A shared proxy is a proxy IP address that several customers of a provider use at the same time, rather than one reserved for a single user. Splitting the cost makes it cheaper than a dedicated proxy, but users also share bandwidth and reputation, so one user's flagged activity can get the IP blocked for everyone.

The main risk of a shared proxy is reputational spillover: if another customer on the same IP triggers a ban or CAPTCHA wall on a target site, every user sharing that IP inherits the consequence, regardless of their own behavior. This makes shared proxies a reasonable fit for low-stakes, low-volume tasks where cost matters more than reliability, and a poor fit for anything where consistent access is business-critical.

Shared proxies are the most budget-friendly entry point into proxy usage, which is why they're commonly offered at the lower end of a provider's pricing tiers.

How Shared Proxies Work

Websites you visit see the proxy's IP address, not yours. Providers usually sell shared access in one of two ways. One is a fixed list of shared IPs you pick from, typically priced per IP. The other is a rotating gateway into a shared pool, typically priced by traffic. "Shared" describes who uses the IP, not where it comes from: shared IPs can be datacenter, residential, ISP or mobile.

Other Trade-offs of Shared Proxies

  • Pro: it still hides your real IP from the sites you visit.
  • Con: bandwidth is shared as well as the address, so speeds can be slower and less consistent when many users are active.
  • Con: it is a poor fit for sensitive tasks such as online banking or logged-in accounts.