Residential IPs

What are residential IPs?

So, as the term “residential” implies a residential IP can be thought of as the IP given by the ISP (Internet service provider) to a homeowner (hence residential). Upon the creation of your contract or internet service, your home, flat or place of resident will be given an IP address, every assigned IP address is unique as duplicate IPs can cause conflictions which would be like giving two houses the same address, packets of data, or mail in the scenario I am using will get sent to the wrong house. A residential IP will look like the following XXX.XXX.XXX.XXX. Each space in between the dots can contain less but no more than 3 digits between 0 and 9, for example, 111.22.333.444. An IP can be used to determine you or your location, it is often common practice for more intermediate users to use VPNs to mask their IP address to protect their privacy and security. Using a proxy or VPN to mask your residential IP address from anyone who is trying to look up your IP will simply show the location for the IP that you are essentially Piggybacking on which provides anonymity when online.

Alternatives of Residential IPs for proxy use

The most common alternative to the use of a residential proxy would be Datacenter Proxies, so how do these works and what sets them apart? Basically, instead of an ISP-issued IP aa user would use the IP issued by a datacenter. This could be interpreted to act as a wall or barrier between the end user and anyone who intended on looking up that IP. The result of an IP snoop which Is conducted on a user whom has a datacenter proxy active will just lead to the wall which is the datacenter. As aforementioned the fact that IPs can provide a rough result of the area of which the IP has been issued, with a Datacenter Proxy the lookup will just show the location of the datacenter not the user, again good for security reasons. These can be more of a short-term solution and not something to replace and substitute a residential IP on a long-term basis. Geo-restricted content such as regional Netflix shows could be accessed using a Datacenter proxy on the proviso that the datacenter being used is in the country of the content you want to access.

Where is best to buy?

These sorts of services both residential and datacenter proxies are readily available on the internet, one provider of this service to mention is Micoleaves Proxies (https://microleaves.com) these guys offer a whole range of services so it is more than likely that all your needs and requirements could be met by going with them, they offer competitive price options, boast 99.99% uptime on their services and have a whole range of products such as back connect proxies, which change IP address every 10 minutes and also automated captcha solving solutions, just to name a few.

Advantages of Residential Proxies

• Less plentiful providers therefore prices are higher – Due to the huge effort it takes to accumulate a selection of residential IPs which could be used for Proxies, finding a provider for such a service is also hard to come by, these two variables, effort in accumulation and little competition, a client can often find the prices of such a service are therefore inflated. Furthermore, however on the other hand for some users, based on their needs and requirements, a larger monthly subscription could be more economically efficient for them than a large bill of a collection of Datacenter proxies, it all comes down to the individual needs of the user.
• With the ever-developing issue of cybercrime and more specifically, cyber-attacks, blacklisting could be an issue when it comes to using Residential IPs as proxies, although they are more trusted by providers than Datacenter proxies, Residential IPs are also open to exploitation and abuse, something which providers are aware of and therefore, it is not uncommon to see these IPs blocked or blacklisted. However, to reiterate, this is the more trusted of the two mentioned methods and you are less likely to encounter blacklisting issues with Residential proxies than Datacenter proxies. However, it is important to bear in mind there is not 100% blacklist free option when it comes to Proxies.
• Legitimacy, Accumulating dozens of Datacenter IPs isn’t exactly a mountainous feat and is not that rare however doing the same with residential IPs is in contrast, extremely difficult to do so. Because these types of IPs are only assigned to homeowners and residents, security systems often deem them as secure and safe, therefore they are seen to be more trusting and legitimate than Datacenter Proxy IPs.

What to take into consideration when going with Residential IPs as a proxy solution

It is vital to buy your Residential IP from a known provider, as aforementioned Microleaves (Microleaves Shared Proxy Review)would be my choice, the fact that they are well known and not infamous says something, they’ve got a reputation for something, and the large host of services and other attributes such as the 99.99% uptime and Gigabit speeds are enticing and appealing for clients.

Contrary to the above, it is also not out of the question to go for a lesser known provider of such services. Here’s why; When going with a well-known provider with a whole cohort of added features and benefit, the price is usually increased to justify these extras, with a lesser known provider who doesn’t offer a lot of extras or benefits the price can be decreased, these types of companies, often, boast a relationship with ISP where they can obtain residential IPs to sell on, this is how they make their business.

To summarize – Are residential IPs the best proxy solution for you?

Basically, it depends, I know this is quite a vague response to the most prominent question that you have however this solution will suit different people differently. If you’re someone who is looking for a long term solution and money isn’t really an issue within reason and your needs get met then yes it Is more than likely that a residential proxy is for you, As I’ve said, they are harder to come by and are often more expensive so be prepared for that.

On the other hand, an alternative answer to the question would be if you were in an opposite situation to the one mentioned above. Do you want something short term, is money a big issue? Then Datacenter proxies will therefore be a more feasible solution for you.