Brave has no proxy screen of its own. On Windows and macOS, the desktop browser is built on Chromium and uses your computer’s proxy settings, so a Brave proxy is set in the operating system, with a command-line flag, or with an extension. This guide covers all three with step-by-step instructions, then explains how a proxy differs from Brave’s own tools (Shields, Tor windows and Brave VPN), how to use a proxy in Brave on Android and iPhone, how to run a WebRTC leak check, and how to fix the usual errors.
The short version
To set a proxy in Brave, open Settings, choose System, click “Open your computer’s proxy settings”, and enter the proxy host and port in the Windows or macOS proxy screen. Brave asks for the proxy username and password the first time it connects. To proxy Brave alone, start it with the –proxy-server flag or install a proxy extension from the Chrome Web Store. Brave can’t sign in to a SOCKS5 proxy with a password, so use the HTTP endpoint for paid proxies.
Brave proxy settings: where Brave gets its proxy
Four sources, and the highest one winsBrave’s help centre describes the desktop browser as built on top of the open-source Chromium project, and proxies are one of the parts Brave leaves as Chromium made them. Brave’s settings reuse Chromium’s System page, whose proxy row reads “Open your computer’s proxy settings”. Chromium’s own description of that control is that the settings apply to the entire computer. Brave has no fields for a proxy host, port or login anywhere in its own settings.
Chromium ranks its proxy sources in a fixed order, and Brave inherits it. An administrator’s policy comes first: Brave’s Group Policy page says Brave supports all of the policies Chromium does, and brave://policy shows the ones in effect. Next come extensions that control the proxy, then command-line flags, and finally the operating system’s settings, which apply when nothing above them is set.
1 Policy set by an admin; listed on brave://policy
2 Extension "Brave is using proxy settings from an extension"
3 Command-line flag brave.exe --proxy-server=...
4 System proxy settings Windows: Settings > Network & internet > Proxy
macOS: System Settings > Network > Details > Proxies
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Brave --> proxy (HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS4 or SOCKS5) --> website sees the proxy IPThat gives you a simple choice. If you want the whole computer on the proxy, use the system settings; Chrome, Edge and other apps that follow them will use it too. If you want only Brave on the proxy, use a flag or an extension. If Brave’s System page says your proxy is managed by your administrator, a policy is in charge and your own settings won’t apply.
Key takeaways
- Desktop Brave has no proxy fields. Its System page opens the operating system’s proxy screen.
- A system proxy covers Brave and every app that follows it. Flags and extensions cover Brave only.
- Brave’s own man page documents –proxy-server, –no-proxy-server, –proxy-pac-url and –proxy-auto-detect.
- Brave signs in to HTTP proxies through a sign-in box. Like Chrome, it can’t send a password to a SOCKS5 proxy.
- Private windows don’t change your IP. Tor windows do, but through Tor, not a proxy you choose.
Brave’s own privacy tools vs a Brave browser proxy
Shields, fingerprinting protection, Tor windows and Brave VPNBrave ships several privacy features, and people often ask whether they make a proxy unnecessary. They solve different problems. Most of them change what a website can learn from your browser; only two of them change the IP address a website sees, and neither lets you pick a residential IP in a particular city or ISP.
| Feature | What it does, per Brave’s help centre | Changes your IP? | Choose the location? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shields | Blocks most ads and trackers, blocks third-party cookies, upgrades connections to HTTPS and makes the browser harder to recognise. On by default, adjustable per site. | No | No |
| Block fingerprinting | Part of Shields. By default it adds a small amount of randomness to values sites use to tell browsers apart. | No | No |
| Private window | Doesn’t save history, cookies or form data after the session. Brave says plainly that it doesn’t hide your IP address. | No | No |
| Private window with Tor | A private window that uses Tor as a proxy, through three volunteer relays. Desktop only, slow, and sites often ask you to prove you’re human. | Yes, to a Tor exit | No |
| Brave VPN | A paid subscription that protects the whole device at the network level. Available on Windows, macOS, Android and iOS, with a fixed list of regions. | Yes, to a VPN server | Region only |
| A proxy | Routes Brave’s web traffic through a server you choose. With a residential proxy, sites see a home IP in the country, city or ISP you target. | Yes | Yes |
Shields and fingerprinting protection are worth keeping on with a proxy; they work on a different layer. The Tor window is the right tool when anonymity matters more than speed, and Brave’s own advice is to use Tor Browser instead if your personal safety depends on it. Brave VPN encrypts the whole device’s traffic to a VPN server and gives you that server’s IP in one of its regions. A proxy is the tool for a specific location, a real residential or mobile IP, a sticky IP for a whole session, or a separate IP for Brave while other apps stay on your normal connection. Our comparison of residential proxies vs VPNs goes deeper.
