7 Smartproxy (Decodo) Alternatives Compared for 2026

Smartproxy is now Decodo. Seven Smartproxy alternatives to compare are Socks5.IO, Bright Data, Rola IP, Oxylabs, SOAX, Webshare, and IPRoyal. Start with the proxy type, required locations, session controls, and purchase commitment for your workload. A lower advertised unit price alone does not establish a better replacement.

A price-monitoring team collecting authorized public product data may need rotating residential IPs across several markets. A regional QA team may need a fixed endpoint for a multi-step session. Compare providers against that concrete requirement before choosing between raw proxy access and a managed scraping API.

Disclosure: This comparison is published by Socks5.IO and includes our own service. It reviews published product information, not first-hand performance benchmarks. Screenshots illustrate provider interfaces; promotional claims shown within them are the providers’ own statements, not independently verified results.

TL;DR

Smartproxy is now Decodo. The rebrand did not create a separate proxy provider: Decodo states that existing Smartproxy accounts, subscriptions, configurations, and legacy endpoints continue to work. Its current product range includes rotating residential, ISP, mobile, and datacenter proxies, as well as scraping and web-data tools.

As checked on September 20, 2026, Decodo’s residential pricing starts at $11.25 per month for 3GB, while PAYG is $4/GB. Its advertised $2/GB rate applies to the 1TB enterprise tier, listed at $2,000. These prices exclude VAT. The pricing section below links the official source and separates unit rates from total purchase amounts.

Compare Socks5.IO and Rola IP for direct proxy workflows, Bright Data and Oxylabs when evaluating proxy and managed collection tools together, SOAX for location and session requirements, and Webshare or IPRoyal for entry options suited to small or irregular workloads. These are starting points for evaluation, not performance rankings. Test comparable products on authorized targets before moving production traffic.

Smartproxy Alternatives for Different Proxy Needs

The table is a decision filter, not a universal ranking. Pricing and inventory change, so verify the current plan and run a small workload-specific test before committing.

Sources are linked in the provider sections below. Public product information and the quoted Decodo and Socks5.IO residential rates were reviewed on September 20, 2026. Prices across different product types are not directly comparable; unlisted rates and terms have not been established by this review.

Smartproxy Review: Products, Pricing, and Trade-Offs

This Smartproxy review uses official product and pricing pages to establish the Decodo baseline. Product availability and published features do not establish target-specific performance. The alternatives are compared by their documented offerings and purchasing considerations.

From Smartproxy to Decodo: What Changed?

Smartproxy officially became Decodo on April 22, 2025. According to the official rebrand page, it is the same company, team, infrastructure, account system, and service portfolio under a new name. Existing subscriptions and configurations were transferred, and the company says legacy Smartproxy proxy endpoints remain operational.

The practical change is branding rather than a forced migration. New customers should use Decodo.com, while existing users can gradually adopt the Decodo endpoints displayed in their dashboard. This distinction matters because unrelated websites use similar Smartproxy names.

How to Identify the Official Decodo Website

Decodo states that its legitimate global domain is Decodo.com and warns that some similarly named sites are not affiliated with the former Smartproxy business. Confirm the domain before entering credentials or payment information. Old tutorials can still be useful for concepts, but current product names, prices, and dashboard paths should be verified against Decodo documentation.

Smartproxy’s Current Product Range

Smartproxy evolved from a residential proxy service into a broader proxy and public-web-data platform. The current Decodo catalog separates proxy infrastructure from managed scraping products, which is useful because the two solve different problems.

Residential Proxies

Rotating residential proxies route requests through consumer-network IP addresses. Decodo advertises a large global residential pool and location targeting across many markets. These proxies suit price monitoring, market research, localization checks, ad verification, and other authorized workflows where a residential network identity is relevant.

Decodo’s residential page lists country, state, city, ASN, and ZIP-level targeting. A large global pool does not guarantee equal inventory or performance in every city; test the specific location required by your application.

ISP, Mobile, and Datacenter Proxies

ISP proxies use ISP-assigned addresses and may be hosted in datacenters. Fixed ISP products can suit session continuity, but address persistence and how a target classifies the IP depend on the service and target. Mobile proxies use carrier networks and are relevant for mobile-first localization or app-related research. Datacenter proxies use hosting infrastructure; target acceptance must be tested separately from connection speed.

