If you've ever logged into a remote server, troubleshooted a Raspberry Pi, or finished a college networking lab, you know PuTTY. That plain grey window, tiny default font, and zero extra features has been the default SSH client for almost three decades. It works, which is why it stuck around — but for most people today, it's holding you back. That's exactly why so many system admins, developers and hobbyists are now searching for 7 Alternatives for Putty that match modern workflows.

You don't have to settle for no tabs, no saved credential sync, no built-in file transfers, and an interface that hasn't been updated since before smartphones existed. In this guide, we break down every top option, test their performance, and call out the good, bad and dealbreaking quirks for each one. By the end, you'll know exactly which tool fits your operating system, your budget, and the work you actually do every day.

1. Windows Terminal + Built-In OpenSSH

This is the sleeper pick that almost no one talks about, and it's already on every modern Windows 10 and 11 computer. Microsoft added native OpenSSH back in 2018, and when paired with the new Windows Terminal, it beats PuTTY on almost every metric for basic use. You don't have to download anything extra, you don't get random adware popups, and it receives security updates automatically every month with Windows updates.

For anyone who only uses SSH a couple times a month, this is the best drop-in replacement. You won't have to learn any new software, and you get all the quality of life features people have begged PuTTY to add for 20 years.

• Native tabbed windows with split panes
• Custom fonts, themes and dark mode
• Full command history across all sessions
• No installation required on supported Windows versions

The only catch is that it doesn't have a graphical connection manager built in by default. You can save connections as Terminal profiles, but it takes 2 minutes to set up the first time. For power users that need one click saved servers, you will want to add a simple open source connection manager plugin, or use one of the other options on this list.

According to 2024 Stack Overflow developer survey data, 41% of Windows devs now use this combination instead of third party SSH clients. Most people never even knew it existed. If you haven't tried it yet, open Windows Terminal right now, type ssh root@yourserver and it will just work. No setup, no fuss.

2. Termius

Termius is the cross platform option that works exactly the same on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android. This is the most popular PuTTY alternative for people who work across multiple devices, and it currently has over 10 million active users worldwide. It was built from the ground up for modern cloud workflows, not 90s university servers.

The biggest selling point is end to end encrypted sync for all your saved connections. Save a server once on your work laptop, and it will show up automatically on your home desktop, your tablet, and your phone. You can also sync credentials, port forwarding rules and custom command shortcuts across every device.

Plan	Price	Best For
Free	$0	Hobbyists, students
Pro	$10/month	Individual developers
Team	$19/user/month	IT teams

Termius also includes built in SFTP file transfers that work with a simple drag and drop interface. You don't have to open a separate program to move files to and from your server, which cuts out one of the most annoying parts of working with remote machines. It also supports one click port forwarding that you can save for future sessions.

The only real downside is that most of the good features are locked behind the paid pro plan. The free version works perfectly fine for basic SSH connections, but you will lose sync and most of the advanced tools. Even so, for anyone that works across more than one device, this is worth every penny.

3. MobaXterm

MobaXterm is the Swiss army knife SSH client that every Windows system admin has hidden on their work laptop. It's been around for over 15 years, and it is still the most feature complete option available for Windows. If you ever find yourself needing more than just basic SSH, this is the tool you want.

Unlike PuTTY which only does SSH, MobaXterm comes with every remote protocol preinstalled and ready to go out of the box. You never have to download separate clients for different connection types.

1. SSH and Telnet
2. RDP for Windows remote desktop
3. VNC, FTP, SFTP and S3 browser
4. Serial port connections for network hardware

It also has a built in X server that lets you run graphical applications from remote Linux servers directly on your Windows desktop. This is a feature that very few other clients offer, and it works flawlessly right out of the box. You also get a tabbed interface, saved sessions, and macro recording for repeated tasks.

There is a completely free personal version that has almost all features enabled for non commercial use. The paid professional version adds support for enterprise deployment and custom branding. The only real complaint most people have is that the interface can feel a little cluttered, but that is the tradeoff for having every possible tool in one place.

4. Kitty

Kitty is the fast, lightweight open source PuTTY alternative for people that hate bloat. It was originally built as a drop in PuTTY replacement, and it maintains full compatibility with all your old PuTTY saved session files. That means you can install it and import every one of your saved servers in 10 seconds, no retyping required.

This tool weighs less than 1 megabyte. That is smaller than most single photos on your phone. It opens instantly, uses almost no system memory, and has zero telemetry, zero ads, and zero background processes. For people that run 20 concurrent SSH sessions at once, this will use a fraction of the system resources that any other client will.

