Key Points about SEO Proxies
- SEO proxy servers are remote devices that let you use their location and IP address while hiding your own.
- SEO proxies help to get local search data and avoid access restrictions when using SEO tools or scripts. They’re used for various tasks, ranging from SEO monitoring, agentic SEO AI use, and keyword research to link building and CPA manipulation.
- These are usually residential IP addresses that have a (relatively) clean history with search engines.
- There are no technical requirements that make a proxy specifically an SEO proxy. Any proxy that suits your parameters will do.
Learn more: What Are SEO Proxies?
Which Proxy Type to Choose
There are multiple proxy types you can try. In general, the choice depends on your web scraping experience, budget, target, and traffic needs.
- Residential proxies: the best choice for protected websites, search engines like Google, or local SEO. Coming from real consumer devices, residential proxies are hard to detect. As they’re charged by traffic, you get access to the whole proxy pool of hundreds of thousands of IPs. Such service also includes automatic rotation and unlimited parallel connection requests. But all these qualities make residential proxies expensive.
- Mobile proxies: they’re hosted on either real users’ phones or in phone/dongle farms. Mobile proxies improve on most residential proxy benefits, but they’re both rare and a more expensive. Since you can simulate connecting from a mobile device with other tools, there’s no real need to use them.
- Datacenter proxies: the most cost-efficient option for running site audits. Datacenter proxies may also work for search engines that aren’t Google. However, datacenter proxies are labeled as belonging to datacenter rather than real users. This means that banning an IP does not risk losing a customer. That’s why companies are much happier to block them.
- ISP proxies: try these if you want something more effective than datacenter IPs and don’t mind spending more. They have the technological advantages of datacenter proxies. However, they are significantly harder to detect as ISPs label them as residential. For this privilege, you’ll be paying several times more per IP address. Getting ISP proxies with traffic-based plans is also an option. However, they’re even more expensive.
How to Choose the Best SEO Proxy Provider
When you have decided on your proxy type, you have to find a provider to supply it. Here’s what you need to consider before you go:
| Criterion | What to check |
| Proxy pool size | More IPs equal a cleaner pool, as usage gets spread over more addresses. Advertised pool sizes don’t present the real picture – that’s why our test checks how many IPs are of the type they’re presented as. We also check for IP uniqueness. |
| Location and rotation controls | Make sure that the provider supports the locations you need and that they come with an appropriate level of filtering (for example, coordinate targeting is important for hyper-local SEO). Automatic rotation is helpful as well; some providers will offer more convenient rotation settings. |
| Performance | Success rate and connection speed metrics can vary wildly based on IP quality, the provider’s infrastructure, and load. You can find in-depth performance tests in our individual provider reviews and in Proxy Market Research. |
| Customer support | For a side project, four-hour email replies on weekdays will probably suffice. But if the proxies will be powering mission-critical functionality, you’ll want 24/7 technical support, preferably via live chat. |
| Integration | Before you start, see if the proxy network will work with your setup. Check what protocols are supported, whether the authentication methods suit you, and any software compatibility issues. A cool proxy manager app isn’t a benefit if you can’t run it. |
| Pricing | There’s more to prices than $/GB rates. Does the provider charge for failed requests? Is there traffic rollover? What if the price changes depending on what geolocation options you choose? All of those factors can significantly impact your bottom line. |
How We Made This List
Proxyway doesn’t exist just to repeat marketing buzzwords for proxy providers. That’s why we thoroughly test their services when we review them. But we don’t stop there. Each year, we run tests on the infrastructure of the most important market participants. That way, we can have a useful, up-to-date comparison of the best proxies out there.
The most recent such report is the Proxy Market Research 2026. In it, we took the residential, mobile, and datacenter proxies of some of the most prominent providers for a spin. Millions of requests were made over several weeks. Our findings are outlined in the report. But for this article, here are tables for the performance of residential and datacenter proxies.
