Residential vs Datacenter Proxies: Which Should You Choose in 2026?

Guide

Choosing the right type of proxy is the most important decision for your scraping project. Make the wrong choice, and you will get blocked immediately or waste money.

🏢1. Datacenter Proxies

Datacenter proxies come from secondary corporations like AWS, DigitalOcean, or hosting providers. They do not belong to ISPs and are physically located in server farms.

✅ The Pros

  • Extremely fast (up to 10 Gbps)
  • Cheaper per IP
  • Good for simple sites

❌ The Cons

  • Easily detected (subnet bans)
  • High block rate on Amazon/Google
  • Low diversity of locations

🏠2. Residential Proxies

Residential proxies are IP addresses provided by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) like AT&T, Comcast, or Orange to real homeowners. When you use them, you look exactly like a neighbor browsing the web.

✅ The Pros

  • Look like real humans
  • Impossible to subnet ban
  • Access geo-restricted content

⚠️ The Cons

  • Usually expensive (Pay per GB)
  • Slightly slower than datacenter

🚀 The Unlimited Solution

Most providers charge $15/GB for residential traffic. At UnlimitedResidentialProxy, we solve the main "Con" of residential IPs. We offer a hybrid model: Real Residential IPs with Unlimited Bandwidth.

Check Unlimited Plans

Detailed Comparison Table

FeatureDatacenterResidential
AnonymityLow (Easily flagged)High (Human-like)
Block RateHighVery Low (< 0.1%)
SpeedVery FastAverage
Cost StructureFlat FeePer GB (Usually)
Our Offer-Flat Fee + Unlimited Data

Conclusion

If you are scraping simple sites or learning, datacenter proxies are fine. But for e-commerce price monitoring, social media scraping, or sneaker copping, Residential Proxies are mandatory in 2026.

Don't want to worry about bandwidth limits?Check our Unlimited Residential Plans →