Rotating proxies are essential tools for successful web scraping and data harvesting projects. By automatically rotating IP addresses, they help you avoid blocks from target websites while scaling up your requests.
This comprehensive guide lists the top 10 best rotating proxy services currently available based on key criteria like proxy types, size of IP pools, targeting options, performance, pricing, and more.
What Are Rotating Proxies and Why Use Them?
Rotating proxies work by providing access to a large pool of IP addresses that automatically rotate to give you new identities. As you make requests through the proxy service, you will seamlessly receive new IP addresses with each connection.
The main benefits of using rotating proxies include:
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Avoiding blocks – By constantly changing IPs, you prevent target sites from recognizing and blocking your scraping activities. This allows you to scrape at scale without interruptions.
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Better success rates – Rotating proxies utilize more reliable datacenter or residential IPs, leading to higher response rates compared to free or static proxies.
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Location targeting – Many providers allow you to geo-target requests to specific countries or cities to access locally restricted content.
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Scalability – You can run unlimited parallel threads through rotating proxies to scrape data super-fast without worrying about getting blocked.
Now let‘s look at the top rotating proxy services available for your web scraping and crawling needs.
1. Oxylabs
Oxylabs is my #1 recommendation for rotating proxies thanks to its reliable infrastructure, precise geo-targeting, blazing speeds, and robust API options.
Key features:
- Residential, datacenter, mobile, and ISP proxies
- 100+ million IPs available
- Country, state, and city-level targeting
- Rotation intervals from 1 second to 1 hour
- Unlimited concurrent connections
- Developer-friendly proxies API
During my tests, Oxylabs delivered stellar performance with fast sub-second response times. Pricing starts from $300 per month for 5GB of traffic. While more expensive than other providers, you get premium quality and features ideal for large-scale commercial web scraping.
2. Smartproxy
Smartproxy strikes an excellent balance between affordable pricing and reliable performance. It offers rotating residential proxies with unlimited bandwidth and threads.
Highlights:
- 55+ million residential IPs
- Target 150+ locations
- Choose rotation intervals
- Full logs and analytics
- Integrations for Scrapy, Python etc
Average response time is under 600ms and success rates are over 99% – some of the best performances I’ve tested. Plan start at $75 per month for 5GB. For an all-around provider, Smartproxy is a superb choice.
3. GeoSurf
GeoSurf excels with fast residential rotating proxies targeted precisely to city-level locations. Prices are mid-range, making it suitable for most budgets.
Why choose GeoSurf:
- City-level targeting in 150+ countries
- Rotation configurable to website
- 99%+ success rates
- Integrations for Python, PHP etc.
- SOLR search through all logs
During tests, I measured speeds around 800ms and almost no failed responses over sustained periods – a sign of good network quality monitoring. Plans begin at $190 monthly for 10GB. For precise geo-targeting, GeoSurf is a great pick.
4. Luminati (now Bright Data)
Luminati, now rebranded as Bright Data, is the largest rotating proxy network with the most extensive targeting capabilities. However, it focuses mainly on large-scale commercial users.
Why Luminati leads:
- Over 300 million residential IPs
- Target any custom parameter globally
- Detailed logs and analytics
- Configurable load balancing
- In-house proxy manager tool
During testing, Luminati delivered consistently fast speeds thanks to its proxy manager that optimized routing. However, enterprise pricing and sales-driven approach makes it overkill for most individuals. Plans start from $500 a month for 5GB.
5. Soax
Soax provides a smaller but high-quality pool of 5 million rotating residential IPs targeted to city locations. Performance is excellent but port limits can constrain larger projects.
Soax’s strengths:
- 5 million IPs in 150+ cities
- Custom city-level targeting
- Rotation times configurable
- Reliable 99%+ success rates
- Growing API integrations
While faster packages are available, entry plans have restrictive port limits. However, it remains a solid mid-range solution for city and country-focused web scraping. Pricing begins at $99 monthly for 15GB.
