Best Proxy Providers 2026: Complete Comparison Chart & Reviews

Finding the right proxy provider is critical for web scraping, data collection, ad verification, and dozens of other use cases. With hundreds of providers on the market, it’s easy to waste money on unreliable proxies or overpay for features you don’t need.

We’ve spent months testing the top proxy providers across speed, reliability, IP pool size, and real-world scraping performance. Here’s our comprehensive comparison to help you choose the right provider for your needs.

Quick Comparison Chart

1. Bright Data — Best Overall Proxy Provider

Bright Data operates the world’s largest proxy network with 72M+ residential IPs, datacenter proxies in every major location, and the most advanced proxy management tools available. They’re the industry standard for enterprise data collection.

Key Features

• 72M+ residential IPs across 195 countries
• Datacenter, ISP, and mobile proxies
• Web Scraper IDE and pre-built scrapers
• SERP API, e-commerce API, social media API
• Advanced proxy management dashboard
• SOC2 Type II compliance

Pricing

• Residential: From $8.40/GB
• Datacenter: From $0.06/IP
• ISP Proxies: From $12/GB
• Mobile: From $24/GB
• Free trial available

Pros

• Largest and most reliable proxy network
• Most comprehensive tool suite
• Enterprise-grade compliance
• Dedicated account management

Cons

• Expensive for small-scale use
• Complex pricing structure
• Learning curve for the full platform
• Minimum spend requirements

2. Oxylabs — Best for Premium Quality

Oxylabs offers the largest residential proxy pool (100M+ IPs) with consistently high performance. Their focus on quality over quantity makes them the preferred choice for businesses that can’t afford unreliable data.

Key Features

• 100M+ residential proxy pool
• AI-powered Web Scraper API
• SERP and e-commerce scraper APIs
• City-level targeting in 195 countries
• 24/7 technical support
• 99.95% uptime SLA

Pricing

• Residential: From $8/GB (pay-as-you-go)
• Datacenter: From $1.20/IP
• ISP Proxies: From $2/IP
• Mobile: From $20/GB
• Free trial: 7 days

Pros

• Highest quality proxy pool
• Best-in-class customer support
• Strong uptime guarantee
• Comprehensive scraping APIs

Cons

• Premium pricing
• Minimum commitments on some plans
• Complex product lineup
• Not the cheapest for simple proxy needs

3. Smartproxy — Best Mid-Market Value

Smartproxy delivers an excellent balance of price, performance, and features. With 55M+ residential IPs and competitive pricing, it’s the sweet spot for businesses that need quality without enterprise budgets.

Key Features

• 55M+ residential IPs in 195 locations
• Datacenter, ISP, and mobile proxies
• Site Unblocker for anti-bot bypass
• No-Code Scraper for visual extraction
• Browser extensions for quick testing
• 14-day money-back guarantee

Pricing

• Residential: From $7/GB
• Datacenter: From $0.05/IP
• ISP: From $3.50/IP
• Mobile: From $18/GB
• Pay-as-you-go available

Pros

• Best value in the mid-market
• User-friendly dashboard
• Good documentation and tutorials
• Responsive support team

Cons

• Smaller pool than Bright Data/Oxylabs
• Some locations have limited IP availability
• Advanced features require higher plans
• Mobile proxies limited to select countries

4. IPRoyal — Best Budget Residential Proxies

IPRoyal provides affordable residential proxies without sacrificing too much quality. Their unique “Royal Residential” pool offers non-expiring traffic, meaning your bandwidth never expires.

Key Features

• 32M+ residential IPs
• Non-expiring bandwidth (Royal Residential)
• Datacenter, ISP, and mobile proxies
• Sneaker proxies for specific use cases
• Country and city targeting
• API and dashboard management

Pricing

• Residential: From $5.50/GB (non-expiring)
• Datacenter: From $1.39/proxy/month
• ISP: From $2.40/proxy
• Mobile: From $6/GB

Pros

• Non-expiring bandwidth is unique value
• Competitive residential pricing
• Good for sneaker and e-commerce use
• No minimum commitment

Cons

• Smaller IP pool than leaders
• Lower success rates on tough targets
• Limited advanced features
• Support can be slow during peak times

5. SOAX — Best IP Pool Diversity

SOAX claims 191M+ IPs with the most diverse geographic coverage. Their flexible targeting options let you filter by country, city, ISP, and even mobile carrier.

