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We are sorry to hear that your proxies are not working as intended. Let’s try to solve this! First, select the type of proxy you are using:
  • Premium proxies — IP authentication or username and password authentication
  • Dedicated proxies — Username and password authentication
  • Residential proxies — Username and password authentication
  • Unlimited Residential proxies — Username and password authentication
  • ISP proxies — Username and password authentication
  • Free proxies

Premium proxies

Premium proxies support two authentication methods: IP authentication and username/password authentication. If your proxies are not working, first check which authentication method you are using and follow the steps below.

IP authentication

With IP authentication, the public IPv4 address of the device or server connecting to the proxies must be authenticated.

Step 1: Authenticate your IP

Go to the IP authentication page.

Step 2: Add your IP address

If you want to use the proxies on the device you are currently on, click the “my IP” button on the page.

Step 3: Authenticate another device or server

If you want to use the proxies on another device or server, open https://api.ipify.org/ on that device. Copy the displayed IP address and enter it into the IP address field on your ProxyScrape dashboard.

Step 4: Save and wait

Click “Save” and wait 10 minutes for your IP address to synchronize across all proxies before using them. Please note:
  • IP authentication only supports IPv4, not IPv6.
  • Authentication may take up to 10 minutes to synchronize. Using the proxies before synchronization is complete may cause them not to work.

Username and password authentication

Premium proxies can also be authenticated using a username and password. You can find your Premium proxy credentials in your Premium proxy list page. If you are using username and password authentication, make sure:
  • You are using the correct username and password shown in your dashboard.
  • The proxy IP/host and port are correct.
  • Your username and password were copied correctly without extra spaces or missing characters.
  • Your program supports username and password proxy authentication.
  • Your Premium plan is active.
Depending on your program, your proxy may need to be entered in a format such as: username:password@host:port

Redownload your proxies

You might not be using the correct proxies, or we recently changed your proxies, and you missed our update email. You can redownload your proxies via the proxy list page.

Dedicated proxies

Dedicated proxies use username and password authentication. IP authentication is not required. You can find your Dedicated proxy username and password in your ProxyScrape dashboard. If your Dedicated proxies are not working, check the following:
  • Make sure you are using the correct username and password shown in your dashboard.
  • Make sure the proxy IP/host and port are correct.
  • Check that your username and password were copied correctly without extra spaces or missing characters.
  • Make sure your program is configured to use username and password authentication.
  • Check that your plan is still active.
Depending on your program, your proxy may need to be entered in a format such as: username:password@host:port The exact format may vary depending on the program or proxy client you are using.

Residential proxies

Residential proxies use username and password authentication. You can find your Residential proxy username and password in your Residential proxy setup page. If your Residential proxies are not working, check the following:
  • Make sure you are using the correct username and password shown in your dashboard.
  • Make sure you are using the correct proxy host and port.
  • Check that your username and password were copied correctly.
  • Make sure your program is configured to use username and password authentication.
  • Check that your Residential plan is active.
  • Make sure you still have bandwidth available.
Depending on your program, your proxy may need to be entered in a format such as: username:password@host:port

Check your remaining bandwidth

Residential proxies use the bandwidth available in your plan. If you have used all of your available bandwidth, the proxies will stop working until additional bandwidth is available. You can check your plan and remaining bandwidth in your ProxyScrape dashboard overview.

Unlimited Residential proxies

Unlimited Residential proxies use username and password authentication. You can find your Unlimited Residential proxy username and password in your ProxyScrape proxy setup. If your Unlimited Residential proxies are not working, check the following:
  • Make sure you are using the correct username and password shown in your dashboard.
  • Make sure you are using the correct proxy host and port.
  • Check that your username and password were copied correctly without extra spaces or missing characters.
  • Make sure your program is configured to use username and password authentication.
  • Check that your plan is still active.
Depending on your program, your proxy may need to be entered in a format such as: username:password@host:port

ISP proxies

ISP proxies use username and password authentication. You can find your ISP proxy username and password in your ProxyScrape proxylist. If your ISP proxies are not working, check the following:
  • Make sure you are using the correct username and password shown in your dashboard.
  • Make sure you are using the correct proxy IP/host and port.
  • Check that your username and password were copied correctly without extra spaces or missing characters.
  • Make sure your program is configured to use username and password authentication.
  • Check that your plan is still active.
Depending on your program, your proxy may need to be entered in a format such as: username:password@host:port

Test your proxy connection

If your authentication and proxy details are correct, you can use a curl command to check whether your proxy is working.

Username and password authentication

For proxies that use username and password authentication, use the following command: curl -x "http://YOUR_USERNAME:YOUR_PASSWORD@PROXY_IP:PORT" https://ipinfo.io/ip For example: curl -x "http://username123:password123@216.26.248.203:3129" https://ipinfo.io/ip Replace the example username, password, proxy IP, and port with the details shown in your ProxyScrape dashboard. If the proxy is working correctly, the command will return the IP address being used for the connection.

IP authentication

If you are using Premium proxies with IP authentication, run: curl -x "http://host:port" https://api.ipify.org Make sure the public IPv4 address of the device or server running the command has already been added to your IP authentication settings. If you recently added the IP address, wait up to 10 minutes for it to synchronize before testing.

If the curl test fails

If the proxy does not connect, double-check:
  • Your proxy host and port.
  • Your username and password, if applicable.
  • Your IP authentication settings, if applicable.
  • The proxy protocol you are using.
  • That your proxy plan is active.
If the proxy works with curl but does not work in your program, the issue is likely related to your program’s proxy configuration. Continue to the Program misconfiguration section below.

Program misconfiguration

There are many program-specific configuration issues; here are common areas to check:
  • Timeout settings
    • The timeout is the maximum time you allow your program to receive a response from the target. Ensure you typed your timeout correctly and check whether the timeout is in seconds or milliseconds (1 second = 1000 milliseconds).
    • Average expected timeout through the proxies for a simple, fast website is 300–700 milliseconds. Increase the timeout for big or slow websites.
  • Wrong proxy protocol
    • Ensure you select the correct proxy protocol in your program. Proxies ending with port 3129 are HTTP proxies; proxies ending with 1081 are Socks5. Selecting the wrong protocol will cause the proxies not to work.
  • Using too many threads
    • Threads are the number of concurrent jobs your program performs. Using too many threads may overload your system or the target website and cause connection failures.
  • Target is offline
    • Verify the target website URL is correct and that the site is online. If the target site is offline, your proxies will appear offline as well.

Target website bans

A proxy might be banned from your target website for reasons such as:
  • Wrong geolocation
  • Excessive use of the proxy
  • Proxy has a bad reputation

Other possible issues

  • ISP blocks
    • Under very rare circumstances, your ISP might be blocking connections to our proxies. Contact your ISP to verify this is not the case.
  • Using an online proxy checker
    • Our proxies are not compatible with online proxy checkers because it is not possible to authenticate the IP of their servers. To test the proxies, use a local proxy checker.

Free proxies

If a free proxy is not working, it likely went offline. You can download new free proxies here: https://proxyscrape.com/free-proxy-list