| Success rate | Response time | |
| Oxylabs | 99.93% | 0.60 s |
| Decodo | 99.92% | 0.53 s |
| SOAX | 99.78% | 0.89 s |
| Byteful | 99.69% | 0.41 s |
| Infatica | 97.57% | 1.64 s |
| Webshare | 99.28% | 0.86 s |
| DataImpulse | 99.82% | 0.97 s |
| Evomi | 99.58% | 0.79 s |
Infrastructure success rate and speed of major residential proxy providers
| Success rate | Response time | |
| Oxylabs | 99.98% | 0.22 s |
| Decodo | 99.94% | 0.35 s |
| SOAX | 99.81% | 0.38 s |
| Infatica | 96.04% | 0.93 s |
| Webshare | 99.93% | 0.67 s |
| DataImpulse | 97.86% | 0.88 s |
| Evomi | 99.99% | 0.21 s |
Infrastructure success rate and speed of major datacenter proxy providers
Where to Get the Best Proxies for SEO
1. Oxylabs
Stable and fast SEO proxies.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 175M IPs
- Countries: 195+ with state, city, ASN, ZIP, coordinate targeting
- Rotation: Every request, customizable sessions up to 24 hrs
- Other features: OS, IP protocol selection
- Starts from: $30 for 5 GB ($6/GB)
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Shared, dedicated list, pool with 55k IPs
- Countries: 43 in five continents
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Starts from: $12 for 10 shared IPs ($1.2/IP), $6.75 for 3 dedicated IPs ($2.25/IP), or $11.8 for 20 GB ($0.59/GB). 5 free IPs with 5 GB/mo available
ISP proxies
- Formats: Shared, dedicated list
- Countries: 18 in four continents with ASN selection
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Starts from: $16 for 10 shared IPs ($1.6/IP) or 5 dedicated IPs ($3.2/IP)
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, QUIC over UDP
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Sub-users, management API, browser extension, Android app
- Support: 24/7 via live chat
- Trial: For companies, refund available
Oxylabs is rightfully one of the largest players in the proxy field. Its residential IP roster is humongous, spread across the globe, and capable of narrowing IPs down to ZIP and ASN. Unfortunately, some of the filters can’t be combined or require Know-Your-Customer to be completed.
The proxies showed decent results when targeting Google, especially in terms of success. The infrastructure itself performs even better, unsurpassed in success rates and pretty good at speed (taking the #3 spot with 0.76 seconds). Most IPs staying up for 25+ minutes doesn’t hurt, either.
The datacenter proxies showed better performance in general (near 100% success rate and 0.22 seconds response time), but then fell off hard when it came to opening Google. They may be a good choice if you’re doing SEO research with other engines.
But the thing to keep in mind about Oxylabs is that it’s still aimed at the enterprise user and that its products are priced as such.
For more information and performance tests, read our Oxylabs review.
2. Decodo (formerly Smartproxy)
Strong performance for SEO proxies.
Use the code DECODO to get 10% off all self-service products for new users.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 115M IPs
- Countries: 195+ with state, city, ASN, ZIP targeting
- Rotation: Every request, customizable sessions up to 24 hrs
- Starts from: $4 for 1 GB. Pay as you go available
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Shared, dedicated list, pool with 100k IPs
- Countries: 18 in five continents
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Starts from: $3.5 for 100 shared IPs, $5.55 for 3 dedicated IPs ($1.85/IP), or $6 for 10 GB
ISP proxies
- Formats: Shared, dedicated list, rotating pool
- Countries: 16 in four continents
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Starts from: $4.7 for 10 shared IPs ($0.47/IP), $10 for 3 dedicated IPs ($3.33/IP), or $3 for 1 GB
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, QUIC over UDP
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Sub-users, management API, browser extension, proxy checker
- Support: 24/7 via live chat, Discord, or email
- Trial: 100 MB for residential mobile proxies. 14-day refund available
Decodo is a great choice for a small to medium business looking for rotating SEO proxies. The residential IP pool is fully featured and came in second in infrastructure speed and success rates. We also saw good results when accessing Google. Sadly, Decodo’s performant datacenter proxies did not have such a good time with the world’s top search engine.
Decodo’s residential proxies come with all the regular rotating and filtering options. The one missing feature is that ASN is incompatible with other filters. For datacenter proxies, rotating lists are an option. The API is great as well. With it, you can create and manage sub-users as well as set traffic limits. You can also get usage reports, check your subscription status, and filter available endpoints.
Alongside proxies, Decodo provides a great service: it’s simple to pick up, affordable, and has some of the best customer support we’ve seen. You can do most things yourself, and there’s a dashboard to monitor traffic usage.
For more information and performance tests, read our Decodo review.
3. SOAX
Flexible targeting and rotation options.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 155M IPs
- Countries: 195+ with state, city, ASN targeting, ISP, ZIP code filters
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to 7 days or X requests, strict sessions
- Other features: Look-a-like rotation, use together with mobile IPs
- Starts from: $25 for 5-12.5 GB ($2-$5/GB), depending on IP location
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, QUIC over UDP
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Reporting API
- Support: 7 AM to 7 PM UK time via live chat, tickets, or email
- Trial: Paid ($1.99)
SOAX is another strong option. Its pool of rotating residential proxies is decently large, so the IPs should remain clean and cover most locations worldwide. The infrastructure puts it near the top of all contenders, even if 0.92 second response time left it firmly out the top three. The IP uptime is the best of all the Proxy Market Research 2026 participants.
