How to verify a pool before you pay

Vendors sell screenshots. Platforms see addresses. This is the five-step check we would run before paying for any residential pool.

Ask for a live sampleNot a screenshot — 20–50 addresses from the actual pool you will get, preferably from the same subnet you plan to use.
Check the ASN mixGroup the sample by ASN. If most addresses sit in one hosting ASN, you are buying resold datacenter space with a residential label.
Check hosting and blacklistsRun the sample through a checker that shows hosting/cloud ranges, Tor exits and DROP. A pool with a high bad ratio is a refund risk, not a bargain.
Compare two daysStatic residential should look the same tomorrow. If the sample changes country or ASN overnight, it is rotating under a static name.
Keep the evidenceSave the report and the IP list before you pay. If the platform flags an account later, this is the file that proves what you bought.

Checker Pricing

Tips

Ask for the country mix in writing. "Mixed Europe" often means mostly one datacenter country.
A pool that is 100% "residential" with almost no failures is suspicious — real pools have some bad addresses.
Test with your own platform account before scaling to ten stores, not after.

How many IPs should I sample?

20–50 is enough to see the ASN mix. Ask for the same subnet you will be assigned.

The vendor says the pool is static residential. What should I check?

The ASN and the hosting flag, and whether the same IPs still resolve to the same network two days later.

What if the sample looks fine but the platform still flags me?

The IP is only one signal. Device, payment and behavior matter too — but a bad pool makes every other signal worse.