When a 4G or 5G mobile proxy triggers rotation, the device’s modem disconnects from the carrier network, similar to toggling airplane mode, and then reconnects to obtain a fresh IP address.
The new address comes from the carrier’s carrier‑grade NAT (CGNAT) pool, a shared set of public IPv4 addresses that many phones use because IPv4 scarcity prevents a unique address for each device.
Providers typically quote a rotation time of a few seconds, though the carrier controls the pool and may sometimes reassign the same IP or delay the change.
Two main rotation methods exist: pool rotation, where each request is routed through a different IP from a large pool, and reconnect rotation, which relies on the modem’s reconnection to the carrier as mobile proxies do.
Both 4G and 5G networks largely operate on the same LTE core, so IP assignment and rotation work similarly across the two technologies.
For tasks such as price monitoring, ad verification or SEO tracking, users are advised to match the rotation style—timed, on‑demand or sticky—to the specific requirement, rotating between tasks rather than during logged‑in sessions.