Astrill VPN review

Astrill VPN is a versatile service that offers high-grade security and good speeds. It also works in China, protects against DNS leaks, and unblocks US Netflix. It’s even compatible with torrenting.

At the same time, Astrill VPN is on the higher price scale and doesn’t provide you with a money-back guarantee.

There are many other top VPN services, such as NordVPN, that are much cheaper, modern, and provide a generous 30-day money-back guarantee.

As Astrill VPN claims on their webpage that they avoid extensive marketing schemes, focusing instead on investing in hardware, software, and human resources. In this Astrill VPN review, I will thoroughly test their product to evaluate these claims.

	NordVPN	Astrill VPN
⭐ Rating:	4.9 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★	3.4 ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
🥇 Overall rank:	#1 out of #41	#29 out of #41
🖥️ Servers:	9,500+ servers in 149 countries	3,000+ servers in 58 countries
📖 No logs policy:	No logs	No logs
💵 Price:	From $3.09/month	From $12.50/month
🔥 Coupons:	NordVPN coupon 76% OFF	Astrill VPN coupon 50% OFF
🔒 VPN protocols:	OpenVPN, WireGuard (NordLynx), NordWhisper	WireGuard, OpenVPN, StealthVPN, OpenWeb
🍿 Streaming services:	Netflix, Hulu, BBC iPlayer, Disney+, and more	Netflix
🖥️ Platforms:	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS	Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS
📥 Simultaneous connections:	10	5
💁🏻 Support:	Knowledge base, FAQs, email, 24/7 live chat	Knowledge base, FAQs, email, 24/7 live chat

Astrill VPN pros and cons

Speed performance: is Astrill VPN fast?

VPN speeds are a hard nut to crack because they depend on a varied set of factors. To find out how fast Astrill VPN is, we found our baseline connection speed, then compared it to speed test results using various different tunneling protocols and VPN servers.

• Baseline: 300Mbps download/300Mbps upload

Location	UDP	TCP	OpenWeb	StealthVPN	WireGuard
US (NY)	224/47	259/183	299/32	229/56	252/96
US (FL)	246/27	40/21	300/221	256/132	258/52
US (LA)	258/30	173/13	299/42	247/32	247/48
UK	225/83	261/271	290/302	239/106	257/170
Germany	247/94	5/266	295/200	262/175	270/201
Japan	274/18	118/148	234/1.4	252/14	129/42
Singapore	225/7	45/33	298/96	222/23	241/30
Australia	213/21	122/29	290/85	135/19	207/45
Lithuania	174/287	238/350	294/297	178/285	280/290
India	19/0.3	7/3	302/218	4/0.1	6/0.5
Argentina	8/14	14/7	296/249	9/16	5/2
Canada	239/62	7/0.03	289/208	266/33	256/54

OpenVPN (UDP/TCP)

During the tests, OpenVPN frequently disconnected, sometimes to the point of preventing me from connecting to any other server for a few minutes. This happened even with TCP, which is unusual.

When it comes to speeds, UDP delivers the download speeds that you can expect. The average download speeds decrease by only 34% off the baseline (with servers in India and Argentina being the only low points). Meanwhile, the upload rates drop by quite a lot – 80% on average.

Meanwhile, Astrill VPN's TCP speed results are kind of a mess – depending on the server location, the VPN can be extremely fast or quite slow. On average, the download and upload speeds drop by around 60% off the baseline.

OpenWeb and StealthVPN

OpenWeb and Stealth VPN may be listed together, but they're very different. OpenWeb provides great speeds, and connection times are almost instant. On average, OpenWeb reduced my download speed by 3% and upload by 46%.

Since Stealth VPN has really just modified OpenVPN (UDP), the speeds are on par with the results of the previous section. The drop off for average download speeds is around 36%, while the uploads suffer a 75% decrease.

WireGuard

WireGuard has a reputation for being one of the fastest tunneling protocols. Astrill VPN slows downloads by around 30%, which is expected – but upload speeds drop sharply by 71%.

Astrill VPN deserves credit for offering a solid experience across all its tunneling protocols. Every single one is usable and has real-world scenarios where it could be useful. Speed-wise, the most impressive is OpenWeb.

Streaming: does Astrill VPN work with Netflix?

Astrill is a decent VPN for streaming. During our tests, we managed to unblock Netflix US without triggering any alarms.

Platform	Status
Netflix	✔️ Only with US Netflix
BBC iPlayer	❌
YouTube	❌

The next on the list was BBC iPlayer. While it’s not as popular as Netflix, it offers lots of awesome British TV content. Sadly, if you want to enjoy it, you'll have to turn to other VPN providers. Astrill VPN didn't manage to unblock BBC iPlayer.

