In the internet’s early days, proxy servers were consumer-friendly privacy tools used to hide your identity while web browsing. Today’s proxy services are less privacy-focused because they’re marketed toward developers and businesses. Proxies lost their privacy tool status when VPNs became easier, more secure ways to hide internet traffic from advertisers and snoops. Modern proxy services are marketed toward business clients who need a small army of IP addresses to conduct market research, scrape web data for training LLMs, test websites, and manage multiple social media accounts. The best proxies we’ve tested include Oxylabs for enterprise clients, and Decodo and Soax for small businesses and consumers. But these aren’t the only services worth checking out, so read on for all of our top picks.
Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
Best for Enterprise-Level Clients
Oxylabs
- Free trial
- Responsive 24/7 customer support
- Straightforward privacy policy
- Chrome browser extension
- Easy integration with related third-party services
- Less user-friendly than consumer-level services
If IP address variety is important to you, Oxylabs’ pool of more than 100 million options is one of the largest we’ve seen. The more IP addresses on offer, the stronger your likelihood of getting the level of anonymization you or your business demands from a proxy service.
While not geared toward the individual customer or the self-employed, Oxylabs has a suite of products and services that are tailor-made for the business user who wants the option to scrape dozens of different data points from across the web.
# of Residential IPs
175000000
# of Residential IP Locations
195
Protocols Supported
HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5
Support Types
Support website
Learn More
Oxylabs Review
- Large residential proxy pool
- Ethical IP sourcing
- Dual authentication available
- Browser extensions for Chrome and Firefox
- No free trial
- Not-so-customer-friendly refund policies
- Limited browser extension capabilities
- TrustPilot reviews marked as suspicious
IPRoyal is a reasonably priced, consumer-level proxy service. We like that the company obtains its residential IPs ethically and commend it for its transparency.
Some services on this list don’t accept cryptocurrency at all, while others accept a few coin types. If you prefer to pay for services using cryptocurrencies, IPRoyal has you covered. The service accepts more than 25 cryptocurrencies, plus payments via Alipay, Apple Pay, credit cards, Google Pay, and PayPal.
# of Residential IPs
32000000
# of Residential IP Locations
195
Protocols Supported
HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5
Support Types
Discord
Learn More
IPRoyal Review
- Offers multiple proxy types for specific needs
- Unlimited bandwidth for all proxy types
- No free trial
- Lacks a pay-as-you-go plan
- Small proxy pool and limited proxy location choices
- Privacy policy lacks critical information
Storm Proxies’ monthly pricing packages are inflexible but quite affordable and include unlimited bandwidth. That said, the service’s proxy pool is the smallest of the providers on this list, and its locations are limited. Also, the service lacks a true free trial, so if you want to try it, do it for just 24 hours as part of the company’s money-back guarantee.
Storm Proxies is best for people who want to perform highly specific yet anonymous online tasks, like buying sneakers and purchasing hot concert tickets. When testing this service, we were impressed with the company’s quick and painless refund system and had positive interactions with the support team.
# of Residential IPs
700000
Protocols Supported
HTTPS
Support Types
Email, support website
Learn More
Storm Proxies Review
Best Browser Extension
Decodo
- Free trials
- Browser extensions
- Large residential proxy pool
- Ethical proxy sourcing
- Inconsistent residential proxy location targeting in testing
Decodo used to be called Smartproxy, and despite the rebrand, the company still provides stellar services. Decodo is best for people who need reliable proxies for small to medium-sized businesses. The company boasts a large residential proxy pool, and you can try out the proxies using a free trial, which is excellent.
If you plan to use proxies for browser-based tasks like social profile management or market research, the Decodo browser extension will come in handy. We tested Decodo’s Chrome browser extension and the browser-based dashboard, and found them to be well-designed and easy to use. We also commend the company for ethical residential proxy sourcing.
