How to use a mobile proxy with Python

Updated 5 October 2026

Send requests and headless-browser traffic through a T-Proxy UK mobile proxy, and get a fresh IP from your script.

requests over HTTP

The requests library takes a proxy URL with the username and password in it. Use the same HTTP proxy URL for both http and https keys: HTTPS sites are tunnelled through it, so the proxy never sees the page content.

import requests

PROXY = "http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:HTTP_PORT"
proxies = {"http": PROXY, "https": PROXY}

r = requests.get("https://api.ipify.org", proxies=proxies, timeout=30)
print(r.text)  # the proxy's UK mobile IP

api.ipify.org only answers over IPv4, so it always shows the proxy’s IPv4 address. To see the address most sites will see, use api64.ipify.org: if your proxy prefers IPv6 (the default on SIMs that have it), that prints an IPv6 address.

SOCKS5

SOCKS5 support in requests needs one extra package:

$ pip install "requests[socks]"

Then use your SOCKS5 port with the socks5h:// scheme. The h matters: it makes the proxy look up domain names, so DNS goes through the UK mobile connection too instead of your own network.

import requests

PROXY = "socks5h://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:SOCKS_PORT"
proxies = {"http": PROXY, "https": PROXY}

r = requests.get("https://api64.ipify.org", proxies=proxies, timeout=30)
print(r.text)

Reuse connections with a Session

For more than a few requests, use a Session. It keeps connections to the proxy open between requests, which is noticeably faster over a mobile network, and keeps cookies like a browser would.

import requests

session = requests.Session()
session.proxies = {
    "http": "http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:HTTP_PORT",
    "https": "http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:HTTP_PORT",
}

for url in ["https://api.ipify.org", "https://api64.ipify.org"]:
    r = session.get(url, timeout=30)
    print(url, r.status_code, r.text)

Rotate the IP from Python

Each proxy has a Rotation URL on its page. A plain GET to it, with no login, asks the modem for a new IP address. It replies with a short JSON message once the modem has its new address: "result": "success", or "fail" with a reason.

import time
import requests

ROTATION_URL = "YOUR_ROTATION_URL"   # from your proxy page
PROXY = "http://USERNAME:PASSWORD@HOST:HTTP_PORT"
proxies = {"http": PROXY, "https": PROXY}


def current_ip():
    return requests.get("https://api.ipify.org", proxies=proxies, timeout=30).text


def rotate():
    # The call returns when the modem has its new address. That can take
    # up to a couple of minutes, so allow a long timeout.
    reply = requests.get(ROTATION_URL, timeout=180).json()
    if reply.get("result") != "success":
        raise RuntimeError(f"rotation refused: {{reply}}")

    # Wait until the proxy answers again before sending real traffic.
    for _ in range(30):
        try:
            return current_ip()
        except requests.RequestException:
            time.sleep(5)
    raise RuntimeError("proxy did not come back after rotating")


print("before:", current_ip())
print("after: ", rotate())

• A rotation usually takes well under a minute, and occasionally up to about two. The proxy drops its connections while the modem reconnects, so pause your work until rotate() returns.
• Rotations requested too close together are refused. Rotate per batch or per session, and leave at least a minute between rotations.
• Sometimes the carrier hands the modem the same IPv4 address back. If you need a different one, check current_ip() and rotate again after the wait.
• Keep the Rotation URL private: anyone who has it can rotate your proxy.

Playwright (headless browser)

Playwright takes the proxy server, username and password as separate fields when you launch the browser:

from playwright.sync_api import sync_playwright

with sync_playwright() as p:
    browser = p.chromium.launch(proxy={
        "server": "http://HOST:HTTP_PORT",
        "username": "USERNAME",
        "password": "PASSWORD",
    })
    page = browser.new_page()
    page.goto("https://api.ipify.org")
    print(page.inner_text("body"))
    browser.close()

To use different proxies in one browser, pass the same proxy dictionary to browser.new_context(proxy=...) instead, one context per proxy.

Tips

• Always set a timeout. Mobile connections occasionally stall, and requests waits forever by default. 30 seconds is a sensible start.
• Retry on connection errors. Catch requests.RequestException, wait a few seconds and retry, especially around a rotation.
• Keep credentials out of your code. Read them from environment variables, for example os.environ["PROXY_URL"].
• Special characters. T-Proxy usernames and passwords are letters and digits. If you use your own credentials with symbols in a proxy URL, URL-encode them (@ becomes %40).
• Several proxies. Run one proxy per worker or per carrier. The Reseller API can claim, rotate and extend proxies from code.
• Behave like a person. Keep request rates reasonable and respect each site’s terms. See our acceptable use policy.

Questions

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