The right choice depends on the target, not the label alone. If a workflow needs a stable login session, repeatedly changing residential IPs may be counterproductive. If it needs broad distribution across locations, a small fixed pool may be insufficient.

Scraping APIs and Data Collection Tools

Decodo also publishes scraping APIs and tools that handle parts of request routing, rendering, parsing, and block management. These products can reduce engineering work compared with managing raw proxy endpoints, but they use different billing units and provide less low-level control. Compare a proxy plan and a managed API by cost per usable result, not by the headline unit alone.

Decodo dashboard illustration. The success-rate and price labels shown are provider marketing, not results or API pricing verified by this review.

Smartproxy Residential Proxies: Network and Controls

IP Coverage and Location Targeting

Decodo currently advertises 115M+ residential IPs across 195+ locations on its residential proxy page. Treat these as provider-published inventory figures rather than a promise that every IP is simultaneously available.

Country targeting is sufficient for many localization tasks. City, state, ASN, or ZIP targeting matters when results differ within a country. On September 20, 2026, Decodo’s residential page stated that advanced targeting was included in all residential plans without an extra charge. Narrow targeting can still reduce the available pool; this pricing statement does not apply automatically to other proxy products.

Rotating IPs and Sticky Sessions

Rotating sessions assign a different exit IP according to the provider’s rotation rules. Sticky sessions keep the same IP for a defined period, which can help multi-step flows where continuity is expected. Neither mode is automatically better: rotation spreads requests, while sticky sessions preserve state.

Test the actual session duration rather than assuming that a “sticky” label guarantees one IP for an entire job. IP availability, network changes, authentication errors, and target-side behavior can still interrupt a session.

HTTP, HTTPS, and SOCKS5 Support

Decodo’s residential product page lists HTTP(S) and SOCKS5 support. Match the protocol and authentication method to your application, and check other Decodo products separately. SOCKS5 does not itself encrypt traffic, and service support for SOCKS5 does not establish compatibility with every client or authentication combination.

Smartproxy Residential Proxies Pricing Explained

Smartproxy residential proxy pricing now refers to Decodo’s plans. Theofficial residential proxy pricing page and residential product page listed the following rates on September 20, 2026. All Decodo prices below exclude VAT.

Pay-As-You-Go and Monthly Plans

Decodo’s pricing FAQ states that residential PAYG requires Wallet credit, allows purchases of one GB at a time, and cannot be active simultaneously with a monthly residential subscription. The listed monthly plans are billed monthly. The PAYG purchase unit is not evidence of a minimum Wallet top-up amount; confirm that amount at checkout.

Before paying, confirm renewal and cancellation terms, unused-traffic validity, overages, and which failed or retried requests consume billable traffic. This comparison does not establish those rules for every plan. If choosing the advertised trial, the pricing FAQ states that its 100MB allowance lasts three days and the selected plan activates automatically afterward unless canceled beforehand.

What Does Decodo’s $2/GB Starting Price Actually Require?

The $2/GB rate applies to the listed 1TB enterprise tier, with a $2,000 purchase amount before VAT. It is not the entry monthly or PAYG rate. For an illustrative 3GB workload, the listed 3GB subscription costs $11.25 before VAT, while three 1GB PAYG purchases total $12 before VAT. This arithmetic assumes exactly 3GB of billable traffic, excludes any extra charges, and does not establish equivalent expiry or renewal terms. Choose by expected use and commitment, not the lowest displayed unit rate.

Estimating the Cost per Successful Request

Price per GB does not reveal the full operational cost. Track:

• total bandwidth consumed;
• valid responses returned;
• retries and blocked responses;
• time spent maintaining sessions and rules;
• parsing or rendering costs outside the proxy plan.

For a fair comparison, use this calculation:

Effective proxy cost per valid result = total proxy spend ÷ number of valid results

A provider with a higher per-GB rate can be cheaper if it produces more valid results with fewer retries. Conversely, a low headline price can become expensive if a target returns frequent blocks or incorrect locations.

Using the Smartproxy (Decodo) Dashboard and Setup Tools

Authentication and Proxy Configuration

Proxy services usually support username/password authentication, IP allowlisting, or both. The Decodo dashboard provides endpoint and authentication details for the selected product. Keep credentials out of screenshots, repositories, logs, and shared documents.

Generate a small configuration first, confirm the exit IP and location, then add concurrency. This isolates authentication and targeting problems before they are mixed with application-level failures.

