Best GitLab Clients and Apps in 2026

Best GitLab Clients and Apps in 2026

GitLab does not publish an app of its own, so every GitLab app on a phone is made by someone else. Which one is best depends on your platform, whether you need a client you can install without a store account, and how much of your work is reading versus acting. This roundup covers Android, iPhone and iPad, and the no-app options, and it includes GitAlchemy, which we make, so weigh our opinion accordingly.

Facts below come from store listings and project pages checked in October 2026. We did not test every app, and where we only read a listing we say so. We did not check desktop GUI clients for Windows, macOS or Linux for this page.

The short answer

• Android, open source, installable from F-Droid: GitAlchemy, LabNex, LabCoat or OctoLab.
• iPhone or iPad: GLab, Control for GitLab or MyLab. GitAlchemy has no iOS version and never will.
• No install at all: the GitLab website in a mobile browser.

Comparison table

Android

GitAlchemy

GitAlchemy is a free GitLab client for Android under the MIT licence. You read and act on projects, issues, merge requests, pipelines and to-dos. Merge request review includes an inline or side by side diff, line comments and resolving threads. Comments are written in a full-screen editor that suggests people, issues, labels and milestones as you type. It signs in with a personal access token, supports gitlab.com and self-hosted instances, and keeps several accounts signed in at once. Notifications come from polling the GitLab Todos API, not from Firebase, and each to-do has a Mark done button. It is a young project with a smaller community than the older clients. Install it from F-Droid.

LabNex

LabNex is an open source client with multiple accounts, a biometric lock and a broad feature list. Its development moved to Codeberg in 2026. See our GitAlchemy vs LabNex comparison for the detail.

LabCoat

LabCoat is the veteran of the group and still receives releases. The GitAlchemy vs LabCoat page covers it.

OctoLab

OctoLab is a free Android client on F-Droid under Apache 2.0, with personal access token login and several accounts. Its F-Droid page lists version 1.4.0 added on 12 October 2026. We compare it to GitAlchemy in GitAlchemy vs OctoLab.

iPhone and iPad

GitAlchemy is not an option here, and we say that plainly in our GitLab on iPhone guide. From the App Store listings, GLab is the newest and has the most polished feature list, with a paid tier for editing and multiple accounts. Control for GitLab is an older client with a one time Pro purchase. MyLab is free and lists boards, releases and wikis. Read the listing of each for the iOS version it needs and the date of its last update, and see GitAlchemy vs GLab for more on GLab, which shares its name with the GitLab command line tool.

No app: the browser

GitLab's web interface works on a phone. It is the right answer if you only read now and then. It has no offline access, and notifications rely on email.

How to choose

1. Pick by platform first. On iOS, GitAlchemy is not available.
2. On Android, decide whether you review merge requests on the phone. If you do, compare the diff and review tools of each client.
3. Check that the app was updated recently, and that it works with your GitLab version.
4. If you self-host, look for personal access token sign in and support for your instance's certificate setup. Our page on GitAlchemy with a self-hosted instance shows the setup.

For Android in more depth, read the Android client comparison and the official GitLab app explainer.