10 Best SOCKS5 Proxy Providers in 2025: Tested & Rated

If you’re looking for the best SOCKS5 proxy in 2025, you already know it’s not easy to make a decision with so many options out there. SOCKS5 proxies remain a top choice for various users, as they are versatile low-level proxies that support multiple protocols.

Unlike regular HTTP proxies, SOCKS5 proxies operate at a lower layer of the Internet Protocol, making them capable of handling TCP and UDP traffic. This makes them suitable for tasks that demand speed and protocol-agnostic routing - from web scraping to streaming, gaming, and beyond.

In this roundup, we test and rate the best SOCKS5 proxy providers based on their performance, reliability, pricing, and usability across typical real-world use cases.

What is a SOCKS5 proxy?

SOCKS5 is short for "Socket Secure 5." Essentially, it’s the fifth version of the Socket Secure protocol that routes your network traffic through a proxy server.

Unlike other proxies, SOCKS5 proxies enable clients to establish a connection with servers through a firewall by exchanging network packets via the proxy. That’s why they’re widely used for activities that require speed, security, and reliable anonymity.

Top SOCKS5 proxy providers of 2025

In this roundup, we’ll go over the most popular providers of SOCKS5 proxies. We’ll cover the key specs, including proxy origin (residential or datacenter), IP type (dedicated or shared), concurrent session support, and current pricing details.

Before we dive into details, take a look at the table below for a quick comparison.

1. MarsProxies

At MarsProxies, we offer SOCKS5 support across our entire proxy lineup. This makes us a top choice for individuals and businesses seeking reliable SOCKS5 proxies without a complex setup.

Our users enjoy highly customizable plans, 24/7 support, an intuitive user experience, and a streamlined onboarding process. With over 1 million residential proxies, we offer affordable pay-as-you-go plans for residential proxies starting at $4.99/GB.

With support for both TCP and UDP protocols, our proxies are suitable for gaming, streaming, sneaker copping, and secure browsing. Businesses can take advantage of our residential proxies for tasks like data scraping, social media management, and automation with ease, thanks to our user-friendly dashboard and 24/7 support system.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile, Sneaker
• Locations: 190+ countries
• IP type: Shared and dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited for residential and mobile proxies
• Pricing: Pay-as-you-go starting at $4.99/GB

2. IPRoyal

IPRoyal is one of the most budget-friendly residential proxy providers, offering a large pool of 32M+ residential proxies with pricing starting at just $7/GB.

This provider’s SOCKS5 proxies support both TCP and UDP traffic, making it suitable for web scraping, streaming, gaming, and secure browsing, VoIP, and more. With IP whitelisting and flexible rotation options, users get complete control over their connections, and performance tests prove IPRoyal delivers stable uptime with low latency.

With its dedicated and private SOCKS5 options, users can fully customize sticky sessions, which shared proxy servers often don’t provide. With flexible pricing and easy scaling, IPRoyal is considered a strong SOCKS5 proxy option for those who want performance without the high costs of enterprise-level proxy services.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile, Enterprise
• Locations: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared and dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited for residential and mobile proxies
• Pricing: Pay-as-you-go starting at $7/GB

3. Oxylabs

Oxylabs is an enterprise-grade proxy service with over 175 million IP addresses served across 195 countries worldwide. Known for wide global coverage and strong reliability, Oxylabs offers a great SOCKS5 proxies lineup, along with advanced management tools.

This provider’s proxies are designed for enterprise-grade operations, ensuring fast and secure connections, which makes them a popular choice for businesses where downtime is unacceptable. Thanks to high uptime and a strong support system, Oxylabs is widely regarded as one of the best SOCKS5 proxy services for enterprises that require scalability and consistency.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, Datacenter, ISP, Super
• Location: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared and dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited for residential, mobile, and shared datacenter proxies
• Pricing: From $4/GB

4. Decodo

Decodo balances affordability with performance, positioning itself as a reliable mid-tier SOCKS5 provider. It offers over 115M residential proxies with global coverage supported by SOCKS5 proxy servers.

