How to Set Up a Mobile Proxy

What you get from the seller

After you buy, your account shows connection details that look like this:

Host:      proxy.example.com
Port:      8000
Username:  your-username
Password:  your-password

In the examples below, replace HOST, PORT, USERNAME and PASSWORD with your own values.

Test it with curl

This is the fastest check. It asks a small service which IP address it sees:

curl -x http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:PORT https://api.ipify.org

The answer should be an IP address that is not your own. For SOCKS5, change the scheme:

curl -x socks5h://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:PORT https://api.ipify.org

The h in socks5h makes the proxy look up the website's name too, so the lookup does not come from your own connection.

Python

import requests

proxy = "http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:PORT"
r = requests.get(
    "https://api.ipify.org",
    proxies={"http": proxy, "https": proxy},
    timeout=30,
)
print(r.text)

Mobile connections are slower than server lines, so set a generous timeout and retry failed requests once or twice.

Playwright (browser automation)

from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright

with sync_playwright() as p:
    browser = p.chromium.launch(proxy={
        "server": "http://HOST:PORT",
        "username": "USERNAME",
        "password": "PASSWORD",
    })
    page = browser.new_page()
    page.goto("https://api.ipify.org")
    print(page.inner_text("body"))
    browser.close()

Use the HTTP proxy address here. Browsers generally do not support SOCKS5 proxies that need a username and password.

Firefox

1. Open Settings and search for "proxy".
2. Click Settings next to Network Settings.
3. Choose Manual proxy configuration.
4. Enter the host and port under HTTP Proxy and tick Also use this proxy for HTTPS.
5. Open any website. Firefox asks for the username and password.

Firefox has its own proxy setting, so the rest of your computer keeps its normal connection. Chrome and Edge use the system proxy settings instead, or a proxy extension.

iPhone and iPad

1. Open Settings, then Wi-Fi.
2. Tap the i next to your network.
3. Scroll to Configure Proxy and choose Manual.
4. Enter the host and port, switch on Authentication, and enter the username and password.

Android

1. Open Settings, then Network & internet, then Wi-Fi (names vary by phone).
2. Open the settings of your network and choose to edit it.
3. Under advanced options, set Proxy to Manual.
4. Enter the host and port and save. Your browser asks for the username and password when you open a page.

On both phones the setting applies to that Wi-Fi network only, and some apps ignore it.

Check that it really is a mobile IP

1. Run the curl command above and copy the IP address.
2. Look it up with any IP lookup service.
3. The owner should be a mobile carrier in the country you chose, not a hosting company.

Common problems

• 407 Proxy Authentication Required: wrong username or password, or a special character in the password that needs URL-encoding.
• Connection timed out: wrong port, or your network blocks it. Try from another network.
• Slow pages: normal to a degree. Raise timeouts and avoid loading images you do not need.
• The IP changed in the middle of a task: ask your seller how to keep a session on one IP. See rotating vs dedicated.

Frequently asked questions