Skip to content
cask.news
← Browse all apps

Alacritty vs iTerm2

Side-by-side comparison for macOS

Alacritty

8.0
Developer Tools

GPU-accelerated terminal emulator

iTerm2

8.5
Developer Tools

Terminal emulator as alternative to Apple's Terminal app

Metric Alacritty iTerm2
Category Developer Tools Developer Tools
AI Score 8.0 8.5
30-day Installs 2.2K 32.6K
90-day Installs 7.3K 100.8K
365-day Installs 37.5K 320.2K
Version 0.17.0 3.6.10
Auto-updates No Yes
Deprecated Yes No
GitHub Stars 62.9K 17.1K
GitHub Forks 3.3K 1.3K
Open Issues 339 54
License Apache-2.0 GPL-2.0
Language Rust Objective-C
Last GitHub Commit 2mo ago 1mo ago
First Seen Nov 14, 2018 Mar 10, 2012

Reviews

Alacritty

Alacritty is a high-performance, GPU-accelerated terminal emulator designed for developers and power users. It leverages OpenGL for rendering, offering exceptional speed and responsiveness. Written in Rust, it provides a modern, cross-platform experience with extensive customization options.

Alacritty is a terminal emulator that uses GPU acceleration to deliver fast and smooth text rendering.

Pros

  • + Exceptional performance and responsiveness due to GPU acceleration
  • + Cross-platform support for consistent experience across different operating systems
  • + Open-source with an Apache-2.0 license, promoting transparency and customization

Cons

  • - No auto-update feature, requiring manual checks for new versions
  • - Configuration may be challenging for new users

iTerm2

iTerm2 is a highly customizable and powerful terminal emulator for macOS, offering features like split panes, hotkeys, and integration with macOS utilities. It's favored by developers and power users for its advanced customization options and performance.

iTerm2 provides a terminal emulation environment with enhanced features compared to Apple's built-in Terminal app.

Pros

  • + Highly customizable interface
  • + Advanced features including split panes and hotkeys
  • + Regular updates and active development

Cons

  • - Steep learning curve for new users
  • - Occasional security vulnerabilities, though promptly addressed