Speaking of our research: we did test SOAX datacenter proxies, but the company dropped them mid-2026. On the other hand, its mobile proxies are some of the easiest to access due to one subscription covering both residential and mobile. The pricing is heavily influenced by the proxy location tier. The most expensive ($5/GB) proxies are tier 1 (US, etc.), while the cheapest ($2/GB) are in tier 3 (Afghanistan).
This provider offers highly customizable targeting and rotation options out of the box, even if ZIP and ISP are reserved for bigger plans. You can specify cities together with ASNs, or get look-alike rotation. Speaking of which, rotation can be customized to kick in after a set time period or a number of requests. That is on top of the usual options of rotating with every request or establishing strict sessions.
SOAX’s proxy management tools are fairly cool. The Packages feature allows you to make named packages (of uniform or mixed proxy types), each with their own configuration. On top of that, you can set which team members can use a package – and that’s not even the of it. On the other hand, customer support is not 24/7, and there’s no real trial. The Sandbox is its replacement, and it means that trying out SOAX will cost you $25 in credit.
For more information and performance tests, read our SOAX review.
4. Byteful
Quality SEO proxies.
Use the code PROXYWAY10 to get 10% off.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 35M IPs
- Countries: 150+ with state, city, ASN/ISP, ZIP targeting
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to seven days
- Other features: Pool size & speed filters, Smartpath engine
- Starts from: $3.25 for 1 GB. Scaling pay as you go
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Dedicated list
- Countries: New York, Miami, Germany
- Rotation: Static
- Starts from: $20 for 10 IPs ($2/IP)
ISP proxies
- Formats: Dedicated list
- Countries: 15 in three continents
- Rotation: Static
- Starts from: $2.5 for 1 IP
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, UDP
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Management API, proxy checker
- Support: 5AM-7PM European time via live chat, email, tickets, Discord
- Trial: 1 GB for residential proxies
A former sneakerhead and now a growing market force, Byteful works well for monitoring rankings across multiple locations. Its residential proxies support country, state, city, ZIP code, and ASN targeting. The dashboard also estimates how many IPs match your filters, helping you avoid overly narrow configurations when tracking local search results.
For browser-based SEO tasks, Smartpath routes redundant page resources through free datacenter proxies, reducing paid residential traffic use. You can be confident about proxy quality, as Byteful’s residential IPs were fast and reliable in our benchmarks. Plans start at $3.25/GB, traffic doesn’t expire, and a free 1 GB trial is available.
5. Infatica
Residential proxies for larger SEO businesses.
Use the code proxyway2024 to get 20% off your first purchase.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 35M IPs
- Countries: 195+ with city, ISP, ZIP targeting
- Rotation: Every request, 5-60 min sessions
- Starts from: $4 for 1 GB. Pay as you go available
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Pool with 500k IPs, dedicated list
- Countries: Up to 100 with city & ZIP targeting for the rotating pool
- Rotation: Available for the rotating pool
- Starts from: $13.50 for 30 GB ($0.45/GB) or $14 for 5 IPs ($1.45/IP)
ISP proxies
- Formats: Dedicated list
- Countries: 23 in four continents
- Rotation: Static
- Starts from: $3 for 1 IP
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Proxy checker, reporting API
- Support: 24/7 via live chat, tickets
- Trial: Available, paid
Infatica grew its residential IP pool to more than twice its previous size in 2026. It provides global coverage and filters down to the ISP and ASN level. You can combine several filters at once, too. And according to our tests, Infatica’s residential proxies did well when targeting Google (with notably fast response times).
Its mobile proxies were left somewhat in the dust, especially due to an underwhelming success rate when targeting our favorite Alphabet site. Meanwhile, the one good thing to be said about its datacenter proxies is that they have a higher Google success rate than any of the top three entrants on this list.
The entry price hovers around the industry standard. It’s a shame that you can’t simply top up traffic, which limits flexibility. PAYG is an option, however.
For more information and performance tests, read our Infatica review.
6. Webshare
Full self-service with affordable proxies for SEO.
Get 50% off your first purchase.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 80M IPs
- Countries: 195+ with state, city, ASN & ZIP code targeting
- Rotation: Every request, customizable sessions
- Starts from: $3.5 for 1 GB
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Shared, semi-shared, dedicated list
- Countries: ~45 in six continents
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Other features: IP refresh interval, # of manual IP replacements, high concurrency, network priority, 0 fraud score
- Starts from: $2.99 for 100 shared IPs & 250 GB. Free plan with 10 IPs & 1 GB/mo available
ISP proxies
- Formats: Shared, semi-shared, dedicated list
- Countries: ~15 in four continents
- Rotation: Available in all formats, optional
- Other features: IP refresh interval, # of manual IP replacements, high concurrency, network priority, 0 fraud score
- Starts from: $6 for 20 shared IPs ($0.3/IP) & 250 GB
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, SOCKS5
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Sub-users, management API, browser extension
- Support: 6AM-6PM PST via live chat & email
- Trial: Refund available
Webshare is mostly known for its server-based proxies – datacenter and ISP – but its residential network holds up pretty well too. The pool is large, sitting at around 80 million IPs worldwide, and the infrastructure felt very stable during our tests.
