Like all proxies, a residential proxy forwards your internet traffic on your behalf and relays the responses it receives back to your device. In doing so, your connection appears to be coming from the proxy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this article we\u2019ll discuss how residential proxies work, what they\u2019re most commonly used for, examining their pros and cons, and exploring some of the ethical considerations when buying one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nHow Do Residential Proxies Work?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Like other proxies, residential proxies work by forwarding your traffic to the server rather than directly to the internet. The proxy server then forwards your request and relays the website\u2019s response to your device.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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- Routing Traffic<\/strong>: When you make a web request, it is sent to the proxy server, which forwards that request to the target website for you.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Website Interaction<\/strong>: Your request is received by the website from the proxy\u2019s IP address. From the website\u2019s perspective, the connection is coming from the IP and geolocation of your residential proxy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Proxy Forwards Response<\/strong>: The proxy receives the response from the website and then forwards it back to your device, completing the request-response cycle.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\nBy using a residential proxy, your traffic will mimic that of a user accessing the internet from their home, which comprises the overwhelming majority of all internet traffic. This creates a more authentic online experience, offering you anonymity without interfering with your browsing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nResidential Proxy Use Cases<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Residential proxies can be used for a wide variety of use cases<\/a>, primarily driven by online automation. Proxies serve one of two main functions. The first is to offer anonymity to the user. By using the IP of a proxy one can act online privately. This allows you to bypass IP bans and bypass geo-restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second is to facilitate web automation<\/a> at scale, to spread a user\u2019s automated requests over multiple proxies at once. This mimics more realistic user behavior, i.e. If a website considers 10 requests per minute on average the normal behavior of a regular user, using five proxies allows you to send 50 automated requests in the same span of time without triggering a website\u2019s antibot features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A good example of this is web scraping<\/a>, the most common use case for residential proxies. Web scraping is the process of retrieving data from websites and extracting useful or relevant information from them. It can include any information on a website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Low-intensity web scraping can be done without a proxy, but as the number of requests to a website increases, so does the need for a proxy. As illustrated above, if the average user makes 10 requests a minute, a script that makes 500 requests a minute will be flagged and blocked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nPros and Cons of Residential Proxies<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
As anti-bot measures become more sophisticated, the need for residential proxies continues to increase as a tool. Let\u2019s look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of residential proxies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Advantages of Residential Proxies<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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- Scalability<\/strong>: Residential proxies are easily scalable by just adding another one to the pool.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Large proxy pool<\/strong>: Because residential IPs are so ubiquitous worldwide, there is an immensely large pool of IPs to pull from.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Diverse geolocations<\/strong>: Residential proxies can be created anywhere in the world, which means one can acquire a proxy from essentially anywhere.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Speed and reliability<\/strong>: Because residential proxies are much less likely to be flagged, they\u2019re more reliable when being used. Their speeds are also consistent.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Cost for light use<\/strong>: Charges for proxies is usually on a per-GB basis, which means that if you\u2019re not using much data, it\u2019s very convenient to get one for your purposes.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Matches normal user<\/strong>: A residential proxy, unlike a datacenter proxy, deviates the least from a website\u2019s expectation of a \u201cnormal\u201d user surfing the internet from home<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\nDisadvantages of Residential Proxies<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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- Cost at scale<\/strong>: Most residential proxy providers charge per GB used, which can accumulate quickly when using large amounts of data. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Lack of transparency<\/strong>: Many proxy providers are not transparent about the source of their proxies. There have been cases in the past where a proxy provider built their pool of IPs through illegal means \u2014 using malware to infect computers whose owners are unknowingly part of the pool.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- No guarantee of quality<\/strong>: Residential proxies, particularly shared proxies, come with no guarantee of quality. Because providers rely on volume, any one IP might have been flagged by whatever website you intend to scrape.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\nUnless your automation activities involve websites that have very few anti\u2013bot checks in place, a residential proxy is generally the first step in anonymizing yourself. While you can\u2019t rule out bans entirely, and large data requirements will get expensive, residential proxies are disposable, easily replaced, and convenient.
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nWhat Is the Origin of Your Residential IP Address?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Residential IPs are any originating from a home router, as assigned by an ISP. The ISP is assigned a range of IPs by one of five regional Internet registries, international organizations that between them organize the distribution of IPs worldwide. The ISP then distributes over all its customers such that each home has a unique public-facing IP at any given time. Any device on your home network will use this IP.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Devices that use your home router include:
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- Home computers<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Smart devices & appliances<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Gaming consoles<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Printers, cameras, etc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Phones on WiFi<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
- Lack of transparency<\/strong>: Many proxy providers are not transparent about the source of their proxies. There have been cases in the past where a proxy provider built their pool of IPs through illegal means \u2014 using malware to infect computers whose owners are unknowingly part of the pool.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Large proxy pool<\/strong>: Because residential IPs are so ubiquitous worldwide, there is an immensely large pool of IPs to pull from.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Website Interaction<\/strong>: Your request is received by the website from the proxy\u2019s IP address. From the website\u2019s perspective, the connection is coming from the IP and geolocation of your residential proxy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
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