A proxy doesn’t make Brave more private by itself. It changes the IP and location that websites see; Shields still does the tracker blocking.
How to set up a proxy in Brave on Windows
Windows 11 and Windows 10On Windows, Brave’s proxy settings are the Windows proxy settings. The steps below use the Settings app; the Windows proxy server management guide covers setup scripts, automatic detection and command-line tools in more depth.
- Get your proxy details. In the ProxyEmpire dashboard, copy the host, port, username and password. For rotating residential or mobile proxies the host is v2.proxyempire.io and the port is 5000.
- Open Brave’s settings. Click the menu button at the top right, choose Settings, then System in the left menu. Or type brave://settings/system in the address bar.
- Open the Windows proxy screen. Click Open your computer’s proxy settings. Windows opens Settings at Network & internet > Proxy.
- Start a manual setup. Under Manual proxy setup, next to “Use a proxy server”, select Set up.
- Enter the proxy. Turn on Use a proxy server, type the host in “Proxy IP address” and the port in “Port”.
- Set exceptions if you need them. List sites that should skip the proxy, separated by semicolons, and leave “Don’t use the proxy server for local (intranet) addresses” ticked.
- Save and sign in. Select Save, go back to Brave and open any website. Brave shows a box asking for the proxy’s username and password. Enter the ones from your dashboard.
The Windows dialog has no username or password field, so the sign-in box is expected. If it comes straight back after you sign in, the credentials don’t match; copy them again rather than typing them. Other apps that follow the system proxy now use it as well, so switch “Use a proxy server” off in the same screen when you’re done.
Brave proxy settings on macOS
System Settings, Network, Details, ProxiesOn a Mac, Brave again hands you to the operating system. Apple’s Mac User Guide gives the path:
- In Brave, open Settings > System > Open your computer’s proxy settings. Or choose Apple menu > System Settings > Network yourself.
- Click the network service you use, such as Wi-Fi, then Details, then Proxies.
- Turn on Web proxy (HTTP) and Secure web proxy (HTTPS), and enter the same host and port in both.
- Add any hosts that should skip the proxy under “Bypass proxy settings for these hosts & domains”, then click OK.
- Open a site in Brave and enter the proxy username and password when Brave asks.
macOS also has a “Proxy server requires password” switch. Chromium’s proxy documentation says the browser doesn’t use credentials stored in the system proxy settings and signs in through its normal flow instead, so expect Brave’s sign-in box even if you fill in that switch. The proxy belongs to one network service: if you move from Wi-Fi to Ethernet, set it there too.
Use a proxy for Brave only: command-line flags
–proxy-server and friends, documented in Brave’s man pageA flag sets the proxy for the Brave process you start and leaves the rest of the computer alone. Brave’s own man page, kept in the brave-core source, lists –proxy-server among the “relatively stable flags” and says it overrides environment variables and the system settings. It takes the form [scheme://]host[:port], where the scheme is http, socks, socks4 or socks5, and defaults to http.
REM Windows (Command Prompt). Brave's help centre gives this install path;
REM if yours differs, copy it from the Brave shortcut's Properties > Target.
