Start on your computer.
Run the Shellbell service on macOS or Linux. On a Mac, the menu-bar app keeps it close at hand. Open your terminal and get on with your work.
❯ shellbell start Your computer is ready to connect.Your shell stays home.
You don’t have to.
Shellbell connects your phone to the terminal sessions already running on your computer. No new workspace. No moving your projects. Just another way back in.
Pair your phone.
Open pairing on your computer, scan the temporary QR code with your phone, and approve the phone on your computer. Pairing keys stay on your devices.
Pair a device
Scan. Check the identity. Approve.
Take your terminal with you.
Choose a session on your phone. Follow live output, read available history, send a command, or answer your coding agent. Your input goes back to that same session.
agent › Shall I continue? [y/n]
❯ y
✓ Continuing on your computer.Your computer needs to stay awake, online, and running Shellbell. The Mac app offers optional keep-awake controls on external power. With the headless macOS or Linux service, you manage sleep separately.
A familiar terminal.
A smaller screen.
Use the shell you already like: zsh, bash, fish, or another shell inside a supported session.
| Integration | What you can access |
|---|---|
| iTerm2 | Existing tabs and panes through iTerm2’s local API.Available with the macOS computer service. |
| tmux | Existing tmux panes, including those opened inside Ghostty, Warp, Terminal.app, Alacritty, Kitty, or WezTerm.Use a shell running inside tmux. Installing tmux alone does not expose ordinary terminal tabs. |
| Herdr | Terminal panes and supported coding-agent state through Herdr’s local API.Available with the macOS computer service. |
The macOS service supports all three integrations. Linux uses the headless tmux path. Your phone includes terminal keys such as Escape, Tab, arrows, and Ctrl+C, plus a Reading mode for text.
The right kind
of interruption.
Step away while things run. Shellbell can notify you when there’s a reason to look again.
A command finishes.
Return to the session to see the result and decide what to do next.
A session goes quiet.
A pause can be useful to know about. Quiet output does not necessarily mean a command has finished.
An agent needs you.
Supported coding-agent state can let you know when it’s waiting for attention. Open the alert to return to the terminal.
Different networks.
Same connection.
Your computer and phone find each other through the relay, then try a direct WebRTC connection. Terminal traffic moves between the devices whenever the network allows it.
Two encrypted paths.
WebRTC carries screens and input directly between the paired devices when it can connect. Encrypted relay WebSockets provide terminal access when a direct route isn’t available. Your keys stay on your devices in either case.
Direct connections & fallbackPair once. Reconnect later.
Pairing survives routine network changes. Reopen the app and connect to your computer again. You can revoke a phone’s pairing from your computer.
Read the documentation
Your terminal,
from your phone.
Free to use. Pair once, then return to the sessions you already have.