Documentation, Integrations, and Support

Decodo publishes quick-start material, integration guides, API documentation, and support channels. Documentation quality matters when a team must configure sessions, location parameters, retries, and multiple products. Check whether your exact language, browser tool, authorized anti-detect browser workflow, or automation framework has a maintained guide rather than assuming generic compatibility.

Smartproxy Extension: Browser-Based Proxy Control

What the Browser Extension Can Do

The Smartproxy extension is now presented as Decodo’s Chrome Proxy Extension. Its official extension page describes saving proxy profiles, switching locations, activating or deactivating a proxy, and manually adding proxies from other providers. It is free as a management tool; access to a proxy still depends on that proxy service’s account and authentication requirements.

The extension is convenient for manual localization checks, QA, and one-off browsing sessions. It is not a replacement for a programmatic proxy configuration when hundreds or thousands of requests must be controlled consistently.

When a Proxy Endpoint or API Is More Suitable

Use a direct endpoint when an application or script needs repeatable routing, concurrency, and logs. Use a managed scraping API when the provider’s rendering, parsing, or request-handling layer saves more engineering time than it costs. Use the extension when a human needs to switch a browser session quickly.

The linked extension page includes the setup flow. Check the protocol and authentication fields for the profile you intend to use before relying on browser compatibility.

How to Read Smartproxy Customer Reviews

Use recent customer reviews to identify questions about setup, support, billing, and target compatibility. Check which product each reviewer used and when, and compare positive and negative reports. Customer reviews are not controlled benchmarks and cannot establish performance for your workload. This article does not report a sampled analysis of customer reviews.

How to Verify Smartproxy Coupons and Promotions

Searching for a Smartproxy coupon often leads to affiliate pages with expired or conditional codes. Verify any promotion in the Decodo dashboard or with official support before planning a budget around it.

Check the discount percentage, eligible product, first-payment versus recurring status, minimum purchase, expiration date, regional restrictions, and whether the code replaces another offer. A valid coupon is not automatically the cheapest option if it applies to a larger bundle than the project needs.

Smartproxy Pros, Cons, and Best-Fit Users

Strengths

• several proxy types and managed data tools in one ecosystem;
• self-service dashboard, documentation, and browser tools;
• global residential coverage with rotation and location controls;
• legacy Smartproxy configurations remain relevant after the rebrand.

Limitations

• the lowest published unit rate may require higher volume;
• product and billing choices can be more complex than a proxy-only provider;
• advertised pool size does not predict target-specific success;
• managed scraping products and raw proxies should not be compared as if they were identical.

Smartproxy is a reasonable shortlist candidate for teams that want multiple network types and room to move from raw proxies to managed web-data tools. A smaller project may prefer a simpler catalog or lower commitment, while an enterprise program may prioritize compliance controls, datasets, or dedicated support.

When Switching From Smartproxy Makes Sense

Consider another provider when the workload needs a proxy type that is priced or packaged more effectively elsewhere, required locations perform inconsistently in a controlled pilot, traffic commitments do not match usage, or maintaining the scraping stack costs more than a managed API.

Switching should solve a measured problem. Document the current baseline, test one alternative under the same conditions, and compare valid-result cost before migrating all traffic.

7 Smartproxy Alternatives for Different Use Cases

The following alternatives receive the same decision-focused treatment: what the provider offers, who it fits, how it differs from Smartproxy, and what must be verified before purchase.

1. Socks5.IO: For Rotating and Fixed Proxy Options

What Socks5.IO Offers and Who It Fits

Socks5.IO offers rotating residential, static residential proxies, mobile proxies, rotating datacenter, dedicated datacenter, and dedicated IPv6 proxy products. Its catalog is useful for teams comparing rotating and fixed proxy access for their existing applications.

Review the Socks5.IO proxy services by network type, required location, rotation behavior, and session length. If your client requires SOCKS5, verify the selected product’s protocol and authentication combination. SOCKS5 is also offered by other providers, including Decodo’s residential service, so protocol support alone does not establish a unique advantage.

Socks5.IO vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

Decodo lists both proxy infrastructure and scraping APIs. The Socks5.IO products compared here provide proxy access for your existing client or scraper. Decide whether your team needs the proxy connection alone or also needs a service to handle rendering and extraction; these involve different operating responsibilities.

