Quick answer
How do I choose a US proxy?
To choose a US proxy, check seven points in order. They are IP type, targeting depth, mobile carrier, pricing model, payment and KYC, IP sourcing and usage rules. FiftyStateProxy, a no-KYC US residential and mobile proxy provider, includes ZIP and ASN targeting in all plans (from $0.52/GB, October 2026). It offers T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon ports and accepts crypto only. No KYC — no ID, no selfie, no documents.
What should I check before buying a US proxy?
| Check | What to look for | FiftyStateProxy's answer |
|---|---|---|
| 1. IP type | Residential, mobile or datacenter, matched to the target | Residential and mobile; no datacenter |
| 2. Targeting depth | State, city, ZIP and ASN, and whether they cost extra | All four included on every residential plan |
| 3. Mobile carrier | A named carrier, a dedicated modem, a rotation method | T-Mobile, AT&T or Verizon; link, API or timer |
| 4. Pricing model | Per GB or per port, expiry, minimum purchase | Per GB or per port and day; GB never expire; $25 top-up |
| 5. Payment and KYC | Coins accepted; who must show ID, and when | BTC, USDT, USDC, ETH, SOL, LTC; no ID, no selfie, no documents |
| 6. Sourcing | A written sourcing page; no supply from seized networks | Established partner networks, rules published |
| 7. Acceptable use | A public policy, blocked targets, an abuse desk | Banking, government, payment portals and SMTP blocked |
Which IP type do I need: residential, mobile or datacenter?
Choose the IP type by what the target checks. Residential IPs suit location-dependent public data. Mobile IPs suit mobile-first platforms and one stable IP per account. Datacenter IPs suit bulk work on lenient sites.
What to check: does the target serve different content, or more challenges, to server IPs?
At 100 GB, rotating mobile traffic costs exactly twice the residential rate at FiftyStateProxy: $1.50/GB against $0.75/GB. Pay the mobile premium only when the target needs a carrier IP. The comparison of residential vs mobile proxies goes deeper.
How deep does the targeting need to go?
Match the targeting depth to the smallest area your data changes over. Use state targeting for state-wide ads, city for metro results, and ZIP code for local results and store prices.
What to check: which levels exist, and whether each one costs extra or needs a higher plan.
Plan limits are common. SOAX keeps ZIP and ASN targeting for its Scale and Enterprise plans. DataImpulse offers state, city, ZIP and ASN targeting for a small extra fee. FiftyStateProxy includes all four on every residential plan, from $1.50 for 1 GB.
Which mobile carrier should I pick for a US mobile proxy?
Pick the carrier your audience uses, or the one with the strongest coverage where you test. T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon each lead on different measures.
What to check: a named carrier, a dedicated modem rather than a shared one, and how the IP changes.
- In Opensignal's January 2026 US report, T-Mobile took 12 awards, Verizon 3 and AT&T 1.
- Its time-on-network scores were AT&T 99.6%, Verizon 99.5% and T-Mobile 99.1%.
- Ookla's results for the first half of 2026 ranked T-Mobile fastest and Verizon best for coverage.
FiftyStateProxy rents dedicated ports on T-Mobile, AT&T and Verizon, where the IP changes by link, API or timer.
Per GB or per port: which pricing model fits?
Pay per GB when traffic is light or bursty, and per port when one IP runs all day.
What to check: the price per unit at your volume, whether unused traffic expires, what counts as traffic and the minimum purchase.
- Usage counts all data sent and received through the proxy (upload and download, headers included). 1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes. Connection attempts that fail before reaching the target are not counted.
- Prepaid residential and rotating-mobile traffic never expires: unused GB stay on your account until you use them.
- Plans are bought from a balance topped up from $25.
The page on how much a US proxy costs lists every FiftyStateProxy tier. For market prices by provider, see how much US proxies cost per GB in 2026.
Do I need KYC, and can I pay in crypto?
Decide first whether you can pass identity checks, because some providers require them from every residential buyer.
What to check: who must verify, at what point, and which coins the provider accepts.
