# Shadowrocket vs Carmtek

The clearest difference is price: Carmtek at Free against Shadowrocket's $2.99. Shadowrocket's advantage is update cadence (weekly vs every 6 weeks) and chart position (#1 vs unranked). On ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Carmtek is free to download; Shadowrocket costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

Shadowrocket ships an update weekly, Carmtek every 6 weeks. The most recent releases landed on October 12, 2026 and October 5, 2026 respectively.

## The numbers

| Metric | Shadowrocket | Carmtek |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | $2.99 | **Free** |
| Rating | **[4.5 (12K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shadowrocket/id932747118/reviews)** | — |
| Number of ratings | **12K** | — |
| Positive reviews | 57.5% of reviews | — |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Weekly** | Every 6 weeks |
| Monetization | Paid | — |
| Best chart rank | **#1** | — |
| Size | 53 MB | 24 MB |
| Requires iOS | **13.0** | 15.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac, Apple TV** | iPhone, iPad, iPod |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Shadow Launch Technology Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/687237009) | [SAPIENT PAN SOLUTIONS LLC](https://appshunter.io/developer/6801811758) |

## What reviewers say

### Shadowrocket

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/shadowrocket/id932747118)

**Currently charting:** #1 Top Paid, #1 Top Paid · Utilities, #147 Top Grossing · Utilities (US App Store)

This utility client captures and redirects all device traffic to a proxy server. It records requests, allows rule-based configuration, and measures network performance. It also supports ad blocking, local DNS mapping, and advanced proxy features.

**Highlights:** Capture and redirect all device traffic, Record HTTP, HTTPS, and DNS requests, Configure rules by domain, IP, and GeoIP, Measure traffic usage and network speed, Import rule files from URL or iCloud, Block ads by domain and user agent, Local DNS Mapping

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Excellent VPN performance
- 👍 User-friendly interface
- 🔒 Robust security features
- 💡 Useful customization options

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Connectivity issues after updates
- 🔋 High battery consumption
- 🤔 Confusing setup process for some users

**Reported bugs**

- Incompatibility with newer iOS versions
- Unreliable server connections leading to timeouts
- Subscription management and customer support issues

**Requested features**

- Add support for more protocols (e.g. SSTP, L2TP)
- Implement auto-connect and load balancing features
- Develop a native macOS version


### Carmtek

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/carmtek/id6772995242)

**Features:** macOS Compatibility

**In-app purchases:** none


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Shadowrocket free?

Shadowrocket costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Is Carmtek free?

Carmtek is free to download, with no in-app purchases.

### Do Shadowrocket or Carmtek have ads?

Neither Shadowrocket nor Carmtek shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Shadowrocket or Carmtek?

Shadowrocket ships an update weekly, and Carmtek every 6 weeks. Most recently, Shadowrocket was updated on October 12, 2026 and Carmtek on October 5, 2026.

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*Compared by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/) from daily US App Store data. Review summaries are generated from verbatim App Store reviews.*