Socks5.IO should not be treated as automatically better for every workload. Smartproxy may be the stronger fit when the team wants a managed API, extensive integrations, or a single account spanning more data products.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

On September 20, 2026, the rotating residential proxy pricing page listed PAYG at $3.50/GB and a 100GB bundle at $1.25/GB, valid for 30 days. The latter implies a $125 base bundle cost (100 × $1.25). Confirm the payable total and tax treatment at checkout. These terms apply to rotating residential traffic; they do not establish prices or validity for mobile, datacenter, static residential, or IPv6 products. A lower published bandwidth rate does not establish lower cost per usable result.

This screenshot illustrates a static residential purchase selection, not a connection test or a quote for the rotating residential plan described above. Its displayed prices and availability require confirmation at checkout.

2. Bright Data: For Full-Scale Web Data Operations

Bright Data product-page illustration. Superlatives and network figures visible in the screenshot are provider claims, not comparative findings from this review.

What Bright Data Offers and Who It Fits

Bright Data combines residential, ISP, mobile, and datacenter proxy networks with scraping APIs, datasets, and enterprise data tooling. Its residential proxy page describes country, city, ZIP code, ASN, and carrier targeting, though buyers should confirm which controls are available with the selected product and contract. It is best suited to organizations that need multiple collection methods, governance options, and support for large or complex programs.

Bright Data vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

Both providers offer raw proxies and managed data tools. Compare the specific product’s targeting controls, integration requirements, support terms, and total purchase commitment. This review does not establish that either platform is easier to use or has better performance.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

The broader platform creates more ways to buy data access, but also more decisions. Compare the specific proxy network or API rather than comparing company-level “starting prices.” Confirm onboarding requirements, usage units, minimum commitments, and compliance controls on the official Bright Data pricing page.

3. Rola IP: For Self-Managed Proxy Workflows

What Rola IP Offers and Who It Fits

Rola IP is relevant to teams that want proxy access while keeping request logic, retries, parsing, and orchestration in their own stack. Its official solutions page describes static and rotating residential IPs with HTTP(S) and SOCKS5 support, including use with isolated browser environments. That makes it a candidate for developers who value direct control and do not want every task abstracted behind a managed scraping API.

Rola IP vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

This comparison considers Rola IP’s direct proxy offering against Decodo’s raw proxies. In either case, your application remains responsible for headers, retries, sessions, and parsing. If you instead need managed extraction, evaluate Decodo’s API separately. Rola IP’s location coverage, authentication, session duration, concurrency, and support should be matched to the same application requirements.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

For a Rola IP quote, specify the proxy type, target locations, expected traffic, and required session duration. This review does not establish a current entry price or traffic-validity rule. With direct proxy access, include retries, parsing, target changes, and monitoring in the operating budget; estimated response sizes alone will not capture actual bandwidth use.

4. Oxylabs: For Enterprise Proxy Infrastructure

What Oxylabs Offers and Who It Fits

Oxylabs offers residential, mobile, ISP, and datacenter proxy products alongside scraper APIs and enterprise data solutions. The official Oxylabs product catalog separates raw proxy networks from managed data-collection tools, which helps buyers avoid comparing unlike billing models. It fits organizations that need broad infrastructure, technical consultation, and products designed for large-scale public-web-data projects.

Oxylabs vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

Both list proxy networks and scraper APIs. For either provider, compare the exact product’s integration requirements, support availability, usage limits, and purchase commitment. A product catalog does not establish that one provider offers better support or requires more deployment effort.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

Some Oxylabs products publish entry plans, while other requirements may involve custom or enterprise arrangements. Check the official Oxylabs pricing page and compare the complete monthly commitment, support scope, and traffic terms rather than only the lowest unit rate.

5. SOAX: For Detailed Targeting and Session Control

SOAX product-page illustration. The displayed success rate, response time, and claims about avoiding blocks are provider marketing, not guaranteed outcomes or independent measurements.

What SOAX Offers and Who It Fits

The SOAX residential proxy page describes regional, city, and ASN targeting alongside rotating and sticky sessions. Those are relevant controls for location-sensitive workloads. This comparison focuses on the documented residential offering; it does not apply its features or billing rules to other SOAX products.

