What Are Rotating Proxies? Setup, Pros, Cons



Adelina Kiskyte
Last updated by Yelyzaveta Nechytailo
2025-05-27
5 min read
Adelina Kiskyte
Last updated by Yelyzaveta Nechytailo
2025-05-27
5 min read
In this article, let’s talk about rotating proxies. Learn their definition, most common use cases and types, benefits, drawbacks, and basic setup instructions.
A rotating proxy is a type of proxy server that automatically assigns a new IP address from a pool of available IPs for each new connection. Unlike a static proxy which uses a fixed IP address for all your internet traffic, a rotating proxy dynamically cycles through numerous different IPs. This means that when sending your requests to the target, each (or a batch of requests) appears to come from a completely different device or location.
The core purpose of this rotation is to distribute your web requests across many IP addresses, making it significantly harder for websites to detect and block automated activity or track your browsing patterns.
Rotating proxies are valuable for a variety of online activities where anonymity, high request volume, or bypassing geo-restrictions are crucial. Here are some of the most popular rotating proxy use cases:
Price monitoring: E-commerce businesses utilize rotating proxies to track competitor pricing and product availability across various platforms. By switching IPs, they are able to gather large volumes of data without triggering anti-bot measures, ensuring access to up-to-date information for effective pricing strategies.
SERP data analysis: SEO professionals rely on rotating proxy servers to collect SERP data from different locations and search engines. This allows them to analyze keyword rankings, identify competitors, and understand search trends without their IP being flagged or blocked.
Ad verification: Advertisers use rotating proxies to verify if their ads are being displayed correctly, in the right geographic locations, and on legitimate websites. Each request from a new IP simulates a unique user, helping to successfully resist ad fraudsters and avoid unwanted blocks.
Review monitoring: Brands leverage rotating proxies to monitor customer reviews across various platforms. By rotating IPs, they can continuously collect feedback data without being blocked, enabling them to respond promptly to customer sentiments and maintain their online reputation.
Website change monitoring: Rotating proxies are also largely utilized to track changes on websites, such as content updates or price alterations. Rotating IPs allow for frequent access to target sites, ensuring timely detection of changes that could impact business decisions.
Now, rotating proxy servers can be different – each with their distinct characteristics, advantages, and ideal use cases. Below, are the main types of rotating proxies that are largely used in the market today:
Rotating residential proxies are rotating proxies that use IP addresses assigned by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to real, physical home internet connections. When using residential IP addresses, your requests are routed through those genuine IPs, making your traffic appear as legitimate, offering high anonymity and significantly reducing the chances of being blocked or detected by websites. They work great for tasks requiring complete anonymity, such as market research or ad verification.
In comparison to residential proxies, datacenter ones are not affiliated with ISPs. These proxy servers come from data centers, and the IP is assigned by a third-party cloud service provider. While very fast and often more cost-effective than residential options, datacenter proxies are generally easier for websites to identify as non-residential traffic. They're well-suited for tasks where speed is paramount and the target websites have less stringent anti-bot measures.
Mobile rotating proxies use IP addresses from real mobile devices, such as a cell phone or a tablet, mimicking authentic mobile user behavior. Because of their dynamic nature, these proxies offer an exceptionally high level of trust and are difficult for anti-bot systems to identify and block. Rotating mobile proxies are particularly useful for accessing mobile-specific content or targeting websites with very aggressive anti-proxy measures.
Setting up rotating proxies can sound difficult at first, but it’s often a straightforward process, especially if you understand the basics and use a reliable provider.
For instance, Oxylabs offers access to Proxy Rotator, which is an add-on used with our datacenter proxies. It rotates IP addresses at each request sent to the target, this way reducing potential IP blocks. Using Oxylabs’ Proxy Rotator is easy – a client receives one entry node with a required amount of static proxies (learn more about static vs. rotating proxies). The rotator picks a random IP address and rotates it to another one on each request sent to the target. This way, datacenter proxies mimic organic traffic behavior and do not get blocked as fast.
At Oxylabs, once you acquire Datacenter Proxies, you receive detailed documentation that helps you get started. There you will find answers to frequently asked questions and an example of how to set up the proxy rotator.
Now, when it comes to Oxylabs’ Residential Proxies, they are rotating proxies by default. Unlike a static proxy, which assigns one sticky IP, our rotating residential proxy provides you access to an entire pool of IP addresses. This allows you to get a random IP address to a device (at fixed or random time intervals).
