On this pageProduct comparison table
- Product comparison table
- Decision guide: choosing a proxy type
- Residential IPv4 vs Datacenter IPv6
- Residential IPv4 (Unmetered) vs Residential IPv4 (GB Based)
- Residential IPv6 vs Datacenter IPv6
- Use-case to product mapping
- Supported Datacenter IPv6 locations
- Geo-targeting depth by product
- Sticky sessions: key limits
- Where to go next
Knowing how to use a proxy starts with picking the right proxy type for the job. ColdProxy offers four proxy products across two IP families and two billing models, so choosing a proxy type comes down to your target's IP-family support, the geographic scope you need, and whether throughput-based or traffic-pack billing fits your workflow better. This page walks through the comparison table and decision paths for common use cases so you can match a product to your workflow. See /proxy/ for full product pages and /pricing/ for current plan pricing.
Product comparison table
| Product | IP type | Coverage | Bandwidth model | Sticky duration | Billing periods |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Residential IPv4 (Unmetered) | Residential IPv4 | 195+ countries | Speed tier (Mbps) | 5 s – 24 h | Hourly, daily, weekly, monthly |
| Residential IPv4 (GB Based) | Residential IPv4 | 195+ countries | Monthly traffic packs (per GB) | 5 s – 24 h | Monthly only |
| Residential IPv6 | Residential IPv6 | USA only (includes /32 subnet) |
Speed tier (Mbps) | 5 s – FOREVER | Hourly, daily, weekly, monthly |
| Datacenter IPv6 | Datacenter IPv6 | 25 countries (private /48 per location) |
Speed tier (Mbps) | 5 s – FOREVER | Daily, weekly, monthly |
All four products support HTTP, HTTPS, and SOCKS5; rotating or sticky sessions; username/password and IP authentication; and 1 to 5,000 unique ports per plan.
Check IPv6 reachability before you buy. Many websites are IPv4-only and publish no AAAA DNS record. The exception is supported CDN-fronted domains: for example, sites behind Cloudflare, Akamai, Fastly, or Amazon CloudFront that publish no AAAA record of their own. ColdProxy's CDN-aware reachability keeps supported requests on IPv6, even without a published AAAA record. Run /tools/ipv6-checker/ on your specific target domain before purchasing an IPv6 plan. Confirmed IPv6-reachable platforms include Google, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Bing, Yahoo, Netflix, and LinkedIn, but always check your own target, and if you are still unsure, test on the shortest paid billing window (hourly for Residential IPv6, daily for Datacenter IPv6).
Decision guide: choosing a proxy type
Residential IPv4 vs Datacenter IPv6
Choose Residential IPv4 (either plan) when:
- Your target site fingerprints or scores incoming IPs by reputation and residential IPs are required to reduce block rates
- You need geo-targeting across many countries (195+ supported)
- You are collecting public web data from sites that do not publish AAAA records and are not served by a supported CDN
- Your workflow benefits from state- or city-level targeting
Choose Datacenter IPv6 when:
- Your target publishes IPv6 addresses or is served by a supported CDN (check with /tools/ipv6-checker/; if unsure, test on a daily plan)
- You need datacenter-grade throughput rather than residential IP reputation
- You are targeting supported CDN-fronted sites (for example Cloudflare, Akamai, Fastly, or Amazon CloudFront) over IPv6
- You want a private
/48subnet per supported location - Your target is in one of the 25 supported Datacenter IPv6 countries
Read What is an IPv6 proxy? for a fuller treatment of residential vs datacenter IPv6 trade-offs.
Residential IPv4 (Unmetered) vs Residential IPv4 (GB Based)
Both plans offer identical geo-targeting (country, state, and city), identical sticky-session ranges (5 seconds to 24 hours), and the same 195+ country coverage. The only difference is billing:
| Residential IPv4 (Unmetered) | Residential IPv4 (GB Based) | |
|---|---|---|
| Bandwidth model | Speed tier (Mbps) | Monthly traffic packs (per GB) |
| Billing | Hourly, daily, weekly, monthly | Monthly only |
| Best for | Ongoing or high-volume residential jobs where you prefer throughput-based spending | Well-scoped jobs where GB usage is predictable |
Choose Unmetered for large-scale data collection, continuous SERP monitoring, and multi-session residential workflows where measuring GB is impractical.
Choose GB Based for ad verification runs, competitor price tracking, and SERP checks where you can forecast traffic volume and prefer to pay per GB against a monthly pack.
If you are unsure about usage volume, the Unmetered plan avoids overages. The hourly billing option lets you run a short paid test before committing to a longer period. Refund terms differ by billing period; see the FAQ for the current policy.
