How We Chose the Best Proxies for Google Scraping
Scraping Google Search results is a real technical challenge. The search giants are very good at detecting and blocking scrapers, so successful Google scrapes often depend on the quality of your scraping software.
Since we’re a proxy review site and not real hard-core scrapers, we chose the easy way to objectively test proxies: we just sent a huge number of concurrent connection requests to Google and measured the response codes we got.
We also measured the speed of those connections, but this was secondary to success rate, as what good is your ultra-speedy proxy when you are experiencing death by ReCaptcha. The top 6 providers in our list rank by their network scalability, speed and features they offer.
While we’re talking CAPTCHAs – we can say that they’re the measure of the proxy network quality, so we counted CAPTCHA response rates as failed connections. That means top Google proxies in our list are also the ones that have the absolute lowest abuse rate.
Are Proxies for Scraping Google Maps Any Different?
Scraping Google Maps for GMB and other SEO data is not that much different. You will still need proxies that are residential, because datacenter IP addresses are too easy to block through subnetwork bans. Another vital criterion for proxies is that they should not be abused on Google and have good scalability. This is why our top Google proxy list also applies to scraping Google Maps.
How Proxies Help You Scrape Local Google Results
Scraping local Google results is a bit trickier. You can use Google’s settings to set a location, but to really extract data that appears on localized searches you need to have local IP addresses.
This is why scraping Google for local results requires a proxy network with location targeting. For instance, some of the top providers in this list, like Smartproxy and SOAX, have an easy backconnect method to access IP addresses in any of close to 200 countries in the world.
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Frequently Asked Questions About Google Proxies
What Is a Google Proxy?
A Google proxy is a proxy IP address that lets you access various Google services. Proxies are used to see how content is displayed in different locations and to avoid IP blocks when scraping Google Search.
Can Proxies Help Me Scrape Google Local Results?
Yes. Proxies are perfect for changing your location, so that you can see and scrape local results from Google. In fact, it’s one of their primary use cases.
Which Type of Proxies Should I Use for Scraping Google?
If you know what you’re doing, datacenter proxies will suffice. But if you need proxies for local results or some high-volume scraping, you’ll be better off with residential proxies instead.
Can I Get Google Scraping Proxies for Free?
Sure, there’s plenty of proxy lists online. But those IPs will be a hassle more than an asset. We strongly suggest investing in paid proxies. If you’re on the fence, most providers offer money-back guarantees. Go try one.
Why do people scrape google themselves, when they can buy data packs? Is it the price difference?
Yes, price is one thing, flexibility another. It’s easier to configure everything the way you like when you’re the one doing the configuring.
It is really difficult to check google ranking in other countries. Thanks for your article.