"C:\Program Files (x86)\BraveSoftware\Brave-Browser\Application\brave.exe" --proxy-server="http://v2.proxyempire.io:5000"
# macOS (Terminal)
open -a "Brave Browser.app" -n --args --proxy-server="http://v2.proxyempire.io:5000"
# Linux
brave-browser --proxy-server="http://v2.proxyempire.io:5000"
# Other documented proxy flags
--proxy-bypass-list="*.example.com" only works together with --proxy-server
--proxy-pac-url="https://example.com/proxy.pac"
--proxy-auto-detect
--no-proxy-server always connect directlyThree details decide whether this works. First, quit Brave completely before you run the command; Brave’s help centre starts every flag example with “Quit Brave”, and on a Mac the -n option opens a new instance. Second, the flag goes after the closing quote of the path. Third, Chromium’s documentation says the browser won’t use credentials embedded in proxy settings, so Brave still shows its sign-in box for a paid proxy. To make the flag permanent on Windows, add it to the end of the Target box in the Brave shortcut’s properties.
On Linux, the man page adds that Brave reads the http_proxy, https_proxy and no_proxy environment variables, but ignores them under GNOME or KDE in favour of the desktop’s own proxy settings. Use the flag when you want to force a proxy there. Brave’s flag list also warns that some Chromium flags may not work in Brave; the proxy flags above are the ones Brave documents for itself.
Proxy extensions in Brave
Chrome Web Store extensions install with “Add to Brave”An extension is the easiest way to switch proxies in Brave without restarting it, and it can store the proxy login so the sign-in box doesn’t keep appearing. Brave’s help centre says Brave supports nearly all extensions that are compatible with Chromium: open the Chrome Web Store in Brave, find the extension, click Add to Brave, and read the permissions notice before you confirm. While an extension controls the proxy, Brave’s System page shows “Brave is using proxy settings from an extension” in place of the usual link.
ProxyEmpire Proxy Manager
Our free ProxyEmpire Proxy Manager extension is published on the Chrome Web Store. Its listing describes one-click switching between proxy profiles, support for proxies with a username and password, WebRTC leak protection at browser level, a leak and consistency check, and a kill switch that blocks traffic if the proxy drops. It works in Brave too: open the listing in Brave and click Add to Brave. The Chrome proxy settings guide shows how to set up a profile in it.
ZeroOmega, the maintained SwitchyOmega
The original Proxy SwitchyOmega is no longer maintained and is gone from the Chrome Web Store. It was a Manifest V2 extension, and Brave keeps Manifest V2 support only for a short list of named extensions: AdGuard, NoScript, uBlock Origin and uMatrix. Its maintained fork, “Proxy SwitchyOmega 3 (ZeroOmega)”, is built for Manifest V3 and installs in Brave from the Chrome Web Store. It adds rule-based switching, for example sending only some sites through the proxy.
Our comparison of the best proxy extensions for Chrome covers the other options; the ones on the Chrome Web Store install in Brave the same way. Two limits apply to all of them. No Chromium extension can send a username and password to a SOCKS5 proxy, so use the HTTP endpoint. And extensions stay off in Private windows until you tick Allow in Private on the extension’s details page, where Brave also warns that it can’t stop extensions from recording your browsing history.
Brave on Android and iPhone
The phone’s network settings or an app decideBrave for Android and iOS has no proxy setting of its own either, and Brave’s extension instructions are for the desktop browser. Tor windows are desktop-only too. On a phone, the proxy comes from the network settings or from an app that routes traffic.
- Android. The built-in proxy sits in the Wi-Fi network’s advanced options and has no username or password field, so it can’t sign in to paid proxies. The free ProxyEmpire Proxy Manager app for Android routes Brave, or any app you choose, through HTTP or SOCKS5 proxies with a username and password, and can leave other apps on your normal connection. See how to set up a proxy on Android.
- iPhone and iPad. Open Settings, tap Wi-Fi, tap the info button next to your network, then Configure Proxy. Choose Manual, enter the server and port, turn on Authentication with your username and password, and tap Save. The proxy applies to that Wi-Fi network, so Brave and other apps that use the system’s network settings go through it. It doesn’t apply on mobile data.
Brave VPN on a phone is a separate thing again: it covers the whole device, and its help centre lists it for Android 8 and later and for iOS.
How to test a Brave proxy, including a WebRTC leak check
IP, location, WebRTC and the settings pages- Check the proxy itself first. Paste the proxy into our proxy checker to confirm the host, port and login work before you blame Brave.
