# Onion Browser vs Charles Proxy

The clearest difference is price: Onion Browser at Free against Charles Proxy's $8.99. Onion Browser also leads on ratings volume (13K vs 185) and rating (4.3 vs 4.0). Charles Proxy's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 10) and chart position (#59 vs unranked). On review sentiment and ads there is nothing between them.

Onion Browser is free to download; Charles Proxy costs $8.99 up front. Onion Browser sells 10 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days. Charles Proxy asks for nothing beyond the download.

Onion Browser holds the better App Store score, 4.3 against 4.0. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Onion Browser has 13K ratings behind it against 185, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews complicate that: 51% of Onion Browser's written reviews are positive against 52% of Charles Proxy's, so the app with the better star average is not the one people write more warmly about.

Onion Browser ships an update every 2 months, Charles Proxy every 4 months. Both last shipped on September 24, 2026.

## The numbers

| Metric | Onion Browser | Charles Proxy |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Price | **Free** | $8.99 |
| Rating | **[4.3 (13K ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/onion-browser-private-vpn/id961073150/reviews)** | [4.0 (185 ratings)](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/charles-proxy/id1134218562/reviews) |
| Number of ratings | **13K** | 185 |
| Positive reviews | 50.9% of reviews | **51.9% of reviews** |
| In-app purchases | Yes | **No** |
| Ads | No | No |
| Update frequency | **Every 2 months** | Every 4 months |
| Monetization | **Freemium** | Paid |
| Best chart rank | — | **#59** |
| Size | 111 MB | 20 MB |
| Requires iOS | **15.0** | 17.0 |
| Devices | **iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac** | iPhone, iPad |
| Age rating | 17+ | 4+ |
| Developer | [Falling Rain Software, Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/1502422550) | [XK72 Limited](https://appshunter.io/developer/284393209) |

## What reviewers say

### Onion Browser

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/onion-browser-private-vpn/id961073150)

Browse the web privately and securely with a virtual private network and Tor support. Enjoy fast, ad-free access to all websites, including onion sites, with no logs or tracking. Protect your data on public Wi-Fi and enhance your online privacy.

**Highlights:** Unlimited VPN access, Tor browser support, 100% log-free browsing, Ad-free experience, Secure web access, Onion website access

**Features:** Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases (10)**

| Purchase | Price | Billing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| VPN Unlimited Weekly | $3.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly premium | $4.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly Subscription | $7.99 | per 7 days |
| Weekly Subscription | $8.99 | per 7 days |
| VPN + TOR Unblocked Browser | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| TOR VPN Encrypted Browser | $9.99 | per 7 days |
| VPN browser private & fast | $9.99 | per month |
| VPN + TOR Browser Ad Blocker | $10.99 | per 7 days |
| VPN Premium Yearly | $39.99 | per year |
| TOR Browser Pro | $0.99 | one-time |

**What reviewers like**

- 🔒 Privacy and anonymity
- 🚀 Fast and responsive
- 👍 Easy to use interface

**What reviewers complain about**

- 💰 Paid subscription required for full functionality
- 🔍 Inability to access certain websites
- 🌐 Inconsistent connection to Tor network
- 📢 Intrusive ads

**Reported bugs**

- App crashes on launch
- Subscription issues and inability to cancel
- Slow page loading speeds

**Requested features**

- More server locations for VPN
- Ability to customize search engines
- Improved compatibility with older devices


### Charles Proxy

[App page](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/charles-proxy/id1134218562)

**Currently charting:** #59 Top Paid · Utilities (US App Store)

Capture and inspect network requests and responses directly on your iOS device. Debug networking issues without needing a computer. View detailed metadata, headers, and bodies, and even transfer sessions to a desktop for further analysis.

**Highlights:** Capture network requests and responses, Inspect metadata, headers, and bodies, SSL Proxying for plain text viewing, Measure network performance, Block requests to specific hosts, DNS spoofing

**Features:** macOS Compatibility, Vision Pro support

**In-app purchases:** none

**What reviewers like**

- 🚀 Great tool for developers
- 👍 Useful for debugging
- 🔒 SSL proxying works
- 💡 Convenient to use on mobile

**What reviewers complain about**

- 🐛 Stability issues, crashes
- 🐛 SSL certificate not trusted
- 🐛 Doesn't handle gzip compression
- 🐛 Slow performance compared to desktop

**Reported bugs**

- Doesn't work with latest iOS versions
- Fails to export sessions frequently
- Incompatible with apps using VPN
- Large JSON bodies not displayed properly

**Requested features**

- Add ability to edit and replay requests
- Improve JSON viewer and formatting
- Add support for WebSockets
- Provide option to map to local
- Add scripting and breakpoint features


## Frequently asked questions

### Is Onion Browser free?

Onion Browser is free to download, with in-app purchases available.

### Is Charles Proxy free?

Charles Proxy costs $8.99, with no in-app purchases.

### Which has better reviews, Onion Browser or Charles Proxy?

Onion Browser is rated higher. Onion Browser averages 4.3 out of 5 from 13K ratings, while Charles Proxy averages 4.0 from 185 ratings.

### Do Onion Browser or Charles Proxy have ads?

Neither Onion Browser nor Charles Proxy shows ads.

### Which is updated more often, Onion Browser or Charles Proxy?

Onion Browser ships an update every 2 months, and Charles Proxy every 4 months. Most recently, Onion Browser was updated on September 24, 2026 and Charles Proxy on September 24, 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.*