Quick Answers

What Is a Proxy IP?

A proxy IP is the IP address a proxy server uses when it talks to websites on your behalf. It is the address the site sees and logs instead of your own.

By Team of Monkeys Editorial Updated 1 min read Affiliate disclosure

This guide contains affiliate links to Geonode, Webshare and Rayobyte. If you buy through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

What Is a Proxy IP illustration: a proxy IP is the IP address a proxy server uses when it talks to websites on your behalf 3jdej38j4

The short answer

A proxy IP is the public IP address that a proxy server uses when it connects to a website for you. The website records that address, applies its rate limits to it and estimates your location from it. Your real IP stays with the proxy.

Why the type of IP matters

Websites judge the IP before they judge anything else. They look up who owns the address block (its ASN), what kind of network it is, and how it has behaved before:

  • Datacenter IPs belong to hosting companies. Fast and cheap, but easy to spot.
  • Residential IPs belong to home internet providers. They look like ordinary visitors.
  • Mobile IPs belong to cellular carriers and are shared by many real phones, so sites block them reluctantly.
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Also known as

Proxy address, exit IP, outgoing IP, egress IP, proxy server IP.

Learn more

Affiliate disclosure: Team of Monkeys is an affiliate of Geonode, Webshare and Rayobyte. Links and banners marked as sponsored, and links to Geonode, Webshare and Rayobyte in the text, use our referral links, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. Our explanations and comparisons are written to be useful whichever provider you choose.

Editorial note: Proxy providers change their pools, features and prices often, so treat any figures here as typical ranges at the time of writing and confirm current terms with the provider before you buy.
Keep reading

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