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Comparison

10 best proxy providers in 2026

Who wrote this. This is NullVault’s own site and NullVault is ranked first below, so read it as our argument rather than as an independent audit. We have not tested any competitor network. Every figure for another provider comes from that provider’s own pricing page, checked in September 2026, and each entry lists what we think it does better than us.

Most best of lists in this space push the same three or four names, which usually says more about affiliate commission than quality. So this one shows current pricing, pool sizes, payment options and features across ten services, from small budget options to the large enterprise players.

Whether you need residential addresses for scraping, rotation for price monitoring, ISP addresses for account management, or something that does not require handing over your ID, there is a provider below that fits.

Quick answer. For the best mix of price, privacy and quality we would say NullVault, and you should weigh that against the fact that we are NullVault. If you need the largest possible pool for very large scale collection, Bright Data and Oxylabs remain the two biggest networks available.

How these were ranked

Every provider was judged on the same five things.

  • Pricing transparency. Can you see the price per gigabyte, or does it disappear behind a contact sales form?
  • Network size and coverage. How many addresses, in how many countries?
  • Proxy types. Residential, datacenter, ISP, mobile, IPv6?
  • Payment and privacy. Card only, or crypto and no KYC options too?
  • Best fit use case. Who is this actually built for?

Pricing was taken from each provider’s own site in September 2026. Rates in this space change often, so check the current figure before you buy.

At a glance

#ProviderBest forStarting pricePoolCountriesPayment
1NullVaultUsBest overall value and privacy1.00 per GB, credits never expireShared network across 7 proxy pools166Crypto only, BTC LTC ETH XMR SOL USDT
2Bright DataLargest enterprise networkabout 2.50 per GB on promotion400M plus195 plusCard, PayPal, wire
3OxylabsEnterprise reliability2.50 to 6.00 per GB175M plus195 plusCard, PayPal, wire
4Decodo, formerly SmartproxyBest mid market value2.75 to 4.00 per GB115M plus195 plusCard, PayPal, crypto
5IPRoyalSmall teams, no contract flexibility1.75 per GB64M plusGlobal, city level targetingCard, PayPal, crypto
6SOAXGranular geo targeting for dev teamsfrom 0.35 per GB on the Enterprise tierTiered by country195 plusCard, wire
7RayobyteCheapest bulk residential0.50 per GB40M plusGlobalCard, crypto
8InfaticaEthically sourced mid tier2.60 to 4.00 per GB40M plus195 plusCard, PayPal, crypto
9WebshareFree tier and cheap datacenter IPsFree for 10 proxies, 1.40 per GB residential80M plus195 plusCard, crypto
10PacketStreamSimplest flat rate pay as you go1.00 per GB flatPeer to peer networkGlobalCard, crypto

Prices are per gigabyte in US dollars unless stated otherwise.

1. NullVault, best overall

Best for anyone who wants solid proxy quality without enterprise prices or handing over their ID. Good for budget scraping, price monitoring, QA testing, and automation work.

NullVault is a newer name, but it is not a rough around the edges startup either. The residential and carrier network behind it is built to hold up for real work like e commerce automation, price intelligence and QA testing, rather than casual browsing. That is why it can offer real proxy quality at a lower price than most established brands.

Proxy types.
Residential, mobile, ISP, datacenter and IPv6, over HTTP and SOCKS5.
Pricing.
No subscriptions. Prepaid, per gigabyte, and credits do not expire. Unlimited bandwidth windows are available by the hour or day. Minimum top up is one dollar.
Network.
166 countries across seven proxy pools, up to 10,000 proxy lines per API call, and gateway latency under 100 ms.

What sets it apart

  • No KYC. Sign up with an email and password, or with Google, and you are in. No ID upload and no selfie.
  • Crypto payments. Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, Monero, Solana, USDT and more, so a proxy subscription is not tied to a card statement.
  • Encrypted credentials. AES-256-GCM, and proxy lines stay saved in the dashboard, so lists do not need regenerating on every login.
  • Sticky or rotating. Sessions from one second up to 24 hours, or full rotation, chosen per request.
  • A clear acceptable use policy. Scraping, price monitoring, ad verification, market research and regional testing are all fine. Fraud, credential stuffing and attacks on other people’s infrastructure are not. That matters more than it sounds, because providers with no rules attract the abuse that gets an IP range blacklisted.

Worth knowing. NullVault is younger than Bright Data or Oxylabs, so it does not have years of independent reviews behind it yet. Crypto only payment will not suit everyone either. If you need a card receipt for expenses, Decodo or IPRoyal are better fits.

Bottom line

If you want an established residential and mobile network without the markup, the ID checks or a recurring subscription, NullVault is the strongest option on this list.

2. Bright Data, best for large scale scraping

Best for big teams and data operations that need the largest possible IP pool plus a full scraping stack.

