Best Bright Data Alternatives in 2026 | Hex Proxies

Bright Data (formerly Luminati) is one of the largest proxy networks, but its complex pricing tiers and steep minimum commitments push many teams toward simpler providers.

Bright Data at a Glance

Pros

Massive IP pool with an advertised 72M+ residential IPs
Wide range of proxy types including mobile and SERP APIs
Global coverage in 195 countries
Advanced targeting by city, ASN, and carrier

Cons

Complex pricing tiers with usage-based billing that many users find hard to predict
Volume plans favor larger commitments; pay-as-you-go residential is listed at $8.40/GB
Users report a steep learning curve for the dashboard and API
Users report slower support response times outside enterprise tiers
Users report bandwidth overages can lead to higher-than-expected invoices

Bright Data Alternatives at a Glance

Provider	Best for	Listed pricing	Standout
Hex Proxies	Teams that want dedicated US ISP IPs or pay-as-you-go residential without contracts	ISP $2.08–$2.47/IP/month (unlimited bandwidth); residential $4.25–$4.75/GB	Flat-rate dedicated ISP IPs on owned US hardware; $5 24-hour trial
Oxylabs	Enterprise teams focused on large-scale web scraping, market research, and competitive intelligence	Residential listed from $8/GB; datacenter from .20/IP; ISP from $8/GB; most plans require monthly commitments starting at $300+	Advertises 100M+ residential IPs with integrated web scraping API products (Scraper API, Web Unblocker, SERP Scraper)
Smartproxy	Small to mid-size teams needing affordable residential proxies with simple setup and no long-term commitments	Residential listed from $7/GB on pay-as-you-go; datacenter from $0.09/IP; subscription plans with lower rates from $30/month	Advertises 55M+ residential IPs with a user-friendly dashboard and browser extensions for proxy switching
IPRoyal	Budget-conscious individual users and small teams who need affordable residential proxies for light to moderate use	Residential listed from .75/GB with non-expiring traffic; datacenter from .39/proxy; ISP from $2.40/proxy	Advertises 32M+ residential IPs with a non-expiring traffic option where unused bandwidth carries forward indefinitely
NetNut	Businesses needing stable, fast ISP proxies with direct ISP-level quality and uptime guarantees	Custom pricing based on volume and use case; residential generally listed around $8-15/GB; contact sales for quotes	Uses direct ISP partnerships rather than peer-to-peer networks, advertising 52M+ residential IPs with ISP-level speed and stability
SOAX	Teams that prioritize ethically sourced proxies and need strong city-level geo-targeting capabilities	Residential and mobile listed from $6.60/GB; plans from $99/month with included bandwidth; custom enterprise pricing available	Advertises 155M+ ethically sourced residential IPs with a real-time proxy health monitoring dashboard
Webshare	Developers and small teams needing cheap datacenter proxies for non-sensitive scraping tasks	Free tier with 10 proxies; paid plans listed from $5.49/month for 100 proxies; dedicated from $0.05/proxy; residential from $7/GB	Offers a free tier with 10 datacenter proxies for testing, plus a clean API for proxy management
Rayobyte	SEO professionals and data collectors who need reliable US-based datacenter proxies with ethical sourcing	Datacenter listed from .05/IP (semi-dedicated); dedicated from $3/IP; ISP from $3.50/IP; residential from $7.50/GB	Features an automatic dead proxy replacement system, and advertises 300K+ datacenter IPs across 27 countries inherited from Blazing SEO
ProxyEmpire	Small to mid-size teams who value bandwidth rollover and need both rotating and static residential proxy options	Rotating residential listed from $5.50/GB on larger plans; static residential from $2.50 monthly per IP; plans range from 5 to $2000+/month	Features rollover bandwidth that does not expire monthly; advertises 9.5M+ residential IPs across 170+ countries

Competitor pricing reflects publicly listed rates at the time of writing and may change — always confirm on the provider's site. Hex Proxies pricing is current; we operate this site.

Best Bright Data Alternatives

Hex Proxies

ISP and residential proxies with flat-rate per-IP and pay-per-GB pricing, instant activation, and no minimum commitments.

Best for: Teams that want dedicated US ISP IPs or pay-as-you-go residential without contractsPricing: ISP $2.08–$2.47/IP/month (unlimited bandwidth); residential $4.25–$4.75/GB

Flat-rate dedicated ISP IPs on owned US hardware; $5 24-hour trial

Oxylabs

A major proxy and web scraping infrastructure provider offering residential, datacenter, and ISP proxies alongside dedicated scraping APIs.

Best for: Enterprise teams focused on large-scale web scraping, market research, and competitive intelligencePricing: Residential listed from $8/GB; datacenter from

.20/IP; ISP from $8/GB; most plans require monthly commitments starting at $300+

Advertises 100M+ residential IPs with integrated web scraping API products (Scraper API, Web Unblocker, SERP Scraper)

Smartproxy

A residential and datacenter proxy provider focused on affordability and ease of use, popular among small to mid-size teams.

Best for: Small to mid-size teams needing affordable residential proxies with simple setup and no long-term commitmentsPricing: Residential listed from $7/GB on pay-as-you-go; datacenter from $0.09/IP; subscription plans with lower rates from $30/month

Advertises 55M+ residential IPs with a user-friendly dashboard and browser extensions for proxy switching

IPRoyal

A proxy provider offering residential, datacenter, ISP, and sneaker proxies at budget-friendly prices for individual users and small businesses.

Best for: Budget-conscious individual users and small teams who need affordable residential proxies for light to moderate usePricing: Residential listed from

.75/GB with non-expiring traffic; datacenter from

.39/proxy; ISP from $2.40/proxy

Advertises 32M+ residential IPs with a non-expiring traffic option where unused bandwidth carries forward indefinitely

NetNut

Specializes in ISP proxies with a direct partnership model with ISPs, offering static residential IPs with datacenter-level speeds.

