Comparison

Surge 5 vs Test Passkeys

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Surge 5

This advanced network utility allows developers to intercept, process, and forward network traffic. It offers deep control over connections, including URL redirection, local file mapping, and HTTPS decryption. Ideal for debugging and network analysis.

Highlights
  • Network connection takeover
  • Modify network requests/responses
  • Forward traffic to other proxies
  • Intercept and save network data
  • Decrypt HTTPS traffic
  • Rule-based forwarding
  • Ad blocking by domain
Features
Read full description

Surge is an advanced network toolbox and proxy utility. It is designed for developers and therefore requires professional knowledge to use. These four capabilities form the core workflow of Surge: · Takeover: Take over the network connections sent by the device. Surge supports both proxy service and virtual NIC takeover, capturing HTTP, HTTPS, TCP, and UDP traffic from any app — even those ignoring proxy settings. All features work on the cellular network. · Processing: Modify the requests and responses that have been taken over: URL rewrite, header and body rewrite, local file mapping, custom DNS answers, and JavaScript-based modification. · Forwarding: Forward requests to proxy servers, either globally or driven by a flexible rule system. Policy groups select the best server automatically by latency, availability, or learned connection quality. · Intercept: Record and inspect requests and responses, including headers and bodies, and decrypt HTTPS traffic with MITM. Highlighted Features · Proxy protocols: HTTP/HTTPS, SOCKS5, SOCKS5-TLS, HTTP2 CONNECT, TrustTunnel, Shadowsocks, Snell, Trojan, Hysteria 2, AnyTLS, and SSH, with UDP relay support. · Used as a WireGuard or Tailscale client, converting the L3 VPN into a proxy policy. · Rules based on domain match/suffix/keyword/wildcard, CIDR IP range, GeoIP, ASN, protocol, port, and logical combinations; reusable rule sets hosted locally or remotely. · Policy groups: manual selection, automatic latency testing, fallback, load balancing, and the self-learning Smart group. · Complete DNS suite: DNS-over-HTTPS, DNS-over-HTTP/3, DNS-over-QUIC, DNS-over-TLS, and concurrent queries for the fastest answer. · Local DNS mapping (equivalent to /etc/hosts) with wildcards, aliases, and per-domain DNS servers. Switch your app between production and development environments without changing any code. · Decrypt HTTPS traffic with Man-in-the-Middle and a built-in CA certificate generator. · Record and display HTTP requests and responses with JSON, text, image, and video viewers for the captured body; album mode for the request list; pre-filter for capturing. · Raw L3 packet capture. · Scripting: extend Surge with JavaScript — modify requests and responses, write custom rules, customize DNS answers, and run scheduled tasks. · Block unwanted requests by rules with high-performance pre-matching. · Measure traffic usage and network speed on Wi-Fi, cellular, and proxy connections. · Remote Dashboard: observe and debug traffic in real time from a Mac via Wi-Fi or USB, including cellular traffic. · Surge Ponte: access your home or office network remotely via your own devices, with no third-party service involved. · HTTPS proxy protocol supports client-side TLS certificate validation. · Safari extension to add rules; widgets and Information Panel for quick control. · Sync profiles across devices with iCloud Drive or Dropbox. · Full IPv6 support, TLS 1.3, HTTP/2, and QUIC. · High performance and industrial-grade stability, suitable for intensive use. Surge does not provide any proxy or VPN service; you need to configure your own servers. You may read the online manual for more information: https://nssurge.com/support Terms and Conditions: https://nssurge.com/legal/terms Privacy Policy: https://nssurge.com/legal/privacy

About

Test Passkeys

Read full description

Test Passkeys is a hands-on sandbox for learning how passkeys and WebAuthn really work: on a real device, against a real server, with nothing hidden behind a diagram. Most explainers stop at the arrows. This app lets you run the ceremonies yourself, change the parameters, and read every field that crosses the wire. PLAYGROUND Create passkeys and authenticate with them, then inspect the whole exchange: * Configure user verification, attestation, authenticator attachment, resident keys, algorithms and hints - then see what the device does with each * Change the relying party ID and watch iOS accept or reject it, and find out why * Switch between standard and conditional request styles * Read the raw challenge, clientDataJSON, authenticator data and signature for every ceremony * Rename, inspect and delete the passkeys you create LEARN Guided lessons on what passkeys are, how the ceremony fits together, why they are phishing resistant and breach proof, and how platform support is evolving - plus curated links into the WebAuthn, FIDO Alliance and Apple references when you want to go deeper. YOUR ACCOUNT Sign in with a passkey or a password, manage the passkeys registered to your account, and lock the app itself behind Face ID, Touch ID or a PIN. Playground passkeys are purely a learning tool - they are never used to authenticate you anywhere, and the passkeys protecting your own account are kept entirely separate. Experiment as freely as you like. Built for developers integrating WebAuthn, and for anyone who wants to see what is actually happening when they tap "Sign in with a passkey". Free. No ads, no tracking.

Screenshots

Surge 54 screens
Test Passkeys4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: Test Passkeys at none against Surge 5's 2. Surge 5's advantage is chart position (#7 vs unranked) and device support (3 vs 1). On price, update cadence, ads and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Surge 5 sells 2 in-app purchases, starting at $14.99 per year. Test Passkeys asks for nothing beyond the download.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Surge 5 ships an update monthly, Test Passkeys every 2 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 8 level
Surge 5 versus Test Passkeys: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterSurge 5Test Passkeys
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.1 (1K ratings) — better—
Positive reviews51.6% of reviews—
Number of ratings1K — better—
Update frequencyMonthly — betterEvery 2 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesNo — better
MonetizationFree with in-app purchases—
Best chart rank#7 — better—
DevicesiPhone, iPad, Apple TV — betteriPhone
Requires iOS17.017
Further details — not scored
Size73 MB3 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperSurge Networks Inc.Nicolaas Celliers

In-app purchases

2 purchases

Surge 5

Subscriptions1
  • Feature Subscription$14.991 Year
One-time1
  • Surge Pro$49.99
None

Test Passkeys

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Surge 5 free?
Surge 5 is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is Test Passkeys free?
Test Passkeys is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do Surge 5 or Test Passkeys have ads?
Neither Surge 5 nor Test Passkeys shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Surge 5 or Test Passkeys?
Surge 5 ships an update monthly, and Test Passkeys every 2 months. Most recently, Surge 5 was updated on October 22, 2026 and Test Passkeys on October 20, 2026.

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