Linux: 30 Terminal Emulators To Know

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This post explores over 30 of the best Linux terminal emulators, each offering unique features and functionality to cater to different users. This list showcases the versatility and evolution of terminal emulators. Enjoy!

The terminal emulator is a silent workhorse that sits between you and the machine, blending simplicity with power. And there are many options available! From the classic simplicity of XTerm to the modern, Rust-powered beauty of Warp, terminal emulators are the cornerstone of efficient workflows and system management. It’s a gateway to the underlying operating system with minimal overhead.

List of 30+ Linux Terminal Emulators

Here’s a curated list of over 30 terminal emulators available for Linux:

  1. Alacritty - A GPU-accelerated terminal emulator focused on performance and simplicity.

  2. Cool Retro Term - Offers a vintage aesthetic, mimicking the look of old cathode displays.

  3. Deepin Terminal - Known for its elegant design and tight integration with the Deepin desktop environment.

  4. Extraterm - Provides a toolbox for working with your terminal and command-line applications.

  5. Foot - A fast, Wayland-native terminal emulator emphasizing simplicity and minimal resource usage.

  6. GNOME Terminal - The default terminal for the GNOME desktop, highly customizable and user-friendly.

  7. Ghostty - A fast and feature-rich terminal emulator that uses platform-native UI and GPU acceleration.

  8. Guake - A dropdown terminal for GNOME, favored for its accessibility and quick access.

  9. Hyper - A terminal built on web technologies (JS/HTML/CSS), known for its extensive customization options.

  10. Kitty - A GPU-based terminal designed for speed and efficiency, with support for images and videos.

  11. Konsole - KDE’s terminal emulator, recognized for its multiple profile support and tabbed interface.

  12. LXTerminal - Designed for the LXDE desktop environment, lightweight with minimal dependencies.

  13. Mate-Terminal - Compatible with various Linux distributions, offering customizable features.

  14. mlterm - An X11 terminal emulator that supports multiple languages and character sets.

  15. Ptyxis - GPU-accelerated terminal emulator designed for efficiency and written in Rust.

  16. QTerminal - Lightweight, Qt-based terminal emulator, often used with LXQt.

  17. Remmina - Primarily an RDP client for Linux/Unix, but also functions as a terminal emulator.

  18. Roxterm - A GTK-based terminal emulator designed for power users.

  19. St (Simple Terminal) - A “suckless” terminal emulator, known for its simplicity and lightweight nature.

  20. Tabby - A smooth, easy, and fast terminal for the modern era.

  21. Terminator - Supports multiple sessions with split screens and keyboard shortcuts.

  22. Terminology - A terminal for the Enlightenment desktop, featuring in-line preview of files and other features.

  23. Termius - An emulator with an SSH client, focused on remote management and synchronization across devices.

  24. Termux - For Android, providing a Linux environment and package management.

  25. Tilda - A configurable dropdown terminal for Linux, known for its minimalistic design.

  26. Tilix - Offers an advanced tiling mechanism, high customization, and session saving.

  27. URxvt (rxvt-unicode) - A lightweight terminal emulator for X11, with Unicode support.

  28. Warp - A modern, Rust-based terminal with AI features.

  29. Wave - Designed for speed and modern UX, featuring GPU acceleration and smooth rendering.

  30. Wezterm - A GPU-accelerated cross-platform terminal emulator and multiplexer written in Rust.

  31. WindTerm - An SSH/telnet/SFTP client with session management, multiple panes, and scripting support.

  32. Xfce4 terminal - XFCE’s default terminal emulator, both lightweight and feature-rich.

  33. XTerm - A classic X11 terminal emulator, known for its simplicity and lightweight design.

  34. Yakuake - Inspired by the game Quake, this dropdown terminal is known for its slick design.

Not exactly terminal emulators, but also worth checking out

  • Byobu - A text-based window manager and terminal multiplexer, adding extra features and improved usability.

  • Eternal Terminal (ET) - Similar to Mosh, it provides persistent remote terminal sessions with automatic reconnections.

  • kitty + icat - While Kitty is already on the list, its icat feature allows displaying images directly in the terminal.

  • Mosh (Mobile Shell) - An alternative to SSH for better remote connections.

  • screen - Similar to tmux, GNU Screen enables session management and allows detaching and reattaching terminal sessions.

  • Tmate - A fork of tmux that allows instant terminal sharing for remote collaboration.

  • tmux - A terminal multiplexer that enables multiple terminal sessions in a single window, with support for session persistence.

  • Zellij - A modern, Rust-based terminal workspace with tiling and session management features, an alternative to tmux.

Best Linux Terminal Emulator

Terminals have evolved significantly from simple text-based interfaces. Some can now handle graphics, multimedia, and even AI integration. Determining the “best” terminal ultimately depends on individual needs and preferences. Warp, for example, leverages modern Rust and AI to redefine the capabilities of a terminal.

GPU acceleration has boosted the performance of emulators like Alacritty and Kitty, providing smoother scrolling, faster rendering, and enhanced support for high-resolution displays.

For users focused on workflow and multitasking, multiplexers such as tmux and screen (either integrated into the terminal or used alongside one) offer advanced session management to streamline juggling multiple tasks within a single window.

Customization significantly impacts user experience. Some may prefer a modern, sleek approach like Wave and Tabby, while others might favor terminals like Hyper and Cool Retro Term, which offer theme and plugin support that appeals to both functionality and nostalgia.

Ultimately, the ideal terminal emulator aligns with your workflow, priorities, and personal style.

It’s evident that each emulator, with its unique features and design philosophies, caters to a specific segment of users. From those seeking the raw power and simplicity of St (Simple Terminal) or XTerm to those requiring the advanced features and customization of Terminator or Tilix, this diversity reflects the dynamic nature of software development and user interaction, underscoring the terminal’s enduring relevance in the age of graphical interfaces.