Residential proxies plans start at $6/GB, offering balanced performance and a beginner-friendly dashboard. Overall, Decodo is a great option for businesses looking for low-cost SOCKS5 proxies.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, Datacenter, ISP, Mobile
• Locations: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared and dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $6/GB for pay as you go plan

5. Bright Data

Formerly known as Luminati, Bright Data remains the gold standard for enterprise-level projects from large-scale data collection to research and analysis.

With over 150M residential proxies, along with ISP, datacenter, and mobile options, it provides extensive global coverage for different needs. It’s a well-known name in the industry, and its pricing is also higher than that of most providers on this list.

Bright Data’s residential proxies start at $8/GB. The provider also offers advanced tools - an in-built proxy manager and automation features, making it a popular proxy service among enterprises that prioritize accuracy and reliability.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Locations: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared and dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $8/GB

6. SOAX

SOAX is a flexible SOCKS proxy provider known for its clean IP pool. Users can access 191M+ residential IP addresses and mobile IPs, well-suited for web scraping, content streaming, and marketing operations.

Users get SOCKS5 support across the board. SOAX's pricing starts at $3.60/GB, and includes pay-as-you-go plans for those who need reliable coverage without enterprise-level costs. Currently, only the residential and mobile networks support UDP - datacenter and ISP proxies do not.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Location: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared & dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $3.6/GB

7. DataImpulse

DataImpulse is one of the newer, yet fast-growing residential proxy providers, offering 90M+ IPs across 195 countries. It strikes a balance between speed and affordability, with pricing starting from $5/GB, but a $1/GB option is also available.

All DataImpulse proxies support the SOCKS5 protocol, but UDP traffic is turned off by default. You need to contact the provider to have it enabled.

Users can configure IP rotation to occur on every request or maintain persistent sessions for up to 120 minutes. DataImpulse provides a simple-to-use dashboard with a straightforward setup process and helpful tutorials.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Location: 195 countries
• IP type: Shared & dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $5/GB and $1/GB

8. Proxy-Seller

Proxy-Seller is popular for sneaker copping and social media management thanks to fast provisioning and straightforward pricing. With over 90 million residential IPs all supporting the SOCKS5 protocol, the provider covers up to 195 countries worldwide.

The pricing is transparent, with a three-day trial at $1.99 for 500 MB to test things out. With a wide range of services, competitive performance, and excellent customer support, Proxy-Seller is a good choice for individuals seeking privacy and businesses performing large-scale tasks.

While minor issues like occasional IP changes may arise, the company's reliable service and positive user feedback make it a strong contender in the proxy market.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Location: 195 countries
• IP type: Shared & dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $3.5/GB

9. ProxyEmpire

ProxyEmpire offers flexible plans and a strong API for developers seeking reliable, high-performance tools for data gathering, privacy, and bypassing geo-restrictions. It offers access to over 9 million IP addresses and covers over 170 countries with a claimed 99.9% uptime.

Pricing starts at $7/GB for both rotating and static residential proxies, all of which are compatible with the SOCKS5 protocol for flexible usage. Professionals who value precision can benefit from their custom session controls and clean IP pool for reliable operations.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Location: 170+ countries
• IP type: Shared & dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $7/GB

10. Infatica

Infatica delivers dependable SOCKS5 proxies with growing global coverage - 10M+ IPs across 195 countries. Its proxies support both TCP and UDP protocols, offering stable connections for use cases that demand reliability. Pricing starts from $4/GB for a pay-as-you-go plan, and the customer support is also included.

Infatica can handle tasks like data collection, cybersecurity testing, and search engine optimization, which can be done efficiently. The platform offers good features but suffers from poor user experience, as crucial information like traffic usage requires extensive searching to find, rather than being readily accessible.

