How to test a proxy before you rely on it
A proxy that connects is not a proxy that works for your job. Test the properties you depend on, against the target you care about, before you build on them.
1. Does it connect, and from where?
Send a request through the proxy to a service that echoes your address. Compare the address and the reported country and city with what you ordered. A mismatch is a support ticket, not something to work around.
2. Is it fast enough?
Time a handful of requests to a page like the one you will fetch, at different times of day. Note the median and the slowest, because the slowest is what breaks timeouts.
3. Does it leak?
Check which headers reach the destination. A forwarded-for header would reveal your own address. Check that DNS lookups are resolved on the proxy side.
4. How does the target treat it?
Run a small version of the real job. Count successful responses, challenges and blocks. This is the only test that measures what you care about.
5. Does it stay that way?
Repeat the target test a day later. A static address that behaved yesterday and is blocked today has told you something about its neighbours or about your request rate.
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Put it into practice
Create an account and place a small first order.