head to head · open source
proxy_pool vs curl_cffi
proxy_pool has 23,707 GitHub stars, 5,418 forks, 298 open issues and last shipped 3 months ago. curl_cffi has 6,507 stars, 552 forks, 72 open issues and last shipped yesterday. proxy_pool leads on adoption by 264% (23,707 vs 6,507 stars). proxy_pool is written in Python under MIT; curl_cffi is written in Python under MIT. proxy_pool has attracted 23% as many forks as stars, curl_cffi 8%. curl_cffi was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (http), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| proxy_pool | curl_cffi | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 24K | ★ 6.5K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | Python | Python |
| Last push | 2026-06-15 | 2026-09-17 |
| Forks | ⑂ 5.4K | ⑂ 552 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick proxy_pool if
- You weight community size — 24K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick curl_cffi if
- You want the curl_cffi feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and curl_cffi fits your workflow better
About proxy_pool
proxy pool is a self hosted Python proxy IP pool for web spiders that continuously collects, checks, and serves rotating HTTP proxies from public free proxy sources through a Redis backed pool.
read the full proxy_pool overview →
About curl_cffi
curl cffi is a Python HTTP client that binds the curl impersonate fork through cffi so Python programs can impersonate browser TLS/JA3 and HTTP/2 fingerprints, and it is aimed at developers whose scripts are blocked by bot protection despite apparently correct requests.
read the full curl_cffi overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is proxy_pool or curl_cffi more popular?
proxy_pool has 23,707 GitHub stars and curl_cffi has 6,507. proxy_pool has the larger community by that measure.
Are proxy_pool and curl_cffi free?
Both are open source. proxy_pool is licensed under MIT and curl_cffi under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between proxy_pool and curl_cffi?
proxy_pool is written in Python and curl_cffi in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, proxy_pool or curl_cffi?
Choose proxy_pool if you want the larger community (23,707 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose curl_cffi if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.