Performance-wise, the service did a solid job. Requests to Google landed with a near-unmatched success rate, and responses came back quickly, averaging around 2.4 seconds. Oh, and the location options now go as deep as ASN and ZIP. The real downside is only in limited session duration controls.
Meanwhile, the datacenter proxies showed Google access success rates that share the #1 spot with Oxylabs. The speed was less stellar, but overall, it’s a decent deal.
7. Dataimpulse
SEO proxies for small businesses.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 90M IPs
- Countries: 150+ with state, city, ASN, ZIP targeting
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to 120 min
- Other features: Exclude location, ASN, denylist domains
- Starts from: $50 for 50 GB ($1/GB). Pay as you go
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Pool with 90M IPs
- Countries: 100+ with state, city, ASN targeting
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to 120 min
- Other features: Exclude location, ASN, denylist domains
- Starts from: $50 for 100 GB ($0.5/GB)
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, UDP (upon request)
- Authorization: Credentials, IP whitelist
- Extras: Reseller API
- Support: 24/7 live chat, email
- Trial: Not available
The thing about DataImpulse is that it doesn’t just sell residential proxies. It sells two varieties: regular and premium. We ran the tests on both varieties, and the expensive one always came out on top. It matched the market leaders in regular infrastructure performance. And when it came to Google, it had an above-average success rate and came second in speed (by 0.01 seconds).
Datacenter proxies had a much tamer showing. Anything except Google’s success rate left them trailing everyone else.
As for general usability, DataImpulse has a decent dashboard that lets you see what IPs are online. Unfortunately, there’s no team management, and you can only simulate subusers by buying multiple plans.
For more information and performance tests, read our Dataimpulse review.
8. Evomi
SEO proxies of basic and premium varieties.
Residential proxies
- Advertised pool: 54M IPs
- Countries: 150+ with state, city, ASN/ISP, ZIP targeting
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to 120 min, strict sessions
- Other features: Filters for more IPs, latency, fraud score, OS, minimum connection time, ad blocking
- Starts from: $49 for 100 GB ($0.49/GB). Pay as you go available
Datacenter proxies
- Formats: Pool with an unspecified # of IPs
- Countries: 100+
- Rotation: Every request, sessions up to 120 min
- Starts from: $13.5 for 30 GB GB ($0.45/GB)
ISP proxies
- Formats: Shared, dedicated list
- Countries: US (Ashburn, AT&T)
- Rotation: Static
- Other features: Virgin IPs (0 fraud score, cost extra)
- Starts from: $20 for 20 shared IPs ($1/IP) or $12.50 for 5 dedicated IPs ($2.5/IP)
General info
- Protocols: HTTP, HTTPS, SOCKS5, UDP & QUIC (some products, may cost extra)
- Authorization: Credentials
- Extras: Reporting API
- Support: 24/7 via live chat
- Trial: Available
Evomi is another proxy provider that has split its residential offering. We tested the Evomi Premium variety for Proxy Market Research 2026, and the core pool for the company’s review update. The former is about eight times as expensive as the latter. Is it worth it? It’s debatable: it has more IPs, but slightly inferior performance.
On the other hand, the core package is very, very cheap… to start with. Once you add bells and whistles, the price may jump up to 15 times. With the premium package, the price is a lot more stable.
Unfortunately, the datacenter performance is all over the place. #1 in infrastructure success rate and speed, good Google response time, and abysmal Google success rate. It also limits your geolocation options to the country level at the lowest. In comparison, residential proxies include city, ISP, and ASN.
Still, the price is hard to beat. And the system supports team member management, even if you can’t get subusers. If only it fixed its proxy generator to allow users to set their own usernames and passwords.
For more information and performance tests, read our Evomi review.
Frequently Asked Questions About SEO Proxies
Residential proxies are best if you’re looking to target Google or other protected websites. If you’re auditing your own website or another cooperative target, datacenter proxies are the more economical choice.
Residential proxies are better for SEO if you want to check rankings etc. on search engines.
Yes, proxies are an integral part of any system for scraping Google search results. Naturally, you can’t scrape Google with just proxies themselves.
Free proxies are not suitable for SEO monitoring as they’re likely to be either slow or outright blocked by search engines due to abuse.