kitty
kitty is a free, open-source terminal emulator for Linux and macOS, designed for keyboard users.
What kitty is
kitty is a free, open-source terminal emulator for Linux and macOS, designed for keyboard users. GPU acceleration and OpenGL rendering support Unicode, true color, bold and italic fonts, and text formatting. You can arrange programs in tabs, windows, split panes, and layouts, then use session files to specify a layout, working directory, and startup programs. Settings are kept in a human-editable configuration file. The kittens framework adds terminal tools for tasks such as viewing images, comparing files, editing remotely, and entering Unicode. A shell prompt can control kitty locally or over SSH, including changing settings and managing tabs and windows. Integrations for zsh, fish, and bash support prompt navigation and viewing command output. Scrollback can be read in a pager with colors and formatting preserved, or piped to another command. Pre-built binaries and manual installation instructions are available for macOS and Linux.
Good
- Free and open source.
- GPU acceleration and OpenGL rendering.
- Supports tabs, windows, split panes, and layouts.
- Remote control works over SSH.
- Session files specify layouts and startup programs.
Watch out
- Available for Linux and macOS only.
- No free trial is listed.
Who it suits
kitty suits keyboard-focused users on Linux or macOS who want configurable terminal layouts, shell integrations, and remote control. It may also suit users who want to extend terminal tasks through the kittens framework.
Verdict
kitty combines configurable layouts, GPU rendering, and shell-based remote control in a keyboard-oriented terminal. Its platform support is limited to Linux and macOS.
Plans and prices
From kitty's own pricing page, checked 9 Oct 2026.
| Plan | Price | What it gives you |
|---|---|---|
| kitty | Free | Pre-built binaries for macOS and Linux |
The facts
Each one read from kitty's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Configuration
- Its settings are stored in a human-editable configuration file and the program is highly configurable.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Fonts
- Font settings can specify separate families for regular, bold, italic, and bold italic text, including families for particular Unicode ranges.checked 9 Oct 2026
- GPU acceleration
- Yeschecked 20 Sep 2026
- Installation
- The official installer provides pre-built binaries for macOS and Linux; the page describes macOS DMG and Linux tarball manual installation.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Organization
- Its interface supports multiple programs arranged in tabs, windows, and layouts.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Product
- kitty is a GPU-based terminal emulator designed for keyboard users.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Remote control
- Users can control kitty from a shell prompt, including over SSH, to change settings and manage windows and tabs.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Rendering
- kitty uses OpenGL for rendering and supports Unicode, true color, bold and italic fonts, and text formatting.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Scripting
- The kittens framework lets users add terminal tools such as image viewing, file diffing, remote file editing, and Unicode input.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Scripting API
- Yeschecked 20 Sep 2026
- Scrollback
- Users can browse scrollback in a pager with colors and text formatting preserved, or pipe it to another command.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Sessions
- Session files can specify tabs, window layout, working directory, and startup programs.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Shell integrations
- The documentation describes integrations with zsh, fish, and bash for features such as navigating prompts and viewing command output.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Split panes
- Yeschecked 20 Sep 2026
- SSH support
- Yeschecked 20 Sep 2026
- Support
- The official documentation includes a frequently asked questions page covering usage and troubleshooting topics.checked 9 Oct 2026
Where it runs
- Linux desktop integration
- The installation guide says Linux users can add kitty to desktop menus and taskbars by installing its desktop file.checked 9 Oct 2026
- Supported platforms
- Linux,macOSchecked 20 Sep 2026
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