Best Proxy Apps for Android and iPhone: 2026 Client Guide

In 2026, the best proxy apps for Android and iPhone are proxy clients, not the "free VPN proxy" apps that fill the stores. Each one connects your phone to a proxy you already have, such as an HTTP, SOCKS5 or VLESS server, and routes every app through it. Most lists still recommend apps that were discontinued, never existed on Android, or are VPN services in disguise. Below are the top-rated proxy clients on each platform, checked against store listings and release histories on November 6, 2026, plus setup steps and fixes for when traffic does not go where it should.

Top-Rated Proxy Clients in 2026: Quick Picks

The top-rated proxy clients in 2026, by use case:

• Android overall: v2rayNG, free and open source, for VLESS, Trojan, Shadowsocks, SOCKS and HTTP proxies.
• iPhone overall: Shadowrocket, $2.99 once, with 4.5 stars from 12K US ratings.
• Free on iPhone: Streisand, with VLESS, Hysteria2, TUIC and WireGuard support.
• Cross-platform: Hiddify, free and ad-free on Android, iOS, Windows, macOS and Linux.
• One SOCKS5 or HTTP proxy: Super Proxy, on Android and iPhone.
• Rule-based routing: Clash Meta for Android or FlClash, and Stash on iPhone.
• Developers and debugging: Surge 5 on iPhone.

Proxy App, Proxy Client or VPN App: What You Need

Three kinds of apps show up for "proxy app" searches, and only one of them does what most people want.

Proxy clients are apps that route your phone's traffic through a proxy server you supply. They run as a local VPN profile on both Android and iPhone, which lets them capture traffic from every app and send it to your HTTP, SOCKS5, VLESS or Shadowsocks server. No servers come included. Every app in the lists below is this kind.

VPN apps sold as proxies bundle their own servers. That is a different product, and the free ones carry real risk. Google's Threat Intelligence Group reported in January 2026 on free VPN apps that worked as advertised while quietly enrolling each device as an exit node in a large residential proxy network. It also found over 600 Android apps, mostly utilities, games and content apps, using monetization SDKs that did the same. Google Play Protect now warns about these apps, removes them from certified Android devices and blocks new installs. Our post on free VPNs and proxies that sell your device covers how the model works.

Proxy servers on the phone do the reverse. Apps like Every Proxy run a proxy server on your Android device so other devices can use its connection. Useful for sharing, but not a client.

System settings can also take a proxy, with limits. Both Android and iPhone accept a manual HTTP proxy per Wi-Fi network, and Android warns that the HTTP proxy is used by the browser but may not be used by other apps. Nothing in the system settings covers SOCKS5 or mobile data without extra configuration. Our guide to using a proxy on Android and iPhone walks through the Wi-Fi and APN settings. Full-device coverage needs a client.

Best Proxy Apps for Android in 2026

These are the best Android proxy apps in 2026 by protocol support, maintenance and how cleanly they handle a proxy you own. Every app on this list is free to install, and four of the five entries are open source. Release dates come from each project's latest tagged release.

1. v2rayNG

v2rayNG is an open-source Xray client, distributed as signed APKs through its GitHub releases. Servers go in by share link, QR code or manual entry, and it supports VLESS, VMess, Trojan, Shadowsocks, SOCKS, HTTP, Hysteria2 and WireGuard configs, with per-app routing and geo rules. Version 2.3.15 shipped on November 1, 2026. If your proxy comes as a VLESS link, start here, and our VLESS mobile proxy guide explains why VLESS holds up where plain VPNs get blocked.

2. Hiddify

Hiddify is a sing-box-based client for Android, iOS, Windows, macOS and Linux, free and without ads. Protocol support covers VLESS with Reality, VMess, TUIC, Hysteria, WireGuard and SSH, plus remote profiles, automatic node selection and TUN mode. Its latest release, 5.5.5, landed on November 5, 2026. Pick it when you want the same app and the same profiles on phone and desktop.

