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A terminal, in computing, is an interface that allows a user to interact with a computer system by entering text commands and reading text output. Terminals come in two broad forms: hardware terminals, which are physical devices connected to a host computer, and software terminals, known as terminal emulators, that run inside a graphical environment.

Hardware terminals were used with mainframes and minicomputers in the mid-20th century. They provided a text-only display and a keyboard, with processing largely performed by the host machine. Early terminals were often teletype devices or video display terminals (such as VT100) connected via serial lines. They did not run applications locally; instead, they served as remote input/output channels to the host system.

Modern computing typically relies on terminal emulators. These programs reproduce the traditional terminal experience inside a graphical user interface. They run a shell or command interpreter as a local process and communicate with the operating system to execute commands and display output. Popular terminal emulators include xterm, GNOME Terminal, iTerm2, and Windows Terminal. They support features such as color schemes, text formatting via escape sequences, and tabbed or tiled sessions.

In Unix-like systems, terminals are associated with TTY devices, such as /dev/tty and pseudo-terminals under /dev/pts. Interacting with a terminal often involves a shell, script execution, and text-based tools for filtering, editing, and automation. Terminals remain essential for remote administration (for example, via SSH) and for environments where a command-line interface is preferred or required.

See also: command-line interface, shell, terminal emulator, SSH, console.