The eight clients covered on the download page each target different needs: some aim for out-of-the-box simplicity, others for deep customization, and two are no longer maintained and kept only for reference. This page lists platform support, core type, maintenance status, ease of setup, standout features, and best-fit audience for each, then closes with recommendations by common use case. Maintenance status is described qualitatively, without specific version numbers or dates.
Scroll horizontally on narrow screens to see the full table. "Ease of setup" refers to how much effort it takes to go from installation to a successfully connected subscription, independent of the client's feature ceiling.
| Client | Platform Support | Core | Maintenance Status | Ease of Setup | Standout Features | Best Fit For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clash Plus | Win / macOS / Android / iOS | mihomo | Actively maintained | Low | All-platform coverage, simplified subscription import, App Store availability on iOS | Most users, especially those with multiple devices |
| Clash Verge Rev | Win / macOS / Linux | mihomo | Actively maintained | Medium | Configuration enhancement scripts, TUN mode, rule editor | Advanced desktop users, Linux users |
| FlClash | Win / macOS / Linux / Android | mihomo | Actively maintained | Low | Unified interface across desktop and mobile, works out of the box | Users who want the same experience on desktop and phone |
| Clash Nyanpasu | Windows | Meta-family, switchable | Actively maintained | Medium | Core switching, themeable interface, script extensions | Windows users willing to tinker with configuration |
| Clash for Windows | Windows | Original Premium | No longer maintained | Medium | Large body of legacy tutorials and documentation | Reference only; not recommended for new installs |
| Clash Meta for Android | Android | mihomo | Actively maintained | Medium | TUN mode, rule sets, settings that mirror native core fields | Android users familiar with configuration files |
| Surfboard | Android | Independent implementation | Infrequent updates | Medium | Surge-style configuration syntax | Android users who need Surge syntax compatibility |
| ClashX Meta | macOS | Meta-family | No longer maintained | Low | Lightweight menu-bar app, low resource use | Reference only; not recommended for new installs |
A client is just the interface — the core is what actually handles traffic. The three core names sound similar but differ significantly in capability and maintenance status, and this directly determines which configuration fields are usable.
The original Clash core. The Premium build added closed-source features like TUN and rule sets on top of the open-source version. The upstream repository has been removed and updates have stopped, so clients relying on it (such as Clash for Windows) receive no further protocol or security fixes, and newer configuration syntax is no longer compatible.
The community fork that continued development after the original stopped updating, adding newer protocols like VLESS and Hysteria along with more flexible routing syntax. "Meta" was this fork's early name — the project has since been renamed, but many clients and tutorials still use the old name. When you see "Meta," it usually refers to this active fork.
The official name after the Meta fork was renamed, and currently the only actively maintained mainline core. The active clients compared on this page (Clash Plus, Verge Rev, FlClash, Nyanpasu, CMFA) are all built on mihomo or a compatible fork, keeping protocol support and rule syntax in sync as they evolve.
Following the order on the download page, here's a breakdown of each client's positioning, strengths, weaknesses, and when it's worth choosing.
Full coverage across four platforms is its biggest differentiator: installers for Windows, macOS, and Android, plus an iOS app directly on the App Store, with the official site at clashplus.io. High-frequency actions — importing a subscription, switching modes, testing node latency — are compressed into one or two steps, with almost nothing that requires reading documentation first. It runs on the mihomo core under the hood, so new protocols and rule sets parse correctly. The trade-off is that deep customization lags behind Verge Rev — there's no configuration script injection. For most users, it strikes the best balance between low effort and feature ceiling.
The one with the highest feature ceiling on desktop: configuration enhancement scripts let you append custom rules without touching the original subscription, and it includes TUN mode, a system proxy guard, and a full rule editor. Linux gets deb and rpm packages, making it one of the most complete options across all three major desktop systems. The cost is a dense settings page — first-time use requires understanding concepts like "subscription," "profile," and "merge/script." If you're comfortable writing YAML, want fine-grained routing control, or your main system is Linux, this is a safe choice.
Built with Flutter, its most direct benefit is that Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android all share nearly identical interfaces: what you learn on your computer transfers directly to your phone without relearning anything. It bundles the mihomo core, and the default configuration connects fine right after importing a subscription, with rule mode, node grouping, and latency testing all reachable from the home screen. Its customization depth sits between Clash Plus and Verge Rev — no script injection, but it supports partial configuration overrides. Good for anyone using both desktop and Android and who doesn't want to maintain two different sets of habits.
