4D Pie Charts

Which Brands Make the Cut? 9 Best Residential Proxy Providers for 2026

A retail pricing team is asked to report how a competitor's prices differ between cities. A marketing lead wants proof that a regional campaign actually appears to users in the right postcodes. Both projects land on the same desk, and both depend on residential IPs that can be pinned to precise locations.

The budget conversation usually comes next. Some providers include city, ZIP and ASN targeting in the base rate; others charge for every level below country, which turns a single study into several separate cost lines. For a business, that difference shapes whether location-based research is a routine task or a special request that needs sign-off.

The nine providers below are assessed with that outcome in mind: how precisely each can target, what it costs to do so and which business need each one serves best. The goal is a shortlist a procurement lead can defend, not just a list of features.

ProxyEmpire: Best for Free Granular Targeting

For teams running location-based research, ProxyEmpire removes targeting from the budget discussion. City, ZIP and ASN filters are included in the base residential rate, along with country, region, ISP and OS/TCP, so a regional pricing study costs the same per GB as a national one. On mobile, targeting by country, city and carrier is also free.

That flexibility sits on one account covering rotating residential, rotating and dedicated mobile, static ISP and datacenter. The company reports 30M+ residential and 4M+ mobile IPs in 170+ countries, and unused GB on GB-based plans roll over, which helps teams whose research arrives in waves.

For procurement, there are no contracts, payment is accepted by card, PayPal, crypto or bank transfer, and Corporate and Enterprise clients get a dedicated account manager. The commercial caveat is that all sales are final, so the $1.97 trial, which bundles a small allowance of residential and mobile traffic, is the practical way to validate targeting accuracy on a team's own targets before a larger order.

Key features:

• Free targeting by city, ZIP, ASN, ISP and OS/TCP
• Carrier targeting on mobile at no extra charge
• Bandwidth that never expires
• Unlimited concurrent sessions for approved use cases

Pricing: Residential from $3.50/GB pay as you go; monthly from 7 GB for $20; $1.97 trial for residential and mobile.

DataImpulse: Best for Country-Level Volume

DataImpulse offers one of the lowest per-GB rates on this list for broad scraping: $1 per GB on the 50 GB Basic plan and $0.80 per GB on the 1 TB Advanced plan. Traffic never expires, and there is no subscription.

Country targeting is free, but state, city, ZIP and ASN carry extra charges. For businesses whose research is national, that matters little. For regional studies, it adds a cost line to model before committing, and finance teams should price the add-ons alongside the base rate.

The company describes its 90M+ residential IPs as first party and shows an ISO 27001 badge. A 7-day refund policy and round-the-clock human support reduce the risk of a first order.

Key features:

• Prepaid traffic with no expiry
• No subscription or minimum
• Reseller program

Pricing: Fifty dollars for 50 GB, or $800 for a terabyte.

SOAX: Best for Departmental Budget Control

SOAX suits organizations that allocate proxy budgets across teams. Each package can carry access rules, traffic caps, protocol limits and domain lists, which keeps one department from consuming the whole allowance.

Location filters span country, region, city, ISP and ASN, and a single credit-based rate applies to both residential and mobile. Rates vary by country tier, so budgets work best when planned around the specific markets a business studies most often.

The company publishes an SLA, DPA and KYC and KYB policy, and it offers discounted plans for startups. Upgrades take effect immediately, while downgrades wait for the next billing cycle, which gives finance some predictability.

Key features:

• Guardrails per package
• Residential and mobile at one price
• Reporting on delivered and blocked requests

Pricing: Dollar-denominated credits; a 100 GB US plan works out to $3 a gigabyte.

Bright Data: Best for Enterprise Compliance

Bright Data gives large organizations scale and documentation. It reports 400M+ monthly residential IPs in 195 countries, with no charge for filters down to postcode and ASN.

Compliance teams will find ISO 27001, SOC 2, SOC 3 and CSA STAR Level 1 listed, and finance teams can buy through AWS Marketplace or Azure.

Residential access requires KYC, and unused monthly commitments do not roll over, which makes demand forecasting important. A free trial without a credit card and a first deposit match up to $500 give new accounts room to calibrate before committing to a monthly plan.

Key features:

• Free ZIP and ASN targeting
• Security certifications listed
• Daily spend limits per zone

Pricing: RESIGB50 brings flexible residential to $4 a gigabyte; committed plans begin at $499.

Oxylabs: Best for Consolidating Data Vendors

Oxylabs combines proxies, scraping APIs, an unblocker and an agent browser under one subscription, which reduces vendor count for data teams.

Location filters cost nothing on either network, and residential subscriptions place no cap on parallel sessions. Subscription tiers run from $30 to $500 a month, with Enterprise from $2,500.

