alternatives
Tortie alternatives
TL;DR
Tortie (tortie.sh) is a free, Apache-2.0 Mac app that keeps every coding-agent terminal for every project in one calm window, with a file tree, editor, git panel and diffs beside them, and a private tmux server that keeps agents running when the app quits. People look elsewhere because it only runs on Apple Silicon Macs with macOS 15.7.9 or later, agents in a project share one checkout with no worktree per task, there are no desktop notifications, no orchestration or pull request flow, and it's a young project, first released in August 2026, with two contributors. Pane is the closest alternative across platforms: each agent in its real terminal and its own worktree, with review, git, notifications and an orchestrator, on Windows, inside WSL, Intel and Apple Silicon Macs and Linux. Herdr is the pick if surviving quits and reboots is what matters most.
the alternatives
Every tool here runs several terminal coding agents at once. The chips show where each one runs: green is native, amber has a catch, red is no.
1.Pane
Best for real agent terminals with a worktree per task, on every OS.
Each agent runs in its own terminal UI and worktree, with a Changes panel, git shortcuts, notifications and an orchestrator chat. Layout, scrollback and agent sessions come back after a restart. Free, AGPL-3.0, no account.
WindowsWSLmacOSLinux
2.Herdr
Best for agents that survive quits and reboots, on every OS.
An Apache-2.0 agent-aware terminal multiplexer whose server owns the terminals and restores native agent sessions for 18 agents after a restart. Runs on Windows, WSL, macOS and Linux.
WindowsWSLmacOSLinux
3.cmux
Best for a native Mac terminal with notifications for agents.
Open source, built on Ghostty, with a sidebar that shows which agent needs you. No worktrees or review, and Mac-only.
WindowsWSLmacOSLinux
4.Silo
Best for a light editor that keeps every project's agents running.
MIT, with resume commands for each agent after a reboot, a Git panel and an extension SDK. Windows is experimental, and there are no worktrees.
WindowsWSLmacOSLinux
5.Orca
Best for an all-in-one with worktrees and a phone app.
MIT, 40 agents in real terminals, a browser, issue trackers and SSH hosts. Runs agents inside WSL. Heavy at about 1 GB installed.
WindowsWSLmacOSLinux
which one should you pick?
stay with tortie if
- → you're on an Apple Silicon Mac and run agents by hand across several repos
- → never losing an agent to a quit, crash or reboot matters most
- → you want to see which skills, MCP servers and hooks each agent loads
- → you prefer a quiet app with no notifications
pick pane if
- → you're on Windows, WSL, Linux or an Intel Mac
- → you want each task in its own worktree so agents don't collide
- → you want a notification when an agent needs you
- → you want an orchestrator that starts and steers other agents
pane vs tortie at a glance
yespartly, or with a catchno
| pane10 yes · 1 partly · 0 no | tortie4 yes · 1 partly · 6 no | |
|---|---|---|
| platforms | ||
| Windows | yes, native (x64 and ARM64) | no |
| repos inside WSL | yes: agents, terminals and git run in the distro | no |
| macOS | yes, Apple Silicon and Intel | Apple Silicon, macOS 15.7.9+ |
| Linux | yes (AppImage, .deb) | no |
| agents | ||
| agents | any CLI | 13 built-in profiles plus shells |
| agents that run agents | Sessions | no |
| everyday work | ||
| worktree per task | yes, on by default | no; one checkout per project |
| notifications | yes | no, by design |
| agents after you quit | sessions resume when you reopen | keep running in a tmux server |
| safety and setup | ||
| license | AGPL-3.0, open source | Apache-2.0, open source |
| account needed | no | no |
platforms
Windows
pane
tortie
norepos inside WSL
pane
tortie
nomacOS
pane
tortie
Apple Silicon, macOS 15.7.9+Linux
pane
tortie
noagents
agents
pane
tortie
13 built-in profiles plus shellsagents that run agents
pane
tortie
noeveryday work
worktree per task
pane
tortie
no; one checkout per projectnotifications
pane
tortie
no, by designagents after you quit
pane
tortie
keep running in a tmux serversafety and setup
license
pane
tortie
Apache-2.0, open sourceaccount needed
pane
tortie
noFacts checked on October 3 and 4, 2026 (Tortie v0.110.0 and Pane v2.4.157). Rechecked on November 5, 2026 against Tortie v0.113.0.
why people look for a tortie alternative
Apple Silicon only, one checkout per project, and very young.
Tortie runs only on Apple Silicon Macs with macOS 15.7.9 or later; there's no Windows, WSL, Linux or Intel build, and its own planning notes recommend never shipping native Windows. Agents in the same project share one checkout, and its docs point you to orchestrators if you want a worktree per task.
It's quiet by design: no desktop notifications, so you find waiting agents with a shortcut or the menu bar, and needs-input detection doesn't cover every agent yet. There's no task queue, delegation, pull request creation or merge. Sessions never end on their own, and one user reported a terminal holding a lot of memory for a week. The first release was in August 2026, and the project has two contributors.
moving from tortie to pane
Your agents carry over. Each task gets its own worktree.
Tortie launches the agent CLIs you've installed, and so does Pane. Open each repository in Pane and create a pane per task: each gets its own worktree and branch, so parallel agents never edit the same files. Start Claude Code, Codex or Cursor with a click, or Gemini CLI, OpenCode, Droid or any other CLI as a custom command.
When you reopen Pane, layout, tabs, scrollback and agent sessions come back. Pane notifies you when an agent finishes or needs input. Review in the Changes panel, commit, push and merge with shortcuts, and open any worktree in VS Code, Cursor or your own editor.
our verdict
Tortie is a calm, careful home for agent terminals on an Apple Silicon Mac. If you need worktrees per task, notifications, an orchestrator, or any OS beyond Apple Silicon, Pane is the most direct alternative. If persistence through quits and reboots is the main thing, Herdr.
how we checked
Tortie is Mac-only, so on October 3 and 4, 2026 we checked its site, docs, releases and source without running it. Pane, Herdr, Silo and Orca ran on one Windows 11 PC with WSL2 (Ubuntu 24.04). cmux facts come from its docs and source.
Facts about each product come from its own docs, release notes, issue tracker and source code, checked on the same dates.
- What we ran
- → Pane 2.4.155 on Windows 11, native and WSL2 (Ubuntu 24.04) repos
- → Tortie checked from its site, docs, releases and source (Mac-only), October 3 and 4, 2026
- Who wrote this
- We make Pane, so we have a stake in this. We tried to be fair: Tortie's strengths are listed as plainly as Pane's, every claim was checked against the product itself or its docs and source, and the screenshots are unedited captures from our own runs.
- Corrections
- If anything here is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll fix it and update the date at the top. Open an issue on GitHub
- Sources
frequently asked questions
more comparisons
By Parsa Khazaeepoul, co-founder of Pane. .