• 100% free and open source
• Full PuTTY session import
• Native dark mode and font scaling
• Zero installation required, runs as portable exe

Kitty also fixes almost every common complaint about PuTTY. It adds proper tab support, scroll wheel support that works correctly, and copy paste that behaves like every other normal program on Windows. All the little annoying quirks that you have just learned to ignore with PuTTY are just gone here.

The only downside is that it is only available for Windows. There are no Mac or Linux versions, and there is no sync across devices. If you only work on Windows, and you just want a better PuTTY without all the extra fluff, this is the perfect option for you. It is also completely free forever, no paywalls of any kind.

5. SecureCRT

SecureCRT is the industry standard enterprise SSH client that is used by almost every large IT department. This is not a hobbyist tool, this is what professional system admins and network engineers use every day when they are responsible for thousands of servers. It is also the most expensive option on this list, but for people that need it, it is worth every dollar.

The biggest advantage of SecureCRT is rock solid reliability. You can leave 50 SSH sessions open for 3 months straight, and not one of them will crash or drop unexpectedly. It also has the most advanced scripting and automation system available in any SSH client.

Feature	SecureCRT	PuTTY
Session scripting	Full native support	No built in support
Session limit	Unlimited	Unstable over 12 sessions
Audit logging	Compliance grade	Basic optional logging

It also has compliance grade audit logging that meets almost every government and corporate security requirement. This is the main reason large organisations standardise on SecureCRT. Every single keystroke, file transfer and connection event can be logged automatically for security audits.

A single user license costs $99 per year, which is out of reach for most hobbyists and students. If you are just connecting to a single personal server, this is total overkill. But if you get paid to manage servers for work, this tool will pay for itself in saved time within the first month.

6. Remmina

Remmina is the default best SSH client for Linux desktop users. It comes preinstalled on almost every major Linux distribution including Ubuntu, Fedora and Mint. Just like the Windows Terminal option, you probably already have this on your computer and just never opened it.

It is a fully featured remote desktop client that supports every protocol you will ever need. It is also completely open source, 100% free, and receives regular updates from the Linux community.

1. SSH, RDP, VNC, SPICE and X2Go
2. Built in SSH tunnel manager
3. Organise saved connections into folders
4. Full keyboard shortcut customisation

One of the nicest features of Remmina is the ability to organise all your saved servers into nested folders. You can group servers by client, by environment, or by project, and search through hundreds of saved connections in half a second. This is an absolute game changer if you manage more than 10 remote machines.

There is no official Windows or Mac version of Remmina, but there are community builds available if you want to use it on other operating systems. It also doesn't have built in cloud sync, though you can manually backup your connection database if you want to move it between computers. For Linux desktop users, this is without question the best PuTTY alternative available.

7. Tabby

Tabby is the modern, highly customisable open source SSH client that has exploded in popularity over the last two years. It is cross platform, works on Windows, Mac and Linux, and has one of the most active development communities of any tool on this list.

What makes Tabby different is that it is built like a web browser. You get tabs, you get extensions, you get themes, and you can customise almost every single part of the interface. If you don't like how something works, there is almost certainly an extension that will change it.

• 100% free and open source forever
• Cross platform identical experience
• Over 100 community extensions available
• Built in SFTP and serial port support

It also has one of the best connection managers ever built. You can tag saved servers, filter them, and pin your most used connections to the top of the sidebar. It also supports encrypted cloud sync using your own self hosted storage, so you never have to trust a third party company with your server credentials.

The only downside is that it is slightly heavier than lightweight options like Kitty. It uses about the same amount of memory as a single Chrome tab, which is perfectly fine for most modern computers. If you want a modern, actively developed tool that will still be getting updates 10 years from now, Tabby is the best long term pick on this entire list.

At the end of the day, there is no single perfect replacement for PuTTY, and that is a good thing. Every tool on this list was built for a different type of user, with different priorities and different workflows. If you only use Windows and just want something that feels like PuTTY but better, go with Kitty. If you work across multiple devices, pick Termius. If you run Linux, you already have Remmina installed. If you are a professional admin, get SecureCRT.

The worst thing you can do is keep using a 25 year old tool just because it is what you are used to. Pick one option from this list, install it tonight, and use it for three days. You will never open that grey PuTTY window ever again. If you try one and don't like it, just come back and pick another. Every single one of these tools will make your work faster and easier, guaranteed.