# Proxyman vs mitmproxy

Published January 1, 2026 · Updated August 10, 2026

Proxyman and mitmproxy are both Network debugging on a Mac, so the pick depends on workflow. Visual iOS debugging on Mac → Proxyman. Scriptable CI automation → mitmproxy. As of October 2026, both install with brew install --cask proxyman and brew install --cask mitmproxy.

Proxyman wins the Mac developer's daily driver, native GUI, automatic CA, polished viewers, and effortless iOS device proxy at $69/$99 per major in August 2026. mitmproxy wins the engineer's automation choice, free, MIT-licensed, and deeply scriptable with mitmdump for headless CI. The mature answer for macOS teams on Tahoe 26.x is often both: Proxyman by day for visual debugging, mitmproxy by night for automated traffic tests, sharing the same CA trust once so filtered views stay comparable.

## Head to head

| Factor | Proxyman | mitmproxy |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | Free | Free |
| Open Source | No | No |
| Replaces | Charles ($50) | Charles Proxy ($50) |
| Best for | api, debugging, proxy | proxy, debugging, https |
| Install | brew install --cask proxyman | brew install --cask mitmproxy |
| Category | Developer Tools | Developer Tools |

## Proxyman

HTTP debugging proxy

Install: `brew install --cask proxyman`

[Proxyman on Bundl](https://bundl.run/apps/proxyman)

## mitmproxy

Interactive HTTPS proxy for debugging and testing

Install: `brew install --cask mitmproxy`

[mitmproxy on Bundl](https://bundl.run/apps/mitmproxy)

## Features

- **HTTPS interception on Mac.** Both decrypt HTTPS reliably; Proxyman automates what mitmproxy makes you configure.
- **GUI polish.** Proxyman is the most Mac-like HTTPS debugger.
- **Scripting and automation.** mitmproxy is the scriptable choice for automated testing.
- **iOS and device proxy.** Proxyman owns the iOS debugging experience.
- **Pricing and licence.** mitmproxy wins on price; Proxyman wins on per-seat convenience.
- **Performance and footprint.** Proxyman is slightly lighter for interactive sessions.
- **macOS and Apple Silicon support.** Proxyman feels more at home on Mac.
- **CI and headless use.** CI pipelines choose mitmproxy.

## FAQ

### Is Proxyman free?

There is a free limited tier; full use requires a one-time licence of $69 (1 device) or $99 (2 devices) per major version.

### Is mitmproxy free?

Yes. mitmproxy is free and open source under the MIT licence, installable via Homebrew or pip.

### Which is better for iOS app debugging?

Proxyman. Its device proxy with QR code and automatic CA profile installs faster than manual mitmproxy device proxy configuration.

### Which should I run in CI?

mitmproxy via mitmdump. It runs headless on Linux, scripts in Python, and exports HAR for automated assertions.

### Can both capture WebSockets?

Yes. Both intercept HTTP, HTTPS, WebSockets, and (in mitmproxy's case) HTTP/2 with TLS interception.

### Do both run on Apple Silicon and Tahoe 26?

Yes. Proxyman is a notarised native app and mitmproxy runs via Python/Homebrew on Apple Silicon Macs running Tahoe 26.x.

### Do I need scripting for either?

Not for viewing traffic. For fault injection and automated rewriting, mitmproxy's Python addons are the path; Proxyman's JavaScript scripting covers manual breakpoints and mapping.

### Can I own a licence forever?

Proxyman's licence is perpetual within that major version. mitmproxy never needs a licence.

## Sources

- [Proxyman ,  Modern proxy debugging for Mac](https://proxyman.com/)
- [Proxyman ,  Pricing ($69/$99 per major)](https://proxyman.com/pricing)
- [Proxyman ,  Changelog 5.18.0](https://proxyman.com/changelog)
- [Proxyman docs ,  Getting started](https://docs.proxyman.com/)
- [mitmproxy ,  A free and open source interactive HTTPS proxy](https://mitmproxy.org/)
- [mitmproxy ,  Documentation](https://docs.mitmproxy.org/)
- [mitmproxy ,  GitHub releases (11.x)](https://github.com/mitmproxy/mitmproxy/releases)