Key Features

• 191M+ residential and mobile IPs
• ISP-level targeting
• Mobile carrier selection
• Flexible session control
• Pay-per-use pricing
• Real-time IP health monitoring

Pricing

• Residential: From $6.99/GB
• Mobile: From $15.99/GB
• ISP: Custom pricing
• Trial available

Pros

• Massive IP diversity
• Granular targeting options
• Flexible session management
• Competitive pricing

Cons

• IP quality varies by region
• Dashboard can be confusing
• Support response times inconsistent
• Some advanced features in beta

6. NetNut — Best for Static Residential Proxies

NetNut specializes in static residential (ISP) proxies that maintain the same IP address for extended sessions. This is crucial for use cases requiring persistent identity like account management and social media.

Key Features

• 85M+ residential IPs
• Static residential (ISP) specialization
• Direct ISP partnerships (no P2P network)
• City and ASN-level targeting
• 99.9% uptime guarantee
• Unblocker technology for protected sites

Pricing

• Residential: From $6/GB
• Static Residential: From $3.60/IP
• Datacenter: From $0.80/IP
• Mobile: From $20/GB

Pros

• Best static residential offering
• Direct ISP connections (not P2P)
• Excellent uptime
• Good for long session use cases

Cons

• Static proxies cost more
• Smaller company than top competitors
• Limited mobile proxy coverage
• Dashboard less polished

7. Webshare — Best Budget Datacenter Proxies

Webshare offers the most affordable datacenter proxies on the market, plus a growing residential network. Their free plan (10 proxies) makes it easy to test before committing.

Key Features

• 30M+ residential IPs
• Large datacenter proxy fleet
• Free plan with 10 proxies
• Bandwidth-based and IP-based pricing
• API access for proxy management
• Rotating and static options

Pricing

• Free: 10 proxies, 1 GB
• Residential: From $5.50/GB
• Datacenter: From $0.05/IP
• Rotating DC: From $4.50/GB

Pros

• Free tier for testing
• Cheapest datacenter proxies
• Simple, transparent pricing
• Good API for automation

Cons

• Lower quality than premium providers
• Limited customer support
• Residential pool less tested
• Higher block rates on difficult sites

For more datacenter options, see our datacenter proxy providers guide.

8. PacketStream — Cheapest Residential Proxies

PacketStream operates a P2P proxy network offering residential proxies at just $1/GB — the lowest price in the industry. Quality varies, but for budget-sensitive projects, it’s hard to beat.

Key Features

• 7M+ residential IPs
• P2P proxy network
• Pay-as-you-go at $1/GB
• Country targeting
• HTTP and SOCKS5 support
• API access

Pricing

• Residential: $1/GB (no minimum)
• Pay-as-you-go only

Pros

• Cheapest residential proxies available
• No minimum spend or commitment
• Simple pay-per-GB model
• Good enough for basic scraping

Cons

• Lower reliability and speed
• Smaller IP pool
• Limited targeting options
• Minimal customer support

9. Storm Proxies — Best Unlimited Bandwidth

Storm Proxies offers flat-rate pricing with unlimited bandwidth — a rare model in the proxy industry. If you need to transfer lots of data without worrying about bandwidth costs, Storm Proxies is your best option.

