Comparing Clash Clients and Picking the Right One

The only one of these eight clients covering all four desktop and mobile platforms at once. The interface trims everything down to the essentials: paste your subscription, pick a proxy mode, connect—three steps and you're online. Rule-based routing and proxy group switching are all there, just tucked into settings rather than cluttering the home screen with toggles. The iOS version is listed directly on the App Store, no extra hoops to jump through; the official site is clashplus.io (also reachable from our download page). If you don't want to learn a different workflow for every device, or this is your first time touching Clash, starting here is the shortest path.

One of the most feature-complete active desktop projects, and the main option on Linux. TUN mode for system-wide traffic, config enhancement scripts (Merge/Script), multi-subscription grouping, connection panel, and log viewer—it's all here. The trade-off is a deeper settings hierarchy; first-time setup requires understanding the relationship between subscription, config file, and core, so it's worth reading our setup guide before diving in. For power users who need TUN mode or config-level overrides, this is the standard desktop pick.

Built with Flutter, sharing one interface across all three desktop platforms and Android—what you learn on your computer carries over exactly to your phone. Settings are deliberately trimmed: the essentials (subscription management, proxy modes, TUN) are all there, rarely-used toggles are mostly cut, and it works well right out of the box. The downside is less room for deep customization than Verge Rev, with limited config override capability. A good fit for anyone running both desktop and Android who doesn't want to maintain two separate mental models.

The most customizable option on Windows: supports switching between multiple cores, with adjustable themes and layout density, plus script extensions. Feature-wise it overlaps heavily with Verge Rev—which one you pick often comes down to taste, since Nyanpasu's interface feels more playful and organizes settings differently. It can feel like a lot of options for a first Clash install, but for Windows users who enjoy shaping a tool to their liking, it's worth trying.

Once the de facto standard on Windows—most old tutorial screenshots online still show this client. The project is unmaintained: the core is frozen on original Clash, no longer tracking new rule types or protocols, and compatibility issues with rule recognition can crop up on some newer subscriptions. Our download page keeps an archived package only for longtime users still transitioning off older setups. New installs should go straight to Clash Plus or Clash Verge Rev instead.

The Android client that most closely mirrors the core's native form: its configuration concepts map one-to-one onto mihomo's YAML fields, with support for config overrides so you can edit sections like dns and tun directly on your phone. The interface doesn't over-polish anything—connection details, logs, and rule matching are all visible. The catch is that it assumes you understand config file structure; it still works without that, but you won't get the full benefit. Best for users who already know their way around rules on desktop and want the same level of control on their phone.

Strictly speaking, this isn't part of the Clash core family—it's a standalone implementation—but since it can import common proxy subscriptions, it's often grouped into the same comparison. The interface is minimal, ready to use the moment it opens, and light on resources. The limitation comes from being a separate implementation: some Clash-specific rule and policy group syntax isn't guaranteed to work identically, and complex routing setups may need conversion. Its role is as a backup on Android—handy for cross-checking whether a problem is with your node or with your main client.

The definitive menu-bar-resident client for macOS: no main window, everything happens from the menu bar icon, low resource use, stays out of your way. The core is Meta-family, so rule capability has no gaps. Unfortunately the project is unmaintained, and there's no guarantee of compatibility with future macOS updates. Longtime users who still rely on this lightweight menu-bar form factor can grab the archived package from the download page; new macOS users should go straight to Clash Plus or Clash Verge Rev.