Guide

What is a web proxy and how does it work?

A proxy server is a computer that goes to websites on your behalf: you talk to the proxy, and the proxy talks to the website. A web proxy is the simplest kind, a website you use right in your browser. This guide explains, with diagrams, how proxies work, which kinds there are, what they hide and what they do not, and how to use one safely.

What is a proxy server?

"Proxy" means someone who acts for someone else. A proxy server does exactly that on the internet: instead of connecting to a website yourself, you send your request to the proxy, the proxy fetches the page from the website and hands it back to you.

Think of a friend who collects a parcel for you. The shop only ever sees your friend, and your neighbours only see you talking to your friend, not which shop the parcel came from. In the same way, the website sees the proxy's IP address, and your network sees a connection to the proxy, not the websites behind it.

How a web proxy works, step by step

This is what happens when you open a website through OnlineProxy.eu:

1. You enter an address You type the website's address, or a search word, into the box on the proxy's home page and press Go.
2. A helper starts in your browser The proxy installs a small program in your browser tab, called a service worker, which from now on handles every request that tab makes.
3. An encrypted connection to the website For HTTPS websites, which are almost all of them, your browser opens an encrypted connection to the website. It runs through our server, which passes the data on but cannot read it.
4. The website answers the proxy To the website, the visit comes from our server in the EU, with our IP address.
5. Links are rewritten Before the page is shown, every link, picture and script on it is changed so that it also goes through the proxy.
6. You browse as usual Every link you click stays inside the proxy, until you go back to the home page.

Classic and browser-based web proxies

Web proxies have worked in two ways. Classic web proxies fetch and rewrite pages on their server. Browser-based web proxies, like the current version of OnlineProxy.eu, do that work in your browser and only use the server to pass on the connection.

Browser-based proxies also handle modern websites far better, because the program in your browser catches the requests that scripts on a page make, not just its links. Classic proxies still have one advantage: they work in very old browsers. Our classic version is one of them.

Types of proxies

"Proxy" covers several different tools. They all stand between you and the internet, but they work in different places and for different jobs.

• HTTP proxies are entered in the network settings of a browser or computer. For HTTPS websites they only pass on the encrypted connection (with a command called CONNECT), so they see which websites you visit but not the pages.
• SOCKS5 proxies pass on any kind of connection, not just web pages, which makes them popular for apps. They do not encrypt anything themselves.
• Transparent proxies are set up by the network, so you never configure them. Schools, companies and some providers use them to filter websites or to keep copies of popular files.
• Datacentre and residential proxies differ in where their IP address comes from: a hosting company, or a home internet connection. Websites trust home addresses more, which is why residential proxies cost more.

Forward and reverse proxies

Every proxy in this guide so far is a forward proxy: it works for you, the visitor. A reverse proxy works the other way round, for the website: it receives the visitors' requests and passes them to the website's servers behind it.

Almost every large website sits behind reverse proxies. They spread visitors over many servers, keep copies of pages close to visitors (content delivery networks), handle the encryption, and filter out attacks. You use them every day without noticing.

Anonymity levels

Proxies that you set in your browser or system are often sold by "anonymity level". It describes what the proxy reveals to websites in the headers it adds to each request.

Even a high-anonymity proxy can be recognised: many websites keep lists of the IP addresses of proxies, VPNs and data centres. OnlineProxy.eu does not pass your IP address on to the websites you open.

What a web proxy hides, and from whom

Software installed on the device itself, such as monitoring tools on school or work computers, can still see everything you do, proxy or not.

What people use web proxies for

• Opening websites blocked at school or work. The filter only sees the proxy. See unblocking websites at school or work.
• Getting around blocks in a country. Through a server in the EU, websites blocked by a provider or a government open again. See websites blocked in your country.
• Seeing a website as visitors in the EU see it. Prices, news and videos limited to certain countries.
• Keeping your IP address from a website. The website only learns the proxy's address.
• Opening a website on a device you cannot install anything on. A web proxy only needs a browser.

Limits of a web proxy

• It covers only the websites you open through it. Other tabs, other apps and the rest of your device keep using your normal connection.
• Some websites refuse proxies. They block visitors from server addresses or show a browser check that cannot be completed through a proxy. Some video platforms do the same for playback.
• It does not make you anonymous. If you log in, the website knows it is you, and cookies and browser fingerprinting still work.
• The proxy itself can be blocked. Filters often block known proxy websites as well.
• The operator keeps records. We log which websites are opened and from which IP address, for legal reasons (see Privacy).

If your safety depends on it, for example as a journalist, activist or source, do not use a web proxy. Use the Tor Browser, which is built to hide who you are and what you read even from the people who run it.

Is a web proxy safe?

A proxy sits in the middle of your connection, so it is only as trustworthy as the people who run it. Free proxies of unknown origin have been caught adding their own ads to pages, injecting tracking scripts or collecting what their users type. Follow these rules:

• Only use proxies with HTTPS, recognisable by the padlock in the address bar.
• Know who runs it: a real legal notice, a privacy policy and a way to contact them.
• Do not log in to important accounts, such as banking or email, through a proxy you do not trust.
• Do not install anything a proxy website asks for, such as extensions or "players".
• Read what it logs and for how long.
• Clear the proxy's cookies when you are done on a shared computer.

Proxy, VPN or Tor?

All three send your traffic through someone else's server, so that websites see a different IP address. They differ in what they cover and how much they protect.

In short: a web proxy is the quickest way to open one website, a VPN protects a whole device, and Tor is the tool for anonymity. Our guide to VPNs is listed at the end of this page.

How to use OnlineProxy.eu

1. Go to www.onlineproxy.eu.
2. Type the address of a website, for example wikipedia.org, or just what you are looking for.
3. Press Go. The website opens in the same tab, through our server in the EU.
4. Use the bar at the top to enter a new address, go back, or return to the home page.

• No account and nothing to install, on computers, phones and tablets.
• Ads and trackers blocked by default; you can switch this off in the settings.
• A data saver that stops pictures and videos from loading on slow connections.
• A quick exit that switches to a harmless website in one click.
• Privacy settings that keep websites out of your browser history and start every visit with a clean slate.
• Search with DuckDuckGo, Startpage or Qwant, right from the address box.
• A server in France, under EU law.

Common myths

Glossary

Proxy server

A computer that makes connections on behalf of others, so that the other side sees the proxy instead of them.

Web proxy

A website that opens other websites for you inside your browser tab, without installing anything.

IP address

The number that identifies your connection on the internet, given to you by your provider. Websites use it to guess your country and city.

Forward proxy

A proxy that acts for visitors, towards any website.

Reverse proxy

A proxy that acts for a website, in front of its servers.

SOCKS5

A proxy protocol that passes on any kind of connection, used mainly by apps.

Service worker

A small program a website can run in your browser, which a browser-based proxy uses to handle every request of the tab.

Geo-blocking

When a website shows or hides content depending on the country your IP address belongs to.

Tor

A free network that sends your traffic through three relays run by volunteers, with layered encryption, to make you anonymous.

Last updated: 13 November 2026.