3. sing-box for Android

sing-box for Android is the project's official client, on Google Play, F-Droid and GitHub. Instead of point-and-click server entry, it runs local or remote configuration files, so it suits users who write JSON configs and want every option the core exposes. Version 1.14.4 of the core, the latest stable release, shipped on October 23, 2026.

4. Clash Meta for Android and FlClash

Clash Meta for Android and FlClash both run the mihomo core, take Clash YAML profiles, and are built for rule-based routing: send some domains through the proxy and others direct. Clash Meta for Android is on F-Droid, last released on October 22, 2026. FlClash bills itself as simple to use and adds a Quick Settings tile, per-app proxy and Android TV support, with a release on November 4, 2026. Each expects a profile file, so a single proxy takes more setup than in v2rayNG.

5. Super Proxy

Super Proxy is the simplest option here for a single SOCKS5 proxy. It supports SOCKS5 proxies and HTTP proxies using the CONNECT method, tunnels all traffic through a local VPN service, needs no root, and is free to install with in-app purchases. Anyone with one proxy who wants every app on it, without learning a config format, can start here. An iPhone version exists too.

Shadowrocket Alternatives for Android

Shadowrocket is an iOS app, and there is no official Android version, despite lists that say otherwise. If you want something like Shadowrocket on Android, v2rayNG fits share links and quick server switching, Hiddify fits subscriptions across devices, and Clash Meta or FlClash fit rule-based routing. Both v2rayNG and Hiddify import standard share links and QR codes, so moving a server over from an iPhone takes a few taps.

That warning comes from the NekoBox project README, whose last release was in February 2026. Postern, which still appears in many lists, is listed as discontinued, and its official website is no longer available.

Best Proxy Apps for iPhone in 2026

Every iPhone proxy client here installs a VPN profile, and the App Store carries both paid professional tools and capable free clients. The choice comes down to budget and how many routing rules you need. Prices are from the US App Store on November 6, 2026. Availability depends on your store region: in March 2026, Apple removed Streisand, V2Box and other proxy clients from the Russian App Store, and Shadowrocket has been off the mainland China App Store since 2017.

1. Shadowrocket

Shadowrocket costs $2.99 once, runs on iOS 13 or later, holds 4.5 stars from 12K ratings, and routes by domain, domain suffix, domain keyword, CIDR IP range or GeoIP. Its release notes cover HTTP, SOCKS5, Shadowsocks, VMess, VLESS, Trojan, Hysteria, TUIC and WireGuard, and version 2.2.92 (September 2026) added Sudoku protocol support and DNSCrypt upstreams. In mainland China it needs an Apple account from another region. It pairs simple server entry with deep rules at a one-time price.

2. Streisand

Streisand is a free, VLESS-first proxy client for iPhone. Supported protocols include VLESS with Reality, VMess, Trojan, Shadowsocks, SOCKS, SSH, Hysteria2, TUIC and WireGuard. It runs on iOS 15 or later and holds 4.4 stars from 2.1K ratings.

3. Hiddify and sing-box

Hiddify on iPhone is the same open-source client as on Android, free and ad-free for iOS 15.5 or later, and profiles and remote subscriptions move between platforms without conversion. The official sing-box app is listed on the App Store as sing-box MT, free for iOS 15 or later. Like the Android version, it runs configuration files, and the project notes it needs an Apple account outside mainland China.

4. Stash, Surge and Quantumult X

Three paid tools cover heavier use, and two of them, Surge and Stash, work more like network toolkits, with policy groups, rule sets and request logs. Stash ($5.99, iOS 16 or later) runs Clash Premium configurations, supports VLESS, Hysteria2, TUIC and WireGuard among about 20 proxy types, and decrypts HTTPS for inspection.

Surge 5 is a free download with in-app purchases of $14.99 for a feature subscription and $49.99 for Surge Pro, requires iOS 17, and adds SOCKS5-TLS, Snell, AnyTLS, Tailscale and request debugging.

Quantumult X costs $9.99 and centers on Shadowsocks plus HTTP rewriting and capture.