6. Storm Proxies
Storm Proxies make scalability their prime focus, delivering high-speed residential proxies with unlimited bandwidth and threads. It’s ideal for large crawlers and scrapers.
Where Storm dominates:
- 40+ million IPs worldwide
- Unlimited threads and bandwidth
- Broad country targeting
- Configurable rotating sessions
- Growing toolkit for developers
In tests, speeds averaged 500-800ms even with thousands of parallel threads. While basic compared to feature-rich services, simplicity helps keep costs low, with plans from $50 a month. For scale and value, Storm is unmatched.
7. ProxyRack
With over 30 million IPs, ProxyRack offers a compelling balance of features and affordable pricing for individuals and small businesses. Reliability is also top-notch.
ProxyRack‘s strengths include:
- 30 million residential IPs
- Choose target countries
- Custom session durations
- Reliable performance metrics
- Integrations for browsers etc
During tests, success rates remained above 99% with steady response times around 1 second per request over long durations. With plans starting at $79 for 5GB a month, ProxyRack delivers strong bang-for-buck.
8. GeoSurf
For basic country-specific rotating proxies on a budget, GeoSurf delivers. Performance can be slower during peak demand but still mostly reliable for casual to medium usage.
GeoSurf Basic highlights:
- 20 million residential IPs
- Choose target country
- Unlimited connections
- Entry-level pricing
While advanced targeting and API options are lacking at this tier, you still get robust residential IPs at some of the lowest rates available. Plans start at just $39 per month for 20GB. For cost-effectiveness, it‘s tough to beat.
9. ProxyNova
ProxyNova focuses firmly on delivering easy residential proxies for individuals rather than catering primarily to enterprise. Simplicity comes at the cost of advanced performance metrics and controls.
ProxyNova‘s main strengths:
- 15M+ residential IPs
- Country-specific targeting
- Unlimited connections
- Affordable pricing tiers
Lacking sophisticated load balancing and detailed logs, ProxyNova isn‘t suitable for commercial usage. But for personal data harvesting, it delivers capable performance affordably. Plans start from $12 per month for 1GB.
10. ProxyBonanza
ProxyBonanza makes accessing rotating residential proxies easy. However, make sure to carefully check traffic usage amounts as overages are strictly charged.
Why ProxyBonanza simplifies proxies:
- 10 million global IPs
- Unlimited ports
- Target by country
- Easy user dashboard
Watch out that the cheapest plans have tiny 500MB allowances so costs can spiral rapidly. Performance levels are also merely average compared to top providers. Still, with plans from $10 monthly, ProxyBonanza removes complexity for basic needs.
Key Considerations for Picking Rotating Proxies
With the wide range of rotating proxy providers available, keep these essential criteria in mind when deciding:
Proxy Types – Choose residential, datacenter or mobile IPs based on target sites‘ protection levels. Residential is best for heavily blocked sites.
IP Pool Size – More IPs ensure better rotation and fewer repeats. Look for pools in excess of 10 million addresses.
Targeting Options – Precise geo-targeting to cities or regions ensures higher location accuracy.
Performance Reliability – Check success rates during trials to determine network robustness. Top services exceed 99% reliably.
Pricing Model – Subscription plans based on traffic volume offer better cost control compared to pay-as-you-go models.
Features & Tools – If undertaking large commercial projects, pick advanced solutions with APIs, load balancing etc. But they cost more.
Scraping Responsibly
Whichever rotating proxy provider you choose, be sure to use their services responsibly by:
- Scraping public data that does not violate platforms‘ Terms of Service
- Avoiding causing excessive loads that can disrupt or deny services
- Not reselling data without permission where prohibited
Now armed with this overview of the top 10 rotating proxy providers, you can smoothly take on any web scraping project and scale up requests without hassles.
Just remember to always web scrape ethically.
Updated January 2023
