HTTP Clients

GPlay Scraper supports 7 HTTP clients with automatic fallback. If one client fails, it automatically tries the next available client.

Supported Clients

  1. requests (default) - Standard Python HTTP library - Most widely used and stable - Recommended for most use cases

  2. curl_cffi - cURL with browser impersonation - Better for bypassing detection - Mimics real browser behavior

  3. tls_client - Advanced TLS fingerprinting - Excellent for anti-bot protection - Custom TLS configurations

  4. httpx - Modern async-capable HTTP client - HTTP/2 support - Clean API design

  5. urllib3 - Low-level HTTP client - Connection pooling - Retry mechanisms

  6. cloudscraper - Cloudflare bypass capabilities - Automatic challenge solving - Good for protected sites

  7. aiohttp - Async HTTP client - High performance - Concurrent requests

Usage

Default Client

from gplay_scraper import GPlayScraper

# Uses requests by default with automatic fallback
scraper = GPlayScraper()

Specify Client

# Use curl_cffi
scraper = GPlayScraper(http_client="curl_cffi")

# Use tls_client
scraper = GPlayScraper(http_client="tls_client")

# Use httpx
scraper = GPlayScraper(http_client="httpx")

Installation

Default Installation

pip install gplay-scraper

This installs with requests (default client).

Optional Clients

Install additional clients as needed:

# curl_cffi
pip install curl-cffi

# tls_client
pip install tls-client

# httpx
pip install httpx

# urllib3
pip install urllib3

# cloudscraper
pip install cloudscraper

# aiohttp
pip install aiohttp

Automatic Fallback

The library automatically tries clients in this order:

  1. Your specified client (or requests if none specified)

  2. curl_cffi

  3. tls_client

  4. urllib3

  5. cloudscraper

  6. aiohttp

  7. httpx

Example:

# If curl_cffi fails, automatically tries tls_client, then others
scraper = GPlayScraper(http_client="curl_cffi")
data = scraper.app_analyze("com.whatsapp")

When to Use Each Client

requests

  • Default choice for most use cases

  • Stable and well-tested

  • Good documentation

curl_cffi

  • When you need browser impersonation

  • Bypassing basic detection

  • More realistic requests

tls_client

  • Advanced anti-bot protection

  • Custom TLS fingerprints

  • Maximum stealth

httpx

  • Modern Python projects

  • HTTP/2 support needed

  • Clean async/await code

urllib3

  • Low-level control needed

  • Custom connection pooling

  • Advanced retry logic

cloudscraper

  • Cloudflare-protected sites

  • Automatic challenge solving

  • DDoS protection bypass

aiohttp

  • High-performance async

  • Concurrent requests

  • WebSocket support

Error Handling

from gplay_scraper import GPlayScraper, NetworkError

scraper = GPlayScraper(http_client="curl_cffi")

try:
    data = scraper.app_analyze("com.whatsapp")
except NetworkError as e:
    print(f"All HTTP clients failed: {e}")

Best Practices

  1. Start with default - Use requests unless you have specific needs

  2. Install backups - Install 2-3 clients for better reliability

  3. Test your client - Verify your chosen client works for your use case

  4. Monitor failures - Log which clients fail to optimize your setup

  5. Update regularly - Keep HTTP clients updated for best compatibility