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@graph": [
    {
      "@type": "Organization",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization",
      "name": "Bundl.run",
      "url": "https://bundl.run",
      "logo": {
        "@type": "ImageObject",
        "url": "https://bundl.run/og-image.png",
        "width": 1200,
        "height": 630
      },
      "description": "The Ninite for Mac. Install all your essential Mac apps with one terminal command.",
      "sameAs": [
        "https://github.com/abhiofficial/bundl-mac-setup",
        "https://x.com/bundlrun",
        "https://www.producthunt.com/products/bundl-run"
      ],
      "foundingDate": "2024",
      "contactPoint": {
        "@type": "ContactPoint",
        "contactType": "customer support",
        "url": "https://bundl.run/faq"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebSite",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/#website",
      "name": "Bundl.run",
      "url": "https://bundl.run",
      "description": "The Ninite for Mac. Install all your essential Mac apps with one terminal command.",
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US"
    },
    {
      "@type": "Person",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/authors/alex-chen#person",
      "name": "Alex Chen",
      "jobTitle": "Senior Developer Tools Specialist",
      "url": "https://bundl.run/authors/alex-chen",
      "worksFor": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization"
      },
      "description": "Alex Chen has been evaluating developer tools and productivity software for over 12 years, with deep expertise in code editors, terminal emulators, and development environments. As a former software engineer at several Bay Area startups, Alex brings hands-on experience with the real-world workflows these tools are meant to enhance. Alex tests each application extensively on both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs, documenting performance metrics, integration capabilities, and workflow efficiency. When not reviewing software, Alex contributes to open-source projects and writes technical tutorials for the developer community.",
      "knowsAbout": [
        "Code Editors & IDEs",
        "Terminal Emulators",
        "Version Control Tools",
        "DevOps & CI/CD",
        "API Development",
        "Performance Benchmarking"
      ],
      "image": "https://bundl.run/authors/alex-chen.svg"
    },
    {
      "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy#breadcrumb",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "name": "Home",
          "item": "https://bundl.run"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "name": "Apps",
          "item": "https://bundl.run/apps"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "name": "Compare",
          "item": "https://bundl.run/compare"
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 4,
          "name": "Proxyman vs mitmproxy",
          "item": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy",
      "url": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy",
      "name": "Proxyman vs mitmproxy",
      "description": "Proxyman wins the Mac developer's daily driver, native GUI, automatic CA, polished viewers, and effortless iOS device proxy at $69/$99 per major in August 2026. mitmproxy wins the engineer's automation choice, free, MIT-licensed, and deeply scriptable with mitmdump for headless CI. The mature answer for macOS teams on Tahoe 26.x is often both: Proxyman by day for visual debugging, mitmproxy by night for automated traffic tests, sharing the same CA trust once so filtered views stay comparable.",
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#website"
      },
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization"
      },
      "inLanguage": "en-US",
      "datePublished": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
      "dateModified": "2026-08-10T13:34:04.000Z",
      "image": "https://bundl.run/og-image.png",
      "author": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/authors/alex-chen#person"
      },
      "mainEntity": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy#article"
      },
      "breadcrumb": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy#breadcrumb"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "Article",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy#article",
      "headline": "Proxyman vs mitmproxy — Which is Better in 2026?",
      "description": "Proxyman wins the Mac developer's daily driver, native GUI, automatic CA, polished viewers, and effortless iOS device proxy at $69/$99 per major in August 2026. mitmproxy wins the engineer's automation choice, free, MIT-licensed, and deeply scriptable with mitmdump for headless CI. The mature answer for macOS teams on Tahoe 26.x is often both: Proxyman by day for visual debugging, mitmproxy by night for automated traffic tests, sharing the same CA trust once so filtered views stay comparable.",
      "image": "https://bundl.run/og-image.png",
      "speakable": {
        "@type": "SpeakableSpecification",
        "cssSelector": [
          "h1",
          ".quick-answer",
          ".tldr-summary"
        ]
      },
      "author": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/authors/alex-chen#person"
      },
      "publisher": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#organization"
      },
      "datePublished": "2026-01-01T00:00:00Z",
      "dateModified": "2026-08-10T13:34:04.000Z",
      "mainEntityOfPage": {
        "@type": "WebPage",
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy"
      },
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/#website"
      },
      "about": [
        {
          "@type": "SoftwareApplication",
          "name": "Proxyman",
          "url": "https://bundl.run/apps/proxyman"
        },
        {
          "@type": "SoftwareApplication",
          "name": "mitmproxy",
          "url": "https://bundl.run/apps/mitmproxy"
        }
      ],
      "mentions": [
        {
          "@type": "SoftwareApplication",
          "name": "Proxyman",
          "url": "https://bundl.run/apps/proxyman"
        },
