There’s nothing better than having something for yourself. When you are in full control of resources and access, you minimize what can influence the success of your tasks. It applies to proxies more than anything else.
This privacy solution is crucial for hiding your IP address and helping bypass geo-restrictions. It also enables tasks like web scraping, online automation, email protection, and much more. Choosing the right type for your needs is difficult, but you are unlikely to make a mistake by choosing private proxies.
The benefits of proxies
Proxies (or proxy servers) are devices that use special software to act as intermediaries forwarding requests of others. Such a process ensures that the user’s original IP address is concealed, so the target server will have a harder time targeting ads or tracking activity.
Other parties, such as your Internet Service Provider (ISP), network administrator, or others, will also find it challenging to snoop around your activity or limit it. ISPs, in particular, can see every website you visit, but if you use a proxy server, they will only see that all of your requests reach one server somewhere abroad.
Proxy servers can also be placed in various locations around the globe, acquiring IP addresses relevant to that place. If you use a proxy from Germany, for example, every website you visit will view you as a German visitor. If there is any German-specific content, you can access it regardless of your original country.
What are private proxies?
The software and hardware used to operate proxies have advanced enough so that one server can route multiple different connections simultaneously. Providers are using this to their advantage, increasing their competitiveness with lower prices while raising the profit margins.
Unfortunately, it’s not always in your best interest to choose the cheaper shared proxies.
Private (also known as dedicated) proxies are an option that provides you with exclusive and often unlimited access to a device running as a proxy server. Whether it’s a household device, a server, or a mobile phone, you will be able to access and use its full potential.
Dedicated proxies outperform shared ones in performance, legitimacy, and any other aspect you can think of. No matter what your use case is – collecting data online, managing multiple social media accounts, or bulk purchasing, private proxies will do it better. The reason for their effectiveness is avoiding the so-called bad-neighbor effect.
When you share your proxy connection, you are at the mercy of other customers. If they use a lot of bandwidth, less is left for you. If they misuse IP addresses and get them restricted, it will affect your performance as well. Private proxies avoid these effects of bad neighbors.
The only drawback is that you’ll have to pay the full price. Shared proxies can be twice as cheap as private ones, but you can still buy cheap private proxies if you follow the prices of the main proxy types. But before starting to look for deals, you must know what proxies and when to choose.
Private residential proxies
Residential proxies use devices and internet connection like any other household. These proxies are run on physical devices (usually PCs) that connect to the internet with an IP address verified by an ISP. Simply put, this means that with a residential proxy, you will appear as any other user on the internet.
Residential proxies are rarely shared between multiple users, as residential internet connections and devices are unlikely to support many users. That’s also why, in general, they are slower and more expensive. However, the high legitimacy of IPs compensates for these drawbacks.
Your IP address will vouch that you are from a residential area, so you’ll blend in with other visitors and will arouse the least suspicion, IP bans, or other restrictions. Such IP legitimacy makes it hard for websites to track residential proxy users, which is crucial for tasks requiring the most anonymity.
Residential proxies are the best choice for anti-detect browsers, bulk purchasing, price monitoring, and smaller web scraping projects. However, the discrete IPs and somewhat limited performance give the best value when used privately.
Advantages
- Most legitimate IPs
- Best value for private access
Disadvantages
- Very Expensive
Private datacenter proxies
Datacenter proxies use IP addresses created virtually in powerful servers that are based, as the name suggests, in data centers. Usually, these are third-party facilities with commercial internet access and equipment overseen by professionals. Everything is optimized for speed in such centers.
Besides running proxies, such centers host websites, store data, and run various online services. One server can accomplish multiple such tasks and run hundreds, if not thousands, of virtual IP addresses. That means that there is no one physical device corresponding to an IP address, and such setup is reflected in the IP addresses.
Most websites do not tolerate such connections as they can overload the web server with requests. They tend to use security measures against datacenter proxies, which can include frequent CAPTCHA tests, bans, or other restrictions. However, not all websites are so fierce in their defenses, so datacenter proxies still have their applications.
They are best for when you need a fast connection with a lot of bandwidth, which is often unlimited. The most suitable use cases include large-scale data scraping, email protection, market research, and bypassing geo-restrictions.
Due to their speed and affordability, datacenter proxies are commonly used in large shared IP pools, which are rotating. It greatly reduces the price and somewhat improves legitimacy, although they are still no match for residential proxies in this regard.
Advantages
- Fastest proxy type
- Works well in large IP pools
Disadvantages
- Shared ones might be just as good
- Easily noticed by websites
Conclusion
The two main private proxy options are private residential and private datacenter proxies. While a private connection has its advantages in general, you are better off with a dedicated connection to a residential proxy. Although expensive, they provide a bigger improvement in performance and legitimacy.
