Web Proxy (free in-browser proxy)

Shifter Web Proxy is a free proxy that runs in your browser. You enter a website address, pick a country, and the site opens in its own tab through a residential IP in that country. There is nothing to install and no account to create.

The exit IPs come from the same residential network Shifter customers use on paid plans, in 120 countries. Websites see a home broadband connection in the country you chose, not your own IP and not a data center address.

Open the web proxy Enter an address, pick a country and start browsing.

Residential proxies The same network for your own browser, tools and scripts.

How to use it

1. Open shifter.io/web-proxy and type the address of the site you want to visit, such as example.com. You do not need the https:// part; the proxy adds it.

2. Choose a country from the list or the map. The United States is selected by default.

3. Select Browse. The site opens in a new tab, so the launcher page stays where you left it.

4. Complete the Google reCAPTCHA check. It runs once before each session starts and keeps automated traffic off the network.

5. Browse. The toolbar at the top of the tab gives you:

   • Back, Forward and Reload
   • an address bar to go to another site without leaving the session
   • a country switch, to change the exit country mid-session
   • End session, to close the connection when you are done

Only web addresses on the standard ports (80 and 443) are accepted. Addresses with another port, a username or password in the URL, or a non-web scheme are refused on the form, before a session starts.

Note

Changing the country starts a fresh session with the website, so you may need to sign in to that site again.

Common use cases

• Check a site from another country: see the local version, language and cookie banner a visitor there gets.
• Compare prices and offers: open the same product, flight or hotel page from two countries and compare currency and price.
• Look at local search results: search Google from the chosen country to see local rankings, maps and ads.

Free to use

The web proxy is free, with no signup, no ads and no time limit on a session.

Privacy

• No ads. No banners, pop-ups or injected scripts, on the launcher or inside the sites you visit.
• No log of the pages you visit.
• No account, no IP record. The service keeps a random per-browser identifier, stored only as a hash, to keep the free service fair. It is not linked to a name or account, and your IP address is not recorded.
• HTTPS stays encrypted. For HTTPS sites the encrypted connection is set up inside your browser tab, so the gateway relays traffic it cannot read. It needs the name of the site you are connecting to, as every proxy does, and does not write it to a log.

The reCAPTCHA check is provided by Google and follows Google’s privacy policy. Anything you type into a website, such as a name or email address, still identifies you to that website.

Limitations

• One browser tab. The web proxy covers the tab it opens, not your whole device or other apps.
• Some sites may not work. Some streaming services and complex sign-in flows may not work through any web proxy.
• Country only. The exit IP is chosen within the country you pick. The free tool has no city or ISP targeting.
• Speed. Pages load a little slower than direct, because each request travels through a residential connection in the chosen country. Nearby countries feel faster than distant ones.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	What to do
A page does not load, or the connection is interrupted	Select Reload. If it still fails, switch to another country from the toolbar.
Google shows a bot check or “unusual traffic” page	Switch country from the toolbar to get a different exit IP.
The address is refused on the form	Use a regular web address on port 80 or 443, without a username or password in it.

When to use residential or ISP proxies instead

The web proxy is built for quick, manual browsing. Use a paid proxy when you need any of the following:

• high traffic volumes or ongoing, automated use
• proxies in your own browser, scraper, automation tool or script
• city or ISP targeting, sticky sessions or IP rotation
• coverage beyond the 120 web proxy countries

Residential proxies rotate through home IPs with country, city and ASN targeting (see our residential network). ISP proxies keep each IP on the city and ISP you pick, for long sessions in one location (see how ISP proxies work).

Countries

The web proxy exits from these 120 countries. Each country has its own page with that country preselected.

Albania, Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Islands, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Ethiopia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lebanon, Libya, Lithuania, Macao, Malaysia, Maldives, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Nigeria, North Macedonia, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palestine, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Republic of the Congo, Romania, Russia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Syria, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, U.S. Virgin Islands, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zimbabwe.

Questions about the web proxy: email hi@shifter.io.