4 common mistakes when you buy residential proxies
18 February 2023
When people visit the Astro website to buy residential IP addresses, they need to be familiar with how exactly this type of proxies operates and how to use it. Many users make the same typical mistakes while applying this tool to surfing on the Web. We have decided to propose this brief overview of the common errors and oversights.
Whenever users buy residential proxies, they get access to real people’s IPs provided by their respective ISPs. The proxies’ mission is to work as intermediate links on behalf of proxy users and keep their original IP and physical location in secret. This fact alone, especially coupled with the proxy rotation, is invaluable in terms of privacy protection. However, residential proxies are not the best matching panacea for all situations. Let’s look closer at the details.
Some advice concerning use cases when you buy residential IP
The main thing to be aware of is whether you require residential proxies. There always exists a chance that the datacenter proxies or mobile network proxies might be a better choice. So assess your future scenario first:
- If you buy proxies for data harvesting, assess your target page and estimate the volume of data to scrape. In case the target page looks simple, and you do not need that much, try the datacenter options instead;
- Another aspect to take into consideration is to grasp whether you require raw data only or some extra info assets in addition. If this is the case, it is likely you will consume a lot of traffic. Thus, as long as the target page is not overprotected, using the best datacenter proxies might be a suitable option;
- Remember that if you buy residential IP addresses, your speed will not be impressive in comparison with the best datacenter proxies. Hence, if you need to get things done quickly, try the second option instead;
- In case you need to get access to a page or service unavailable in a certain region, you would better resort to residential IPs. This type is known for the greatest location coverage, so you’ll certainly pick up a good residential IP to buy.
The main dilemma
- If you plan to visit or scrape a well-protected page or carry out some operations that mandate increased IP diversity, then buying residential IPs is your way to go. This is doubly so if you are searching for proxies for a one-time data-intensive use on your mind.
- When it comes to simple surfing on the Web and other objectives that do not necessitate a high degree of privacy and safety, datacenter proxies will do. This is in particular so, if higher speeds are needed.
Selecting the right proxy ecosystem
There are a lot of proxy websites on the Internet, both paid and free ones. Selecting the right one might take much time and effort. Therefore, do not forget to consider this checklist:
- First, unless you got plenty of time and have absolutely no sensitive info to compromise, avoid free proxies;
- Sufficient pool of proxies in qualitative and quantitative terms. That is, how many IPs your potential partner in proxy usage offers and what its geographic distribution is;
- Ways of proxy sourcing. Ethically collected and offered proxies are a must as long as you are a law-abiding and legit user.
Final remarks before you buy residential IPs
Residential proxies will serve you as a helpful asset and invaluable leverage if you know what you need them for and collaborate with a reliable proxy site. With Astro, you get seamless access to a vast pool of IP addresses across all the most popular countries users require. If you need professional advice, our customer support service is always at your service to help you choose between residential IPs and our best datacenter proxies.