Explore Bright Data and Thordata Rotating Proxy

Jenny

2025-02-14

 

13 min read

Using a static proxy for web scraping today is like trying to rob a bank with a neon sign flashing “HEY, I’M OVER HERE!” Spoiler alert—you’ll get caught. That’s where rotating proxies come in, swapping your IP like a master of disguise to keep your bots invisible. But not all rotating proxies are created equal. In this showdown, we’ll dissect Bright Data Rotating Proxy and Thordata Rotating Proxy—two heavyweights in the proxy arena—to help you pick the right tool for your data heist.

Buckle up. By the end, you’ll know exactly which service will keep your scrapers stealthy, your data clean, and your sanity intact.

What Is a Rotating Proxy?

Rotating proxies are proxy servers that provide new exit IP addresses for each connection request or after a given period of time. Providers offering such proxies usually assign a new IP address automatically or let you configure sticky IP sessions.

Think of it like walking into a store wearing different outfits every time. You could be in the same store, but the employees wouldn’t recognize you as the same person because you’re constantly changing your appearance. Rotating proxies work in a similar way—by switching IP addresses frequently, you avoid detection, IP bans, or throttling. This makes them perfect for tasks like web scraping, market research, or even geo-targeted marketing.

There are four types of rotating proxies:

Rotating residential proxies: They are rotating by nature as their IPs come from devices connected to local networks. This is the most common type of rotating proxy.

Rotating datacenter proxies: They are not rotating by nature, but providers can give you access to a pool of servers and rotate your requests among them for you. Their IP addresses come from servers located in datacenters.

Rotating mobile proxies: These proxies have rotating IPs coming from mobile devices connected to local cellular networks.

Rotating ISP proxies: They offer static IPs from ISP-backed servers in datacenters. To implement IP rotation, providers offer a pool of these servers.

For more information, take a look at our guide on proxies types.

What Is a Rotating Proxy Provider?

A rotating proxy provider is a company that sells rotating proxies to users, including individual developers and companies. That means it operates a network of rotating proxy servers and enables web traffic to be routed through it.

What Makes Rotating Proxies the Holy Grail of Web Scraping?

While many proxy providers offer rotating IPs, Bright Data stands out from the crowd. Known for its vast pool of residential IP addresses and global coverage, Bright Data ensures that your data-gathering tasks are fast, secure, and undetectable.

These are the main aspects to keep in mind when comparing the best rotating proxy providers on the market:

1.Features: The extra services, products, and features that complete the provider’s offering.

2.Proxy network: The types of rotating proxies available, including the number of IPs and countries for each type of proxy.

3.Protocols: The network protocols that the provider’s proxy servers can route.

4.IP rotation options: How the provider rotates the exit IP and the presence of sticky session options.

5.Uptime: The percentage of server availability guaranteed by the provider.

6.Success rate: The percentage of requests successfully routed through the proxy network, as declared by the provider.

7.Number of customers: The number of paying customers served by the provider.

8.Customer support: The provider’s willingness to help users and guide them to the best offer.

9.Review score: The score of the reviews left by customers on Trustpilot.

10.Free trial: The availability of a trial period to test rotating proxy services before purchasing a plan.

11.Pay-as-you-go plan: The availability of a pay-as-you-go plan for rotating proxies.

12.Pricing: The different plans offered by the provider for each type of rotating proxy.

Bright Data emerges as the best rotating proxy provider in the industry, offering all types of rotating IPs. In business since 2014, it boasts a vast network of millions of fast, reliable, and ethically sourced rotating IPs in 195 countries. The provider covers all proxy types, with residential proxies that are particularly noteworthy for their number and affordability.

This extensive network of rotating proxies works as a solid foundation for powerful tools and solutions. These cover various purposes, such as web scraping, ad verification, data monitoring, and other user cases. In particular, Bright Data provides the best web scraping proxies.

Head-to-Head Comparison: Bright Data vs. Thordata

Let’s break it down like a UFC match:

Knockout Factor: Bright Data’s scale and adaptability vs. Thordata’s affordability.

How Do Rotating Proxies Work?

You may be wondering: How does Proxy Provider manage to offer such a large pool of IPs? Here’s how it works:

Residential IPs: Bright Data gathers residential IPs from real people, making them less likely to be flagged by websites as proxies. When you use Bright Data, your requests appear as if they’re coming from regular users instead of bots.

Rotating IPs: These IPs are constantly rotated for each request you make, which means no two requests come from the same IP. This mimics human browsing patterns and keeps you under the radar.

Session Control: If needed, you can also set up session control. This means you can stick with the same IP for the duration of your browsing session if you prefer to maintain continuity without constantly changing IPs.

When to Choose Bright Data Rotating Proxy

Go all-in on Bright Data if you:

• Scrape at Scale: Need 10,000+ requests/day without hiccups.

• Demand Global Reach: Target obscure regions (looking at you, Greenland).

• Require Ironclad Compliance: Handle sensitive data (e.g., healthcare, finance).

Pro Tip: Use Bright Data’s “Sticky IP” feature for tasks requiring login sessions (e.g., scraping private LinkedIn profiles).

When Thordata Rotating Proxy Shines

Pick Thordata for:

• Tight Budgets: Prototype your scraper without burning cash.

• Regional Focus: Scrape US/European sites where its IPs excel.

• Quick Setup: No time to fiddle with complex settings? Thordata’s plug-and-play.

Use Case: A dropshipping store used Thordata to track AliExpress prices. Saved $300/month vs. Bright Data—perfect for their razor-thin margins.

Conclusion

In the competitive world of web scraping and data collection, rotating proxies are your invisibility cloak. Bright Data is the Swiss Army knife—versatile, reliable, but pricey. Thordata? The pocket knife that gets the job done on a budget.

Your choice boils down to scale vs. savings. Need to conquer the data world? Go Bright Data. Just dipping your toes? Thordata’s your ally.

Either way, ditch those static IPs. Your bots deserve better.