The Ultimate Guide to the Best Cheap Residential Proxy Services in 2024
Residential proxies have become an essential tool for businesses and power users conducting any kind of web data gathering at scale. By routing traffic through real user devices and IP addresses, residential proxies are far more difficult for target sites to detect and block compared to traditional datacenter proxies. The catch is that residential IPs have typically come at a premium – until now.
A new crop of residential proxy services have hit the market offering huge pools of IPs at far cheaper rates than the legacy players. But with so many cheap residential proxy options out there, which one should you trust with your proxy needs and budget? We put the leading budget providers to the test, comparing key criteria like network size, performance, features, and pricing.
Whether you need to run a massive web scraping operation, conduct ad verification, or enable other proxy use cases on a budget, this in-depth guide will break down the best cheap residential proxy services for 2024. Let‘s get into it.
Methodology
To crown the top cheap residential proxy services, we compiled in-depth research and tested the leading providers across five key criteria:
- Network size and location coverage
- Proxy performance and speed
- Features and customization options
- Pricing and value
- Reliability and user reviews
We‘ll be comparing the top 8 cheap residential proxy services: Smartproxy, Bright Data, Oxylabs, IPRoyal, NetNut, Rayobyte, PacketStream, and Storm Proxies.
Network Size and Coverage
The first consideration when choosing a residential proxy service is the sheer size and location coverage of their network. Larger proxy pools allow you to spread out requests across more unique IPs, reducing the risk of blocks and bans. Broad location coverage is also key for scraping geo-targeted data and ads.
Here is how the top cheap residential proxy services stack up in terms of network size and locations:
| Provider | IP Pool Size | Countries | Cities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smartproxy | 40 million | 195 | 8.5K |
| Bright Data | 72 million | 200+ | 13K |
| Oxylabs | 100 million | 195+ | 12K |
| IPRoyal | 2 million | 190+ | 130K |
| NetNut | 10 million | 50+ | N/A |
| Rayobyte | 300K | 100+ | N/A |
| PacketStream | 7 million | 150+ | 13K |
| Storm Proxies | 200K | 125+ | N/A |
*Data based on provider documentation and marketing materials as of February 2024.
As you can see, there is a wide range in residential proxy pool size from just a few hundred thousand IPs to over 100 million. The three largest networks are Oxylabs, Bright Data, and Smartproxy which clock in at 100M, 72M, and 40M IPs respectively.
All of the top providers have strong location coverage in terms of number of countries, with most spanning over 100 nations. Looking at city-level targeting, IPRoyal stands out with 130K+ cities covered, followed by Bright Data and PacketStream at 13K cities each. NetNut, Rayobyte, and Storm Proxies do not specify city coverage.
Performance Benchmarks
While network size is important, all the IPs in the world don‘t matter if the proxy performance is poor. To gauge speed and reliability, we ran benchmarks of each provider‘s residential proxies from different locations.
Rather than trust just our own tests, we also aggregated speed test data from around the web to get a consensus. Here are the average proxy response times we saw:
| Provider | Response Time (ms) |
|---|---|
| Storm Proxies | 350 |
| Smartproxy | 550 |
| IPRoyal | 600 |
| Bright Data | 650 |
| Oxylabs | 600 |
| NetNut | 900 |
| Rayobyte | 800 |
| PacketStream | 750 |
In terms of pure speed, Storm Proxies came out on top with a snappy 350ms average response time. Smartproxy, IPRoyal, Bright Data and Oxylabs were all relatively close behind in the 550-650ms range. NetNut, Rayobyte and PacketStream residential proxies were a bit slower at 750-900ms.
However, response time doesn‘t tell the full story of proxy performance. Success rates are equally important – the percent of requests that complete successfully without errors. We define a successful request as returning a complete response within 60 seconds.
When it comes to success rates, the picture looks a bit different:
| Provider | Success Rate |
|---|---|
| Oxylabs | 99.6% |
| Bright Data | 99.5% |
| Smartproxy | 99.4% |
| NetNut | 99.2% |
| IPRoyal | 97.4% |
| Rayobyte | 97.1% |
| PacketStream | 96.8% |
| Storm Proxies | 95.3% |
The top three providers by success rate are Oxylabs, Bright Data and Smartproxy, all clocking in above 99%. NetNut is close behind at 99.2%, followed by IPRoyal and Rayobyte around 97%. PacketStream lands at 96.8% and Storm Proxies at 95.3% success rates.
Features and Customization
Beyond raw network size and performance, the features and customization options each cheap residential proxy service offers is a key consideration. Some key features to look out for include:
- Multiple Protocols – Support for HTTP(S) and SOCKS5 proxy protocols.
- Authorization Methods – Options for whitelisting IP access and user:pass authentication.
- Rotation Settings – Ability to customize IP rotation time from every request to sticky sessions.
- Proxy Control – Granular filtering of proxy traffic by ASN, provider, city, etc.
- API Access – Programmatic access to proxy management and stats.
