Quick start

WireLens has one job: show you exactly what your apps send and receive, and let you change it. Here is the shortest path to a decrypted request on each platform.

On the Mac#

1. Install. Download WireLens, drag it to Applications and open it. It needs a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 14 or later.
2. Trust the certificate. On first launch choose Install Automatically… and enter your administrator password. This is what lets WireLens decrypt HTTPS.
3. Start capture. Press ⌘R. The first time, approve the capture helper in System Settings ▸ General ▸ Login Items & Extensions. WireLens now receives traffic from apps that use the system proxy.
4. Make a request. Load a website, or run the app you are working on. Rows appear in the traffic list.
5. Decrypt a host. Right-click one of its rows and choose Enable SSL Proxying for This Host. Repeat the request.
6. Inspect it. Select the new row. Request and response, headers and bodies, are in the inspector.

Details for each step are in Install WireLens for Mac.

On iPhone and iPad#

1. Install WireLens from the App Store and open it. It needs iOS 17 or later.
2. Allow the VPN configuration when iOS asks. It is local: your traffic goes from the phone to the server through WireLens on the phone, and nowhere else.
3. Install and trust the certificate. Tap Install Certificate, install the profile in Settings, then turn on full trust in Settings ▸ General ▸ About ▸ Certificate Trust Settings.
4. Start capture and use the app you want to inspect.
5. Decrypt a host. Long-press it in the Traffic tab and choose Enable SSL Proxying.

Details are in Install WireLens for iPhone and iPad.

Where to go next#

• Change a response. Pause one with a breakpoint, or answer it yourself with Map Local.
• Capture your phone from the Mac. See Capture other devices.
• Get a tool or runtime into WireLens. Node, Python, Docker and the rest are in Client setup.
• Drive it from a script or an agent. See Command line and MCP for AI agents.