When it comes to YouTube, you can access the site, but geo-restricted videos remain unavailable. You might also notice everything is in Chinese because Astrill is popular in China, and Google (which owns YouTube) sees some of its IP addresses as Chinese.

All in all, Astrill VPN is suitable for streaming as long as Netflix US is your main target. Otherwise, you should check out our best streaming VPNs and choose the one that offers a limitless streaming experience.

Does Astrill VPN allow torrenting?

Astrill VPN’s servers are compatible with P2P traffic. I can confirm that torrenting works, and the download speeds were really good, too. They topped around 20MB/s (160mbps) – a very good result even without a VPN, considering my baseline connection. With that said, torrent speeds depend on lots of different factors, so apply this result to your situation with caution.

Astrill VPN features

Astrill VPN comes packed with a variety of features aimed at privacy-conscious users, frequent travelers, and those living under heavy internet restrictions. From advanced tunneling options to smart filtering tools, let’s take a closer look at what this VPN offers under the hood.

VPN sharing

Usually, if you need a VPN on a device that doesn't support it, the answer is manual setup on the router. This isn't very simple or convenient.

Astrill recognizes this problem and offers a different solution: easy-to-use VPN sharing between devices. This feature is currently available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It lets you share your VPN connection with devices that normally couldn't use one. All you have to do is toggle the feature in the settings. The app will automatically reconfigure and give you the gateway and DNS addresses to connect to.

When using this feature, your connection will go to your PC, become encapsulated, and sent through the VPN server, hiding your IP address. This is a great way to collect Microsoft Rewards points on Xbox if the app isn't available in your region or watch foreign Netflix libraries on Apple TV.

Smart Mode

Astrill's Smart Mode excludes local websites from the VPN tunnel and includes foreign ones. If you're in China and turn on Smart Mode, local sites like WeChat will load normally, but sites like Wikipedia will use the VPN and open with a foreign IP.

This not only keeps your iInternet speed optimal, but also allows access to local services that might be unavailable when using a foreign address. For example, accessing your bank with a foreign IP could trigger security measures or prevent access altogether.

The feature is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android devices, which should cover most of your devices.

Application Filter

If Smart Mode isn't smart enough for you and you'd rather have full control over how websites and apps are routed, Astrill VPN offers the Application Filter – its version of split tunneling.

Using the Application Filter, you can exclude certain domain names or IP addresses from the VPN connection (and connecting directly). The split tunneling feature is available on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. So, if you're an iOS user, you'll have to make do with Smart mode.

Port Forwarding

With Port Forwarding, Astrill lets you redirect connections from your local LAN to external devices. This is an additional gap that could be exploited, but it can be a method to set up a game server, for example.

Astrill VPN forwards the traffic to a VPN's IP and directs it back to your connected device. So, the barrier between your device and the server is still present. This works best with a dedicated IP address, allowing you to forward all the ports. In contrast, it's only possible to forward a single pre-selected port on common servers.

If this whole deal seems like too much risk with too little reward, you can disable the feature.

Deep web support

If you ever wanted to browse deep web without the Tor browser, Astrill has just the solution for you. They are one of a few VPN service providers that natively support deep web domains. So, you can type in an address that ends with .onion, and it will load.

It can potentially be a good alternative to various browser add-ons that have exposed Tor users to dangers in the past. This Astrill feature relies on domain detection, enabling the Tor network when a deep web domain is selected. So, it can be a pretty convenient way to access the dark web.

Is Astrill VPN secure?

Astrill VPN is a secure VPN service. Your connection is encrypted with a high-grade cipher and routed with cutting-edge tunneling protocols. Their kill switch proved to be decent, and the business is registered far outside the Eyes alliances. If you’re looking for anonymity, Astrill VPN can deliver on its promises, including DNS leak protection.

Encryption

Astrill VPN uses AES-256 with private encryption keys that are renegotiated every 24 hours. I'd like the refresh interval to be shorter, as it would reduce the window of opportunity for exploits. That said, AES-256 is a strong encryption method and hasn’t been broken so far.

Although this isn't directly related to the encryption, there are additional commands based on the OpenVPN configuration files. Some of them improve compatibility between the clients, which is an unconventional approach. The ports used are non-standard, which means that it's far less likely to follow typical VPN patterns – this makes Astrill VPN more difficult to block.

Tunneling protocols

You can connect to the VPN using different tunneling protocols. Each one handles data differently, so speeds and security levels can vary. Astrill VPN provides a good variety of tunneling protocols to cover most use cases.

WireGuard. WireGuard is the newest open-source tunneling protocol, and it’s faster and more efficient than older ones like OpenVPN. This should be the default option for most users.

OpenVPN is one of the most widely used open-source tunneling protocols. It comes in two main variants: UDP (faster/less secure) and TCP (slower/safer). These days, more users are better off just switching to WireGuard VPN instead of OpenVPN over UDP.