        {
          "@type": "SoftwareApplication",
          "name": "mitmproxy",
          "url": "https://bundl.run/apps/mitmproxy"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "@type": "FAQPage",
      "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy#faq",
      "mainEntity": [
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Is Proxyman free?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "There is a free limited tier; full use requires a one-time licence of $69 (1 device) or $99 (2 devices) per major version."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Is mitmproxy free?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Yes. mitmproxy is free and open source under the MIT licence, installable via Homebrew or pip."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Which is better for iOS app debugging?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Proxyman. Its device proxy with QR code and automatic CA profile installs faster than manual mitmproxy device proxy configuration."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Which should I run in CI?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "mitmproxy via mitmdump. It runs headless on Linux, scripts in Python, and exports HAR for automated assertions."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Can both capture WebSockets?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Yes. Both intercept HTTP, HTTPS, WebSockets, and (in mitmproxy's case) HTTP/2 with TLS interception."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Do both run on Apple Silicon and Tahoe 26?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Yes. Proxyman is a notarised native app and mitmproxy runs via Python/Homebrew on Apple Silicon Macs running Tahoe 26.x."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Do I need scripting for either?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Not for viewing traffic. For fault injection and automated rewriting, mitmproxy's Python addons are the path; Proxyman's JavaScript scripting covers manual breakpoints and mapping."
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "Question",
          "name": "Can I own a licence forever?",
          "acceptedAnswer": {
            "@type": "Answer",
            "text": "Proxyman's licence is perpetual within that major version. mitmproxy never needs a licence."
          }
        }
      ],
      "isPartOf": {
        "@id": "https://bundl.run/compare/proxyman-vs-mitmproxy"
      }
    },
    {
      "@type": "ItemList",
      "name": "Proxyman vs mitmproxy Video Tutorials",
      "description": "Tutorial videos for learning Proxyman vs mitmproxy on Mac",
      "itemListElement": [
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 1,
          "item": {
            "@type": "VideoObject",
            "name": "Proxyman Setup Guide for macOS & Android",
            "description": "Learn how to set up Proxyman on macOS and Android to monitor and capture network traffic for mobile app performance testing. In this video, we walk you through the basics of Proxyman, a powerful tool ",
            "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/A6RpStyRTdU/mqdefault.jpg",
            "uploadDate": "2024-10-13T09:07:57Z",
            "duration": "PT4M31S",
            "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/embed/A6RpStyRTdU",
            "interactionStatistic": {
              "@type": "InteractionCounter",
              "interactionType": "https://schema.org/WatchAction",
              "userInteractionCount": 8198
            }
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 2,
          "item": {
            "@type": "VideoObject",
            "name": "How to capture HTTPS traffic from the iOS Simulator with Proxyman 📱",
            "description": "🔥 Big thank you to Proxyman for sponsoring this livestream! 🔥 ——— Thank you for watching this video 🙌 #iOS #swift #softwaredeveloper #iosdeveloper",
            "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/ZfxZGXIxkaw/mqdefault.jpg",
            "uploadDate": "2025-04-29T15:01:48Z",
            "duration": "PT10M31S",
            "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZfxZGXIxkaw",
            "interactionStatistic": {
              "@type": "InteractionCounter",
              "interactionType": "https://schema.org/WatchAction",
              "userInteractionCount": 6524
            }
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 3,
          "item": {
            "@type": "VideoObject",
            "name": "Demo Capture HTTPS from iPhone iOS 26 or iPadOS 26 with Proxyman",
            "description": "This is a demo of the tutorial: Demo Capture HTTPS from iPhone iOS 26 or iPadOS 26 with Proxyman",
            "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/THzb2e9hoGo/mqdefault.jpg",
            "uploadDate": "2025-09-15T18:28:20Z",
            "duration": "PT36S",
            "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/embed/THzb2e9hoGo",
            "interactionStatistic": {
              "@type": "InteractionCounter",
              "interactionType": "https://schema.org/WatchAction",
              "userInteractionCount": 1511
            }
          }
        },
        {
          "@type": "ListItem",
          "position": 4,
          "item": {
            "@type": "VideoObject",
            "name": "Proxyman - iOS Dev Tools Series",
            "description": "Welcome to this new series where each month, we'll be discussing a tool to help you boost your productivity as an iOS engineer. Today we'll see Proxyman, a Web debugging proxy used to monitor the netw",
            "thumbnailUrl": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi/TOgqT69r_i8/mqdefault.jpg",
            "uploadDate": "2023-01-26T13:00:16Z",
            "duration": "PT12M20S",
            "embedUrl": "https://www.youtube.com/embed/TOgqT69r_i8",
            "interactionStatistic": {
              "@type": "InteractionCounter",
              "interactionType": "https://schema.org/WatchAction",
              "userInteractionCount": 18415
            }
          }
        }
      ],
      "numberOfItems": 4
    }
  ]
}
```