Checking a Proxy: A Three-Pass Test Before Real Work
Updated:
To check a proxy, route one request through it and confirm that it authenticates, that the destination sees the proxy's address rather than yours, and that the address sits in the country you paid for. A browser-based proxy checker answers all three in a few seconds, and a single curl command gives you the same answers plus the raw error text when something is off.
Why test before you attach a proxy to an account
A proxy that fails silently is worse than one that fails loudly. If an antidetect profile quietly falls back to your home connection, the platform records your real IP against that account, and you cannot undo that later. Testing takes minutes; cleaning up linked accounts takes much longer.
Treat the test as a routine, not a one-off. Run it when an order is delivered, when you move a proxy to a new tool, and the moment a workflow starts misbehaving. The list below is what a complete pass covers.
- Authentication: the server accepts your username and password and returns a response.
- Exit address: websites see the IP from your order, never your own.
- Geolocation: country, and city where it matters, match the location you bought.
- Network owner: the organisation behind the IP fits the product, a hosting company for datacenter IPv4 or a consumer telecom for static ISP.
- Latency: response time makes sense for the distance between you, the proxy and the target site.
- Browser hygiene: inside the profile you will actually use, only the proxy address is visible.
Pass 1: the browser checker (no terminal needed)
Open the proxy checker, paste one or more lines in ip:port:user:pass form and start the test. It reports whether each proxy answers, the exit IP, the location and the response time. You can paste up to 100 proxies in one run, and the passwords you enter are not stored.
Use this pass to separate two kinds of problem. When the checker says the proxy works but your app does not, the fault is in the app's settings: the wrong proxy type selected, a trailing space copied into the password, or host and port swapped between fields. When the checker also fails, move on to curl to see the exact error.
Pass 2: curl from your own machine
curl ships with macOS, Linux and Windows 10 or later. In PowerShell type curl.exe rather than curl, or use Command Prompt. Swap the sample address and credentials below for the ones in your order. Running the test from your own network also tells you whether your connection can reach the proxy port at all, which an online tool cannot.
- Print only the exit IP:
curl -x http://user:[email protected]:8080 https://ipinfo.io/ip - Print IP, city, country and owning organisation:
curl -x http://user:[email protected]:8080 https://ipinfo.io/json - Stop waiting on dead proxies: append
--connect-timeout 10 -m 20. - Watch the handshake step by step: append
-v. - Password contains
@or:? Send the credentials separately:curl -x http://203.0.113.10:8080 -U user:pass https://ipinfo.io/ip - Rough timing on macOS or Linux: prefix the command with
timeand read the real value.
Pass 3: inside the profile that will use it
curl proves the proxy is healthy; it does not prove your browser is using it. Launch the exact profile you plan to work in and load My IP. You should see the proxy's address and country. If your home IP appears, the proxy is not attached to that profile or the browser bypassed it.
While you are there, run the WebRTC leak test and compare the time zone and language the profile reports with the proxy's country. A Japanese IP paired with a European time zone is the kind of mismatch that is trivial to fix before launch. Field-by-field instructions are in the setup pages for Chrome, AdsPower and Hidemyacc.
Reading curl errors: symptom, cause, fix
Nearly every failed check lands in one of these rows. Match the message you got, then apply the fix in the last column.
| Message or symptom | What it usually means | Fix |
|---|---|---|
407 Proxy Authentication Required or CONNECT tunnel failed, response 407 | Credentials rejected or never sent | Copy username and password again from the dashboard, remove stray spaces, and enable authentication in the app |
Connection timed out (curl error 28) | Wrong IP or port, a network that blocks the port, or an unreachable server | Recheck IP and port, retry from a different network such as mobile data, then compare with the online checker |
Connection refused (curl error 7) | No service on that port: wrong port, or the proxy has expired or been suspended | Confirm the port and the expiry date under Orders; renew if the term has ended |
Could not resolve proxy (curl error 5) | The proxy host was mistyped | Paste the IP again exactly as delivered |
| Connects, but the country looks off | Geolocation databases disagree or lag behind | Check a second source such as ipinfo.io; if it is still wrong, open a ticket |
| Connects, but the site shows a captcha or block page | The website is rate-limiting or vetting the request; the proxy itself is fine | Slow the pace, keep one consistent browser profile and one account per IP |
Interpreting a passing result
- IP matches the order and the country is right: the proxy is ready for work.
- Latency is mostly geography. A proxy close to both you and the target site answers faster than one across an ocean.
- The organisation field names whoever owns the IP block. What that implies is explained in ISP vs datacenter vs residential proxies.
- An address with colons is IPv6, which only works on sites that accept IPv6. See IPv4 vs IPv6 proxy.
When a ProxyV4 proxy fails the check
Every proxy you own, with its expiry date, sits under Orders in the dashboard. Run the checker or the curl command first, then open a ticket with the error text and the failing IP; tickets are answered 24/7. Our paid proxies are HTTP(S), so pick HTTP as the type in every app.
If a proxy cannot connect or shows the wrong location because of a fault on our side, the refund policy covers it and the refund goes to your account balance. Before a large order, buy a single IP and run it through your real workflow, such as multi-account work; there is no minimum order.
Frequently asked questions
How can I tell if a proxy is working?
Load My IP through it, or run curl -x http://user:pass@ip:port https://ipinfo.io/ip. If the address shown is the proxy's and not yours, it works.
What does a 407 error from a proxy mean?
The proxy refused the login. Paste the username and password again exactly as delivered and confirm the app is set to send them. More detail is on the 407 error page.
Why does my proxy keep timing out?
Most often the IP or port is wrong, your network blocks that port, or the server cannot be reached. Testing from another network and from the online checker tells you which.
How do I see which country a proxy is in?
Run curl -x http://user:pass@ip:port https://ipinfo.io/json or paste it into the proxy checker. Both show the country and city geolocation databases assign to the IP.
Can I test a whole list of proxies at once?
Yes. The online checker accepts up to 100 lines per run. For larger lists, loop the curl command over a text file with one proxy per line and add --connect-timeout 10 so dead entries fail quickly.
The proxy passes in curl but fails in my antidetect browser. What now?
The profile is misconfigured. Set the type to HTTP and put host, port, username and password in their own fields. The setup page for your browser lists each field.
Proxies built to pass this test
Single-tenant IPv4 and static ISP proxies, delivered as ip:port:user:pass and issued automatically after payment.
Check live prices