full **Unicode support** including double-width characters
- File transfer from/to SSH sessions via **SFTP and Zmodem**
- Theming and color schemes
- Fully **configurable shortcuts** and multi-chord shortcuts
- **Remembers your tabs** and split panes
- Proper shell experience on Windows including **tab completion**
- Integrated **encrypted container** for SSH secrets and configuration

## Terminal features

- Multiple **nested panes**
- **Progress bars** and activity notifications for tabs
- Tabby remembers open tabs and panes where you left off
- Tabs on **any side of the window**
- Optional **quake mode** (terminal docked to a side of the screen)
- Optional **global hotkey** to focus/hide the terminal
- Bracketed paste

![[31811ea0a247c568c60af9b11ffff455_MD5.png]] ![[31811ea0a247c568c60af9b11ffff455_MD5.png]] ![[fad691b87064b8bf5d27e45b7131ee8b_MD5.png]] ![[fad691b87064b8bf5d27e45b7131ee8b_MD5.png]]

## SSH Client

- SSH2 client with a connection manager
- **SFTP and Zmodem** file transfers
- **X11** and **port forwarding**
- Jump hosts
- **Agent forwarding** - including Pageant and Windows native OpenSSH Agent
- Login scripts
- Optional built-in **password manager** with a master passphrase
- **Proxy command** support

## Windows, but nice

- Support for **different shells** in the same window
- Better tab completion **cmd.exe** thanks to Clink.
- Explorer menu integration
- Optional **portable mode**
- Current directory detection that works

![[adf4f2e1f254b02f2fffc7bf72a1da95_MD5.png]] ![[adf4f2e1f254b02f2fffc7bf72a1da95_MD5.png]] ![[b639f7a8de5d14add8b6989c044dbe60_MD5.png]] ![[b639f7a8de5d14add8b6989c044dbe60_MD5.png]]

## Serial Terminal

- Multiple **connection profiles**
- Newline conversion
- Text, **readline** and **byte-by-byte** input modes
- Text and **hexdump** output modes
- Zmodem
- Non-standard baud rates

## And just too much stuff to mention here:

- Themes **customizable with CSS**
- Extensible via **plugins** (in JS)
- A bunch of color schemes already included
- Telnet client
- **Font ligatures** and font fallback
- **Clickable URLs**, IPs and paths
- **WinSCP** integration
- Shell **profiles**
- Simultaneous **multi-pane input**
- Optional PuTTY style **right-click paste** and **copy on select**
- macOS vibrancy and Win 10 fluent background support
source: "https://tabby.sh/about/features"
[Download](https://github.com/Eugeny/tabby/releases/latest) [Donate](https://ko-fi.com/eugeny)
## Features
![[313070fb08f7b2d4a518ca34112cb90b_MD5.png]]
##### Smart tabs
Tabs that detect progress and can notify you when a process is done.
![[5559772b272a40f9cda1aaa70aafb066_MD5.png]]
##### 24-bit color
Support for True Color and base16 infrastructure, as well as over 150 community ANSI color schemes.
![[5301df323543981595e1612b60107872_MD5.png]]
##### Customizable hotkeys
Freely customizable single and multi-chord shortcuts.
![[5543d00b294bfcd3eef5768b87600084_MD5.png]]
##### SSH and the kitchen sink
A built-in SSH client with profiles, SFTP, key management, jump hosts, X11 and the rest.
![[3a150028f594c9a9591ff77f27e7d002_MD5.png]]
##### Persistent port forwards
Preconfigure often-used port forwarding setups.
![[08b2d982c9f0e647af596db7d1bfc776_MD5.png]]
##### Zmodem transfers
Send and receive files directly from the prompt in SSH, telnet and serial session.
![[f2c9b059eb0fced7c75f0f520588d893_MD5.png]]
##### Quake mode
Dock on the side of the screen? Check. Spawn with a key? Sure. Tabs on bottom? No problem.
![[7256506a2324a89f259d4e6df789cdd2_MD5.png]]
##### Split tabs
Freely rearrangeable split panes which you can also save as a profile.
![[fdedeb5338913d8714b35aecf914cb65_MD5.png]]
##### Profile manager
Save all your configured options into hotkey-assignable profiles.
![[71bd1f3629e03a9404272cdb574c779e_MD5.png]]
##### Delicate fontwork
Ligature support, Powerline and Nerd Fonts, emoji, pixel-perfect boxes.
![[b62db995b71fd47626b6c5820cb91c47_MD5.png]]
##### Persistent history and tabs
Tabby remembers your open tabs, and when you accidentally close them, restores the complete terminal state.
![[4e2bcd986d8ae9d0aa0e0743e19938a9_MD5.png]]
##### Careful pasting
Multi-line paste warnings and bracketed paste support prevent accidentaly executing stuff when pasting multiple lines.