Specs:

• Proxy types: Residential, ISP, Datacenter, Mobile
• Location: 195+ countries
• IP type: Shared & dedicated
• Concurrent sessions: Unlimited
• Pricing: From $4/GB

How to Choose the Best SOCKS5 Proxy Provider

Selecting the best SOCKS5 proxy provider depends on your needs and the provider’s ability to meet them. Here are the key factors to evaluate:

Speed & Bandwidth Limits

The performance of SOCKS proxies depends on both server speed and the bandwidth allocated by the proxy provider. For tasks like scraping, gaming, and streaming, we require high-speed connections, as even minor delays can disrupt the entire workflow.

To start, consider providers who offer unlimited or high-bandwidth plans with stable performance under load. Before committing, you should check the provider's latency, since speed can vary depending on the geographic distance between the proxy and the target.

Geo-Targeting Availability

One of the most significant advantages of using proxy services is that users can access content from specific regions. Prioritize providers with large, diverse IP pools with strong geo-targeting options. High geographic coverage will allow you to test ads, collect market data, and bypass region restrictions.

Residential IP addresses from different countries or even cities ensure higher accuracy. Without good geo-targeting, your proxies may fail for location-sensitive tasks.

Pricing & Plan Flexibility

For SOCKS5 proxies, the cost varies depending on the proxy types you're going with. Residential and mobile proxies usually cost more than datacenter and ISP proxies.

Many providers offer per-GB pricing, usually for residential and mobile proxies. On the other hand, ISP and datacenter proxies, especially dedicated variants, are priced per IP, offering unlimited bandwidth for a fixed price. Billing models such as pay-as-you-go plans are best for modest needs, while bulk data packages work better for enterprises.

When comparing proxy services, consider balancing cost against performance, as the cheapest option may compromise reliability.

Security & Authentication

Strong security ensures your proxy connection remains private and protected. To ensure compatibility with all sorts of tasks, look for a provider that supports dual authentication (via username/password and IP whitelisting).

Before using it for any sensitive operations, test your SOCKS5 proxy for IP or DNS leaks. Finally, verify that your chosen SOCKS5 proxy service maintains strict privacy policies and doesn’t log sensitive user data.

Use Case Fit (Gaming, Scraping, Streaming)

Different proxy types serve different needs, so it’s important to match the provider to your goals. If you're looking for a service tailored to gaming and streaming, opt for low-latency connections that support both TCP and UDP protocols.

For web scraping, SEO monitoring, ad verification, and similar workflows, rotating residential proxies with large IP pools are a must. For managing multiple social media accounts, use static or dedicated SOCKS5 proxies for stable long-term sessions.

SOCKS5 vs HTTP Proxies

Now, let’s look at why SOCKS5 proxies stand out and offer more flexibility compared to HTTP(S) proxies.

Key Differences

Proxies act as intermediates between your device and the internet, and both HTTP(S) and SOCKS5 proxies offer this functionality. The difference lies in the way they handle communication on your behalf.

HTTP proxies can only handle web traffic-based tasks, which makes them a better choice for general browsing and web scraping tasks.

On the other hand, the SOCKS5 protocol can handle all types of traffic, from web-based to TCP and UDP, which makes it suitable for gaming, video streaming, VoIP, and handling complex applications.

In short, HTTP(s) proxies are best only for handling web-based requests, while SOCKS proxies are protocol-agnostic.

When to Use SOCKS5 Over Others

If your tasks require more than just basic web browsing, SOCKS5 proxies are a must. These include gaming, streaming, VoIP, app testing, and more. If not, HTTP proxies will do just fine.

For heavy-duty scraping projects, SOCKS5 proxies perform better compared to HTTP(S) proxies, producing better results with fewer errors. The reason for this is their protocol flexibility and the ability to bypass restrictions, which means fewer CAPTCHAs and other blocks.

SOCKS5 vs HTTP Proxies Comparison Table

Conclusion

SOCKS5 proxies are best for tasks that demand speed, anonymity, and flexibility. Whether your goal is to manage multiple accounts, bypass geo blocks, or scrape data at scale, these proxies help by providing the best uptime you need for your projects.

The right proxy provider can make all the difference. Make sure to do your research and take advantage of free trials whenever possible. Choose the provider that best suits your needs and use case.