# of Residential IPs
115000000
# of Residential IP Locations
195
Protocols Supported
HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5
Support Types
Email, live chat, support website
Best Pricing Packages
Soax
- Free trials and customer-friendly pricing bundles
- Country, state, city, and ISP-level proxy targeting
- Support for HTTP(S), SOCKS5, UDP, and QUIC protocols
- Passwordless account login
- No browser extension
- Limited payment options
- Lack of transparency on proxy sources
People who are looking for proxy services for small and medium-sized businesses will appreciate Soax’s hyper-local targeting for certain proxy types. Though we wish Soax offered its own browser extensions, the proxies were easy to access via open-source proxy management tools.
Soax’s best selling point is its consistent pricing packages. Whether you need to pay one price each month or your budget is flexible, Soax offers pricing plans that are scalable or predictable, which is incredibly helpful.
# of Residential IPs
155000000
# of Residential IP Locations
195
Protocols Supported
HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, UDP, QUIC
Support Types
AI chatbot
Best Company Transparency
Bright Data
- Large residential proxy pool
- Easy-to-use dashboard and browser extension
- CCPA and GDPR compliance
- Security vulnerabilities program
- Free trial
- Pricey
- Privacy policy indicates off-site customer data collection
- Restrictive Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements
Bright Data offers a massive pool of datacenter, ISP, mobile, and residential proxies for enterprise-level clients. You can try out the services with a free trial, though the company’s stringent Know Your Customer approval process may slow you down. That said, we like the company’s strict policies. It’s appropriate for companies, especially those with high-paying corporate customers, to protect the network from people who use proxies for malicious or fraudulent tasks.
If you’re looking for a company with transparent policies, Bright Data is a good option. In its highly transparent privacy policy, Bright Data details what kinds of customer data it collects and also explains how to delete that data, which is ideal.
# of Residential IPs
150000000
# of Residential IP Locations
195
Protocols Supported
HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5
Support Types
Email, Phone, Telegram channel
Learn More
Bright Data Review
Best Customer Support Options
MarsProxies
- Diverse proxy types
- Affordable, scalable pricing
- Well-designed dashboard
- Favorable TrustPilot reviews
- No free trial
- Privacy policy indicates excessive data collection
MarsProxies is an affordable and easy-to-use consumer-level proxy service. The browser extension requires no prior familiarity with proxies, making it an excellent product for beginners who are looking to dip their toes into SEO research or people who manage multiple corporate social media accounts.
Our interactions with the MarsProxies customer service team were polite and helpful, so if you’re looking for a service that allows you to ask questions and find out more about services without rampant upselling, MarsProxies is a good option.
# of Residential IPs
1000000
# of Residential IP Locations
190
Protocols Supported
HTTPS, SOCKS5, HTTP
Support Types
Discord
Learn More
MarsProxies Review
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The Best Proxy Services for 2025
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Buying Guide: The Best Proxy Services for 2025
What Is a Proxy Service?
In the internet’s earliest days, proxy servers were tools that privacy advocates used to hide their location. However, as VPNs became easier and more secure ways to mask internet traffic from advertisers and criminals, proxies took on a different, more business-centric role.
Think of proxies as the older, less sophisticated cousin of VPNs. The technologies function similarly, but a proxy is not as effective as a VPN when used for privacy purposes. A proxy service allows you to funnel some of your internet traffic (like your browser’s data, for example) through a global network of IP addresses. To contrast, a VPN masks all of your internet traffic (though most VPNs include a split-tunneling feature) while you browse or stream media wherever you are in the world. VPNs typically have better security protections and consumer-friendly features, too, like advertising and malware blocking.
Modern proxy services have found a new audience in recent years among businesses that need proxies for a variety of use cases, including advertising comparisons, competitive market analysis, search engine optimization (SEO) research, social media profile management, website comparison, or web scraping for LLM training. Regular people use proxies too, but usually for very specific situations, such as hiding their IP address while buying hard-to-get concert tickets online. Some of the proxy companies on this list offer special proxy servers just for buying tickets or other hot items, like limited edition sneakers.
How Do I Choose a Proxy Service?
Whenever we test proxy services, the first question we ask is, “Who does this serve?” Some proxy services, like Bright Data and Oxylabs, are marketed toward enterprise-level businesses that require many IPs with high (or unlimited) data caps. Not surprisingly, these companies typically offer larger proxy packages and tools to integrate proxies with advertising or SEO research tools.