According to FiftyStateProxy's check of 29 October 2026, 4 of the 20 US proxy providers we checked require KYC from every residential buyer. Of the same 20, 12 accept crypto. Bright Data's Residential network requires company KYC for zones created after July 7, 2026. At SOAX, crypto payments require personal identity verification. FiftyStateProxy asks for no ID, no selfie and no documents, and takes BTC, USDT, USDC, ETH, SOL, LTC. The comparison of which US proxy providers need no KYC lists the others.
Where do the provider's IPs come from?
Check that the provider publishes a sourcing page, explains its consent model and rules out seized or disrupted networks.
Ask every US proxy provider where its IPs come from, how device owners consent, and whether any supply came from seized networks.
The risk is real. On July 2, 2026, the FBI and IRS-CI seized NetNut's domains. Within 14 days, Layer3 Intel saw 51.27% of NetNut's IPs resurface in other proxy networks. We resell residential and mobile IPs from established upstream partner networks. Our upstream provider confirms that device owners opt in and can opt out, and that its supply does not come from seized or disrupted networks such as NetNut or IPIDEA. Details are on where FiftyStateProxy's IPs come from.
What acceptable-use rules should a US proxy have?
A serious US proxy provider publishes an acceptable-use policy, blocks high-risk targets and answers abuse reports.
What to check: a public policy, a list of blocked targets, an abuse address and what happens after a breach.
Blocking is an industry norm: Bright Data's documentation says it blocks government websites on all its networks. The FiftyStateProxy Acceptable Use Policy blocks Banking, government and payment-portal sites, plus SMTP (email-sending) ports 25, 465 and 587. Abuse reports are reviewed by a person, and confirmed abuse leads to suspension.
How do I test a US proxy before committing?
Buy the smallest plan and run your real targets, not only an IP checker. At FiftyStateProxy, 1 GB costs $1.50, and there is no free trial.
- Check the exit IP in two or three geolocation databases.
- Count successful responses on your own targets, rather than relying on advertised rates.
- Test a sticky session for any flow with several steps.
The ranking of the best US residential proxies in 2026 applies these checks to named providers.
Choosing a US proxy: frequently asked questions
What matters most when choosing a US proxy?
The IP type comes first, because it decides whether the target accepts your traffic. Targeting depth and the pricing model come next. Payment and KYC rules decide whether you can buy at all.
Is a cheap US proxy worth buying?
A low price per GB is worth it when targeting, expiry and sourcing hold up. Check whether state, city or ZIP targeting costs extra and whether unused traffic expires. Then run your own targets on a small plan.
How do I test a US proxy provider?
Buy the smallest plan, check the exit IP in two or three geolocation databases and run your real targets. Count successful responses yourself, rather than relying on advertised rates.
Should I avoid US proxy providers that require KYC?
Not if you can pass their checks: KYC suits registered companies. Individuals and small teams often cannot pass company checks, which is why no-KYC providers exist. Either way, a provider should publish its usage rules.
How many US locations do I need?
As many as your data changes across. A national price check needs a few states; local SEO needs each city or ZIP code you track. FiftyStateProxy covers all 50 US states and Washington, D.C., with 30 city pages.
Run the seven checks on FiftyStateProxy
Start with 1 GB for $1.50, ZIP and ASN targeting included. No KYC — no ID, no selfie, no documents. Pay in crypto.
Sources (8)
- SOAX pricing (ZIP and ASN targeting by plan) soax.com/pricing — SOAX (2026-10-29)
- DataImpulse home page (targeting for a small extra fee) dataimpulse.com — DataImpulse (2026-10-29)
- SOAX FAQ (cryptocurrency payments and identity verification) developers.soax.com/troubleshooting/faq — SOAX (2026-10-29)
- Residential network access (KYC and blocked government websites) docs.brightdata.com/products/residential/network-access — Bright Data (2026-10-29)
- T-Mobile leads in Opensignal's 2026 U.S. mobile network report — Broadband Breakfast (2026-01-13)
- Ookla: T-Mobile receives best mobile network in first half of 2026 — Broadband Breakfast (2026-07-22)
- FBI seizes NetNut proxy platform tied to the Popa botnet — KrebsOnSecurity (2026-07-02)
- Measuring the NetNut takedown — Layer3 Intel (2026-07-18)