What are Residential Proxies?
Residential proxies are the intermediary service between a user and the Internet.
Therefore, they are used as a mediator to connect devices and websites to reach a wider network.
Also, the distinguishing part about residential proxies is that they provide IP addresses from another country and do not let anybody track them by rotating them.
With residential proxies, you can hide your identity and never get an error about their fakeness because they are all real.
Why Need for Residential Proxies?
It is very possible that you need residential proxies for several reasons.
We have gathered the top reasons that you should start using residential proxies and, thus, what you can do with them.
- Anonymity: To avoid IP blocking or detection, you can use residential proxies since they resemble regular users' IP addresses.
- Bypassing Restrictions: Residential proxies are more away from being blocked than data center proxies, so they help you get involved in web scraping, data extraction, or accessing geo-restricted content.
- Ignoring IP Blocking: In case of irregular access, IPs are normally blocked, but since residential proxies act as genuine users, they help prevent IP addresses from being blocked.
- Credibility: Residential IP addresses are more welcome on websites. Therefore, this gives a sense that legitimate users visit this specific website.
- Market Research: Residential proxies provide data collection as the representative of real user behavior.
- Ad Performance: Marketers use residential proxies for ad verification to hinder ad-blocking mechanisms.
- Security: By hiding the actual IP addresses, residential proxies allow you to access sensitive information.
→ Extra- Rotating IPs: If a residential proxy service has a rotating IP feature, it is then possible to switch between different residential IP addresses and reduce the risk of detection.
10 Best Residential Proxies for Your All Needs
1. Oxylabs- The Largest IP pool
Oxylabs is a patented go-to solution for the best residential proxies with effective opportunities.
With various locations to get residential IP addresses, Oxylabs provides a successful process of data gathering and web scraping reliably and seamlessly.
Key Features:
- A pool of 100M+ IPs that helps geo-location blocks
- Easy to integrate with third-party software with developer-friendly documentation
- Security-oriented perspective with HTTP, fully encrypted HTTPS, or the fast SOCKS5 protocol
- Effective targeting with country, city, state, ZIP code, coordinates, and ASN for extracting data
- No additional charges for concurrent sessions of web scraping projects
- Detailed dashboard for data usage, proxy usage, subscription management, and more
- Single backconnect entry for rotating proxy pool, enabling users to manage sessions, prevent IP bans, and bypass CAPTCHAs
Pricing: Oxylabs has different pricing plans and different options to give a try. Among them, Residential Proxies Pricing’s Regular part has four sub-plans:
- The first one is Pay as you-go for $10 per GB up to 50GB per month.
- The Micro is the second plan, and it costs $79 per month with 11GB of traffic.
- Another plan is the Starter plan for $240 per month with 38GB of traffic.
- The Advanced is the last plan of Oxylabs Regular Residential Proxies Plan, and it costs $480 per month with 86GB of traffic.
G2 Rating of Oxylabs: 4.5 out of 5.
2. Bright Data- Unparalleled proxy innovation with proxy managers
Bright Data is highlighted with over 72M real user IPs from 195 countries and a stable 99.99% uptime rate performance.
What’s more, Bright Data has an award-winning residential proxy infrastructure with the best-class in technology.
Key Features:
- The opportunity to access the highest quality data
- Concise proxy control to target any country, city, ZIP code, carrier, and ASN
- Developer-friendly perspective with language compatibility
- 24/7 global support and dedicated Account Managers for optimizing user performance
- Creating sub-users and their management
- Bright Data Control Panel or APIs for managing IPs
Pricing: Bright Data has five main pricing plans: Pay As You Go, Micro-Package, Growth, Business, and Enterprise. The Pay As You Go has no commitment, and it costs $8.4 per GB. Then, the other pricing plans have determined pricing costs, starting from $10 per month to $1000 per month. As the plans grow, residential proxies have a lower price rate for each. When it comes to the Enterprise plan, you can contact the Bright Data team to have a customized plan.
G2 Rating of Bright Data: 4.6 out of 5.
3. SOAX- The Premium residential proxies
SOAX provides rotating residential proxies that hinder CAPTCHAs or any kind of block.
Additionally, SOAX claims a success rate of 99.95% with its premium residential proxies and worldwide coverage.
Key Features:
- The vast pool of 155 million residential proxies for versatile usage
- Effective dashboard to monitor proxy usage, assess network coverage, and access the API
- Automatic IP rotation for preventing blocked scrapers and efficient scraping
- Compatible with HTTP(S), SOCKS5, and UDP/QUIC protocols
- The API access feature to interact with and manage proxies
- No restrictions on the number of concurrent sessions with no additional charges
Pricing: There are eight pricing plans for SOAX. The pricing plans available start from $99 per month by starting the free trial for $1.99 with the Residential 15. As the most popular plan, Residential 150 costs $739 per month, with the inclusion of a customer service manager, 150 GB of traffic, and $4.9 per GB. The last plan is Residential 5,000 for $10,999 monthly, and a GB costs $2.2.