Three proxy logins come with each residential plan, which larger teams will need to plan around. A $5 welcome credit lets a team test any product before choosing a tier, and per-GB rates fall as monthly usage grows.

Key features:

• One subscription across products
• Free geo targeting
• Published sourcing handbook and KYC policy

Pricing: Residential $6/GB to $2.50/GB by tier.

NodeMaven: Best for Account Integrity

NodeMaven protects account-based work by filtering IPs before assignment. Its IP Quality Filter checks fraud score, blacklist status and reputation in real time.

Targeting covers country, city and ISP. ZIP and ASN are not listed, so it fits account management better than ZIP-level research. Sticky sessions lasting up to a day keep logins stable across long working sessions.

Residential and mobile share a rollover balance from $2.20 per GB on monthly plans, with up to 10% cashback on used traffic. A $3.50 trial covers 750 MB across both networks, which is enough to test a handful of account workflows.

Key features:

• Real-time IP screening
• Sticky sessions up to 24 hours
• Traffic rollover

Pricing: From $2.20/GB monthly; $3.50 trial for 750 MB.

Proxy-Seller: Best for Procurement-Ready Purchasing

Proxy-Seller supports formal buying processes with invoices, VAT documentation and DPA and SCC on request. It displays ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and ISO 9001:2015 badges.

Filters cover country, state, city and ISP, with no cap on parallel sessions. Purchased gigabytes must be used within a month, so businesses should match purchases to near-term demand rather than stockpiling bandwidth.

Enterprise prospects can request a free proof of concept and receive a dedicated account manager.

Key features:

• Compliance documents available
• Unlimited concurrent sessions
• Enterprise residential from $0.30/GB

Pricing: Trial traffic at $3.50 a gigabyte; volume tiers from $1.45.

Decodo: Best for Self-Service Research Teams

Decodo (formerly Smartproxy) includes continent, country, state, city, ZIP and ASN targeting free on every plan, and every plan reaches the full pool of 115M+ residential IPs.

A free 3-day trial with 100 MB of residential traffic lets teams test before buying, though it converts to a paid plan unless cancelled. First purchases also qualify for a conditional 14-day refund, which gives procurement a defined exit.

The company reports 135K+ clients and offers a Web Data API for teams building automated research pipelines.

Key features:

• Free ZIP and ASN targeting
• Full pool on every plan
• 24/7 live chat support

Pricing: Residential from $3.75/GB (3 GB); enterprise to $2/GB at 1 TB.

Webshare: Best for Low-Commitment Pilots

Webshare lets teams pilot proxies at no cost on a free tier of ten datacenter proxies that never ends, then move to residential from $3.50 for 1 GB.

Filters reach postcode and ASN level, and plans can be built around exact bandwidth and location needs.

Mobile research needs a second vendor, since Webshare has no mobile product. Static residential IPs from Comcast, AT&T and others are available for work that needs fixed home addresses, starting at $6.00 a month.

Key features:

• Free datacenter plan for pilots
• Customizable residential plans
• 24/7 support with account managers

Pricing: One residential gigabyte for $3.50, falling to $1.40 each at 250 GB.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which residential proxy providers include ZIP targeting for free?

ProxyEmpire, Decodo and Bright Data all include ZIP and ASN targeting without extra charges. DataImpulse charges for any targeting below country level.

Why does granular targeting matter for businesses?

Prices, ads and search results often differ by city or postcode. Without precise targeting, a business sees an averaged view that may not match what local customers see. That can lead to pricing or campaign decisions based on the wrong market picture.

Do I pay more for mobile carrier targeting?

It depends on the provider. ProxyEmpire includes carrier targeting on mobile at no extra cost, while Proxy-Seller offers carrier targeting on mobile proxies sold per proxy.

What is ASN targeting?

An ASN identifies the network of a specific internet provider. ASN targeting lets you route traffic through IPs belonging to a chosen provider's network, which is useful when content or ads differ between internet providers. ProxyEmpire, Decodo and Bright Data include it at no extra cost.

Can unused residential traffic carry over to the next month?

At ProxyEmpire, NodeMaven and DataImpulse, yes. Proxy-Seller's residential traffic is valid for 30 days, and Bright Data's unused monthly commitments do not roll over.

Which provider suits enterprise compliance reviews?

Bright Data lists ISO 27001, SOC 2, SOC 3 and CSA STAR Level 1, and Proxy-Seller shows ISO/IEC 27001:2022 and ISO 9001:2015 badges. Oxylabs publishes a KYC policy, a sourcing handbook and a trust center, and SOAX provides an SLA and a DPA. ProxyEmpire is an EWDCI member.