- Check the IP in Brave. Open any “what is my IP” page in Brave. It should show the proxy’s IP and location, not your own. On a rotating proxy the IP can change between checks; on a sticky session it should stay the same.
- Run a WebRTC leak test. WebRTC lets sites set up calls and video chat, and Brave’s help centre warns that because it connects directly to peers it can reveal your IP address. Open a WebRTC leak test page in Brave. If it shows your real public IP next to the proxy’s IP, WebRTC is leaking it. A private address such as 192.168.x.x or a name ending in .local isn’t your public IP.
- Close the leak. Go to Settings > Privacy and security > WebRTC IP handling policy and choose Disable non-proxied UDP. Brave describes it as making WebRTC use only TCP unless the proxy supports UDP. ProxyEmpire proxies carry no UDP, so voice and video calls may not connect while this is on. The ProxyEmpire Proxy Manager extension also has WebRTC leak protection.
- Confirm who controls the proxy. brave://settings/system shows whether an extension or your administrator has taken over, brave://policy lists any proxy policy, and brave://extensions shows which proxy extension is turned on.
A DNS leak test is worth running too. Chromium’s proxy documentation says that with an HTTP proxy, name resolution is always deferred to the proxy, and with SOCKS5 it is always done on the proxy side. So a DNS test in a proxied Brave window should show resolvers on the proxy’s side, not your own provider’s. If it shows yours, the page probably loaded without the proxy: check the bypass list and which of the four sources is in charge.
Troubleshooting a Brave proxy
What the errors mean and what to doBrave uses Chromium’s network error codes, so the codes below are the same ones you would see in Chrome.
| Error or symptom | What it means and what to do |
|---|---|
| ERR_ | Brave couldn’t reach the proxy. Check the host and port for typos, check that a firewall isn’t blocking the connection, and turn off a proxy you no longer use. |
| ERR_ | The proxy answered but couldn’t open a tunnel to the site. Common causes are a destination the provider blocks, a port the proxy doesn’t allow, or a problem further along the route. Try another site to narrow it down. |
| The sign-in box keeps coming back | The username or password doesn’t match. Copy both from the dashboard again and check for spaces at the ends. |
| A SOCKS5 proxy with a password never connects | Chromium, and so Brave, supports no SOCKS5 authentication. Use the provider’s HTTP endpoint instead. |
| The –proxy-server flag seems ignored | Brave was still running, so the command opened a window in the existing process. Quit Brave fully and run it again; on a Mac add -n. A policy on brave://policy also overrides the flag. |
| The proxy works in Chrome but not in Brave | Look for a proxy extension in Brave that has taken over, or a Brave shortcut that starts it with a different flag. |
| Sites keep showing CAPTCHAs | In a Tor window this is normal, as Brave’s help centre notes. With a proxy, try a residential IP with a sticky session rather than rotating on every request. |
With ProxyEmpire, two account rules explain most tunnel errors. Only ports 80 and 443 are open by default, which covers ordinary websites, and there is no UDP. Financial, government, bank, payment and crypto sites are blocked on every proxy type; unblocking needs KYC and a use-case review, as described in are there any blocked websites.
To turn the proxy off, undo whichever method you used: switch off “Use a proxy server” in Windows, turn off the web proxy switches on a Mac, remove the flag from the shortcut, or disable the extension on brave://extensions. Starting Brave with –no-proxy-server is a quick way to tell whether the proxy is the problem at all.
Choosing a Brave proxy: which type to use
Match the proxy to the jobProxyEmpire’s rotating residential network has 30M+ IPs in 179 countries and territories, and rotating mobile has 4M+ IPs in 174 countries. Both let you target by country, region, city, ZIP, ISP or carrier, ASN and OS at no extra charge. Both connect through v2.proxyempire.io on port 5000 with a username and password, which is what Brave’s sign-in box asks for. There is no IP whitelisting, so use the HTTP endpoint in Brave. Static residential and datacenter proxies target by country only. Exit IPs are mostly IPv4, with some IPv6.
