# Tenfold vs terminal tabs and tmux

> Most people run Claude Code in a terminal, and a terminal is a great place for one agent. Here is what changes when you run several, what Tenfold adds, and when plain tabs are still the right call.

Source: https://gettenfold.app/tenfold-vs-terminal · Tenfold is a Mac app for running Claude Code agents side by side. · Updated 2026-11-03

A terminal is the most direct way to run Claude Code, and Tenfold doesn't replace it: every Tenfold session is Claude Code in a real terminal. The difference is everything around the terminal once there are several of them.

## Side by side

| | Terminal tabs or tmux | Tenfold |
|---|---|---|
| The agent | Claude Code CLI | The same Claude Code CLI, in a real terminal |
| Your commands, skills, MCP servers, hooks | Yes | Yes, unchanged |
| Seeing every agent at once | One tab or pane each | Five layouts, plus the notch |
| Knowing which agent needs you | Check each tab | One Inbox, and a knock in the notch |
| Answering permission prompts | In that agent's tab | From the Inbox, the Board, a chat or the notch |
| Two agents editing the same file | You find out later | Both flagged as it happens |
| A git worktree per agent | `git worktree add` by hand | A choice in the New agent sheet |
| Merging finished worktree work | By hand | Offered on the Board, aborted cleanly on conflict |
| One prompt to many agents | Copy and paste, or tmux tricks | Broadcast, queued for busy agents |
| Reviewing what an agent wrote | `git diff` afterwards | Live, change by change |
| Usage limits | `/usage` when you think of it | A meter with your pace by the reset |
| Price | Free | Paid, after a free trial |
| Platforms | Anywhere | macOS 26 or later |

## When a terminal is the better choice

- You run one agent at a time, or two you can keep an eye on.
- You work over SSH, on Linux, or on a Mac older than macOS 26.
- You've scripted your own tmux setup and it does what you need.

## When Tenfold is the better choice

- You run several agents at once and keep missing the one that's waiting on you.
- Agents in the same repository step on each other's files.
- You want to review what agents write as they write it, not after.
- You'd like the workspace out of the way, in the notch, while the agents work.

## Moving over is cheap

Tenfold uses the `claude` command, plan and login you already have. It adds hooks to `~/.claude/settings.json`, backed up first, and takes them back out when you uninstall the integration. [See every change it makes](https://gettenfold.app/docs/what-tenfold-changes).

## Questions

### Is Tenfold better than running Claude Code in tmux?

For one or two agents, a terminal or tmux works well and costs nothing. Tenfold is worth it when you run several agents at once: it brings every permission prompt into one Inbox, flags agents editing the same file, gives each agent a git worktree in a few keys, shows each agent's diff live, and keeps your usage limit in view. Each session is still Claude Code in a real terminal.

### Can I still use the terminal in Tenfold?

Yes. Every Claude Code session runs in a real terminal inside Tenfold, and ⌘J switches a session between chat and terminal. Plain terminal tabs work too, and a long build in one shows up in the notch like an agent would.

### Will Tenfold pick up Claude Code sessions I started in iTerm, Terminal or tmux?

No. Tenfold follows the agents it starts, each in its own terminal inside the app. That's what lets you answer prompts without switching windows, and it leaves your other terminals untouched.

## In the docs

- https://gettenfold.app/docs/getting-started
- https://gettenfold.app/docs/parallel-agents
- https://gettenfold.app/docs/layouts