The short answer
A reverse proxy works for the website. Visitors think they are talking to the site, but they are talking to the reverse proxy, which passes requests to the real servers behind it.
Typical uses
- Load balancing across many servers.
- Caching and CDNs, serving pages from a location near the visitor.
- Security: TLS termination, web application firewalls and bot protection.
That last one matters to proxy users: the anti-bot system blocking your scraper is usually running on a reverse proxy.
Also known as
Server-side proxy, edge proxy, gateway, load balancer (in part).
Learn more
- Forward vs reverse proxy
- What is a forward proxy?
- What is X-Forwarded-For?
- How proxies work
- MDN on proxy servers and tunneling
- RFC 9111, HTTP caching
- RFC 7239, the Forwarded header
- OWASP automated threats, what bot protection defends against
Affiliate disclosure: Team of Monkeys is an affiliate of Geonode, Webshare and Rayobyte. Links and banners marked as sponsored, and links to Geonode, Webshare and Rayobyte in the text, use our referral links, and we may earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. Our explanations and comparisons are written to be useful whichever provider you choose.
Editorial note: Proxy providers change their pools, features and prices often, so treat any figures here as typical ranges at the time of writing and confirm current terms with the provider before you buy.
Editorial note: Proxy providers change their pools, features and prices often, so treat any figures here as typical ranges at the time of writing and confirm current terms with the provider before you buy.