Bright Data is still the biggest name in the space, with over 400 million residential IPs drawn from real devices worldwide by their own figures. Pricing runs from around 2.50 per GB on promotion, normally 5.00, and you get more than raw proxies: IP rotation, CAPTCHA handling, a Web Unlocker and full scraping APIs.

Good

The network size is hard to beat, the tooling is mature, and it integrates with almost everything.

Less good

It is priced for enterprise budgets, and there are so many add on products that a smaller team wanting a plain proxy endpoint can feel lost.

3. Oxylabs, best for enterprise reliability

Best for businesses that need consistent uptime and real account support at scale.

Oxylabs runs a pool of more than 175 million addresses across 195 plus countries. Plans start at 30 a month for 5 GB, which is 6.00 per GB, and drop to 2.50 per GB at a full terabyte on the Corporate tier. They report a 0.41 second average response time and a 99.95 percent success rate, with targeting down to ZIP code and ASN.

Good

Strong reliability figures and very precise targeting, down to device operating system and platform.

Less good

Entry level pricing is steep unless you are already working at scale.

4. Decodo, best mid market value

Best for teams that want Bright Data or Oxylabs quality without the enterprise price tag.

Decodo, formerly Smartproxy, has a pool of more than 115 million addresses across 195 plus locations. Monthly plans start at 3.75 per GB for 3 GB and drop to 2.75 per GB at 100 GB. There is a three day free trial with 100 MB and a 14 day money back guarantee, so it can be tested first.

Good

Clear pricing tiers, a solid support reputation, and an easy way to try before committing.

Less good

Sticky sessions top out at 30 minutes, shorter than several competitors.

5. IPRoyal, best for small teams and no contract flexibility

Best for freelancers, small agencies, and anyone who would rather pay for exactly what they use.

IPRoyal residential proxies start at 1.75 per GB, with a pool of more than 64 million addresses, no contracts, and traffic that does not expire. There is city and state level targeting, over 650 integrations, and team management with two factor authentication. One difference from NullVault worth flagging is that IPRoyal requires KYC verification.

Good

Flexible, no commitment pricing and a wide integration list.

Less good

The KYC requirement is a dealbreaker if privacy is the priority.

6. SOAX, best for granular geo targeting

Best for dev teams that need precise city or ASN level control and do not mind a subscription.

SOAX prices by both plan and location tier. Plans run Sandbox, Builder at 200 a month, Team at 500, Scale at 1,500 and Enterprise at 3,000, with per gigabyte costs anywhere from about 5.00 down to 0.35 depending on where you land. There is a free sandbox for testing.

Good

Very fine grained targeting, plus a headful browser rendering option.

Less good

The pricing structure takes a while to understand, and it is not built for casual one off use.

7. Rayobyte, best for cheap bulk residential traffic

Best for high volume scraping on a budget, or anyone who wants datacenter, ISP and residential in one dashboard.

Rayobyte residential proxies start at 0.50 per GB across a pool of more than 40 million addresses, and there is a free scraping API tier with 5,000 scrapes a month. They have been running for over a decade and process more than 20 petabytes a month, which makes this a solid pick if volume matters more than polish.

Good

Competitive per gigabyte pricing and a wide range of proxy types.

Less good

Pricing on some proxy types is not consistent across their own pages, so check current rates before buying.

8. Infatica, best ethically sourced mid tier option

Best for buyers who care specifically about how residential addresses are sourced.

Infatica has a pool of more than 40 million addresses across 195 plus countries, with pricing from 4.00 per GB pay as you go down to 2.08 per GB on annual 1000 GB plans. They lean on being ethically sourced as a selling point and report a 0.4 second average response time.

Good

Clear volume discounts and decent coverage.

Less good

The pool is smaller than the top few names on this list.

9. Webshare, best free tier and cheapest datacenter addresses

Best for developers who want to test before spending, or anyone who mostly needs datacenter proxies.

Webshare gives you 10 free proxies with no card required, then scales to rotating residential from 1.40 per GB and datacenter from as little as 0.018 per address. The network covers more than 80 million addresses across 195 countries with a reported 99.97 percent uptime.

Good

A genuinely useful free tier and datacenter pricing that is hard to beat.

Less good

The residential pool is smaller than the bigger players, so it suits lighter workloads.

10. PacketStream, best simple pay as you go option

Best for anyone who wants one flat rate and would rather not think about it.

PacketStream charges a flat 1.00 per GB with a 50 minimum purchase, no subscription, and a balance that never expires. It is a peer to peer residential network with one gateway URL, no SDK or proxy list to manage, plus a reseller API for white labelling.

Good

Simple pricing and simple setup.

Less good

They do not publish network size or country coverage, which makes them harder to compare against everyone else up front.

