An honest comparison - we tell you where Zyte wins first

Zyte alternative: hard-target data without the enterprise procurement cycle

Zyte is a genuinely good company, and for a lot of buyers it is the right pick - we say so below, plainly. This page is for the other buyer: 1-3 hard anti-bot targets, a flat price that does not jump when the site fights back, first data in days, and a principal engineer you talk to directly - on real dedicated 4G/5G carrier IPs.

Where Zyte wins - and we mean it

SOC2. A 15-year track record. The Scrapy ecosystem. 195-country coverage. Zyte is one of the most established names in web data, and its compliance posture and open-source pedigree are real assets a small shop like ours cannot match.

And on easy-tier sites Zyte is unbeatable on price - roughly $0.13 per 1k HTTP requests (as of mid-2026 - verify current rates). If your workload is high-volume, low-defense sites, no flat retainer of ours will ever beat that math, and we will not pretend otherwise.

If you need compliance sign-off and a name legal recognizes, pick Zyte. That is not a backhanded compliment - it is the correct call for that buyer.

Competitor pricing and coverage as of mid-2026 - verify current rates on Zyte's site. Verified July 2026.

Where we're different

The narrow lane we actually win: hard targets, flat price, fast start, engineer-direct.

Flat pricing vs difficulty tiers that explode

Zyte prices per site by difficulty tier - and a site's tier can be reassigned to a harder, pricier bracket silently. A Tier-5 (browser + anti-bot) site multiplies your bill. Our retainer is flat regardless of how hard the target fights.

Quoted in 24h, first data in days

No enterprise scope, quote and statement-of-work cycle. We quote a flat monthly retainer in about 24 hours and prove it with a paid pilot on your hardest target before you commit.

Real carrier IPs where their stack gets expensive

On exactly the Tier-5 targets where Zyte's datacenter / residential / browser stack gets expensive, we run dedicated real 4G/5G carrier modems - the one class of IP anti-bot vendors cannot blocklist wholesale.

Principal engineer direct

Not an account-manager layer. You talk to the engineer who builds, runs and repairs your pipeline - and when the site changes, fixing it is our problem, not yours.

Zyte vs PROXIES.SX Data Works, honestly

We concede the big columns loudly and win the narrow ones. Competitor figures as of mid-2026 - verify current rates. Verified July 2026.

ZytePROXIES.SX Data Works
Compliance & track recordSOC2, 15-year track record - they win, clearlyNo SOC2. Verifiable IP sourcing instead
Country coverage195 countries - they win, clearly6 modem countries
Easy-tier sites at volumeUnbeatable: ~$0.13/1k HTTP requests (mid-2026, verify) - they winNot our lane - use Zyte for these
EcosystemScrapy - the open-source standard. They winNo framework ecosystem
Pricing model on hard sitesDifficulty tiers; a site can be reassigned to a pricier bracket silently; Tier-5 multiplies the billFlat retainer, regardless of how hard the target fights
Time to first dataEnterprise scope, quote, SOW cycleQuoted in ~24h, first data in days
Exit IPs on Tier-5 targetsDatacenter / residential / browser stack - gets expensiveDedicated real 4G/5G carrier modems
Who you talk toAccount-manager layerThe principal engineer building it

Who should pick which

Pick Zyte if you need...

  • -Compliance-heavy enterprise procurement: SOC2, DPAs, a 15-year name legal recognizes
  • -Huge volume on easy-tier sites, where ~$0.13/1k HTTP requests (mid-2026, verify) is unbeatable
  • -195-country coverage
  • -The Scrapy ecosystem and its tooling

Genuinely: if this is you, go to Zyte. We will tell you the same on a scoping call.

Pick us if you need...

  • -1-3 hard anti-bot targets delivered as structured data
  • -A flat price that does not jump when a site gets reassigned to a harder tier
  • -A fast start: quoted in ~24h, first data in days, proven with a paid pilot
  • -Engineer-direct: the person who built your pipeline answers your questions

Our lane is narrow and we stay in it: hard targets, in the 6 countries we cover, on real carrier IPs.

What switching actually costs

Every Data Works retainer is custom-quoted per project on target difficulty, number of sources and volume - one flat monthly number, quoted in about 24 hours, and proven with a paid pilot on your hardest target before you commit. No difficulty tiers, no silent bracket reassignment.

Just want the raw proxies? The same dedicated 4G/5G carrier IPs are self-serve from $4/GB (down to $2.40 at volume) - start here.

Pricing verified July 2026. Zyte figures as of mid-2026 - verify current rates on their site.

Frequently asked questions

Is PROXIES.SX a drop-in replacement for Zyte?

No, and we will not pretend it is. Zyte has SOC2, a 15-year track record, the Scrapy ecosystem and 195-country coverage. We are the alternative for a narrower job: 1-3 hard anti-bot targets, delivered as data at a flat price, with the engineer on the call. If you need Zyte's breadth or compliance paperwork, pick Zyte.

Zyte is famously cheap on easy sites - why would I pay you more?

You would not, for easy sites. At roughly $0.13 per 1k HTTP requests on easy-tier sites (as of mid-2026 - verify current rates), Zyte is unbeatable there and we say so on this page. The problem is the difficulty-tier system: a site's tier can be reassigned to a harder, pricier bracket silently, and a Tier-5 (browser + anti-bot) site multiplies your bill. Our retainer stays flat regardless of how hard the target fights.

What does your flat pricing actually cost?

Data Works retainers are custom-quoted per project on target difficulty, number of sources and volume - one flat monthly number, quoted in about 24 hours. The same dedicated 4G/5G carrier IPs are also self-serve from $4/GB (down to $2.40 at volume). Proxy pricing verified July 2026; retainers are custom-quoted per project.

How fast can you start compared to Zyte's enterprise process?

We quote in about 24 hours and the pilot on your hardest target typically returns real rows within days - versus an enterprise scope, quote and statement-of-work cycle. Before you commit to a retainer, we prove it with a paid pilot on your specific target.

Do you have SOC2 or the compliance paperwork Zyte has?

No. If your procurement or legal team requires compliance certificates and a name they recognize, Zyte is the right call and we will tell you that on the scoping call. Our trade is different: verifiable IP sourcing (we physically own our modems), a flat price and direct access to the engineer.

Why do mobile carrier IPs matter on the sites where Zyte gets expensive?

The hardest tiers are hard because anti-bot systems ban on IP reputation before any challenge. Real carrier CGNAT IPs are shared with millions of legitimate phone users, so they cannot be blocklisted wholesale - which is exactly why they pass on the browser-plus-anti-bot targets where a datacenter/residential/browser stack gets expensive.

What countries do you cover?

We operate real modems in 6 countries - not Zyte's 195. If your project needs broad geo coverage, we will say so and point you to a provider who has it.

Can I just buy the proxies without the managed service?

Yes. The same real 4G/5G carrier IPs are self-serve from $4/GB - no retainer required.

Stuck in a difficulty tier that keeps climbing?

Point us at the target. We quote a flat retainer in about 24 hours and prove it with a paid pilot - real rows before you commit. If Zyte is the better fit, we will say so.