Residential IPv6 vs Datacenter IPv6
Both IPv6 products use speed-tier billing, support sticky sessions from 5 seconds to FOREVER, and offer CDN-aware IPv6 reachability for supported CDN-fronted domains.
| Residential IPv6 | Datacenter IPv6 | |
|---|---|---|
| IP type | Residential | Datacenter |
| Coverage | USA only | 25 countries (multi-location) |
| Subnet | /32 included |
/48 per supported location |
| Billing | Hourly, daily, weekly, monthly | Daily, weekly, monthly |
Choose Residential IPv6 when your target publishes IPv6 addresses or is served by a supported CDN and you need USA residential IPv6 addresses with residential IP reputation or a /32 subnet for address flexibility.
Choose Datacenter IPv6 when your target publishes IPv6 addresses or is served by a supported CDN and you need multi-region IPv6 coverage across 25 countries, dedicated /48 subnets per location, or datacenter throughput.
Use-case to product mapping
| Use case | Recommended product |
|---|---|
| Large-scale public web data collection (global) | Residential IPv4 Unmetered |
| SERP monitoring, ad verification, competitor pricing | Residential IPv4 GB Based or Unmetered |
| Localization testing, geo-targeted QA | Residential IPv4 (either) or Datacenter IPv6 for covered regions |
| Targets on IPv6 or a supported CDN, USA residential reputation needed | Residential IPv6 |
| Multi-region IPv6 targets, datacenter throughput | Datacenter IPv6 |
| Analytics QA, brand protection (global) | Residential IPv4 (either) |
Separate IPv6 range per location (private /48) |
Datacenter IPv6 |
Need a different speed or traffic allowance? Contact us through the channels on our website so we can assess whether a custom plan is possible.
Supported Datacenter IPv6 locations
Datacenter IPv6 includes a private /48 subnet per supported location, and all supported locations are included in a single order. Supported locations across 25 countries:
United States: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Fremont, Honolulu, Kansas City, Miami, Phoenix, Seattle, Ashburn
Canada: Toronto, Calgary, Winnipeg
Europe: London (UK), Berlin (DE), Frankfurt (DE), Amsterdam (NL), Paris (FR), Zurich (CH), Bern (CH), Stockholm (SE), Warsaw (PL), Lisbon (PT), Prague (CZ), Budapest (HU), Rome (IT), Madrid (ES)
Asia-Pacific: Tokyo (JP), Singapore, Hong Kong, Seoul (KR), Mumbai (IN), New Delhi (IN), Bangalore (IN), Sydney (AU), Melbourne (AU), Brisbane (AU)
Latin America: São Paulo (BR), Rio de Janeiro (BR), Brasilia (BR), Bogota (CO)
Middle East & Africa: Dubai (AE), Johannesburg (ZA), Cape Town (ZA), Djibouti City (DJ)
An "All Country" random option is also available for Datacenter IPv6 if location pinning is not required.
Geo-targeting depth by product
All four products support geo-targeting via username tags or SuperPorts (port-level geo binding for IP-auth users).
The exact username tag prefixes for geo segments (country, state, city, ISP) are set per product by the ColdProxy admin. The grammar and tag names shown in this documentation represent the scheme; always confirm the exact prefixes in your client area before building automation.
Residential IPv4 products support country, state, and city targeting across 195+ countries. Residential IPv6 is USA-only with Ashburn, USA as the listed city location. Datacenter IPv6 supports country and city targeting within the 25 countries and 47 locations listed above (for example user-country-de-city-berlin), plus an "All Country" option.
See Geo-targeting with proxies and Rotating and sticky proxies explained for deeper reading.
Sticky sessions: key limits
| Product | Sticky duration range |
|---|---|
| Residential IPv4 (Unmetered) | 5 seconds to 24 hours |
| Residential IPv4 (GB Based) | 5 seconds to 24 hours |
| Residential IPv6 | 5 seconds to FOREVER |
| Datacenter IPv6 | 5 seconds to FOREVER |
Timed sticky sessions require both a session tag (-session-) and a duration tag (-time-) in the username. Omitting either causes the gateway to rotate the IP on every request. FOREVER on the IPv6 plans is not a -time- value: it is the client area's -identifier- pin, which the Residential IPv4 plans do not support. See Static vs rotating proxies and /glossary/#sticky-session.
Where to go next
- Introduction — gateway, protocol, and auth overview
- /proxy/ — full product pages for all four plans
- /pricing/ — current pricing for all four products
- Proxy Checker — verify reachability and exit IP after connecting
- IPv6 Checker — see whether your target publishes IPv6 addresses or sits behind a recognised CDN before buying
