tomchristie: Great, yup! 👍
diff --git a/httpx/models.py b/httpx/models.py
index 710c030..9cbdc25 100644
--- a/httpx/models.py
+++ b/httpx/models.py
@@ -204,7 +204,7 @@ class URL:
         return hash(str(self))
 
     def __eq__(self, other: typing.Any) -> bool:
-        return isinstance(other, URL) and str(self) == str(other)
+        return isinstance(other, (URL, str)) and str(self) == str(other)
 
     def __str__(self) -> str:
         return self.components.unsplit()

API design question - `Response.url`
Currently our `Response.url` attribute exposes a `URL` instance.

This is a breaking change from the requests API where it just exposes a plain string.

It's feasible that we should instead only be exposing plain string URLs, in order to aim for drop-in replacement API compatibility w/ requests, *and* in order to keep the API surface area low.

Options here are:

* Expose `request.url` as a URL instance. (Richer information, URL class is also useful in its own right.)
* Expose `request.url` as a str. (Better API compat. Lower API surface area to maintain.)
* Expose `request.url` as a str, and `request.urlinfo` as a URL instance. (Better API compat. High API surface area.)

diff --git a/tests/models/test_url.py b/tests/models/test_url.py
index 5f5208c..70089e0 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_url.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_url.py
@@ -25,6 +25,12 @@ def test_url():
     assert new.scheme == "http"
 
 
+def test_url_eq_str():
+    url = URL("https://example.org:123/path/to/somewhere?abc=123#anchor")
+    assert url == "https://example.org:123/path/to/somewhere?abc=123#anchor"
+    assert str(url) == url
+
+
 def test_url__params():
     url = URL("https://example.org:123/path/to/somewhere", params={"a": "123"})
     assert str(url) == "https://example.org:123/path/to/somewhere?a=123"

pip install -e .
parse_log_pytest
requirements.txt
pytest pytest-cov pytest-asyncio
3.9
requirements.txt
pytest --no-header -rA --tb=line --color=no -p no:cacheprovider -W ignore::DeprecationWarning
autoflake==2.3.1
babel==2.17.0
backrefs==5.8
black==25.1.0
brotlipy==0.7.0
certifi==2025.1.31
cffi==1.17.1
chardet==3.0.4
charset-normalizer==3.4.1
click==8.1.8
colorama==0.4.6
coverage==7.8.0
cryptography==44.0.2
exceptiongroup==1.2.2
flake8==7.2.0
ghp-import==2.1.0
h11==0.8.1
h2==3.2.0
hpack==3.0.0
-e git+https://github.com/encode/httpx.git@37df46a83b93a0f40f2b8e10282f6f038dd908f6#egg=httpx
hyperframe==5.2.0
idna==2.10
importlib_metadata==8.6.1
iniconfig==2.1.0
isort==6.0.1
Jinja2==3.1.6
Markdown==3.7
MarkupSafe==3.0.2
mccabe==0.7.0
mergedeep==1.3.4
mkdocs==1.6.1
mkdocs-get-deps==0.2.0
mkdocs-material==9.6.10
mkdocs-material-extensions==1.3.1
mypy==1.15.0
mypy-extensions==1.0.0
packaging==24.2
paginate==0.5.7
pathspec==0.12.1
platformdirs==4.3.7
pluggy==1.5.0
pycodestyle==2.13.0
pycparser==2.22
pyflakes==3.3.2
Pygments==2.19.1
pymdown-extensions==10.14.3
pytest==8.3.5
pytest-asyncio==0.26.0
pytest-cov==6.0.0
python-dateutil==2.9.0.post0
PyYAML==6.0.2
pyyaml_env_tag==0.1
requests==2.32.3
rfc3986==1.5.0
six==1.17.0
tomli==2.2.1
trustme==1.2.1
typing_extensions==4.13.0
urllib3==2.3.0
uvicorn==0.34.0
watchdog==6.0.0
zipp==3.21.0

name: httpx
channels:
  - defaults
  - https://repo.anaconda.com/pkgs/main
  - https://repo.anaconda.com/pkgs/r
  - conda-forge
dependencies:
  - _libgcc_mutex=0.1=main
  - _openmp_mutex=5.1=1_gnu
  - ca-certificates=2025.2.25=h06a4308_0
  - ld_impl_linux-64=2.40=h12ee557_0
  - libffi=3.4.4=h6a678d5_1
  - libgcc-ng=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - libgomp=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - libstdcxx-ng=11.2.0=h1234567_1
  - ncurses=6.4=h6a678d5_0
  - openssl=3.0.16=h5eee18b_0
  - pip=25.0=py39h06a4308_0
  - python=3.9.21=he870216_1
  - readline=8.2=h5eee18b_0
  - setuptools=75.8.0=py39h06a4308_0
  - sqlite=3.45.3=h5eee18b_0
  - tk=8.6.14=h39e8969_0
  - tzdata=2025a=h04d1e81_0
  - wheel=0.45.1=py39h06a4308_0
  - xz=5.6.4=h5eee18b_1
  - zlib=1.2.13=h5eee18b_1
  - pip:
      - autoflake==2.3.1
      - babel==2.17.0
      - backrefs==5.8
      - black==25.1.0
      - brotlipy==0.7.0
      - certifi==2025.1.31
      - cffi==1.17.1
      - chardet==3.0.4
      - charset-normalizer==3.4.1
      - click==8.1.8
      - colorama==0.4.6
      - coverage==7.8.0
      - cryptography==44.0.2
      - exceptiongroup==1.2.2
      - flake8==7.2.0
      - ghp-import==2.1.0
      - h11==0.8.1
      - h2==3.2.0
      - hpack==3.0.0
      - hyperframe==5.2.0
      - idna==2.10
      - importlib-metadata==8.6.1
      - iniconfig==2.1.0
      - isort==6.0.1
      - jinja2==3.1.6
      - markdown==3.7
      - markupsafe==3.0.2
      - mccabe==0.7.0
      - mergedeep==1.3.4
      - mkdocs==1.6.1
      - mkdocs-get-deps==0.2.0
      - mkdocs-material==9.6.10
      - mkdocs-material-extensions==1.3.1
      - mypy==1.15.0
      - mypy-extensions==1.0.0
      - packaging==24.2
      - paginate==0.5.7
      - pathspec==0.12.1
      - platformdirs==4.3.7
      - pluggy==1.5.0
      - pycodestyle==2.13.0
      - pycparser==2.22
      - pyflakes==3.3.2
      - pygments==2.19.1
      - pymdown-extensions==10.14.3
      - pytest==8.3.5
      - pytest-asyncio==0.26.0
      - pytest-cov==6.0.0
      - python-dateutil==2.9.0.post0
      - pyyaml==6.0.2
      - pyyaml-env-tag==0.1
      - requests==2.32.3
      - rfc3986==1.5.0
      - six==1.17.0
      - tomli==2.2.1
      - trustme==1.2.1
      - typing-extensions==4.13.0
      - urllib3==2.3.0
      - uvicorn==0.34.0
      - watchdog==6.0.0
      - zipp==3.21.0
prefix: /opt/conda/envs/httpx

tests/models/test_url.py::test_url_eq_str
tests/models/test_url.py::test_idna_url tests/models/test_url.py::test_url tests/models/test_url.py::test_url__params tests/models/test_url.py::test_url_set
httpx/models.py
httpx/models.py