For a browser, choose a sticky session in the dashboard so a whole visit keeps one IP. Rotating on every request suits scrapers, but in a browser one page loads dozens of files, and a login or checkout can break when the IP changes halfway through. Residential traffic costs $3.50/GB pay-as-you-go and falls to $1.50/GB on larger plans, unused bandwidth rolls over, and datacenter proxies start at $0.35/GB. Support is available 24/7 from real people.
Brave proxy FAQ
Short answersDoes Brave have its own proxy settings?
No. Desktop Brave uses the operating system’s proxy settings, and its System page only links to them. To give Brave a proxy of its own, use the –proxy-server flag or a proxy extension.
Is Brave’s Tor window a proxy?
In a sense. Brave’s help centre calls Tor windows regular private windows that use Tor as a proxy. You can’t choose the country or the IP, it’s slow, and it’s only on desktop.
Do I need a proxy if I use Brave VPN?
They do different jobs. Brave VPN covers the whole device with an IP from one of its regions. A proxy covers Brave, or a chosen app, with an IP you target, such as a residential IP in a particular city. If both are on, sites see the proxy’s address.
Why does Brave keep asking for a proxy username and password?
The proxy needs a login and Brave doesn’t read one from the system settings, so it asks when it first connects. If it asks again straight after you sign in, the credentials are wrong.
Can I use a SOCKS5 proxy with a password in Brave?
No. Brave supports SOCKS5 proxies but not SOCKS5 authentication, the same as Chrome, and extensions can’t add it. Use the HTTP endpoint, or an app that handles the SOCKS5 login.
Do Chrome proxy extensions work in Brave?
Brave says it supports nearly all Chromium-compatible extensions, installed from the Chrome Web Store with “Add to Brave”. Old Manifest V2 extensions such as the original SwitchyOmega are the exception; use ZeroOmega instead.
Do Brave Private windows use the proxy?
Yes, when the proxy comes from the system settings or a flag. A proxy extension only works there after you tick “Allow in Private”.
What does “proxy” mean in Brave’s Safe Browsing documentation?
Brave routes some of its own requests, such as Safe Browsing lookups on desktop, through a Brave-operated proxy server so that Google never sees your IP. Those are Brave’s servers for Brave’s features. They don’t route your browsing and aren’t something you configure.
References
Primary documentation- Brave — man page source, proxy flags (brave-core, chromium_src/chrome/app/resources/manpage.1.in). github.com/brave/brave-core
- Brave — System settings page source (brave-core, brave_system_page_index.html). github.com/brave/brave-core
- Brave — settings strings, incl. “WebRTC IP handling policy” (brave-core, app/brave_settings_strings.grdp). github.com/brave/brave-core
- Brave — “Privacy features” (Shields, private windows with Tor). brave.com/privacy-features
- Brave — “Brave Shields”. brave.com/shields
- Brave — “Brave Firewall + VPN”. brave.com/firewall-vpn
- Chromium — proxy support in Chrome (net/docs/proxy.md). chromium.googlesource.com
- Chromium — settings strings, incl. “Open your computer’s proxy settings” (chrome/app/settings_strings.grdp). chromium.googlesource.com
- Microsoft Support — “Use a proxy server in Windows”. support.microsoft.com
- Apple — “Change Proxies settings on Mac”, Mac User Guide. support.apple.com
- Apple — “Manage Wi-Fi settings on iPhone”, iPhone User Guide. support.apple.com
- Chrome Web Store — ProxyEmpire Proxy Manager. chromewebstore.google.com
- Chrome Web Store — Proxy SwitchyOmega 3 (ZeroOmega). chromewebstore.google.com
- Brave Help Center (support.brave.app) — articles on command-line flags, Group Policy, extensions, privacy settings, Tor windows, private windows, Shields and Brave VPN, as cited in the text. support.brave.app
Proxies that sign in cleanly in Brave
30M+ residential IPs in 179 countries and territories and 4M+ mobile IPs in 174 countries, one HTTP endpoint with username and password login, city, ISP and ASN targeting at no extra charge, sticky sessions, and 24/7 support from real people. The $1.97 trial includes 100 MB of residential and 50 MB of mobile traffic.
