Decodo

Decodo represents the rebranding and repositioning of Smartproxy, a proxy provider that operated for seven years before transitioning to a new brand in 2025. The shift from Smartproxy to Decodo reflects the company's strategic expansion from a pure proxy network into a broader platform for data access and AI integration. For existing users of Smartproxy, the migration to Decodo offers continued service under a renewed brand identity with new product offerings. For prospective customers, Decodo is the entry point into what was previously Smartproxy's customer base and technology foundation.

The platform maintains 125 million or more residential IP addresses distributed across 195 locations worldwide. While this pool is smaller than category leaders offering 175 million or more addresses, the network is sufficient for most data collection workloads that do not require extreme geographic diversity or continuous rotation of tens of thousands of unique addresses per minute. The geographic breakdown published by Decodo provides useful specificity: 16.1 million addresses in the United States, 5.6 million in Germany, 5 million in the United Kingdom, 4.6 million in France, 3.1 million in Canada, and 870,000 in the Netherlands. This distribution reflects concentration in developed markets where demand for proxy traffic is highest, with reasonable coverage in major European economies and North America.

Pricing is Decodo's primary competitive advantage. The service starts at 2 dollars per gigabyte for pay-as-you-go consumption, the lowest entry point among mainstream residential proxy providers in this category. Subscription plans offer tiered pricing that decreases with volume: 3 gigabytes cost $11.25 monthly (3.75 per GB), 10 gigabytes cost $35 monthly (3.50 per GB), 25 gigabytes cost $81.25 monthly (3.25 per GB), 50 gigabytes cost $150 monthly (3.00 per GB), and 100 gigabytes cost $275 monthly (2.75 per GB). The 25-gigabyte tier is positioned as the most popular option, suggesting that many users operate in the mid-range consumption bracket. For teams with modest data collection budgets, Decodo's pricing removes a significant barrier to entry. A startup spending $100 monthly on proxies could consume roughly 40 gigabytes at the pay-as-you-go rate, a substantial volume for smaller operations.

The rebranding to Decodo emphasizes integration with artificial intelligence workflows. The company now promotes compatibility with LangChain, a popular framework for building AI applications, and provides MCP servers for connecting data collection to large language models. This positioning acknowledges the emerging trend of AI systems requiring external data access for grounding, synthesis, and training. For teams building AI products that need current web data, Decodo's recent positioning as AI-friendly infrastructure may matter in the decision process. However, the technological core remains a residential proxy network with the same basic mechanics as before the rebranding.

Performance metrics published by Decodo include sub-0.2 second average response times and 99.99% uptime. The sub-0.2 second latency is excellent and suggests well-distributed exit points with minimal network hops between the client and proxy infrastructure. For high-throughput scraping operations, this latency efficiency translates to faster job completion times. The uptime claim of 99.99% is standard among enterprise proxy providers and represents network availability, though as with all such guarantees, it is the provider's own measurement rather than independently audited.

Decodo offers a three-day free trial with 100 megabytes of data transfer, a practical way for prospective users to evaluate the network quality and configuration before committing to a paid plan. This trial volume is modest but sufficient to make 10,000 to 20,000 sample requests depending on the size and structure of the target pages. Users can assess success rates, latency, and geographic IP distribution from a small-scale test before deciding to upgrade to a paid plan. This trial approach is more accessible than competitors requiring credit card information or longer setup processes.

The transition from Smartproxy to Decodo creates some uncertainty for evaluating track record. Smartproxy operated since 2018, giving the underlying technology and network an eight-year history. However, the Decodo brand itself is new, launched in 2025. Existing Smartproxy users retain their service and have migrated to Decodo accounts, so continuity of service is preserved. For new customers, Decodo represents a rebrand of proven technology rather than an entirely new venture, which reduces the risk of undisclosed instability or poor operational practices. The company employs over 100 people and serves 85,000 users globally, providing reasonable assurance of organizational stability and support capacity.

Decodo's approach to IP sourcing aligns with industry norms. The company sources residential proxies through partnerships with wholesalers and directly from app users who opt in to share their bandwidth in exchange for incentives. Decodo maintains membership in the Ethical Web Data Collection Initiative, a certification that signals third-party review of sourcing practices. Like other EWDCI members, Decodo commits to informed user consent and transparency about how IPs are acquired. The company does not appear in any widely-documented reports of non-consensual IP sourcing or bundling proxy software into apps without disclosure.

Support and documentation at Decodo follow standard practices for mid-market proxy providers. The company provides API documentation, dashboard controls for managing IP assignments and usage monitoring, and email-based customer support. Response times for support issues are typically business-hour based, a limitation compared to enterprise providers with 24/7 support staffing. For smaller teams, business-hour support is often acceptable. For operations requiring immediate assistance during off-hours, premium support from larger competitors may be preferable.

Decodo is best suited for budget-conscious teams conducting moderate-scale data collection without extreme geographic diversity requirements. The 125 million IP pool is sufficient for most use cases, the sub-0.2 second latency is excellent, and the pricing starting at $2 per gigabyte is significantly lower than competitors. The free trial removes risk from the initial evaluation. The transition to a new brand and focus on AI integration adds some uncertainty about the company's long-term direction, but the underlying technology and network have eight years of operational history from the Smartproxy era. Organizations prioritizing cost control and willing to accept a smaller IP pool than category leaders will find Decodo compelling. The B grade reflects solid execution, strong value pricing, and reasonable performance metrics, offset by smaller IP pool size compared to category leaders and the recent branding transition that creates some uncertainty about the company's focus.