G2 Rating of SOAX: 4.9 out of 5.
4. Infatica- Real-time statistics on the dashboard
Infatica, or Infatica.io, pays great attention to avoiding CAPTCHAs, IP address bans, and other anti-scraping measures with its fast residential proxies.
To mention Infatica's reach, we can talk about its geo-targeting capabilities, which focus on location-based data collection.
Key Features:
- 99,99% uptime rate, which provides maximum performance
- Easy-to-use web interface that features quickstart guides
- Supporting uninterrupted sessions with HTTP(S), SOCKS5, and UDP/QUIC protocols
- Compatible with programming languages, such as Go, React, Javascript, Python, NodeJS, C/C++, C#, Ruby
- Flexible IP choices in major cities across the Americas, Europe, and Asia
- Well-developed API documentation for control over proxy settings
Pricing: Infatica's pricing plan is based on the bandwidth of proxies, ranging from $96 to $3,500. However, you can get a price by talking to an expert since there is a customized option that can be helpful.
G2 Rating of Infatica: 4.8 out of 5.
5. IPRoyal- IP address whitelisting process
IPRoyal has 32M+ genuine residential IP addresses that you can prefer for efficient web scraping.
Also, with the self-service option, you can manage your own dashboard and get detailed data usage insights with IPRoyal.
Key Features:
- The chance of keeping the same IP address for up to seven days
- Manual IP change on the dashboard or with the API request
- Unlimited and concurrent sessions to use as many as needed
- No time constraints or expirations on internet traffic for residential IP usage
- Reliable performance with a 99.7% success rate
- Both developers and everyday users have the opportunity to use IPRoyal
Pricing: IPRoyal has a slide bar to help you decide on your own usage of residential proxies. 1 GB starts at $7 without any discount. Then, as you grow your GB usage, there will be a discount based on the amount. The most common usage is 100 GB for $455 with a 35% discount.
G2 Rating of IPRoyal: 4.5 out of 5.
6. NetNut- Combination of ISP and P2P proxy networks
NetNut supports HTTP, HTTPS, and SOCKS5 to work with compatibility and infinite scalability for usage.
Unlike other residential proxy service providers on the list, NetNut claims a full success rate of 100%.
Key Features:
- Simultaneous data collection with unlimited concurrent sessions
- Enhanced targeting for cities and states control geo-locationally
- Static residential proxies with 24/7 availability, providing fast connectivity
- Unblocking websites with IP rotation, auto-retry, CAPTCHA solving, and dynamic fingerprinting
- Crucial partnerships with over 200 Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
- Structured data extraction and targeting with location, language, or device solution
Pricing: When NetNut’s pricing plan is examined monthly, there are six pricing plans: Starter, Advanced, Production, Semi-Pro, Professional, and Master. The pricing plans start from $300 and go to $4000. The cost of residential proxies decreases when the scale of the plan grows. Therefore, you need to choose what fits you best.
G2 Rating of NetNut: 4.9 out of 5.
7. WebShare- E-commerce residential proxies
WebShare provides access to premium residential proxies connected to real residential devices globally and successfully, like the rest of the list.
However, what differentiates WebShare from other residential proxy servers in this list is its claim of being the most budget-friendly option for cheap residential proxies.
Key Features:
- IP authorization on proxy access
- High uptime of 99.97%, ensuring reliability and consistent proxy availability
- Providing organic user behavior and a human-like manner for data gathering
- No IP blocks or CAPTCHAs while scraping public data to enhance reliable proxy service
- Supporting residential proxies for anti-fraud measures, ad verification, and monitoring
- Google Chrome proxy server to remain anonymous online or manage multiple accounts on your browser
Pricing: The pricing plan of WebShare starts with a bandwidth of 1 GB, which costs $7 per month. If you grow your plan’s bandwidth, then you are charged up to $13,500.02 per month. The scalability of the pricing plans is the one that appeals to users with a wide range of pricing options. There, you can choose the bandwidth and then the payment accordingly.
G2 Rating of WebShare: 4.8 out of 5.
8. PacketStream- Peer-to-peer model with unused bandwidth
PacketStream helps you access more reliable data and unlock geolocation-restricted content
Besides, since PacketStream uses a model where peers share their residential proxies, you can earn money by selling yours as well.
Key Features:
- Earning and buying system applied to residential proxies
- A 99% uptime, providing a stable and consistent proxy service
- Marketplace apps for accessing the network
- The use of residential proxies to enable brand protection by allowing publishers and advertisers to verify their products
- Data collection needs with no restrictions.
Pricing: PacketStream's pricing differs from other residential proxy servers in the list because there are two sides to this pricing, where you can earn money and buy a proxy. You can become a packeter by sharing your bandwidth for $0.10 per GB. On the other hand, you can buy bandwidth for $1.00 GB to access a proxy network.
Trustpilot Rating of PacketStream: 3.5 out of 5.
