How to configure a Tor bridge (obfs4, Snowflake): step-by-step guide 2026

Published on April 17, 2026 · About 9 minutes to read

In countries that heavily censor the internet — China, Iran, Russia, Belarus, Turkmenistan, and Saudi Arabia in part — a direct connection to the Tor network is blocked. The IP addresses of public Tor relays are openly listed on metrics.torproject.org and therefore trivial to filter. The solution: bridges, relays whose IPs remain private, combined with a pluggable transport that disguises Tor traffic so it looks like ordinary HTTPS. This tutorial explains how to enable obfs4 or Snowflake in Tor Browser on all platforms, how to obtain private bridges when the public ones are blocked, and how to diagnose connection problems.

When to enable a bridge

You need to enable a bridge if:

You are in a country that blocks Tor (up-to-date list at ooni.torproject.org)
Your ISP or employer blocks connections to public Tor relays
Your standard Tor connection consistently fails at the first handshake (message: "Unable to connect to relay")
You want to hide from your ISP the fact that you are using Tor (even if it is not blocked)

In a country without censorship (France, Germany, United States, etc.), bridges are not necessary and slow down the connection. Use the standard direct Tor connection.

Comparison: obfs4 vs Snowflake vs meek-azure

Transport	Speed	Censorship resistance	When to use
obfs4	Good	Strong	Default first choice
Snowflake	Variable	Very strong	China, Iran (when obfs4 fails)
meek-azure	Slow	Maximum	Last resort only

Configuration in Tor Browser (desktop)

On Windows, macOS, and Linux, the procedure is identical.

Method 1: on first launch

Launch Tor Browser. The initial connection screen appears.
Instead of clicking "Connect", click "Configure a bridge".
Choose "Select a built-in bridge" → dropdown menu → obfs4.
Click "Connect". The handshake takes 10 to 60 seconds.

Method 2: if Tor Browser is already open

Type about:preferences#connection into the URL bar.
Under the "Bridges" section, check "Use a bridge".
Choose "Select a built-in bridge" → obfs4.
Apply. Restart Tor (click "New Circuit" or relaunch the browser).

Configuration on Android (Orbot)

On Android, Tor Browser also supports bridges directly, but the Orbot app (which can route all Android traffic through Tor) has more complete options.

Install Orbot from F-Droid or Google Play.
Launch the app, tap the menu icon → Settings → Bridges.
Select "Bridges are required".
Under "Select the bridge provider", choose obfs4 or Snowflake.
Return to the main screen and tap "Start".

Getting private bridges

If the built-in bridges no longer work (blocked in your country), you need to obtain private bridges — whose IPs have not yet been discovered by censors. Three official channels:

Via bridges.torproject.org

Visit bridges.torproject.org (if this site is blocked, temporarily use a VPN).
Choose "obfs4" as the pluggable transport.
Solve the CAPTCHA.
Copy the 2–3 bridge lines provided.

By email to BridgeDB

Send a blank email to [email protected] from a Gmail, Riseup, or Yahoo address (other providers are refused to limit abuse). Subject line: obfs4. You will receive an automatic reply within a few minutes containing private bridges.

Via Telegram

From Tor Browser, send a message to the official bot @GetBridgesBot. Command: /bridges obfs4. The bot replies directly in the conversation with bridges.

Installing the received bridges in Tor Browser

Open about:preferences#connection.
Under Bridges → "Provide a bridge I know".
Paste the obfs4 lines (each line starts with obfs4 IP:PORT ...).
Apply and restart the circuit.

Verifying it works

Once connected, open in Tor Browser: check.torproject.org. The page should display "Congratulations. This browser is configured to use Tor." If it does, your bridge configuration is working correctly.

To confirm that the bridge is active (not just a standard Tor connection), click the shield icon in the Tor Browser toolbar → "View the current circuit". The first relay shown should have the indication obfs4 bridge or Snowflake bridge instead of "Guard".

Troubleshooting

Problem: "Bridge connection failed"

Check your system clock (Tor requires ±30 seconds accuracy relative to UTC)
Try a different pluggable transport (if obfs4 fails → Snowflake)
Request new private bridges — the public addresses may be blocked
On Android, verify that Orbot has full network permissions

Problem: very slow connection

Switch to a different bridge (some are overloaded)
Avoid meek-azure unless necessary (slow by design)
Test without a bridge in an uncensored country to determine whether the problem is the bridge or the line

Problem: Snowflake cannot find a proxy

Wait 30–60 seconds — Snowflake needs time to negotiate a WebRTC proxy
Try again — each attempt may connect to a different proxy
If the problem persists, fall back to obfs4 with private bridges

FAQ on Tor bridges

What is a Tor bridge?

A Tor bridge (or relay bridge) is a Tor relay whose IP address is not published in the Tor Project's public directory. It is used to bypass censorship in countries where the IP addresses of public relays are systematically filtered (China, Iran, Russia, Belarus, Turkmenistan). Combined with a pluggable transport such as obfs4 or Snowflake, a bridge makes Tor traffic indistinguishable from ordinary HTTPS traffic to Deep Packet Inspection systems.

obfs4, Snowflake, meek-azure: which one should I choose?

obfs4 is the recommended default choice: fast, mature, and effective against most DPI systems. Snowflake uses WebRTC and ephemeral proxies provided by volunteers — excellent against sophisticated blocking (Russia, Iran 2024–2025), but with more variable performance. meek-azure routes traffic through Microsoft Azure's CDN: very effective against censorship but slow and more resource-intensive for the Tor Project.

Are the bridges built into Tor Browser enough?

For most users in moderately censored countries, yes. Tor Browser includes a default list of obfs4, Snowflake, and meek-azure bridges that work in the majority of cases. If the built-in bridges are themselves blocked (China, Turkmenistan, Iran at certain times), you need to request private bridges via BridgeDB or by email.

How do I get a private bridge?

Three methods: (1) visit bridges.torproject.org and solve the CAPTCHA; (2) send a blank email to [email protected] from a Gmail, Riseup, or Yahoo address (other providers are refused to limit abuse); (3) use the official Telegram bot @GetBridgesBot. In Tor Browser, paste the received lines into the "Provide a bridge I know" section of the settings.

My bridge won't connect — what should I do?

First check your system clock (Tor requires accurate time). Try a different type of bridge (if obfs4 fails, try Snowflake). Request new private bridges — public addresses may be blocked in your country. On Android with Orbot, make sure "Use Bridges" is enabled before starting. If nothing works, try meek-azure as a last resort (slow but very resilient).

Does using a bridge slow down Tor?

Slightly. The pluggable transport adds a processing layer to each packet, and private bridges generally have less bandwidth than popular public relays. Typical latency increases by 100–300 ms compared to a standard Tor connection. For web browsing, the impact is negligible; for HD video streaming, the Tor+bridge combination becomes uncomfortable.