openmux vs RMUX
openmux
github.com
RMUX
rmux.ioSide by side
| Figure | openmux | RMUX |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Terminal Multiplexers | 8.2 (#5) | 8.3 (#4) |
| Installation | The project documents installation via curl, npm, Bun, source build, and GitHub release binaries. | Install options include package managers, prebuilt installers, and Cargo; the docs say quick installers verify SHA256. |
| License | The repository identifies the software as MIT licensed. | RMUX is dual-licensed under MIT or Apache License 2.0. |
| Platforms | The README lists prebuilt binaries for macOS Apple Silicon and Linux x64 / arm64. | RMUX documents native support for Windows, macOS, and Linux; Windows uses ConPTY and named pipes, while macOS and Linux use Unix PTYs and Unix-domain sockets. |
| Security | The repository page shows zero security advisories. | During Web Share, shells and PTYs stay on the local daemon while the browser decrypts encrypted terminal updates locally; tunnels carry encrypted frames. |
Plans
In their own words
openmux
openmux is a terminal multiplexer for Linux and macOS, with vertical, horizontal, and stacked pane layouts and nine workspaces. Each workspace can keep its own pane arrangement. Vim-style hjkl navigation and a Ctrl+b prefix provide two ways to control panes. Sessions preserve workspace layouts and pane working directories; users can detach while a background shim keeps running, then reattach from another client. The project also offers an aggregate PTY browser for filtering and previewing terminals by process, directory, or Git branch. Terminal features include mouse tracking, scrollback, pane zoom, and Kitty graphics support for image rendering, pixel sizing, and SSH-aware offloading. Its CLI handles session and pane operations such as creating sessions, splitting panes, sending text, capturing output, and listing sessions as JSON. Configuration changes for layout, theme, and keybindings hot-reload while openmux is running. The MIT-licensed project is listed at free. Installation options include a curl script, npm, Bun, source build, or prebuilt binaries for macOS Apple Silicon and Linux x64 or arm64.
RMUX
RMUX is a local terminal multiplexer that keeps shells under a daemon on the user’s machine. Version 0.10.0 provides 90 tmux-compatible commands for persistent sessions that can be detached and reattached. Its automation SDKs let programs work with typed session, window, and pane handles, send keyboard and mouse input, wait for output, capture structured snapshots, and receive pane events. Official SDKs are available for Rust, Python, and TypeScript; the Python and TypeScript SDKs require the RMUX binary to be installed first.
Web Share creates browser links to a pane or session while its shell stays local. Links can allow read-write operation or read-only viewing, with separate pairing PINs enabled by default. The browser decrypts terminal updates locally. Sharing can use private Tailscale access, public SSH tunnel presets, or a user-provided ingress URL. RMUX says tunnels can see handshake metadata and encrypted frames, but not keystrokes, PINs, raw tokens, or terminal cells. The Web Share frontend can be self-hosted. RMUX is dual-licensed under MIT or Apache-2.0 and is available through package managers, prebuilt installers, or Cargo.