SOAX vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

Both SOAX and Decodo document residential targeting and session controls. Compare the exact location filters, available inventory, and session duration your task needs. The presence of these controls alone does not establish better location accuracy or stability for either provider.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

Before choosing SOAX residential proxies, obtain the current plan’s billing unit, total commitment, traffic-validity terms, and included targeting options. This review does not establish a credits system or rollover entitlement for that product. For a fuller product-level discussion, see our SOAX review and alternatives.

6. Webshare: For Smaller Projects and Lower Commitments

What Webshare Offers and Who It Fits

Webshare is a self-service provider with datacenter, static residential, and residential proxy options. Its proxy server page documents HTTP and SOCKS5 support for its datacenter offering; protocol and location support should still be checked separately for residential products. It is attractive to developers and smaller teams that want to start with a limited commitment and expand after validating the workflow.

Webshare vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

Webshare’s public page advertises a free entry option with 10 proxies, while Decodo offers both proxy networks and managed scraping products. Check the free option’s proxy category, bandwidth, and location limits before treating it as a replacement. A datacenter plan is not a like-for-like substitute for rotating residential traffic, and a free tier does not establish that the service is easier to use.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

The main advantage is accessible self-service purchasing. The limitation is that product type, bandwidth, shared versus dedicated access, and location control can change the comparison. Verify the live terms on the Webshare pricing page.

7. IPRoyal: For Flexible Low-Volume Proxy Usage

What IPRoyal Offers and Who It Fits

IPRoyal sells residential, ISP, datacenter, and mobile proxy products. Its official residential proxy page should be used to verify current targeting, session, traffic-expiry, and protocol terms. Its residential PAYG model is relevant when traffic is irregular and a team wants to avoid a large recurring commitment.

IPRoyal vs. Smartproxy: Key Differences

IPRoyal is often considered for flexible entry pricing and proxy-first purchasing. Smartproxy/Decodo has a broader tooling ecosystem. The deciding factors should be the required locations, session behavior, support expectations, and cost per valid result.

Pricing, Strengths, and Limitations

Confirm whether purchased traffic expires, which targeting filters are included, and whether the target performs reliably. Review the official IPRoyal pricing page before purchase.

Build Your Smartproxy Replacement Shortlist

Match the Proxy Type to the Task

Start with the network requirement: rotating residential, static ISP, mobile, or datacenter. Do not shortlist a provider solely because it is inexpensive if the offered network is wrong for the workload.

Prioritize Location and Session Requirements

List the countries and subnational locations that matter, then specify whether requests need per-request rotation or persistent sessions. Narrow requirements can change both availability and cost.

Compare Buying Models, Not Just Unit Prices

Compare PAYG, monthly traffic bundles, per-IP subscriptions, request credits, expiry, rollover, overages, and refunds. Convert each model into an estimated monthly bill for the same workload.

Account for Scale and Engineering Effort

Raw proxies provide control but require monitoring, retries, parsing, and maintenance. Managed APIs cost more per request in some cases but may lower engineering effort. Include labor and failure handling in the decision.

Run a Fair Smartproxy vs. Alternative Test

Create a representative authorized URL set and use the same test conditions for every provider. Record the date, client version, proxy product, protocol, authentication method, sample size, and test duration so the comparison can be repeated.

1. Select the same proxy type and location.
2. Use the same timeout, concurrency, session mode, headers, retry policy, and comparable time windows.
3. Define a valid result before testing. HTTP 200 alone is insufficient if the response is a challenge page or lacks the required data.
4. Separate authentication failures, timeouts, and target-side HTTP errors. Record exit location, session continuity, median and tail latency, bandwidth, and failed attempts.
5. Calculate cost per valid result and review operational effort.

A provider passes only if it meets the workload’s minimum valid-result rate, location accuracy, session stability, and budget. Do not use a single speed test or homepage request as the whole evaluation.

Which Smartproxy Alternative Fits Your Proxy Type and Budget?

Keep Smartproxy/Decodo on the shortlist when you want several proxy types, self-service onboarding, documentation, extensions, and a path toward managed scraping products. Include Socks5.IO in the first comparison group when rotating or fixed proxy access is the main requirement. Consider Bright Data or Oxylabs for a broader enterprise data stack, Rola IP for a self-managed workflow, SOAX for detailed controls, and Webshare or IPRoyal for smaller or more flexible purchasing needs.

Whichever provider you choose, use it only for authorized purposes. Follow applicable law, privacy requirements, website terms, and the provider’s acceptable-use policy. A proxy changes network routing; it does not remove legal or contractual responsibilities.