xterm vs rxvt-unicode : Which is Better?

xterm icon

xterm

xterm is the standard terminal emulator for the X Window System. A user can have many different invocations of xterm running at once on the same display, each of which provides independent input/output for the process running in it (normally the process is a Unix shell). Developed by Thomas E. Dickey

License: Open Source

Categories: OS & Utilities

Apps available for Mac OS X Linux BSD

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rxvt-unicode icon

rxvt-unicode

rxvt-unicode is a customizable terminal emulator forked from rxvt.

License: Open Source

Categories: OS & Utilities

Apps available for Mac OS X Linux

xterm VS rxvt-unicode

rxvt-unicode is a lightweight terminal emulator known for its customization options, including support for transparency and tabs, making it ideal for modern desktop environments. In contrast, xterm is a more established terminal emulator with a rich feature set and better accessibility, though it may be heavier on resources and lacks some modern features.

xterm

Pros:

  • Widely used and supported
  • Rich feature set
  • Better accessibility features
  • Good performance
  • Stable and reliable

Cons:

  • Heavier resource usage
  • Less customizable compared to rxvt-unicode
  • No tab support

rxvt-unicode

Pros:

  • Lightweight and fast
  • Highly customizable
  • Supports tabs and transparency
  • Better for modern desktop environments
  • Strong Unicode support

Cons:

  • Less widely supported than xterm
  • Fewer features than some alternatives
  • Limited accessibility options

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