Ghostty is a modern terminal emulator designed to eliminate the trade-off between speed, features, and native user interfaces. Built in Zig, it leverages platform-specific technologies like Metal on macOS and OpenGL on Linux to deliver high-performance rendering while maintaining full compatibility with existing shell workflows. Unlike other terminals that force you to choose between performance and functionality, Ghostty delivers competitive speed, standards-compliant behavior, and native platform experiences without compromise. It’s ideal for developers who demand responsiveness under heavy I/O loads, support for modern terminal features like ligatures, and a seamless experience across macOS and Linux.
Ghostty also pioneers the concept of an embeddable terminal library through libghostty-vt, enabling developers to integrate a full-featured, standards-compliant terminal into any application—whether it’s a Swift macOS app, a C-based tool, or even WebAssembly projects. This makes Ghostty not just a terminal emulator, but a foundational component for building next-generation CLI tools and interactive applications.
What You Get
- GPU-accelerated rendering - Uses Metal on macOS and OpenGL on Linux for high-fidelity text rendering with ligature support, achieving 60fps under heavy load while consuming minimal CPU resources.
- Standards-compliant terminal emulation - Implements ECMA-48 and xterm-compatible control sequences, validated through comprehensive conformance tests; works as a drop-in replacement for existing terminals like iTerm2 and Kitty.
- Multi-window, tabbing, and panes - Supports advanced windowing features on macOS and Linux (GTK), enabling complex terminal workflows with split panes and multiple tabs.
- Native platform UIs - macOS version uses SwiftUI for true native menus, windowing, and settings; Linux version uses GTK for consistent desktop integration.
- Cross-platform libghostty-vt library - A C-compatible terminal emulation library for embedding terminals into third-party apps; supports macOS, Linux, Windows, and WebAssembly with proven core logic used in Ghostty’s own UI.
- High-performance I/O handling - Dedicated IO thread minimizes jitter during heavy text output; benchmarks show 4x faster plain-text rendering than iTerm and Kitty, and 2x faster than Terminal.app.
- Built-in crash reporting - Generates .ghosttycrash files in Sentry envelope format at $XDG_STATE_HOME/ghostty/crash (or ~/.local/state/ghostty/crash); viewable via ‘ghostty +crash-report’ command and uploadable to Sentry for debugging.
Common Use Cases
- Building high-performance CLI tools - Developers creating interactive command-line applications (e.g., dashboards, log viewers) use libghostty-vt to embed a fully standards-compliant terminal without relying on external dependencies like pty or libvterm.
- Developing native macOS applications with embedded terminals - Swift developers integrate Ghostty’s libghostty-vt into Xcode projects to add terminal functionality (e.g., REPLs, build output panes) with native Metal rendering and CoreText font handling.
- Problem: Slow terminal rendering during log streaming → Solution: Ghostty - When monitoring logs from Kubernetes clusters or CI pipelines, users experience lag in iTerm2 or Terminal.app; Ghostty’s dedicated IO thread and GPU rendering reduce latency by up to 75%, enabling real-time stream visualization.
- Team workflows requiring cross-platform consistency - DevOps teams using both macOS and Linux workstations deploy Ghostty to ensure identical terminal behavior, font rendering, and key bindings across platforms without custom configuration per OS.
Under The Hood
Ghostty is a modern terminal emulator built with Zig and Swift, designed to deliver high-performance, cross-platform terminal experiences with native UI capabilities. It emphasizes a modular architecture that abstracts platform-specific concerns while maintaining shared core logic for consistent behavior across systems.
Architecture
Ghostty adopts a layered architecture that separates runtime logic from platform-specific implementations, enabling cross-platform support through abstraction.
- Modular design with clear separation between core terminal logic and UI layers
- Runtime flexibility allowing dispatch to platform-specific renderers (SwiftUI, GTK)
- Strong emphasis on shared codebase for consistent functionality across platforms
Tech Stack
Ghostty leverages Zig as its primary systems programming language, with Swift and SwiftUI for macOS UI development.
- Built predominantly in Zig, with Swift and SwiftUI used for native macOS interface components
- Integrates Cocoa and AppKit for macOS-specific features, alongside GhosttyKit for core terminal logic
- Uses Nix and Makefile for reproducible builds and automation, complemented by Zig’s native build system
- Employs XCTest and Testing modules for Swift-based unit and UI testing
Code Quality
Code quality in Ghostty reflects a mature approach with comprehensive test coverage and consistent patterns.
- Extensive test suite covering core functionality and edge cases across platforms
- Consistent error handling using both Zig’s native mechanisms and JavaScript-style patterns
- Well-organized directory structure and clear naming conventions that support maintainability
- Some technical debt present in duplicated logic and less refined module boundaries
What Makes It Unique
Ghostty stands out through its blend of systems programming and native UI frameworks, offering a unique balance of performance and usability.
- Cross-platform terminal emulator with native UI layers for macOS and Linux, ensuring high-fidelity user experience
- Extensible configuration system that enables deep customization of keybindings and commands for power users
- Secure input and clipboard handling with confirmation dialogs to prevent unintended command execution
- Modular architecture that allows runtime flexibility while preserving a unified core implementation