Quick answer
Why does my Japanese proxy IP show another city or country?
IP location databases estimate where an address is, from registry records, routing data and measurements, and they disagree or lag behind when providers move addresses. Some databases place Japanese and Korean home IPs in Tokyo or Seoul, where the provider is registered, whatever the real region; the country is usually right. JapanProxies sells residential IPs in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong, with country and city targeting, from $2.62 for 1 GB, paid in crypto with no KYC.
How does IP geolocation work?
An IP address carries no location. Companies such as MaxMind, IP2Location, ipinfo and DB-IP build databases that map address ranges to places, using several sources:
- Registry records. In East Asia, addresses are allocated by APNIC, with national registries such as JPNIC in Japan, KRNIC in South Korea and TWNIC in Taiwan. Records show the network holder and its country, not the home.
- Routing data. Which network announces a range on the internet, and from where.
- Measurements. Response times from known points, which narrow down a region.
- Feeds and corrections. Some networks publish a geofeed (RFC 8805) listing where their ranges are used, and users submit corrections.
Each database weighs these sources differently, so two services can give two answers for the same IP.
Why are East Asian residential IPs often placed in the capital?
Large home broadband providers in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan serve the whole country from address pools registered to their head office or to a few regional hubs. When a database has no better signal, it uses that registered place: Tokyo for many Japanese ranges, Seoul for Korean ones, Taipei for Taiwanese ones.
The result is that the country is usually correct and the city often is not. Even with city targeting (-city-osaka), a database may place the IP at the provider's registered city: check the country first, then the city with two databases.
Why can the country be wrong?
Less often, a database places an IP in the wrong country. Common causes:
- Recently moved ranges. A provider started using an address range in another country, and the database has not caught up.
- Networks that operate in several places. A range registered to a regional company can be placed where the company is registered, not where the home is.
- Old data. Free databases are updated less often than paid ones.
If an IP-check page shows a country other than the one you asked for, check it on two more services before you contact support.
How do I check an exit IP properly?
- Use a sticky session, so every check sees the same IP:
USERNAME-country-jp-session-geo1-ttl-10. - Ask two or three services, for example
https://ipinfo.io/jsonand the lookup pages of MaxMind or IP2Location. - Look at the WHOIS record of the IP on APNIC: the network name tells you which provider it belongs to.
- Compare the country, not only the city. For search and price checks the country is what matters.
- If you still believe the country is wrong, email [email protected] with the IP, the time and the services you used.
P="http://USERNAME-country-jp-session-geo1-ttl-10:[email protected]:7777"
curl -s -x "$P" https://ipinfo.io/json
curl -s -x "$P" https://api.country.is/What does a website do with my location?
Each site uses its own database, or its own signals. Google, for example, shows "based on your IP address" or a similar note in its page footer and uses other signals too. Your own site may use the database built into your CDN.
That is why a check through a residential IP should be judged on the page itself: does it show yen prices, Korean results or the Hong Kong version? If your own site places an IP in the wrong country, its database may need an update; see localization testing.
Location questions
Can I choose Tokyo or Seoul?
JapanProxies offers city targeting: add -city-tokyo or -city-seoul to the username; city availability varies. As this page explains, some databases place Japanese and Korean home IPs in Tokyo or Seoul whatever their real region, so check the city with two databases.
Which IP location database is the most accurate?
None is right every time. Paid databases are usually updated more often than free ones. For a decision, compare two or three and check the WHOIS record.
Can I ask a database to correct an IP?
Yes. MaxMind and other providers accept correction requests on their websites. Network operators can also publish a geofeed (RFC 8805).
Does a wrong city change search results?
It can change local results and maps, not usually the national rankings. For national checks, a country-level IP is enough.
What if the country is wrong on every service?
Email [email protected] with the IP, the time with its time zone and the country code you used. Change the session ID to get another IP meanwhile.
Sources (2)
- RFC 8805: A Format for Self-Published IP Geolocation Feeds — IETF (2020-08)
- APNIC WHOIS search — APNIC (checked 2026-10-13)
Country and city targeting in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong
1 GB for $2.62, paid in crypto. No KYC.