mitmproxy vs PacketStream

mitmproxy is a free set of tools for inspecting and changing traffic sent through a proxy. It handles HTTP/1, HTTP/2, WebSocket, and SSL/TLS traffic, and can intercept HTTP and HTTPS requests and responses for editing. Conversations can be saved for later analysis, and users can replay client requests or recorded server responses. The project provides an interactive console, a browser-based GUI, and non-interactive terminal output through mitmproxy, mitmweb, and mitmdump. Proxy modes include regular, local capture, WireGuard, reverse, transparent, TUN, upstream, SOCKS5, and DNS. Python addons can alter behavior in response to events and expose commands. WireGuard mode can capture traffic from external devices or individual Android apps. A built-in certificate authority generates interception certificates as needed. Installation options cover Windows, macOS, Linux, PyPI, and official Docker images. The project says it does not phone home or check for updates. Documentation notes that HTTP/3 client replay is currently broken; dependencies in precompiled binaries and Docker images are fixed at release and cannot be updated in place.

PacketStream provides a peer-to-peer residential proxy network that routes customer traffic through household connections and supports country targeting. For each new proxy connection, its gateway selects a residential exit, so applications can distribute requests without maintaining proxy lists. A session ID can retain the same exit for up to 60 minutes; if the Packeter disconnects, the session fails rather than changing exits. Country targeting uses ISO two-letter codes, and a request fails if no exit is available in the selected country. The gateway supports HTTPS, SOCKS5 and HTTP, with HTTPS recommended. Setup guides cover tools and languages including cURL, Wget, Python Requests, Node.js, PHP Guzzle, Go, Scrapy, Playwright, Puppeteer, Selenium, Firefox and Chrome. Listed uses include public web data collection, market research, price monitoring, ad verification and localized search tracking. Test credits can be requested, but support decides whether to approve them and how much credit to grant. Residential Proxies is $1 a month, metered at the gateway, with a $50 minimum purchase. PacketStream does not guarantee a particular exit, response time, success rate, availability or uninterrupted session.