Quick answer
Which proxies are best for local SEO checks in European cities?
On 18 October 2026, five of 13 providers met all five of our criteria for manual local SEO checks in Europe: Decodo, EuroCity Proxies, ProxyEmpire, ProxyWing and Rayobyte. The criteria are city targeting included, a purchase of 1 GB or less, sticky sessions of at least 10 minutes, no subscription required and no ID check to buy.
Why these five criteria?
One point per criterion, from each provider's own page on the day we read it; "not stated" scores zero; ties are alphabetical. We publish this site and score ourselves with the same rules.
| Criterion | Why it matters for local SEO |
|---|---|
| City targeting included | Local results change by city; every check uses the city parameter. |
| Purchase of 1 GB or less | Manual checks of a few result pages use little traffic. |
| Sticky sessions of 10 minutes or more | A check opens several pages; they should come from one IP in one city. |
| No subscription required | Audits are irregular; a monthly plan bills you in quiet months. |
| No ID check to buy | Freelancers and small agencies may prefer not to upload documents. |
Ranking: proxies for local SEO checks in Europe (2026)
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1
Decodo
5 of 5City targeting "at no extra charge", 1 GB on pay as you go, and sticky sessions of up to 30 minutes per its pricing page (its documentation allows longer).
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Every European city on this site has a page with its parameter, nearby towns that geolocation databases may show, and local search language. Sticky sessions last up to 30 minutes.
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3
ProxyEmpire
5 of 5Pay as you go from 1 GB, "no fixed time limit" on sticky sessions, and features at no extra cost. A 50% code was applied automatically on 18 October 2026.
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4
ProxyWing
5 of 5Pay as you go with no surcharge for city targeting and sticky sessions of up to 1,000 minutes on its Standard plan.
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5
Rayobyte
5 of 5"Every tier includes country, city, ZIP code and ASN targeting and sticky sessions", with sticky sessions of up to 120 minutes and pay as you go from 1 GB.
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6
IPRoyal
4 of 5Sticky sessions of up to 7 days and never-expiring traffic. City-level targeting is listed without a stated surcharge.
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7
NodeMaven
4 of 5Every location on every plan and no KYC on standard plans; the smallest plan is 2 GB.
Disclosure: this page is published by EuroCity Proxies. Competitor details come from their public websites at the date shown above and may have changed since.
All 13 providers, criterion by criterion
| Provider | Criteria met | Not met or not stated | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Decodo | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | — | 5 of 5 |
| EuroCity Proxies | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | — | 5 of 5 |
| ProxyEmpire | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | — | 5 of 5 |
| ProxyWing | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | — | 5 of 5 |
| Rayobyte | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | — | 5 of 5 |
| IPRoyal | start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | city targeting included | 4 of 5 |
| NodeMaven | city targeting included, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | start at 1 GB or less | 4 of 5 |
| ColdProxy | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min | no subscription, no ID to buy | 3 of 5 |
| DataImpulse | sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription, no ID to buy | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less | 3 of 5 |
| SOAX | city targeting included, sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription | start at 1 GB or less, no ID to buy | 3 of 5 |
| Webshare | start at 1 GB or less, sticky ≥ 10 min, no ID to buy | city targeting included, no subscription | 3 of 5 |
| Geonode | sticky ≥ 10 min, no subscription | city targeting included, start at 1 GB or less, no ID to buy | 2 of 5 |
| Oxylabs | city targeting included, sticky ≥ 10 min | start at 1 GB or less, no subscription, no ID to buy | 2 of 5 |
Prices checked on
"Not stated" means the page we read did not say. Bright Data and Proxy-Cheap were left out: their pricing pages could not be read on 18 October 2026. Prices for every tier: price index.
How should local rank checks be done with a proxy?
By hand, and in small numbers. Google's terms prohibit automated access that ignores robots.txt, and google.com/robots.txt disallows /search. For volume, use Search Console or a SERP data provider; use a city IP to see the page itself.
- Open a private browser window set to the proxy, with a sticky session in the target city.
- Set the interface language to the local one (for example Polish for Gdańsk).
- Search a handful of your key terms and note the local pack and the first results.
- Close the session and start a new one for the next city.
The local SEO use case covers the details, including why results still vary between two checks from the same city.
What does a city IP add to Search Console data?
Search Console reports clicks and positions by country, not by city. A city IP shows the actual page a household in that city gets: the local pack, the map, the language of snippets and any city-specific features.
Ads are different. For your own campaigns, start with Google Ads' Ad Preview and Diagnosis tool: it shows results for a chosen city and language without adding impressions. Never click ads during checks.
The broader ranking is best European city proxies 2026; city parameters are on each city page, for example Lyon or Gdańsk.
Local SEO proxies: FAQ
Why is EuroCity Proxies second?
Five providers scored 5 of 5 and ties are listed alphabetically, which puts Decodo first. We apply the method as published, even when it does not put us first.
How much traffic does a local SEO check use?
It depends on the page weight. A search result page with images can weigh a few megabytes. Measure one check with your browser's network panel, then size your plan; 1 GB at EuroCity Proxies costs $0.95.
Can I check results in several cities of one country?
Yes. Use one username per city, such as -country-de-city-hamburg and -country-de-city-munich, each in its own browser profile. Every city page on this site lists its exact parameter.
Will two checks from the same city show the same results?
Not always. Results also depend on the search history, the time and small differences in location. Compare several checks rather than relying on one.
Sources (7)
- Google Search Central, robots.txt for google.com (Disallow: /search) (2026-10-18)
- Decodo, residential proxy pricing decodo.com/proxies/residential-proxies/pricing (2026-10-18)
- ProxyEmpire, pricing proxyempire.io/pricing (2026-10-18)
- ProxyWing, residential prices proxywing.com/prices/residential (2026-10-18)
- Rayobyte, residential proxies rayobyte.com/products/residential-proxies (2026-10-18)
- IPRoyal, residential proxy pricing iproyal.com/pricing/residential-proxies (2026-10-18)
- NodeMaven, pricing nodemaven.com/pricing (2026-10-18)