Here are basic cURL, Python, and Java code samples to help you get started with Oxylabs’ Rotating Residential Proxies:
curl -x pr.oxylabs.io:7777 -U "customer-USERNAME:PASSWORD" https://ip.oxylabs.io/location
import requests
username = "customer-USER"
password = "PASS"
proxy = "pr.oxylabs.io:7777"
proxies = {
'http': f'http://{username}:{password}@{proxy}',
'https': f'http://{username}:{password}@{proxy}'
}
response = requests.request(
'GET',
'https://ip.oxylabs.io/location',
proxies=proxies,
)
print(response.text)
package example;
import org.apache.http.HttpHost;
import org.apache.http.client.fluent.*;
public class Main {
public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
String username = "customer-USER";
String password = "PASS";
String proxyHost = "pr.oxylabs.io";
int proxyPort = 7777;
HttpHost entry = new HttpHost(proxyHost, proxyPort);
String query = Executor.newInstance()
.auth(entry, username, password)
.execute(Request.Get("https://ip.oxylabs.io/location")
.viaProxy(entry))
.returnContent()
.asString();
System.out.println(query);
}
}
Implementing rotating proxies in your activities brings a set of advantages that can significantly enhance your online operations. Here are the main ones:
Enhanced anonymity: By automatically switching your IP address for different requests or over time, rotating proxies make it difficult for websites to track your online activity back to a single source. This significantly boosts your privacy and reduces your digital footprint.
Successful bypass of IP blocks: Modern websites often implement IP-based blocking to prevent automated activity on their pages. Rotating proxies overcome these restrictions by distributing your requests across a vast pool of different IP addresses.
Easy access to geo-restricted content: Rotating proxies can provide users with IPs from different geographical locations. This enables you to smoothly access content that might be unavailable in your specific region.
Increased scalability and reliability: By minimizing blocks and ensuring consistent access to web pages, rotating proxy servers contribute to scaling your scraping tasks with greater reliability. This leads to more efficient and uninterrupted operations.
However, as any other proxy type, rotating proxies come with some limitations. Understanding these drawbacks can help you make an informed decision and set realistic expectations. Here’s a list of the main rotating proxy cons:
Higher cost: Compared to static proxies, rotating proxies, especially high-quality residential or mobile ones, generally come with a higher price. This is generally due to the complexity of managing and maintaining a large, dynamic pool of IP addresses.
Complexity in setup and management: Integrating and managing rotating proxies can sometimes be more complex than using simple static proxies. This may require more technical expertise or specialized software. However, some premium providers offer automatic rotation and advanced proxy management capabilities to help users easily adapt to web scraping projects of any scale.
Potential for inconsistent performance: In certain scenarios, because your IP address is constantly changing, you might experience variations in connection speed or latency.
Rotating proxies are a powerful tool for anyone looking to scale web data gathering, maintain anonymity, and bypass geo-restrictions or IP bans. While they might come with certain challenges, choosing a trusted provider can streamline the process and ensure consistent, high-quality results. Whether you're just getting started or scaling up, rotating proxies can help you navigate the web more efficiently and securely.
Sticky proxies provide users with the same IP address that doesn’t change unless they manually switch it. Rotating proxies, in contrast, give access to multiple IP addresses from a large pool, assigning a new IP address automatically either for each new connection request or after a set time interval, providing dynamic IP allocation.
In general, rotating proxy service is legal and can be effectively used when supplied by credible proxy service providers. However, it all depends on how they are used ( for example, whether you’re trying to scrape publicly-available data or engage in ethical practices and don’t overload your targets with requests). Therefore, always ensure your use case complies with local laws and website terms of service.
Forget about complex web scraping processes
Choose Oxylabs' advanced web intelligence collection solutions to gather real-time public data hassle-free.
About the author
Adelina Kiskyte
Former Senior Content Manager
Adelina Kiskyte is a former Senior Content Manager at Oxylabs. She constantly follows tech news and loves trying out new apps, even the most useless. When Adelina is not glued to her phone, she also enjoys reading self-motivation books and biographies of tech-inspired innovators. Who knows, maybe one day she will create a life-changing app of her own!
All information on Oxylabs Blog is provided on an "as is" basis and for informational purposes only. We make no representation and disclaim all liability with respect to your use of any information contained on Oxylabs Blog or any third-party websites that may be linked therein. Before engaging in scraping activities of any kind you should consult your legal advisors and carefully read the particular website's terms of service or receive a scraping license.
Yelyzaveta Nechytailo
2025-01-01
Roberta Aukstikalnyte
2024-11-06
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