Best for: Businesses needing stable, fast ISP proxies with direct ISP-level quality and uptime guaranteesPricing: Custom pricing based on volume and use case; residential generally listed around $8-15/GB; contact sales for quotes

Uses direct ISP partnerships rather than peer-to-peer networks, advertising 52M+ residential IPs with ISP-level speed and stability

SOAX

Provides residential and mobile proxies with strong geo-targeting options and a focus on clean, ethically sourced IP addresses.

Best for: Teams that prioritize ethically sourced proxies and need strong city-level geo-targeting capabilitiesPricing: Residential and mobile listed from $6.60/GB; plans from $99/month with included bandwidth; custom enterprise pricing available

Advertises 155M+ ethically sourced residential IPs with a real-time proxy health monitoring dashboard

Webshare

A datacenter-focused proxy provider known for its free tier and affordable shared proxy plans.

Best for: Developers and small teams needing cheap datacenter proxies for non-sensitive scraping tasksPricing: Free tier with 10 proxies; paid plans listed from $5.49/month for 100 proxies; dedicated from $0.05/proxy; residential from $7/GB

Offers a free tier with 10 datacenter proxies for testing, plus a clean API for proxy management

Rayobyte

The rebranded successor to Blazing SEO, offering datacenter, ISP, and residential proxies with an emphasis on ethical sourcing.

Best for: SEO professionals and data collectors who need reliable US-based datacenter proxies with ethical sourcingPricing: Datacenter listed from

.05/IP (semi-dedicated); dedicated from $3/IP; ISP from $3.50/IP; residential from $7.50/GB

Features an automatic dead proxy replacement system, and advertises 300K+ datacenter IPs across 27 countries inherited from Blazing SEO

ProxyEmpire

Offers rotating and static residential proxies with rollover bandwidth and a growing proxy network.

Best for: Small to mid-size teams who value bandwidth rollover and need both rotating and static residential proxy optionsPricing: Rotating residential listed from $5.50/GB on larger plans; static residential from $2.50 monthly per IP; plans range from

5 to $2000+/month

Features rollover bandwidth that does not expire monthly; advertises 9.5M+ residential IPs across 170+ countries

Why Switch from Bright Data?

Bright Data offers a massive network with advanced configuration options, and that depth suits teams with dedicated proxy engineers. The trade-off is complexity: bandwidth tiers, zone configurations, and per-GB billing take time to manage and forecast. Hex Proxies takes a simpler approach with flat-rate ISP pricing and pay-as-you-go residential, which fits teams that prefer predictable billing and fast setup over granular enterprise controls.

Why teams leave Bright Data

Bright Data built the largest proxy network in the world, but size alone does not solve every problem. Teams frequently report frustration with three recurring issues: unpredictable billing, dashboard complexity, and slow support outside enterprise tiers.

Billing complexity

Bright Data charges per GB with different rates for different proxy types, zones, and targeting options. A single project can span multiple zones with different unit costs. Many teams discover their actual monthly spend is 2-3x what they estimated during onboarding. Bandwidth overages compound the problem, since there is no hard cap by default.

Dashboard and API learning curve

The Bright Data dashboard exposes dozens of configuration options: zones, super proxies, unblocker settings, SERP APIs, and data collectors. For teams that just need reliable proxies, this creates unnecessary overhead. The API documentation, while thorough, requires significant time investment to navigate.

Support responsiveness

Enterprise customers with dedicated account managers report good support. Teams on lower tiers frequently cite 24-48 hour response times for technical issues. When a proxy configuration breaks during a critical scraping job, that delay is expensive.

What to look for in an alternative

When evaluating Bright Data alternatives, prioritize these factors:

Transparent pricing: Flat-rate or clearly tiered pricing with no hidden bandwidth charges
Fast setup: Instant proxy activation without zone configuration complexity
Responsive support: Sub-hour response times for technical issues
Clean dashboard: Simple interface that gets you to working proxies in minutes
No lock-in: Month-to-month billing without minimum commitments

How Hex Proxies compares

Hex Proxies was built specifically for teams frustrated with enterprise proxy complexity. ISP proxies use flat-rate monthly pricing with no bandwidth caps. The dashboard shows your proxies, usage, and billing in a single view. Support responds within minutes via live chat, not days via ticket queue.

Migration is straightforward

Bright Data proxies use standard HTTP/SOCKS5 protocols. Switching to Hex Proxies requires updating your proxy host, port, and credentials. Most teams complete migration in under 30 minutes. Our support team provides 1-on-1 migration assistance for any team switching from Bright Data.

Frequently asked questions

Is Hex Proxies as large as Bright Data? Hex Proxies focuses on quality over raw IP count. Our ISP proxies come from clean, verified pools with high success rates. For most use cases, a smaller pool of high-quality IPs outperforms a massive pool with mixed quality.

Can I use Hex Proxies for web scraping? Yes. Our ISP and residential proxies support HTTP, HTTPS, and SOCKS5 protocols. They work with all major scraping frameworks including Scrapy, Puppeteer, Playwright, and custom solutions.

What happens if I exceed my plan? ISP proxies have no bandwidth caps. Residential proxies are pay-as-you-go, so you only pay for what you use with no overage penalties.

Migration Tips

Export your current proxy zone configurations from Bright Data for reference
Update proxy host and port in your scraping scripts or automation tools
Replace Bright Data credentials with your Hex Proxies credentials
Test a small batch of requests before scaling to full volume
Contact Hex Proxies support for free 1-on-1 migration assistance

Ready to Switch?

Try Hex Proxies risk-free with no minimum commitments.

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