Residential proxies are one of the most extensively utilized services nowadays, as corporations and ordinary users seek to circumvent restrictions and automate certain operations. Despite its appeal, though, this gadget remains shrouded in mystery. How do residential proxies vary from other types of proxies? Why do you need them? 

This post will address all of your questions concerning residential proxies and provide all of your required information.

What are residential proxies?

These are the IP addresses that most people and computers connect with normal web users. The proxy server is hosted by an ISP and has a physical address. It does the best job of hiding your actual IP address, which is the main objective of proxies. 

While the proxy service provider does not need to operate a massive server with thousands of IP addresses, they need to discover and integrate many residential proxies in various places. This is beneficial to you, the user because it means you’ll have a variety of geographical alternatives to overcome regional content limitations.

Residential vs. data center proxies

A data center is where data center proxies work. Your IP address is changed to a new one, which can be changed back at any moment. Your new IP address hides your true identity, but it also hides that you’re using a proxy because it points to a location other than this data center. All of your traffic is steered through your Internet Service Provider’s network. Whenever you use a data center proxy, it replaces your ISP, and you connect with the proxy server instead of your ISP’s network.

On the other hand, residential proxies employ residential addresses to allocate IP addresses to various devices. If someone tries to figure out who uses which IP address, they will be directed to that precise location. These different gadgets, each with a unique IP address, are connected to the internet via their ISPs’ various networks. 

Whereas a data center proxy gives you different IP addresses assigned by that data center, a residential proxy gives you IP addresses assigned by various devices in various places.

How to use residential proxies?

When you use residential proxies, you usually get access to a pool — a collection of IP addresses from various places. The pool’s size is determined by your requirements as well as the pricing plan you choose. 

You can connect proxies manually, with the help of a proxy management tool, or use a scraper if you’re utilizing this service for data collection. Select the required location and enjoy complete internet freedom.

Residential proxies use cases.

First and foremost, residential IP addresses are the greatest at avoiding detection and eventual blocking. Residential proxies are difficult to identify for anti-scraping solutions because they can’t tell if the request is coming from a real person or a bot using their IP address. Most websites don’t want to lose money; thus, barring or limiting requests from a residential IP is significantly higher than the bar for data center proxies. Making residential proxies is an excellent alternative for scraper-blocking websites.

Another advantage is that most service providers will have proxies dispersed throughout multiple countries, eliminating the need to worry about geo-restrictions. It also increases the likelihood of having a proxy close to where the web page is located, allowing for faster requests.

All residential IPs are unique, unlike datacenter IPs, which can be blocked in bulk. Because there is no way to link any residential IP to another, even if you use both, you’re considerably less likely to be blocked right away.

Many people believe that this form of IP is the best for web scraping. Residential IPs have their own set of charges, yet they function on nearly any website. Bots are taken seriously by websites and social media platforms; thus, data center IPs are unlikely to be acceptable. That’s when you have to break out the residential IPs, which have a lot better chance of getting you the information you require.

Rotating Residential Proxies

The idea behind rotating residential proxies is that the service provider uses technology to send each request to a web page through a different IP address. It’s equivalent to manually changing proxies, however, without the inconvenience, allowing you to send hundreds of requests without risk of being blocked. If you have to check in to a website, for example, you’ll want to preserve the same IP for multiple sessions in some circumstances. In such a scenario, all you have to do is set sticky sessions so that the same IP is used for all selected pages. For those seeking advanced options, exploring various proxy services can offer additional flexibility and enhanced capabilities tailored for diverse web scraping needs

Static Residential Proxies 

It’s an actual IP address assigned by a service provider. So far, it appears to be a straightforward residential proxy. However, as the term “static” implies, such a proxy will allow you to remain connected to a single IP address for an extended period of time. With static proxies, you’ll be linked to a single IP address for an hour before being attached to a different one. As a result, you have the anonymity of a residential proxy while maintaining a fast connection speed.