There are also companies that, in addition to selling proxy access, offer tools and pricing packages better suited for small and medium-sized businesses. The companies at this level typically offer helpful add-ons or have ultra-streamlined pricing plans that make it easy for smaller businesses to fit the services into their budgets. Decodo and Soax each fit the description of mid-tier proxy services.
Consumer-level proxy companies serve their target audience well, too. These companies usually have the most flexible payment plans, so people can scale up their proxy orders as their business needs change. These companies are also more likely to offer special proxy services for buying sneakers or tickets online. IPRoyal, MarsProxies, and Storm Proxies are all examples of consumer-level proxy companies.
When choosing a proxy service, your company’s specific use case will determine which service is best suited for your work. However, it’s always a good idea to look for companies with large proxy pools in diverse locations, so you can access as many different IPs as possible. We also recommend proxy services that include helpful add-on features or tools, such as browser extensions or integrations with other platforms.
What Kind of Proxy Does My Company Need?
Proxy companies typically market proxies by referencing their origin, be it a datacenter, ISP, a mobile network, or a residential customer’s IP address. When shopping for a proxy service, make sure the proxy types offered support updated security protocols, like HTTPS and SOCKS5. The companies featured on this list offer the following proxy options:
Datacenter Proxies
These proxies are located in datacenters, and they’re usually easier to detect. Datacenter proxies are best for performing high-level market research, scanning public databases, or accessing websites that aren’t using bot detection or proxy blockers. The big benefit most see from datacenter proxies is that they’re less expensive than the other proxy types.
Most companies offer dedicated and shared datacenter IPs. You can use dedicated proxies for as long as you want, making them best for longer-term projects like managing multiple social media accounts. Shared, rotating proxies are best for hiding your business’s IP address while accessing geo-restricted media or monitoring competing websites.
ISP Proxies
Sometimes companies call these proxies “static residential proxies” in their marketing materials. ISP proxies come from legitimate service providers, like Verizon or AT&T. If you’re blocked by platforms or services when using datacenter proxies, the next step is to try ISP proxies. These proxies are typically more expensive than datacenter proxies and work best for companies that require a small number of residential IPs for ad testing or long-term website comparison.
Mobile Proxies
Unlock geo-restricted content and get around website blocks using a mobile proxy. These addresses are from carriers worldwide, and most companies offer 3G/4G/ and 5G network proxies. These proxies tend to be more expensive than the other proxy types offered, but most companies offer a pay-as-you-go option, so you only pay for the data you use.
Recommended by Our Editors
Residential Proxies
Residential proxies usually make up the largest share of a company’s proxy pool and are also the most in-demand. These proxies are best for activities such as social profile management, gathering e-commerce data, or web scraping for AI training. When setting up your proxies, look for companies that allow you to target locations by country and city. Some services even allow you to target proxies from specific ISPs, which is ideal.
Residential proxies are usually more expensive than datacenter proxies, and that’s because the IP addresses are connected to real customers who are sharing their bandwidth with a proxy service, sometimes voluntarily. We’ll dig into the ethics of proxy sourcing and usage below.
What Makes a Proxy Service Trustworthy?
We highlight companies with transparent policy documents and stringent Know Your Customer policies. When you sign up, you’re putting a lot of trust into these companies, and we like it when companies reward that trust by fending off illegal or immoral proxy usage.
Like their flashier cousins, VPNs, a proxy service could log your online activities. That’s why, in every PCMag review, we interview companies about protecting customers’ data. It’s always a good idea to know what companies do with the personal information you give them when you sign up to use a service. If there’s one section of the review you shouldn’t skip, it’s the interview.
You should also care about how companies obtain IP addresses. As mentioned above, some companies use less-than-ethical methods, such as using third-party botnets for their remote IPs, so if you use a residential proxy, the IP owner may not know that they’re sharing bandwidth with you. Some companies use gaming or social apps to encourage mobile and residential IP owners to share their bandwidth, which is much better than stealing it. During the interview, we ask companies about sourcing methods and how customers grant consent for bandwidth sharing.
