On this page
Choose PacketStream if…
Choose PacketStream over Webshare for
- Irregular or seasonal usage — No plan to waste: the balance never expires.
- Steady 10 GB–1 TB a month without a yearly commitment — $1.00/GB is less than every monthly Webshare tier: $2.75 at 10 GB, $2.25 at 100 GB, $1.50 at 1 TB.
- Pay-as-you-go billing — No subscription. Webshare shows subscription plans (pay-as-you-go not confirmed).
- Proxies and agent tools on one balance — Search, Fetch and MCP draw on the same balance as the proxies, at $0.0025 per successful call, with no subscription.
Webshare’s residential plans run from $3.50/GB for 1 GB a month down to $1.40/GB at 3 TB, or $0.98/GB on a yearly 3 TB plan. Webshare has been owned by Oxylabs since late 2022 and is now part of Source.ai.
PacketStream’s $1.00/GB is less than every monthly Webshare tier, with no plan to commit to. Webshare’s plans appear to reset monthly (not confirmed), while PacketStream’s balance never expires.
Reasons by use case, not an overall ranking. Both providers’ published facts are in the side-by-side table.
Spec sheets
PacketStream
- Entry price
- $1.00/GB [VERIFIED 2026-10-17]
- Volume price
- $1.00/GB (no tiers)
- Minimum
- $50
- PAYG
- Yes
- Expiry
- Never
- Targeting
- Country
- Sticky
- Included; rolling 60-min idle
- SOCKS5
- Yes
Webshare
- Entry price
- $3.50/GB (1 GB monthly plan) [VERIFIED 2026-10-17]
- Volume price
- $2.75 (10 GB), $2.25 (100 GB), $1.50 (1 TB), $1.40 (3 TB) monthly; $0.98/GB on 3 TB yearly
- Minimum
- 1 GB ($3.50)
- PAYG
- n/v — subscription plans shown
- Expiry
- Plans appear to reset monthly (n/v)
- Targeting
- Country, city
- Sticky
- n/v
- SOCKS5
- Yes
Prices as of October 2026 from the PacketStream and Webshare pricing pages. “n/v” = not verified on the official page. Ownership: Owned by Oxylabs since late 2022; part of Source.ai since 13 Oct 2026.
Side by side
| Criterion | PacketStream | Webshare |
|---|---|---|
| Price at 1 GB | $1.00/GB ($50 minimum purchase) | $3.50/GB |
| Price at 10 GB | $1.00/GB | $2.75/GB |
| Price at 100 GB | $1.00/GB | $2.25/GB |
| Price at 1 TB | $1.00/GB | $1.50/GB |
| Price at 3 TB | $1.00/GB | $1.40 monthly / $0.98 yearly |
| Billing model | PAYG, never expires | Subscription plans (PAYG and rollover not confirmed) |
| Minimum spend | $50 | 1 GB ($3.50) |
| Refunds | Remaining balance within 24 h | Within 2 days if under 0.1 GB used |
| Targeting | Country | Country, city |
| SOCKS5 | Yes | Yes |
| Measured pool | — | 1,745,672 unique IPs measured (Proxyway); 80M+ claimed |
| Measured performance | — | 99.28% success (Proxyway) |
| Identity checks | No up-front verification in the terms; may “require additional information” when investigating (ToS §7) | None unless suspicious; Proxyway notes surprise verification |
Third-party measurements are Proxyway’s, with test dates where our sources give them. “—” means there is no current figure for PacketStream. See the methodology.
Cost at different volumes
| Scenario | PacketStream | Webshare |
|---|---|---|
| 10 GB | $50 up front ($10 used; rest never expires) | $27.50 / month |
| 100 GB | $100 | $225 / month |
| 1 TB | $1,000 | $1,500 / month |
| 3 TB | $3,000 | $4,200 monthly, or $2,940/month on a yearly plan |
Webshare’s free plan is 10 datacenter proxies, not residential. Webshare plan expiry is our reading of its monthly plans and is not confirmed.
For cost per page at different page weights, use the bandwidth calculator.
Bottom line
At every monthly Webshare tier, PacketStream costs less per GB, and its non-expiring balance suits irregular use. At 100 GB a month that is $100 against $225.
For PacketStream’s full review and ratings, read the PacketStream review. Other head-to-heads: vs Evomi , vs Decodo , vs IPRoyal , vs Bright Data , vs Oxylabs .
Sources
- PacketStream pricing and terms of service (checked 17 Oct 2026)
- Webshare pricing (checked 17 Oct 2026)
- Proxyway on Webshare: Proxyway: 99.28% success (test date not stated in our sources)
- Proxyway Proxy Market Research 2026
- Proxyway: Oxylabs, Decodo, Webshare and others form Source.ai
- Synthient PacketStream profile