# Alacritty > Cross-platform OpenGL terminal emulator written in Rust, configured with a TOML file and leaving tabs and splits to a multiplexer like tmux. Stars: 66.1k · Language: Rust · License: Apache-2.0 · Platforms: Linux, macOS, Windows, BSD · Config: TOML Features: GPU-accelerated, cross-platform, configurable - Repository: https://github.com/alacritty/alacritty - Page: https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/alacritty ## Overview Alacritty is a terminal emulator written in Rust that renders with OpenGL and runs on Linux, BSD, macOS and Windows. It follows a deliberate minimalism: rather than reimplementing what other programs already do, it integrates with them, so it has no tabs, splits or GUI settings editor. The FAQ says these are best left to a window manager or a terminal multiplexer such as tmux. It fits users who already have that setup and want a fast terminal underneath it. Performance is the project's main focus. Throughput is measured with the project's own vtebench tool, and the FAQ notes that latency and frame consistency are harder to quantify and suggests testing with your own workloads. Rendering needs at least OpenGL ES 2.0, and on Windows it needs ConPTY (Windows 10 version 1809 or later). The README rates the software as beta, with some missing features and open bugs, though many people use it daily. Configuration is a TOML file, `alacritty.toml`, looked up under `$XDG_CONFIG_HOME/alacritty/`, `~/.config/alacritty/` and similar paths, or `%APPDATA%\alacritty\` on Windows. Alacritty does not create the file for you, and it is documented in `man 5 alacritty` and on alacritty.org. Changes are reloaded live by default, and an `import` option can pull in additional config files. On Unix, `alacritty msg` talks to a running instance over IPC, for example `alacritty msg create-window` opens another window from the same process. The main interactive feature is vi mode (Ctrl+Shift+Space). It moves a cursor through the viewport and scrollback with configurable vi motions, makes character, semantic, line or block selections, and starts searches with `/` and `?`. Regular scrollback search uses Ctrl+Shift+F and Ctrl+Shift+B. Hints match visible text with regexes and pass matches to an external program or a built-in action, with the keyboard or the mouse. Clickable URLs and selection expansion are also included. Font ligatures are not supported; the request is still an open issue in the tracker. ## Alternatives - [Windows Terminal](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/windows-terminal.md): Microsoft's terminal for Windows that hosts PowerShell, cmd and WSL shells in tabs and panes, with GPU text rendering and JSON settings. (Windows, 105.3k stars) - [Tabby](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/tabby.md): Cross-platform Electron terminal with a built-in SSH, Telnet and serial client, saved connection profiles and a plugin system. (Linux/macOS/Windows, 75.3k stars) - [Warp](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/warp.md): Terminal written in Rust with an IDE-style command editor, command output grouped into blocks, and built-in AI agents. (macOS/Linux/Windows, 65.8k stars) - [Termux](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/termux.md): Android terminal emulator and Linux environment that installs packages through its own apt repository, no root required. (Android, 63.9k stars) - [Ghostty](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/ghostty.md): Terminal emulator written in Zig with GPU rendering and a native UI on each platform: Swift/AppKit on macOS, GTK on Linux. (Linux/macOS, 63.3k stars) - [Hyper](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/hyper.md): Electron terminal built on HTML, CSS and JavaScript, themed and extended through npm plugins. (Linux/macOS/Windows, 44.8k stars) - [Kitty](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/kitty.md): GPU-rendered terminal written in C and Python, with its own graphics protocol, built-in tabs and splits, and scriptable 'kittens'. (Linux/macOS/BSD, 35.5k stars) - [WindTerm](https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/windterm.md): SSH, Telnet, serial and local shell client for Windows, macOS and Linux with tabs, split views, SFTP and tmux integration; only partly open source. (Windows/macOS/Linux, 32.6k stars) ## Guides - [Alacritty Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/alacritty): Alacritty alternatives: WezTerm, Kitty and Ghostty add tabs, splits and scripting; Windows Terminal and iTerm2 cover one OS each. - [cmder Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/cmder): cmder alternatives for Windows: Windows Terminal, WezTerm, and Tabby compared by shells, multiplexing, SSH, and configuration. - [Ghostty Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/ghostty): Ghostty alternatives: WezTerm, Kitty and Alacritty compared by platform, built-in tabs and splits, scripting, and licensing. - [Hyper Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/hyper): Hyper alternatives: WezTerm, Tabby, Kitty, Ghostty and Alacritty compared by config model, platform support and built-in features. - [Kitty Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/kitty): Kitty alternatives: WezTerm, Ghostty, and Alacritty compared by platform, multiplexing, scripting and rendering, plus Rio, Contour, iTerm2 and foot. - [WezTerm Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/wezterm): WezTerm alternatives: Kitty, Ghostty, Alacritty, Windows Terminal and Tabby compared on multiplexing, config format and platform support. - [Windows Terminal Alternatives](https://www.trmn.sh/alternatives/windows-terminal): Windows Terminal alternatives compared: WezTerm, Tabby, Alacritty, cmder, Hyper and Contour, with platform, config and multiplexing differences. - [Best GPU Terminal Emulators](https://www.trmn.sh/best/gpu-terminal-emulators): A practical look at GPU-accelerated terminal emulators for fast rendering, smooth scrolling, and modern terminal graphics. --- Canonical: https://www.trmn.sh/terminals/alacritty