Server-hosted IPs with enterprise-grade speed and reliability. The most cost-effective option for high-volume operations. Compare shared vs dedicated, IPv4 vs IPv6, and per-IP vs bandwidth pricing models.
Datacenter proxies are IP addresses allocated to servers in commercial data centers rather than residential ISPs. These IPs are assigned by hosting providers, cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), and dedicated server companies like OVH, Hetzner, and Vultr. They offer the fastest, most reliable proxy connections available.
The key tradeoff is detectability. When a website performs an ASN lookup on a datacenter IP, it sees a hosting company rather than a consumer ISP. Sophisticated anti-bot systems like Cloudflare and PerimeterX can identify and block datacenter IP ranges. This is why datacenter proxies cost 10-50x less than residential alternatives but have lower success rates on protected sites.
Shared datacenter proxies are used by multiple customers simultaneously. They cost as little as $0.50-2/IP monthly but may have degraded reputation from other users' activities. Dedicated (private) proxies are exclusive to one customer, ensuring clean IP history and consistent performance at $2-10/IP monthly. Semi-dedicated proxies share between 2-3 users as a middle ground.
How Datacenter Proxy Pricing Works
Datacenter proxy pricing uses two distinct models: per-IP monthly subscriptions (most common) and per-GB bandwidth pricing (for rotating pools). This is fundamentally different from residential proxies which are almost always bandwidth-based.
Per-IP pricing is the standard model. You purchase a set number of static IPs for a monthly fee. In 2026, shared proxies run $0.50-2/IP, semi-dedicated $1-4/IP, and dedicated $2-10/IP. Bulk discounts are significant: 1000+ IPs can drop to $0.30-1/IP. Most per-IP plans include unlimited bandwidth, making them ideal for high-traffic operations.
Rotating datacenter pools use bandwidth-based pricing similar to residential, typically $0.10-0.50/GB. These pools automatically rotate IPs with each request, providing better anonymity than static datacenter IPs while maintaining datacenter-level speed. Useful when you need IP diversity without paying residential prices.
IPv4 vs IPv6 creates another pricing dimension. IPv4 datacenter proxies cost more due to address scarcity. IPv6 proxies are 50-80% cheaper but have limited compatibility since many sites do not fully support IPv6. Some providers offer /64 or /48 IPv6 subnets for pennies, giving you millions of addresses.
Subnet diversity matters for avoiding blocks. Cheap providers may give you IPs from a single /24 subnet, which can be blocked together. Premium providers offer IPs spread across multiple ASNs and non-sequential subnets, improving success rates on sites that employ IP fingerprinting.
Best Use Cases for Datacenter Proxies
Datacenter proxies shine in scenarios where speed, cost efficiency, and high bandwidth matter more than appearing as a residential user. They are the workhorse of large-scale data operations.
High-volume web scraping: Extract data from websites that do not actively block datacenter IPs. Ideal for aggregating publicly available information at scale with minimal cost per request.
SEO tools and rank tracking: Many SEO platforms rely on datacenter proxies for rank checking across search engines. The speed enables rapid position monitoring across thousands of keywords.
Market research: Collect pricing data, product information, and competitive intelligence from sites with permissive scraping policies.
Brand protection: Monitor for counterfeit products, unauthorized resellers, and trademark infringement across e-commerce platforms.
Security testing: Perform penetration testing, vulnerability scanning, and security audits using distributed IP addresses.
Accessing geo-restricted content: Bypass geographic restrictions on streaming services, news sites, and regional content platforms.
Load testing: Simulate traffic from multiple IP addresses to stress test web applications and infrastructure.
Automation at scale: Run automated workflows across websites where residential-level anonymity is not required.
Datacenter vs Residential Proxies
Understanding the tradeoffs between datacenter and residential proxies helps you select the right tool for each task. Here is how they compare across critical dimensions.
Cost Comparison
Datacenter proxies offer dramatically lower costs, often 10-50x cheaper than residential alternatives. A datacenter proxy might cost $2-5 per month with unlimited bandwidth, while residential proxies charge $5-15 per GB. For bandwidth-heavy tasks, datacenter proxies provide substantial savings.
Datacenterwins for cost
Speed and Reliability
Datacenter proxies deliver consistent high-speed connections because they run on enterprise infrastructure with dedicated bandwidth. Expect sub-100ms latency and speeds measured in Gbps. Residential proxies depend on consumer connections, introducing variable performance.
Datacenterwins for speed
Detection and Blocking
Websites can easily identify datacenter IP ranges through ASN databases. Sophisticated anti-bot systems like Cloudflare, PerimeterX, and DataDome actively block or challenge datacenter traffic. Residential IPs avoid this detection because they match legitimate user patterns.
Residentialwins for stealth
Use Case Fit
Choose datacenter proxies for: high-volume scraping of permissive sites, SEO monitoring, internal testing, and cost-sensitive operations. Choose residential proxies for: scraping protected sites, social media automation, ad verification, and any task requiring authentic user appearance.
Datacenterfor volume
How to choose datacenter proxies
Cost: Datacenter proxies are usually the cheapest—compare per-IP vs bandwidth plans carefully.
Speed: Look for low-latency locations close to your targets.
Block rate: Some targets block datacenter IP ranges more aggressively.