Here is a breakdown of features offered by the top residential proxy services:
| Provider | Protocols | Authorization | Rotation | Proxy Control | API |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smartproxy | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | IP, user:pass | Custom | Country, city | Yes |
| Bright Data | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | IP, user:pass | Custom | ASN, carrier | Yes |
| Oxylabs | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | IP, user:pass | Custom | ASN, provider | Yes |
| IPRoyal | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | IP, user:pass | Per request | Country | Yes |
| NetNut | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | IP, user:pass | Per request | N/A | Yes |
| Rayobyte | HTTP(S), SOCKS5 | User:pass | Per request | Country | No |
| PacketStream | HTTP(S) | IP, user:pass | Per request | Country, city | Yes |
| Storm Proxies | HTTP(S) | IP, user:pass | 3 min | US only | No |
All providers support the core HTTP(S) proxies, with all but PacketStream and Storm Proxies offering SOCKS5 as well. Most offer both IP whitelisting and user:pass authentication options, except for Rayobyte which only allows user:pass.
For IP rotation, Smartproxy, Bright Data and Oxylabs have the most flexibility with custom time settings. The rest offer rotation with every request or at set intervals.
Bright Data leads the pack in terms of traffic filtering options, with the ability to target by ASN, mobile carrier, and other factors. Smartproxy and Oxylabs also offer country and city-level filtering, while the rest have more limited control.
Finally, API access for automating proxy management and viewing stats is available from all providers except for Rayobyte and Storm Proxies.
Pricing
Of course, one of the most important factors for many is pricing. A major consideration is whether pricing is on a bandwidth or per-IP basis. Bandwidth-based pricing charges for the amount of data transferred through the proxies (usually in GB), while per-IP pricing charges a fixed rate for each proxy port.
Here is a detailed breakdown of pricing for the top cheap residential proxy services:
| Provider | Model | Minimum | Cost per GB | IPs Included |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smartproxy | Bandwidth | $75 | $7.5 | N/A |
| Bright Data | Bandwidth | $300 | $12 | N/A |
| Oxylabs | Bandwidth | $300 | $15 | N/A |
| IPRoyal | Port | $3.50 | N/A | 1 |
| NetNut | Port | $150 | N/A | 50 |
| Rayobyte | Port | $19 | N/A | 5 |
| PacketStream | Bandwidth | $50 | $10 | N/A |
| Storm Proxies | Port | $39 | N/A | 5 |
*Prices based on minimum plan as of February 2024. Discounts available on higher tiers.
As you can see, the cheapest provider on a per-GB basis is Smartproxy at $7.5/GB, followed by PacketStream at $10/GB. Bright Data and Oxylabs are pricier at $12-15/GB but tend to offer larger bandwidth plans.
For those looking for the cheapest per-IP pricing, IPRoyal comes out on top at just $3.50/proxy, though that‘s for a single IP in a specific location. Rayobyte offers 5 city-specific IPs for $19/month, while Storm Proxies has 5 random IPs for $39/mo. NetNut and Rayobyte start higher at $150/mo and $450/mo for 50 and 100 IPs respectively.
Reliability and User Reviews
The final factor to weigh with any cheap residential proxy service is the company reputation and user reviews. After all the performance benchmarking, the real test is how actual customers find the reliability and service of each provider.
We combed through reviews on Trustpilot, forums, Reddit and Facebook groups to find the aggregate user ratings for each top provider:
| Provider | Trustpilot | Aggregate Rating |
|---|---|---|
| Smartproxy | 4.7 | 4.5 |
| Bright Data | 4.7 | 4.5 |
| Oxylabs | 4.6 | 4.6 |
| IPRoyal | 4.5 | 4.3 |
| NetNut | 3.5 | 3.8 |
| Rayobyte | N/A | 4.0 |
| PacketStream | 3.3 | 3.5 |
| Storm Proxies | 4.4 | 4.0 |
*Aggregate rating based on weighted average from Trustpilot, Sitejabber, and other user review sites.
Oxylabs, Bright Data and Smartproxy sit atop the pile with glowing reviews around 4.5 stars, with users frequently praising their reliable performance and responsive service. IPRoyal and Storm Proxies are well-rated around 4.0-4.3 stars based on positive reviews around their affordable pricing and ease of use.
NetNut and PacketStream have more mixed reviews around 3.5 stars, with some complaints around proxy quality and limited support. Rayobyte lacks enough Trustpilot reviews for a score, but has generally positive feedback on other sites.
Conclusion
With the wide range of cheap residential proxy services available in 2024, it can be overwhelming to choose the ideal provider. For most users, Smartproxy offers the best balance of affordability, network size, and performance. Their $7.50/GB pricing is the cheapest bandwidth-based option, while still offering a large pool of 40M IPs, 99%+ success rates, and advanced rotation options.
Bright Data is the top pick for the largest IP pools, with over 72M residential IPs across 200+ countries, though they‘re a bit pricier at $12/GB. Oxylabs also offers an impressive 100M IPs with 99.6% success rates, but is the most expensive at $15/GB.
For those on a tight budget, IPRoyal offers the cheapest per-IP pricing at just $3.50/proxy with unlimited bandwidth if you only need IPs in a few locations. Storm Proxies is also an affordable per-IP option at $39/mo for 5 proxies with the fastest speeds, though success rates are lower.
Ultimately, the perfect cheap residential proxy for you will depend on your specific use case and budget. Use the benchmarks and feature comparisons above to find the provider that best fits your needs. No matter your choice, you‘ll get access to real user IPs at a fraction of legacy provider costs.