How to read proxy provider reviews

Most lists like this one are affiliate content. That is not automatically a problem, but it does mean the order is often shaped by commission rather than quality. This page has its own bias, stated at the top. A few things worth watching for anywhere.

  • Vague network numbers. Millions of addresses means nothing without a source. Every pool size below is the figure the provider publishes itself, not a rounded up marketing number.
  • Pricing that only appears after signup. If a review cannot tell you the price per gigabyte, it probably has not used the product and is repeating the provider’s own copy.
  • No downsides anywhere. Every provider has weak points. A review with only advantages is a sales page wearing a review’s clothes.
  • Star ratings with no review count. A 4.9 out of 5 badge means little without knowing how many people left it, or when.

So this list sticks to what could be verified from published material: pricing pages, stated network numbers, listed features. Where a provider has no independent review history yet, no rating was invented to fill the gap.

Residential providers compared

If residential is specifically what you need, the list gets shorter. NullVault, Bright Data, Oxylabs, Decodo and IPRoyal all run large actively rotated residential pools with country and city targeting. For raw pool size Bright Data and Oxylabs are out in front. For price per gigabyte, Rayobyte at 0.50 and NullVault at 1.00 with credits that do not expire are the cheapest. Decodo and IPRoyal sit in the middle.

How to choose

What are you actually using it for? Scraping and price monitoring usually call for rotating residential or datacenter addresses. Account management, ad verification and QA automation tend to work better on ISP or static residential, since a consistent address looks less suspicious than one that changes every request. Testing geo restricted content needs precise country and city targeting.

How much bandwidth will you really use? Per gigabyte plans are cheaper if usage is light or unpredictable. Subscriptions and unlimited windows start making sense once you are consistently burning through tens of gigabytes a day.

Does payment privacy matter? If you would rather not have a recurring card charge tied to a proxy service, a crypto only, no KYC setup is the option. If you need an invoice for an expense report, Decodo, Oxylabs or IPRoyal fit better than we do.

Do you want to test before committing? Decodo’s 100 MB trial, Webshare’s 10 free proxies and SOAX’s free sandbox all let you check quality before spending.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best proxy provider in 2026?

On price, network quality and payment flexibility, NullVault is our pick for most people in 2026, particularly if you are budget conscious or care about privacy. Bear in mind you are reading that on our own site. If you need the largest enterprise scale pool, Bright Data and Oxylabs remain the two biggest options.

What is the difference between residential, ISP, datacenter and mobile proxies?

Residential proxies route through real home internet connections, which makes them the hardest to detect. ISP proxies are static addresses registered to internet providers, giving residential level trust at datacenter speed. Datacenter proxies come from cloud servers, fast and cheap but easier to flag. Mobile proxies use real carrier addresses behind CGNAT, which helps on platforms that scrutinise non mobile traffic.

Do I need a no KYC proxy provider?

Only if identity and payment privacy matter for what you are doing. A no KYC provider lets you sign up and pay without submitting ID. If your business needs formal invoicing and compliance paperwork, a KYC verified provider such as IPRoyal or Oxylabs is a better fit.

How much do proxy providers typically cost?

In 2026 prices run from around 0.50 per GB on bulk residential tiers up to about 6.00 per GB on entry level enterprise plans. Most established residential providers land between 1.00 and 4.00 per GB depending on volume, with steep discounts as you buy more.

Are cheap proxy providers as reliable as expensive ones?

Not always, and price alone is not a reliable signal either way. Some budget providers hold up as well as premium brands. Others cut corners on how addresses are sourced, which shows up as high fraud scores and frequent blocks. Test a small amount of traffic before committing to a large purchase, whatever the price.

What are rotating proxies, and do I need them?

Rotating proxies change your address on a schedule, every request or every few minutes, which makes large scale collection much harder to detect. If you are pulling data from many pages quickly, rotation is usually right. If a site needs to recognise the same visitor across a session, as in account management or ad verification, a sticky session or a static ISP address works better.

Is it safe to buy proxies from a no KYC provider?

Buying proxies without submitting ID is legal and common. It means the provider is prioritising privacy over collecting personal data. The questions worth asking are the same for any provider. Is there a clear acceptable use policy, does it ban fraud and abuse, and are credentials encrypted at rest.

Final verdict

There is no single best provider for every job. We think NullVault combines real network quality with the lowest barrier to entry, no subscription, no KYC and credits that do not expire, and you should discount that opinion by the fact that it is ours. Bright Data and Oxylabs are the right call if you need the largest network and dedicated enterprise support. Decodo and IPRoyal are solid middle ground picks. Whatever you choose, start with a small test purchase, check current pricing on the provider’s own site, and match the proxy type to what the project actually needs.

Pricing and plan details were checked against each provider’s official site in September 2026 and change often, so confirm current rates before buying.

If you want to see what we actually run before taking any of the above on trust, the NullVault network and its pools are described in full.