Yelp is an online platform that provides consumers with a stage to voice out their opinions and publish reviews on local businesses which are mostly restaurants. Users can also discover and learn about new restaurants on Yelp and even do table reservations. It’s one of the most popular review platforms in the US but is still widely visited in other countries. Business owners are free to list their restaurants and Yelp users can also freely post their Yelp reviews.
Marketers, scrapers, or anyone in general that are looking to scrape data from Yelp also need the help of a Yelp proxy. Proxies work as a gateway between your device and the internet. Similar to a vpn, it also hides your IP address from Yelp allowing you to browse anonymously whenever you’re using it, while also providing an increase in security. Marketers can now use scraping tools on Yelp without the fear of getting banned and flagged.
The best Yelp proxies are either datacenter proxies or residential proxies, depending on what you prefer. If you want a faster connection and are okay with losing a bit of security, then datacenter proxies are the best for you. If you want maximum security, privacy and maximum insurance that you won’t get banned, then residential proxies are the ones fit for you. As Yelp doesn’t have that strict of an anti-spam system, generally speaking, scraping Yelp with datacenter proxies would be good enough for most users.
Let’s set up a Yelp proxy server.
Note: Make sure that the web browser you’re using for Yelp is set to automatically copy your computer’s proxy settings. Google Chrome automatically does this, so it’s recommended to use it.
For Windows:
To set up proxies in Windows, simply search for “Proxy Settings” in your windows search bar and open the search result.
You are then given two options to choose from: Automatic proxy setup or Manual proxy setup. If you want windows to automatically detect your proxy settings, choose the first option. Choose the second option if you want to utilize a specific ip address and port number.
If you chose the first option, then:
- Turn on Automatically detect Settings
- Turn on Use setup script
- Enter the script address
- Click Save
If you chose the second option, then:
- Turn on Use a proxy server
- Input both server address and port number
- If you have any addresses you would like to visit without a proxy, enter them here
- Turn on Don’t use the proxy server for local addresses check box if you want to access a local server without a proxy
- Click Save
For Mac.
To start configuring your proxy settings in MacOS, simply:
Step 1. Click on the Apple Icon.
Step 2. On the drop down menu, click on “System Preferences”.
Step 3. Click on “Network”
Step 4. Click on “Advanced”
Note: Make sure to connect to your wi-fi first.
Step 5. Click on “Proxies”
This should then redirect you to MacOS proxy settings. MacOS is more straightforward compared to windows. You only have one option which is to manually configure your proxy server.
Here are the steps to follow:
- Select which proxy IP protocol you want to configure. This depends on which protocols your proxy service provider offers.
- Turn on Secure Web Proxy
- Input the Proxy Server Address and Port Number
- Click OK to save the configurations
Note: You may be prompted for your Mac user password to save your settings.
For Mobile:
To set up mobile proxies, simply change your phone’s proxy settings. Yelp will automatically copy your phone’s proxy settings whenever you use it. This is applicable for both Android and IOS. Here’s a thorough guide for Android and another one for iPhone.
Congratulations! You have now finished configuring a Yelp proxy server. Note that the first time you visit it, there will be a pop up asking for your login credentials.