StealthVPN. This tunneling protocol is best described as a modified version of OpenVPN that scrambles your traffic and hide the fact you're using a VPN. The performance is similar to OpenVPN UDP.

OpenWeb. OpenWeb is a one-of-a-kind protocol based on TCP that allows you to switch VPN servers in seconds without waiting for the software to reconnect. This means that you can switch VPN servers in seconds without waiting for the software to reconnect. The speed drop-off is almost non-existent, and the traffic looks indistinguishable from regular HTTPS. All of this makes it very hard to block. With all that said, with OpenWeb you can either encrypt only your browser traffic (default) or all traffic.

Overall, I'm happy with what Astrill VPN offers. Its tunneling protocol section ditches IKEv2, which is still included in most VPN provider setups. However, with Wireguard, OpenWeb, and Stealth VPN, it covers all the necessary bases.

Kill switch vs App Guard

Astrill VPN has a kill switch – a failsafe mechanism for when the connection between the VPN server and your device becomes disrupted. Unplanned server downtimes are unavoidable, so this protects your anonymity even under such circumstances.

For Windows users, Astrill offers a slightly different kill switch version called App Guard, which lets you block only specific apps (like BitTorrent clients or chat programs) from accessing the internet if the VPN disconnects, while allowing other apps to keep working normally. Together with the research team, we checked how a kill switch is implemented using 2 tests. In the first, we blocked the connection to the server via the router, causing a client-side kill switch trigger. In the second, we disabled OpenVPN processes, causing a software conflict to check how the app resolves it.

During the firewall test, the app did not leak my IP at any point. However, it took around 5 minutes to figure out that something was wrong. When Astrill finally detected that there was no connection, it displayed a "waiting for server reply" message. So, this should be the key sign that the kill switch has triggered. In the end, the app didn't reconnect or warn that the connection wasn't available. If their server ever goes down while you're connected to it, you'll have to reconnect manually.

After I disabled some OpenVPN processes, the app immediately found the issue and reconnected within seconds without exposing my IP. However, when killing both Astrill VPN's daemon and OpenVPN, my IP started leaking. The app detected the issues only after a couple of minutes. This time, it was unable to fix itself and reconnect.

To summarize, while Astrill's kill switch may falter in some cases, this is quite unlikely in real-world scenarios.

Logging

Astrill VPN is registered in the Seychelles, which is a privacy-friendly country. It's out of reach for the Five, Nine, and Fourteen eyes surveillance alliances, and the country has no data retention laws. It's an ideal location choice for a privacy-focused business like Astrill.

When it comes to their policies, Astrill claims to keep no logs of its users' activities. They keep some session information in the form of anonymized data, but that's something that most services do. That's useful for them later on when they're optimizing the servers to be more efficient.

As of writing this article, they appeared in no privacy scandals, but there are no published third-party audit reports, either. It would help their cause if they manage to be a more transparent company, and audits could be the way to do it.

Servers and locations

Surprisingly, Astrill VPN has a really modest server list. They run 142 servers across 58 countries. So, with other competitors counting servers in thousands, this seems like a pretty significant drawback.

Regions	Number of countries
Americas	5 countries
Europe	36 countries
The Asia Pacific	11 countries
The Middle East and Africa	5 countries

In reality, Astrill VPN is not a very popular service. And as you can see from the speed test results, their performance doesn't suffer much due to the small network.

There are some other potential issues, however. For example, Google will almost always assume you're Chinese because this service is widely used in China (and based on user activity, Google flags the server IP as Chinese).

Does Astrill VPN work in China?

Astrill not only works in China, but it's also considered one of the most popular VPNs for bypassing the Great Firewall. It helps that Astrill runs a .onion version of its website, which is still accessible in China.

The service includes the StealthVPN protocol, which is built to get past the Great Firewall by imitating normal HTTPS traffic and hiding any signs of VPN use. OpenWeb also looks like it could work for bypassing the Great Firewall.

Finally, a large proportion of Astrill's server pool is based in Asia, which is ideal for users in China.

Plans and pricing

I wish I could say Astrill VPN’s pricing is average – but it’s not. Some features are locked behind a VIP plan, and overall, it’s just pretty expensive. Here’s what it costs:

Version	Price
1 month	$30.00
1 year	$15.00/month
2 year	$12.50/month

Visit Astrill VPN

Even without the addition of Private IPs for specific servers (an additional $5.00/month), Astrill VPN is one of the most expensive VPN services on the market.

You do get 5 simultaneous connections, but there is just a 7-day free trial if you contact support before purchasing a plan. There's also no refund policy. Yet, there is a very basic Android version available for free in the Google Play store, though it likely won't be enough to get the complete picture.

