Head-to-Head Comparison · 2026
Bright Data vs Oxylabs: SOCKS5 Head-to-Head (2026)
Full comparison of Bright Data vs Oxylabs SOCKS5 proxies: pool size, speed, targeting, pricing, and which one wins in 2026.
Bright Data
$8.40/GB · 680ms
The most feature-rich proxy network with granular targeting.
- POOL
- 150M+
- PRICE FROM
- $8.40/GB
- SPEED
- 680ms
- COUNTRIES
- 195
Oxylabs
$8.00/GB · 620ms
Enterprise-grade SOCKS5 with the largest tested residential pool.
- POOL
- 100M+
- PRICE FROM
- $8.00/GB
- SPEED
- 620ms
- COUNTRIES
- 195
Spec-by-spec comparison
Every number below comes from our latest 90-day benchmark run against the same targets, under the same conditions, from the same test rig.
| Spec | Bright Data | Oxylabs | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 9.6 / 10 | 9.8 / 10 | Oxylabs |
| IP pool size | 150M+ | 100M+ | — |
| Countries | 195 | 195 | Tie |
| Avg. response time | 680 ms | 620 ms | Oxylabs |
| Starting price | $8.40/GB | $8.00/GB | Oxylabs |
| Protocols | SOCKS5, HTTP, HTTPS | SOCKS5, HTTP, HTTPS | — |
| IP types | residential, mobile, datacenter, isp | residential, mobile, datacenter, isp | — |
| Editor's Choice | — | Yes | — |
The short version
Bright Data and Oxylabs are the two giants of the SOCKS5 proxy market. Both operate residential pools north of 100M IPs, both offer full SOCKS5 with UDP support, and both are the safe answer whenever "enterprise" is on the requirements list. Where they differ is philosophy.
Pool size and quality
Bright Data claims 150M+ residential IPs, Oxylabs claims 100M+. In practice, we measured near-identical success rates on tier-1 targets (Google, Amazon, Instagram): 99.9% Bright Data, 99.95% Oxylabs. Both refresh their pools continuously; both have KYC processes that block the fringe abuse cases that ruin pool reputation.
Speed
Oxylabs averaged 620ms in our benchmark, Bright Data 680ms. This is within noise for most scraping tasks. If you're running real-time ad verification, NetNut is still faster than either.
Targeting
Bright Data wins here decisively. You can target ZIP code in the US, carrier and mobile OS on mobile IPs, and specific ASNs across the pool. Oxylabs supports country, state, city, and ASN — a superset for 95% of use cases, but not the 5% edge cases Bright Data covers.
Pricing
- Oxylabs residential SOCKS5: $8/GB PAYG, drops to under $4/GB on enterprise commit.
- Bright Data residential SOCKS5: $8.40/GB PAYG, drops to $4/GB on committed monthly.
Effectively identical.
Tooling
Bright Data ships more tooling out of the box: Web Unlocker (auto-bypass captchas), Scraping Browser (headless Chrome with rotating fingerprints), and SERP API. Oxylabs has equivalents (Web Scraper API, SERP Scraper API) but the Bright Data ecosystem is broader.
Support
Both offer 24/7 support. Oxylabs assigns dedicated account managers earlier in the enterprise tier. Bright Data's docs are more comprehensive.
Verdict
Oxylabs wins on raw success rate and simplicity. Bright Data wins on targeting granularity and unlocker tools. For most enterprises: Oxylabs. For agencies needing surgical geo targeting or the Web Unlocker: Bright Data.
Who should pick which?
Pick Bright Data if…
- +Largest raw IP pool in the industry
- +Precise ZIP-code and carrier targeting
- +Web Unlocker for anti-bot bypass
Pick Oxylabs if…
- +100M+ ethically sourced residential IPs
- +99.95% success rate on tier-1 targets
- +City and ASN-level targeting
Bright Data vs Oxylabs — FAQ
Bright Data vs Oxylabs: which is faster in 2026?+
In our latest 10-region benchmark, Bright Data averaged 680ms and Oxylabs averaged 620ms end-to-end. Oxylabs is the faster gateway on residential SOCKS5, though both are within the noise band for typical scraping workloads.
Bright Data vs Oxylabs: which is cheaper?+
Bright Data starts at $8.40/GB; Oxylabs starts at $8.00/GB. Committed plans typically compress the gap. If entry price is your main constraint, choose Oxylabs; if you need per-request success rate, price parity is usually irrelevant.
Bright Data vs Oxylabs: which has a larger IP pool?+
Bright Data advertises 150M+ IPs across 195 countries. Oxylabs advertises 100M+ IPs across 195 countries. Pool size alone does not guarantee quality — the meaningful metric is unblocked success rate, which we test above.
Which one should I pick for web scraping?+
For hardened tier-1 targets (Google, Amazon, Instagram, Cloudflare) both providers are enterprise-grade. Choose Oxylabs if reliability is your priority; choose the other if pricing, targeting granularity, or specific tooling (Web Unlocker, SERP API) matters more.
Do both providers support SOCKS5 with UDP?+
Yes — both Bright Data and Oxylabs expose SOCKS5 with username / password authentication and UDP passthrough on the residential gateway. Full protocol support: Bright Data (SOCKS5, HTTP, HTTPS), Oxylabs (SOCKS5, HTTP, HTTPS).
Bright Data vs Oxylabs — is there a free trial?+
Bright Data and Oxylabs both operate limited-trial or money-back windows for verified accounts. See the /deals page on Best SOCKS5 for the latest verified offers, or contact each provider's sales team for extended enterprise trials.
Test either provider in your browser
All tools →Bright Data & Oxylabs live deals
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Bright Data
Save up to 30% on annual Bright Data SOCKS5 plans. Entry price: $8.40/GB.
Claim Bright Data OfferActive offer
Oxylabs
Save up to 30% on annual Oxylabs SOCKS5 plans. Entry price: $8.00/GB.
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