Shadowrocket Alternatives on iPhone

For a free Shadowrocket alternative on iOS, Streisand covers most of the same protocols, and Hiddify runs the same profiles on every platform. Loon and Stash are the closest paid alternatives for rule-heavy setups. V2Box is free but shows ads. Super Proxy also has an iPhone version for one HTTP or SOCKS5 proxy, free with a paid Pro upgrade, on iOS 17 or later.

Using VoidMob Mobile Proxies in These Apps

Any client above connects to a standard proxy, so the app decides the interface while the proxy decides how sites see you. VoidMob's mobile proxies give each connection a real 4G or 5G carrier IP that sits behind the carrier's CGNAT, shared with ordinary subscribers. They work with these clients in three ways:

• Shared pool: a proxy list gives HTTP and SOCKS5 on the same host, port and credentials. SOCKS5 also relays UDP, so clients that send UDP over SOCKS5 can reach sites over QUIC and HTTP/3.
• Dedicated: a dedicated mobile proxy device with HTTP and SOCKS5 (on its own port where the device has one), UDP, and an OpenVPN profile you can import into OpenVPN Connect on either platform. Its IP holds until you rotate it from the dashboard or its private rotation link, at most once a minute, and a phone browser or shortcut can call that link.
• Premium dedicated: VLESS/Xray access that imports into v2rayNG, Shadowrocket, Streisand or Hiddify, plus a dedicated DNS resolver on the device, where offered.

Every Premium plan, and Standard plans tagged p0f, can also present an iPhone or Android TCP/IP fingerprint to match the phone you connect from.

In a form-based client such as v2rayNG, Shadowrocket, Streisand or Super Proxy, a shared-pool entry looks like this, with the username and password taken from the proxy list in your dashboard:

Type:      SOCKS5 (or HTTP)Server:    proxy.voidmob.comPort:      10000Username:  <list-username>Password:  <list-password>

How to Set Up a Proxy App on Android and iPhone

Setup follows the same four steps in almost every client:

1. Add the server. Paste a share link, scan a QR code or enter type, server, port, username and password by hand.
2. Allow the VPN profile. Android and iOS both ask once for permission to add a VPN configuration. Proxy clients need it to capture traffic from other apps.
3. Pick the mode. Global sends everything through the proxy. Rule mode sends only matching domains, so a misconfigured rule set can leave your traffic direct.
4. Connect and check the IP. Open a browser on the phone and confirm the IP and network type changed.

With the proxy connected, check what this page sees from your phone, or run the full IP checker for the network type and location:

Proxy App Not Working: Common Fixes

If the fixes below do not help, the mobile proxy not working checklist covers problems on the proxy side.

Connected, but the IP did not change. Usually the app is in rule or direct mode, or another VPN profile is active. Android and iOS each run one VPN at a time, so turn off other VPN apps and switch the client to global mode while testing.

Works on Wi-Fi, not on mobile data. That points to a Wi-Fi proxy setting, which applies to one network only. Use a proxy client, which covers mobile data the same way.

Some apps bypass the Wi-Fi proxy. System HTTP proxies are a hint that apps may ignore. VPN-mode clients capture traffic from apps that never read proxy settings.

Sites still see your real location. Check for DNS going outside the tunnel, enable the client's remote DNS or fake-IP option, and match the phone's timezone and language to the proxy country when it matters. Apps with location permission read the phone's GPS position, which no proxy changes. The location consistency test shows which signals disagree.

Video calls or HTTP/3 sites fail. These use UDP, which an HTTP proxy cannot carry. Switch to SOCKS5 with UDP enabled, or let the client block QUIC so browsers fall back to TCP.

Connection drops in the background. Exclude the client from Android battery optimization, and on iPhone turn on the client's connect-on-demand option if it has one.

Authentication errors or HTTP 407. Re-enter the username and password without trailing spaces, and confirm whether the proxy expects HTTP or SOCKS5 on that port.

FAQ

Pick the client by the proxy you have: a VLESS link goes into v2rayNG, Streisand or Shadowrocket, a plain SOCKS5 or HTTP proxy into Super Proxy or Shadowrocket, and a Clash profile into Clash Meta, FlClash or Stash. Then check the IP from the phone before relying on it.