Some payment options, like credit cards or PayPal also require phone confirmation, which isn't common for cybersecurity tools. It also supports AliPay, Union Pay, WebMoney, Perfect Money, and cryptocurrencies. So, there are methods to pay anonymously, but telephone verification is something that should be scrapped.

VIP package

You can choose the VIP data package, which provides access to special servers in China, Taiwan, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, and the USA. These servers stand out for being connected to premium networks with direct routes to Asia, offering faster and more stable performance.

Besides, the Multi-hop (chaining VPN servers) feature is available for VIP users only. However, since this option costs extra, the multi-hop you get is supercharged. You can configure up to 3 multi-hop server combinations, picking the needed countries yourself.

Sadly, this option is measured in data packages, so if you need an additional 100GB of VIP server traffic on top of your regular subscription, you'll have to pay an additional $10.00/month. Each upgrade step increases the total amount, so it's possible to get 1000GB of VIP server traffic, which would cost you an additional $100.00/month on top of your regular subscription.

Interface and ease of use

Astrill VPN’s interface feels a bit outdated compared to modern VPNs – but let’s take a closer look at how it performs on different platforms and what you can expect from each app’s design and usability.

Windows

Astrill’s app doesn’t look like something you’d expect from a $12.50/month VPN. In fact, it feels pretty outdated.

The upside is that it gets quite technical, with many settings, menus, and things you can tweak. Whether it frightens you or is something you're looking for in a VPN is up to you to decide.

Functionality-wise, there are many low-level features, that aren't available on most consumer VPNs. In other words, if you have the desire to disable DHCP and change DNS settings to make VPN connection sharing possible, - this may be the VPN for you.

On the other hand, if you’re a beginner looking for something easy to use, Astrill’s apps might be frustrating.

I was surprised to see that you can set up the VPN on your router directly from the app. The support is limited, and it does get quite technical, but this is certainly a welcome feature.

Still, with so many settings, it becomes quite easy to overlook some things, even for pros. For example, the network path trace when using OpenWeb did not indicate that I was connecting through a VPN server. Yet my browser could not detect my actual location. I only later found out that there was the option to choose whether the protocol should only apply to browser traffic or all traffic.

macOS

The Windows and macOS version shares the same look. Although you would expect the macOS app to be more user-friendly, this is just not the case.

There are some cuts in functionality, too. For example, split tunneling is limited only to web browsers, which is a strange limitation considering it support Smart Mode just fine.

Otherwise, OpenVPN connections seemed to be working a little better on macOS than on Windows. There were no frequent disconnects, and the overall connection experience was smoother.

Linux

The app is offered in three formats: DEB packages, RPM packages, and a bash script. I find this to be an excellent selection, as it covers the most popular distributions and provides an alternative if your distribution is not supported by these packages.

I was able to set up the app easily.. It also has the same UI and available settings as the Windows app. I did not find any issues with the OpenVPN connections with this version of the app.

Android

With Android, Astrill seems to have improved the UI. The colors and design match its website more than the desktop app does.

On the downside, there are some feature cuts. There is no OpenVPN tunneling protocol and no kill switch. This on its own reduces the app's usability quite a lot. Other additions like VPN sharing, DNS, and WebRTC leak prevention systems aren't included either.

iOS

If the Android app’s missing features disappointed you, the iOS app will be even more frustrating. It doesn't offer much of anything in terms of settings and only supports OpenVPN. This is a problem since the protocol seldom works in China.

The app itself lacks even the polish that was present on the Android app. The color scheme is like a port from the Windows version, which isn't a good thing. I hope that they update the user interface as soon as possible.

Customer support

When it comes to customer support, Astrill VPN has its Wiki with many guides and tutorials on how to set everything up. There's also a pretty extensive customer support portal that includes FAQs as well as video tutorials.

For direct contact with customer support agents, there's a contact form and 24/7 live chat. I contacted customer support via live chat about my issue with OpenVPN on Windows. The representative connected with me in around one minute.

Overall, the customer support experience was good. The agent went through the main troubleshooting steps and answered all of my questions. However, it could not resolve the issue.

Is Astrill VPN any good and worth getting?

Astrill VPN is a good enough VPN service: it works for some streaming platforms, torrenting is allowed, the service is based in a privacy-friendly location, and it has excellent customer support, to name a few.

However, its main appeal is probably for users in restrictive countries like China, Russia, Iran, and others. Astrill is one of the best at bypassing strict firewalls and has many servers in Asia.

Yet it's also very hard to recommend this VPN to an average user – a smooth, intuitive experience is simply not the strength of this advanced VPN software.

Finally, Astrill is very expensive, and some features are locked away behind a VIP paywall that adds $10.00 to the (already steep) price. The market is now saturated with great VPNs. The most expensive option isn't always the best.

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