**PHP** is widely used for data extraction, automation scripts, and server-side integrations. This guide walks you through using Squid Proxies with PHP using both **cURL (native)** and **Guzzle (popular HTTP client)**. It covers: - Using datacenter (IP:Port) and residential (Host:Port) proxies - Authenticating via IP whitelisting (no username/password required) - Timeout, header, and error handling - Rotating proxy pools for scraping at scale
## **Squid Proxies format overview** | Proxy Type | Format Example | Authentication Method | |--------------|----------------------------------------|------------------------| | Datacenter | http://123.45.67.89:3128 | IP Whitelisting & Username/Password Authorization | | Residential | http://p102.squidproxies.com:8907 | IP Whitelisting & Username/Password Authorization |
## **System requirements** - **PHP 7.4 or later** - **Guzzle** (optional): ```bash composer require guzzlehttp/guzzle ``` - php-curl must be enabled (default in most PHP setups)
## **Using PHP cURL with datacenter proxies** ```php $url, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true, CURLOPT_PROXY => $proxy, CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 10, CURLOPT_USERAGENT => 'Mozilla/5.0 (compatible; ProxyBot/1.0)', ]); $response = curl_exec($ch); if (curl_errno($ch)) { echo 'Error: ' . curl_error($ch); } else { echo "Response:\n$response"; } curl_close($ch); ?> ```
## **Using PHP cURL with residential proxies** ```php $proxy = 'p102.squidproxies.com:8907'; // Residential proxy (host:port) // All other cURL settings remain the same. ```
## **Datacenter proxy pool rotation** Rotate between multiple proxies to avoid bans or throttling. ```php $url, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true, CURLOPT_PROXY => $proxy, CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 10, CURLOPT_USERAGENT => 'Mozilla/5.0', ]); $response = curl_exec($ch); if (!curl_errno($ch)) { echo "Success via $proxy:\n$response"; curl_close($ch); break; } echo "Failed using $proxy: " . curl_error($ch) . "\n"; curl_close($ch); } ?> ```
## **Using PHP Guzzle with proxies (recommended for APIs)** Install Guzzle via Composer: ```bash composer require guzzlehttp/guzzle ``` ### **Datacenter proxy with Guzzle** ```php 'https://httpbin.org', 'timeout' => 10, 'proxy' => 'http://123.45.67.89:3128', // Replace with your proxy 'headers' => [ 'User-Agent' => 'Mozilla/5.0 (ProxyBot)' ] ]); $response = $client->get('/ip'); echo $response->getBody(); ?> ``` ### **Residential proxy with Guzzle** ```php 'proxy' => 'http://p102.squidproxies.com:8907' // ✔️ Everything else remains the same. Just update the proxy address. ```
## **Best practices for PHP proxy integration** | Recommendation | Why It Matters | |-------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------| | Set timeouts | Prevents stuck requests (use 8–15 seconds) | | Rotate proxies | Reduces bans on aggressive scraping | | Use realistic user agents | Avoid detection (use browser-like headers) | | Sleep between requests | Adds delay between loops (1–3 seconds) | | Log proxy status | Helpful for debugging IP bans or errors | | Use residential proxies | Ideal for login pages, geo-blocked content, stealth |
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**More Guides:** - [Choose Your Authentication Method](https://www.squidproxies.com/developer-docs/dev-getting-started/choose-your-authentication-method) - [Sticky IP Sessions](https://www.squidproxies.com/developer-docs/dev-advanced-guides/sticky-ip-sessions)