Best Drop-Down (Quake-Style) Terminals
Guake, Yakuake, Tabby and Windows Terminal compared as hotkey-toggled drop-down terminals on Linux, KDE, macOS and Windows.
Updated
short verdict
Pick Guake on GNOME or most other Linux desktops, and Yakuake on KDE Plasma if you want your terminal to be KDE's own terminal component. On Windows, Windows Terminal gives you a drop-down window with `wt -w _quake`. Tabby is the choice if you need a quake-style window on macOS or want SSH and serial clients in the same app.
A drop-down terminal slides in from the top of the screen on a global hotkey and hides on the next press, so a shell is always one key away. The four tools here split mostly by platform: Guake and Yakuake are dedicated drop-down terminals for Linux and BSD, Windows Terminal is Windows-only and treats quake mode as a named window, and Tabby is a general terminal with a dockable quake-style window on Windows, macOS and Linux. They differ in how much else they bring along: Guake and Yakuake do one job, while Tabby and Windows Terminal are full terminals with drop-down mode as one feature.
this page is for
- Linux users who want a terminal on F12
- KDE Plasma users who already use KDE's terminal profiles
- Windows users who run PowerShell, CMD and WSL
- macOS users who need a hotkey terminal
A GTK 3 and VTE drop-down terminal for Linux and BSD that opens on F12 and is scriptable through the command line and D-Bus.
best for
- GNOME and other GTK-based Linux desktops
- Scripted tab and split layouts
strengths
- Preferences export and import with `guake --save-preferences FILE` and `--restore-preferences FILE`
- Splits and tabs can be saved and restored between sessions
- Ctrl+click Quick Open jumps to file and line from gcc errors, Python tracebacks and pytest reports
- Commands like `guake -n`, `-e` and `--split-vertical` work from the shell
weaknesses
- No GPU renderer, no programming-font ligatures, and Sixel is not enabled
- On Wayland the built-in hotkey may not work; you bind `guake-toggle` in the desktop's keyboard settings
- Linux and BSD only
A Qt and KDE Frameworks drop-down terminal that embeds KDE's terminal component, so profiles and rendering match that terminal.
best for
- KDE Plasma users
- People who want Sixel, inline images and ligatures in a drop-down
strengths
- Terminal settings are KDE terminal profiles, opened through its Manage Profiles action
- Supports Sixel and iTerm2-style inline images, and ligatures are on by default
- Splits left/right, top/bottom, or automatically along the longer side
- D-Bus interface can open a preset tab layout at login; skins install from the KDE Store
weaknesses
- KDE's terminal must be installed, which pulls in KDE libraries on other desktops
- Software Qt painter only, no GPU rendering
- Some window placement behaviour depends on the window manager
An Electron terminal for Windows, macOS and Linux with a dockable quake-style window on a global hotkey plus built-in SSH, Telnet and serial clients.
best for
- macOS users who want a drop-down terminal
- Admins who mix local shells with many SSH or serial connections
strengths
- Quake-style docked window with a global hotkey on all three desktop platforms
- SSH connection manager with jump hosts, port and X11 forwarding, and agent forwarding
- Nested split panes, font ligatures, and fully configurable multi-chord shortcuts
- Settings in `config.yaml`; plugins and themes install from the Settings view
weaknesses
- The README says plainly that it is not lightweight, which matters for a terminal that stays resident
- Drop-down mode is one feature among many, not the whole design
- Electron app, so heavier than a native GTK or Qt drop-down
Microsoft's GPU-rendered terminal for Windows 10 2004 and later, with a drop-down window created by naming it `_quake`.
best for
- Windows developers using PowerShell, CMD and WSL
- Users who want JSON-configured profiles and layouts
strengths
- `wt -w _quake` opens a drop-down quake-mode window
- Profiles for PowerShell and WSL distributions are created automatically
- `wt` subcommands like `new-tab` and `split-pane` build layouts at launch
- Every shortcut is a rebindable action, listed in a command palette
weaknesses
- Windows only
- Drop-down mode comes from a named window, not a dedicated drop-down app, so you set up the launch yourself
- Manual installs from GitHub releases do not update themselves; the Microsoft Store does
How to choose
The deciding factors are mostly platform and the terminal engine behind the drop-down window.
- Platform: Windows Terminal on Windows only, Guake or Yakuake on Linux and BSD, Tabby if you need macOS.
- Desktop on Linux: Guake for GNOME and GTK desktops, Yakuake for KDE Plasma.
- Inline images and ligatures: Yakuake supports Sixel, iTerm2-style images and ligatures through its embedded terminal.
- Remote work: Tabby wins, with a built-in SSH connection manager, jump hosts, Zmodem transfers and a serial client.
- Scripting: Guake wins on CLI flags and D-Bus; Yakuake's D-Bus interface is a close second.
When not to use these
- You want a terminal multiplexer with sessions that survive closing the window; none of these replace one.
- You need a lightweight resident terminal on macOS; Tabby is the only option here and its README says it is not lightweight.
FAQ
- Which drop-down terminal works on macOS?
- Tabby is the only one of these that runs on macOS. It has a dockable quake-style window with a global hotkey, on Windows, macOS and Linux.
- Does Guake work on Wayland?
- Partly. The built-in global hotkey may not work on Wayland, so the documentation recommends binding `guake-toggle` as a custom shortcut in your desktop's keyboard settings.
- How do I get a quake-style terminal in Windows Terminal?
- Run `wt -w _quake`. Naming the window `_quake` gives you a drop-down quake-mode window. Tabby also offers a docked quake-style window on Windows.
- Can Yakuake run without KDE's terminal installed?
- No. Each Yakuake terminal is an embedded instance of KDE's terminal component, which must be installed for Yakuake to work.