9. Asocks- The same price for mobile and residential proxies
Asocks manages a customer-centric approach where there is a possibility to talk to a web data expert.
In addition to this, Asocks creates user-friendly solutions to optimize user experience.
Key Features:
- The usage for ad verification, price comparison, and market research
- Specific proxy infrastructure to prevent IPs from getting blocked
- Mobile LTE proxies that encompass 4G/LTE mobile IPs, automated IP rotation, and authentic mobile devices
- Free trial option to ensure the effectiveness of Asocks for the needs
- A pool of 7 million IP addresses to support diversity
Pricing: Since Asocks uses only one plan, Pay As You Go, there are not many options to prefer. However, the pricing is fair, and it starts with 1 GB for $3. Therefore, it can be determined as one of the cheap residential proxies. Then, the pricing goes until 1 TB for < 3000$. What you need to do is to determine the bandwidth and choose the pricing to get it.
G2 Rating of Asocks: 4.9 out of 5.
10. Rayobyte- The free trial advantage with 50 MB
Rayobyte stands out for its commitment to ethics and helpful use cases across various industries.
Also, if you are interested in starting a residential proxy business, Rayobyte has a Reseller Program that you can start to learn where to start.
Key Features:
- No limits on bandwidth usage for seamless performance
- Effective residential proxies to avoid CAPTCHAs or any other anti-blocking measurement
- Scalable, large, and high-quality pool of residential proxies
- Ethics-first approach to its residential proxy network
- Global real devices for building a real user network
- API integration for an easy integration and reselling process
Pricing: For residential pricing of Rayobyte, there are flexible and budget-friendly opportunities along with the free trial of 50 MB. As a cheap residential proxy provider, Rayobyte’s Starter plan starts at $7.50 per GB. The Consumer plan is the most popular one with a 50 - 99 GB bandwidth, and it costs $3.50 per GB. Once the plans’ bandwidth grows, the cost decreases per GB. If you have more than 1 TB of bandwidth, then you are charged as low as $1 per GB.
Trustpilot Rating of Rayobyte: 4.0 out of 5.
How to Pick the Best Residential Proxy
From cheap residential proxies to the fastest residential proxies, there are many criteria that you can use to determine.
The following points can help you decide on how your residential proxies should be and give information.
✅ Check the rating of the best residential proxies and choose an option with a high rate and reliability.
✅ Pay attention to the quality of the residential IPs offered in order to ensure their anonymity and better experience.
✅ The more locations, the better because geographic coverage addresses a wider range of locations to meet needs.
✅ Pick dynamic IPs to prevent detection, maintain anonymity, and enhance your success rate.
✅ Evaluate the speed and performance of residential proxies for a smooth browsing experience.
✅ Prefer residential proxies that are compatible with HTTPS, SOCKS, and other relevant protocols.
✅ Choose the most suitable pricing plan for your needs and budget by considering the cost of residential proxies.
✅ Keep maintaining your privacy and protecting your data, so look for legal compliance and only engage in ethical practices.
To Wrap Up
Consequently, the best residential proxies provide the best solutions for you to reach a wider network and web.
What you need to know about residential proxies is that if you want a seamless experience, you need to focus on the global reach, ease of use, and compatibility with features in general.
While deciding on the best residential proxy provider to utilize, you can cover all the features and make your choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
About the details of residential proxies, there are some specific questions and essential points that you need to know and discover.
Here are some common questions that every person asks when starting to use residential proxies.
What Are the Difference between Residential Proxies and Data Center Proxies?
Residential proxies and data center proxies differ primarily in their source of IP addresses and authenticity.
Residential proxies use real IP addresses assigned by ISPs to homeowners, providing a high level of legitimacy and anonymity as they resemble regular users. In contrast, data center proxies use IP addresses from servers in data centers, lack a residential association, and are often perceived as less legitimate.
Residential proxies are preferred for tasks requiring authenticity, where IP blocking is a concern, while data center proxies are more cost-effective and suitable for less sensitive tasks. The choice between them depends on specific use cases and the level of authenticity required.
Where Can You Use Residential Proxies?
Residential proxies find widespread use in web scraping for authentic data collection, bypassing restrictions to access geo-restricted content, verifying online ad placements, conducting market research, and monitoring e-commerce prices.
They enhance security, privacy, and social media management by offering anonymity. Additionally, SEO professionals employ residential proxies to monitor search engine results accurately. The versatility of residential proxies extends across applications where authenticity, bypassing restrictions, and anonymity are paramount.
Is It Legal to Use Residential Proxies?
Yes, it is generally legal to use residential proxies. However, it's crucial to ensure that the use of proxies complies with the terms of service of websites and online platforms.
While residential proxies themselves are a legitimate tool for various online activities, using them for illegal or unethical purposes, such as hacking, fraud, or unauthorized data access, can lead to legal consequences.
Therefore, it's essential to use residential proxies responsibly and in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
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