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Proxyman

Freemium

Modern native macOS, iOS, Windows, and Android proxy for capturing, inspecting, and rewriting network traffic.

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Pricing

Freemium

Type

Manual

// VERDICT

Reach for Proxyman when you want a modern, polished proxy for inspecting and rewriting traffic, especially on macOS. Skip it when you need a fully open-source tool or a request-authoring client.

Best for

A modern, native macOS (and now cross-platform) debugging proxy for inspecting and manipulating HTTP/HTTPS traffic, with a polished UI and freemium tier.

Avoid when

You want a fully free open-source tool, or an API client rather than a traffic inspector.

CI/CD fit

Manual/interactive tool - not a CI fit

Team fit

Mac-based QA & developers · Mobile QA · Teams debugging API traffic

Setup

Easy

Maintenance

Low

Learning

Beginner

Licence

Freemium

// BEST FOR

  • Inspecting HTTP/HTTPS traffic in a modern, native macOS UI
  • Streamlined HTTPS setup and certificate handling
  • Mobile-device traffic inspection over the network
  • Map Local / rewrite rules to override responses for testing
  • Breakpoints to edit requests and responses live
  • A freemium tier that lowers the barrier vs paid-only proxies

// AVOID WHEN

  • You want a fully free, open-source tool
  • You need an API client to author and organise requests
  • You want CI integration - it's interactive only
  • Your team is Windows-first (Fiddler may fit better)
  • Active security scanning is the goal (Burp/ZAP)
  • You only debug on servers you control with full logs

// QUICK START

Install Proxyman -> enable HTTPS inspection -> trust its certificate
(desktop or mobile helper) -> inspect and rewrite traffic live.

// ALTERNATIVES TO CONSIDER

ToolChoose it when
Charles ProxyYou want the long-standing cross-platform proxy.
FiddlerYou're on Windows or want Fiddler's free tier.
HTTP ToolkitYou want an open-core proxy with one-click app interception.

// MIGRATION NOTES

Charles ProxyProxyman

Proxyman covers the same inspect/rewrite/throttle workflow with a more modern macOS UI and a free tier. There's no test suite to port - migration is re-creating your map/rewrite rules and re-trusting certificates. Good move for Mac users wanting a fresher tool.

// FEATURES

  • Native macOS app with a polished, fast UI
  • iOS and Android companion apps for on-device traffic capture
  • Map Local and Map Remote rules for stubbing responses
  • Breakpoints for editing requests and responses on the fly
  • Scripting hooks in JavaScript for dynamic rewrites

// PROS

  • Far snappier UX than older proxies on macOS
  • Mobile-app companions remove the SSL-cert pairing pain
  • Generous free tier sufficient for many workflows
  • Active development with frequent feature updates

// CONS

  • Pro features behind a paid licence
  • Less prevalent in legacy enterprise stacks than Charles or Fiddler
  • Windows and Linux builds lag the macOS feature set

// EXAMPLE QA WORKFLOW

  1. Install Proxyman and enable HTTPS inspection

  2. Trust its certificate on the devices to decrypt

  3. Inspect requests and responses live

  4. Use Map Local / rewrite rules to override responses

  5. Set breakpoints to edit traffic in flight

  6. Throttle or simulate conditions to test resilience