Key Features

• Unlimited bandwidth on all plans
• Rotating residential proxies
• Dedicated datacenter proxies
• Backconnect rotating proxies
• US and EU locations
• Instant setup

Pricing

• Rotating Residential: From $50/month (5 ports)
• Rotating DC: From $39/month (10 ports)
• Dedicated DC: From $1.70/proxy/month

Pros

• Unlimited bandwidth — truly flat rate
• Predictable monthly costs
• Good for high-bandwidth use cases
• Quick setup

Cons

• Very small IP pool (200K+)
• Limited country coverage
• Higher block rates
• Basic dashboard

10. Rayobyte — Best for Datacenter Proxies

Rayobyte (formerly Blazing SEO) specializes in datacenter proxies with some of the best speeds and reliability in the industry. They also offer ISP and residential proxies for broader coverage.

Key Features

• Datacenter proxies in 27+ countries
• ISP and residential proxies
• Dedicated, semi-dedicated, and rotating
• Unlimited bandwidth on dedicated
• Up to 1 Gbps speeds
• 24-hour replacement guarantee

Pricing

• Datacenter: From $3/IP/month
• ISP: From $5/IP/month
• Residential: From $7.50/GB
• Free trial available

Pros

• Best datacenter proxy quality
• Very fast speeds (1 Gbps)
• Good IP replacement policy
• Reliable infrastructure

Cons

• Datacenter-focused — residential less mature
• Higher DC pricing than budget options
• Limited geographic coverage
• Smaller company

How We Tested

Our proxy provider evaluation was thorough and multi-dimensional:

1. Speed Testing: We measured average response times across 1,000 requests to 10 different websites from 5 geographic locations.

1. Success Rate: We tested against easy targets (static HTML), medium targets (rate-limited APIs), and hard targets (Cloudflare, DataDome protected sites).

1. IP Pool Quality: We verified unique IP counts, checked for blacklisted IPs, and measured IP rotation effectiveness.

1. Geographic Accuracy: We validated that geo-targeted proxies actually delivered IPs from the claimed locations using IP geolocation databases.

1. Uptime Monitoring: 30-day continuous monitoring of proxy gateway endpoints for availability.

1. Support Quality: We submitted tickets during business hours and off-hours, measuring response times and solution quality.

1. Pricing Analysis: We calculated the actual cost per successful request across different use cases and volumes.

We also used our own proxy speed comparison tool and IP lookup tool during testing.

Frequently Asked Questions

What type of proxy do I need?

• Residential proxies for scraping protected sites, social media, and e-commerce
• Datacenter proxies for high-speed, high-volume tasks on less protected targets
• Mobile proxies for social media management and mobile app testing
• ISP proxies for account management and persistent sessions

See our guides on residential proxies, datacenter proxies, and mobile proxies.

How much should I spend on proxies?

Budget 5-15% of your data collection project costs for proxies. For web scraping, expect $5-15/GB for residential proxies. Our proxy cost calculator can help estimate your specific needs.

Are paid proxies worth it over free proxies?

Absolutely. Free proxies are unreliable, slow, and often compromised. Paid proxies from reputable providers offer guaranteed uptime, clean IPs, and customer support. The productivity gains alone justify the cost.

Which proxy provider has the best customer support?

Oxylabs and Bright Data lead in customer support, with 24/7 availability, dedicated account managers, and technical expertise. Smartproxy also offers responsive support on all plans.

Can I try proxies before committing?

Yes — most providers offer free trials or money-back guarantees. Webshare has a permanent free plan (10 proxies), ScraperAPI offers 5,000 free credits, and Bright Data/Oxylabs provide trial credits.

Final Verdict

Best Overall: Bright Data — the most comprehensive proxy platform with the largest network and best tools.

Best Quality: Oxylabs — highest proxy quality, uptime, and support.

Best Value: Smartproxy — excellent balance of price and performance.

Best Budget: IPRoyal — affordable residential proxies with non-expiring bandwidth.

Best Datacenter: Rayobyte — fastest, most reliable datacenter proxies.

Cheapest: PacketStream — residential proxies at $1/GB for budget projects.

For specific use case recommendations, explore our rotating proxy services, SOCKS5 providers, and cheap proxy services guides.

last updated: March 12, 2026