Proxy Protocol Comparison: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS4, SOCKS5
Picking the right proxy protocol matters more than people think. Use the wrong one and you get broken websites, leaked DNS lookups or rejected connections. Here is what each protocol actually does, and when to reach for it.
At a glance
| Feature | HTTP | HTTPS | SOCKS4 | SOCKS5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Layer | Application | Application | Transport | Transport |
| Year | 1991 | 1994 | 1990 | 1996 |
| Tunnels arbitrary TCP | No | Yes (via CONNECT) | Yes | Yes |
| UDP support | No | No | No | Yes |
| Encryption between client and proxy | No | Yes (TLS) | No | No |
| Authentication | Basic | Basic | None | User/pass, GSSAPI |
| Remote DNS | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| IPv6 | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
HTTP proxy
The oldest and simplest of the four. An HTTP proxy understands the request
line and headers — your client sends GET http://target/path HTTP/1.1
and the proxy forwards it on. Because the proxy is parsing HTTP it can also
inject caching, log full URLs, or modify headers. That visibility is also why
HTTP proxies have terrible privacy properties: every request URL is plaintext
to the proxy operator.
Use HTTP proxies for cheap web scraping over plain HTTP, especially if you need to read or rewrite request headers in transit.
HTTPS proxy
Despite the name, "HTTPS proxy" usually refers to an HTTP proxy that supports
the CONNECT verb. The client opens a tunnel to a remote
host:port, the proxy blindly relays bytes, and the client speaks
TLS straight to the target. The proxy never sees the URL or payload — only
the destination hostname and port. Some lists also use the term to mean
"the link between client and proxy itself is wrapped in TLS"; the
https.txt file on ProxySpace.pro means the former.
HTTPS proxies are the only HTTP-family option that handles modern TLS-heavy traffic without breaking certificates.
SOCKS4 proxy
SOCKS4 is a much lower-level relay. It does not parse the application protocol; it just opens a TCP socket on your behalf and shuffles bytes back and forth. That makes it work with any TCP-based protocol — FTP, IRC, SMTP, custom binary protocols.
The downsides: no UDP, no authentication, no IPv6, and no remote DNS. The client has to resolve hostnames locally before passing an IP to the proxy, which leaks DNS to your ISP. In 2026 SOCKS4 is mainly useful for legacy software that refuses to upgrade.
SOCKS5 proxy
SOCKS5 is the modern version. Adds: remote hostname resolution (the proxy does the DNS lookup, plugging the most common privacy leak), UDP relays, IPv6 support, optional authentication with user/pass or GSSAPI.
SOCKS5 is the right default. If your client supports both SOCKS4 and SOCKS5, pick SOCKS5 every time. The handshake is one extra packet — nothing measurable.
Which one should you use?
- Web scraping plain HTTP at scale → HTTP proxy with header rewriting.
- Scraping or browsing modern HTTPS sites → HTTPS proxy (CONNECT) so TLS terminates at the target.
- Anything non-HTTP — IRC, game servers, BitTorrent, custom TCP → SOCKS5.
- UDP traffic — VoIP, QUIC, DNS-over-UDP → SOCKS5.
- Legacy software stuck on SOCKS4 → SOCKS4, accept the DNS leak.
All four lists are kept current on ProxySpace.pro. Browse the about page to see how each list is built, or jump straight to HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS4 or SOCKS5.