Multi-region

Overview

By default, Steel automatically selects the data center closest to the client’s request location when creating a new browser session. This ensures optimal performance and minimal latency for your browser automation tasks. However, you can also manually specify which region you want your browser session to run in using the region parameter.

This region selection determines the physical location of the browser instance itself, which can help reduce latency for applications targeting specific geographic areas or comply with data residency requirements.

Automatic Region Selection

When you create a session without specifying a region, Steel automatically determines the closest data center based on your request location:

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import Steel from 'steel-sdk';
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const client = new Steel();
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// Automatically uses the closest region
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const session = await client.sessions.create();

Manual Region Selection

To specify a particular region for your browser session, use the region parameter when creating a session:

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import Steel from 'steel-sdk';
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const client = new Steel();
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// Create session in Los Angeles data center
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const session = await client.sessions.create({
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    region: "LAX"
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});

Available Regions

Steel is available in the following regions:

Region vs Proxy Selection

Region selection determines where your browser session runs, which is different from proxy selection. The region parameter controls the physical location of the browser instance, while the useProxy and proxyUrl parameters control the network routing and IP address used by the browser for web requests.

You can combine region selection with proxy settings:

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// Browser runs in Frankfurt, but uses a US proxy for requests
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const session = await client.sessions.create({
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    region: "FRA",
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    useProxy: true
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});
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We'll be launching new features soon to allow you to control regions for proxies as well. Right now, all are US based.