The peer-to-peer, one-time alternative to Termius.
Matador is an iPhone and iPad app that controls the terminals and AI coding agents on your Mac over a direct peer-to-peer QUIC link — a one-time-purchase alternative to subscription SSH clients like Termius that needs no exposed SSH server, no synced credentials, and no account.
Matador vs Termius.
on-device · vs cloud| Dimension | Matador | SSH clients (Termius) |
|---|---|---|
| Connection | Direct P2P QUIC to your Mac | SSH to a server you expose |
| Pricing | One-time $19.99 (+ free Mac host) | Free tier + monthly subscription |
| Account | None required | Required for sync |
| Credential sync | None needed — pairs by QR | Synced through their cloud |
| Expose a port / SSH daemon | No | Typically yes |
| AI coding agents | Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, Cursor | Terminal only |
| Infrastructure | None (self-host the relay if you want) | Vendor cloud |
| Works over the internet | Yes — NAT-traversing QUIC | Yes |
Cloud column reflects the typical architecture of Termius and similar hosted tools. Names are trademarks of their owners; not affiliated.
Termius alternative, answered.
Matador · on-deviceFor controlling your own Mac, yes. Instead of running an SSH client that connects to a server you expose to the network, Matador pairs your iPhone or iPad directly to a menubar host on your Mac over an encrypted peer-to-peer QUIC link.
No. You scan a QR code to pair, which establishes a direct encrypted link to the macOS host — there's no inbound port to forward and no SSH daemon to expose.
No. Matador is a one-time $19.99 app and the macOS host is free. Termius is freemium with its Pro and Teams features behind a recurring subscription.
Yes. Matador controls PTY terminals and AI agents — Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, and Cursor — with a native iOS and iPadOS interface. It's built to run your Mac, not to be a general multi-host SSH manager.
Keep your work on your Mac.
Matador is coming soon to the Mac App Store. No subscription, no account, nothing uploaded — a private, on-device alternative to Termius.