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Core TUI Baseline

Every terminal should support these

The universal baseline — features that have been standard since the VT100/VT220 era and are supported by every modern terminal emulator. If a terminal fails Core features, it cannot reliably run any TUI application. This baseline covers SGR text styling basics (bold, italic, underline, colors up to 256), cursor positioning and visibility, screen and line erasing, line/character editing, the alternate screen buffer, scroll regions, and basic character set handling.

71 features in this baseline

Analysis2026-03-26

4 of 8 tested terminals achieve 100% Core TUI compliance. Lagging: Ghostty (99%), Kitty (99%), iTerm2 (99%). Most commonly missing: CUP with DECOM.

Compliance Scorecard

Terminal Applications

iTerm2

99%70 / 71

Ghostty

99%70 / 71

VS Code

100%71 / 71

Warp

100%71 / 71

Cursor

100%71 / 71

Kitty

99%70 / 71

Terminal.app

99%70 / 71

Headless Backends

vterm

100%71 / 71

Alacritty

99%70 / 71

WezTerm

97%69 / 71

vt100

94%67 / 71

Guidance

For Developers

If your TUI only uses Core features, it will work in every terminal — including Terminal.app, older xterm builds, and embedded terminals in IDEs. This is the safe target for maximum compatibility.

For Terminal Authors

100% Core compliance is table stakes. Any failure here is a bug, not a missing feature.

Features

Terminal Applications

Feature	iTerm2	Ghostty	VS Code	Warp	Cursor	Kitty	Terminal.app
Bold (SGR 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Faint/dim (SGR 2)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Italic (SGR 3)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Underline (SGR 4)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Inverse video (SGR 7)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Hidden/invisible (SGR 8)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Strikethrough (SGR 9)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Standard fg colors (SGR 30-37)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Standard bg colors (SGR 40-47)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Default fg color (SGR 39)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Default bg color (SGR 49)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset bold/dim (SGR 22)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset underline (SGR 24)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset inverse (SGR 27)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset italic (SGR 23)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset all (SGR 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Hide cursor (DECTCEM)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor position (CUP)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor up (CUU)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor down (CUD)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor forward (CUF)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor back (CUB)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor home	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Save/restore cursor (DECSC)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUP at screen boundaries	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUU stops at top	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUD stops at bottom	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUP with DECOM	✗	✗	✓	✓	✓	✗	✗
Erase to EOL (EL 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase to BOL (EL 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase line (EL 2)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase above (ED 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase screen (ED 2)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase below (ED 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase scrollback (ED 3)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase character (ECH)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
EL erases with bg color	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
ED at scroll region boundary	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Enter alt screen (DECSET 1049)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Exit alt screen (DECRST 1049)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse video (DECSCNM)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Auto-wrap (DECAWM)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scrollback accumulates	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Total line count	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll up (SU)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll down (SD)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse index (RI)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll region (DECSTBM)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Alt screen separate scrollback	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
DECSTBM constrains scrolling	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
DECSTBM reset to full screen	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Basic text rendering	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Text wraps at width	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
CJK wide chars (2 cols)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Tab stops	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Tab Stops (HT)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Carriage return	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Line feed	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Backspace (BS)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Index (IND)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Next line (NEL)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse Index at Scroll Top	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Overwrite at cursor	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
SGR reset clears attributes	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Full reset (RIS)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Soft reset (DECSTR)	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
Backend reset() method	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
DEC Special Graphics	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
UTF-8 mode	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
G0/G1 character set switching	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓
DEC line drawing character set	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓

Headless Backends

Parser correctness tested via Termless. A ✓ means the parser accepts the sequence, not that it renders correctly.

Feature	vterm	Alacritty	WezTerm	vt100
Bold (SGR 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Faint/dim (SGR 2)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Italic (SGR 3)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Underline (SGR 4)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Inverse video (SGR 7)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Hidden/invisible (SGR 8)	✓	~	~	✗
Strikethrough (SGR 9)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Standard fg colors (SGR 30-37)	✓	~	~	✓
Standard bg colors (SGR 40-47)	✓	✓	~	✓
Default fg color (SGR 39)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Default bg color (SGR 49)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset bold/dim (SGR 22)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset underline (SGR 24)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset inverse (SGR 27)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset italic (SGR 23)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reset all (SGR 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Hide cursor (DECTCEM)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor position (CUP)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor up (CUU)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor down (CUD)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor forward (CUF)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor back (CUB)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Cursor home	✓	✓	✓	✓
Save/restore cursor (DECSC)	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUP at screen boundaries	✓	✓	✗	✓
CUU stops at top	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUD stops at bottom	✓	✓	✓	✓
CUP with DECOM	✓	✓	✓	✗
Erase to EOL (EL 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase to BOL (EL 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase line (EL 2)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase above (ED 1)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase screen (ED 2)	✓	✗	✓	✓
Erase below (ED 0)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase scrollback (ED 3)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Erase character (ECH)	✓	✓	✓	✓
EL erases with bg color	✓	✓	✗	✗
ED at scroll region boundary	✓	✓	✓	✓
Enter alt screen (DECSET 1049)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Exit alt screen (DECRST 1049)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse video (DECSCNM)	✓	~	✓	✓
Auto-wrap (DECAWM)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scrollback accumulates	✓	✓	✓	✓
Total line count	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll up (SU)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll down (SD)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse index (RI)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Scroll region (DECSTBM)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Alt screen separate scrollback	✓	✓	✓	✓
DECSTBM constrains scrolling	✓	✓	✓	✓
DECSTBM reset to full screen	✓	✓	✓	✓
Basic text rendering	✓	✓	✓	✓
Text wraps at width	✓	✓	✓	✓
CJK wide chars (2 cols)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Tab stops	✓	✓	✓	✓
Tab Stops (HT)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Carriage return	✓	✓	✓	✓
Line feed	✓	✓	✓	✓
Backspace (BS)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Index (IND)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Next line (NEL)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Reverse Index at Scroll Top	✓	✓	✓	✓
Overwrite at cursor	✓	✓	✓	✓
SGR reset clears attributes	✓	✓	✓	✓
Full reset (RIS)	✓	✓	✓	✓
Soft reset (DECSTR)	✓	~	~	✗
Backend reset() method	✓	✓	✓	✓
DEC Special Graphics	✓	✓	✓	✓
UTF-8 mode	✓	✓	✓	✓
G0/G1 character set switching	✓	✓	✓	✓
DEC line drawing character set	✓	✓	✓	✓

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