A Windows-only client whose standout feature is a switchable core: you can toggle between different Meta-family builds, which helps determine whether an issue is caused by the core or by configuration. Its interface is highly themeable, with support for script extensions and chained configuration merging — the overall approach is close to Verge Rev but leans more toward tinkering. Correspondingly, its settings are scattered and documentation relies mostly on community discussion, so troubleshooting requires some ability to dig in yourself. Recommended for Windows users who enjoy tinkering and want to treat their client as an experimentation bench.
Once the de facto standard on Windows, and a huge amount of existing tutorials online still show its interface in screenshots. But the project is no longer maintained and remains stuck on the original Premium core: newer protocols aren't recognized, new rule syntax fields fail to parse, and a subscription containing modern configuration can fail to load entirely. Its remaining value is limited to two things — cross-referencing old tutorials, and keeping very old existing setups unchanged. For a new install, go straight to one of the active clients above instead of starting here.
The Android client that stays closest to the core: its settings essentially map one-to-one to mihomo configuration fields, and it supports TUN (VPN service) mode, rule sets, and configuration overrides — well suited to using a phone as a full routing endpoint. On the flip side, it does nothing by default to simplify the flow: if you don't already know terms like "override" or "fakeip," the settings page will feel indecipherable. If you're already comfortable with Meta-family configuration on desktop and want to carry the same YAML over to your phone unchanged, CMFA offers the closest fidelity.
Strictly speaking, this isn't a Clash-family client at all — it's an independent implementation for Android with configuration syntax close to Surge. It's included here because some subscription services also provide Surge-format subscriptions, and users who already have one can use it directly without conversion. Its interface is simple and lightweight, but its update pace is noticeably slower than the active clients above, so don't expect quick support for new protocols. Treat it as a fallback for a specific need — if you don't have a Surge-format subscription, prioritize Clash Plus or CMFA on Android instead.
A classic macOS menu-bar design: no Dock icon, no main window popping up — switching nodes and modes all happens right from the menu bar, quietly and lightly. It runs a Meta-family core, and parsing common subscription formats works fine. But the project is no longer maintained, so it won't receive future protocol updates or system compatibility fixes. If you already have it installed and it's working fine, you can keep using it for now, but new users on macOS should go straight to Clash Plus or Clash Verge Rev instead of building habits around a project that's no longer updated.
If you don't want to study every client, just match yourself to one of the four scenarios below.
First time using Clash: go straight for Clash Plus. After installing, paste your subscription link, tap connect, and turn on rule mode — three steps, no need to understand YAML or core concepts. If something goes wrong, work through the tutorial page step by step; you don't need to learn the terminology first.
Advanced users / fine-grained routing needs: on desktop, choose Clash Verge Rev and use configuration enhancement scripts to layer custom rules without touching the original subscription; add Clash Nyanpasu alongside it if you want to compare core behavior. On Android, pair it with CMFA so both ends behave consistently with the same configuration.
Using a phone, tablet, and computer together: Clash Plus's identical experience across all platforms is the least effort — the operating logic is the same on all four. If you prefer an open-source desktop client, use FlClash to unify desktop and Android, then fill in iOS with Clash Plus.
Older computer / low-spec machine: prioritize a client with a light interface layer rather than an unmaintained legacy client — Clash for Windows is a common choice on old machines, but the compatibility problems from its stalled core will only keep growing. On older Windows machines, Clash Verge Rev is a good pick (its interface runs on the system WebView, keeping size and resource use manageable); on older Macs, choose Clash Plus and turn off any background features you don't need in settings.
Weighing platform coverage, maintenance status, and setup cost, Clash Plus is the safest default choice right now: available on every platform, built on the mihomo core, with a simplified flow that suits both beginners and multi-device users. If you need deep desktop customization, choose Clash Verge Rev; for a consistent experience across devices, choose FlClash. Clash for Windows and ClashX Meta are no longer maintained and kept only for reference — not recommended for new installs. See the download page for installers and system requirements for each client, and the setup guide for post-install subscription import steps.