HTTP vs SOCKS5 Proxies

Understand the difference between HTTP and SOCKS5 proxies. Compare pricing and find the right protocol for your use case.

Overview

HTTP proxies are designed for web traffic and work at the application layer, while SOCKS5 operates at the session layer and can handle any traffic type. Choosing between them depends on your specific use case.

How It Works

HTTP proxies interpret and filter HTTP/HTTPS traffic, allowing for content filtering and caching. SOCKS5 simply tunnels traffic without interpretation, supporting any protocol or port.

Key Benefits

  • ✓ HTTP: Content filtering and caching
  • ✓ HTTP: Better for web-only applications
  • ✓ SOCKS5: Protocol-agnostic traffic handling
  • ✓ SOCKS5: Better for P2P and streaming

Ideal For

HTTP: Web scraping and browsing
HTTP: Corporate content filtering
SOCKS5: Torrenting and P2P
SOCKS5: Email and FTP clients

Typical Pricing

Pricing is similar for both protocols, with SOCKS5 sometimes commanding a small premium due to its flexibility.

Top Providers for HTTP vs SOCKS5 Proxies

ProxyEmpire favicon
ProxyEmpire
$0.35/GB
Trial Shifter favicon
Shifter
$0.37/GB
 Decodo favicon
Decodo
$0.39/GB
Trial SOAX favicon
SOAX
$0.40/GB
Trial Oxylabs favicon
Oxylabs
$0.48/GB
Trial Geonode favicon
Geonode
$0.50/GB
 Bright Data favicon
Bright Data
$0.60/GB
Trial NetNut favicon
NetNut
$0.60/GB
Trial

Calculate Your Costs

Use our calculator to estimate monthly costs based on your bandwidth needs.

Calculate with 50GB preset

Compare Providers

Full comparison of providers offering http vs socks5 proxies.

Showing 7 providers for Datacenter proxies
Provider Proxy Type Model Max $/GB Tiers Trial
ProxyEmpire favicon ProxyEmpire Datacenter $/GB $0.35 Lowest $0.63 6 tiers 100MB trial with $1.97 View Pricing →
Decodo favicon Decodo Datacenter $/GB $0.39 $0.60 25 tiers 3-day free trial View Pricing →
SOAX favicon SOAX Datacenter $/GB $0.40 $0.62 4 tiers 3-day trial with $1.99 View Pricing →
Oxylabs favicon Oxylabs Datacenter $/GB $0.48 $0.65 5 tiers 7-day free trial View Pricing →
Geonode favicon Geonode Datacenter $/GB $0.50 $1.00 6 tiers - View Pricing →
Bright Data favicon Bright Data Datacenter $/GB $0.60 $0.60 9 tiers 7-day free trial View Pricing →
NetNut favicon NetNut Datacenter $/GB $0.60 $10.80 8 tiers 7-day free trial View Pricing →
IPRoyal favicon IPRoyal Datacenter $/IP N/A N/A 3 tiers - View Pricing →
Proxy-Seller favicon Proxy-Seller Datacenter unknown N/A N/A No data - View Pricing →
Webshare favicon Webshare Datacenter per proxy N/A N/A 12 tiers 2-day money-back View Pricing →
Proxy-Cheap favicon Proxy-Cheap Datacenter $/IP N/A N/A 5 tiers 14-day money-back View Pricing →
Proxy-IPv4 favicon Proxy-IPv4 Datacenter unknown N/A N/A No data - View Pricing →
Geonix favicon Geonix Datacenter unknown N/A N/A No data - View Pricing →
Youproxy favicon Youproxy Datacenter unknown N/A N/A No data - View Pricing →
Rayobyte favicon Rayobyte Datacenter unknown N/A N/A No data - View Pricing →