FastestVPN review: A good choice for VPN newbies

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The last time we took a look at FastestVPN, we were impressed by its pricing, solid speed, and option to run 10 connections simultaneously, but were left a little cold by its slightly smaller feature set that lacked tools like a kill switch for cutting comms when a VPN connection is lost, and industry mainstays like split-tunnelling.

Either we weren’t the only people to make such complaints or FastestVPN reads Macworld (and why wouldn’t you, really?) but the company has made huge strides to improve pretty much every aspect of the experience.

That starts with a much cleaner Mac app that’s just as satisfying to hit the big power button on as any other VPN apps, as well as a big boost to server count with over 800 included. It’s also still remarkably affordable, with a $40 lifetime plan (which was actually $30 at the time we updated this review!) that’s cheaper than a couple of years on rival services, as well as now supporting power user features like multi-hop connections.

See how FastestVPN compares to other VPNs for Mac we have tested.

Will it make your traffic private? You bet, with a third-party auditor verified no-logs policy and aforementioned features like the kill switch. Will it help you get around geoblocks? Yes, although it’s much more likely with the streaming-focused servers.

Those are two of the biggest reasons to run a VPN for the vast majority of people, and for that, FastestVPN does a great job and for a lot less than others. Rivals do offer a larger server count, but the ease of use, and low barrier of entry, make FastestVPN one of our best VPN picks in 2025.

Features & Apps

FastestVPN is available on Mac (which we’ll be reviewing primarily here), but it also has Windows, iOS, iPadOS, Android, and plenty more apps. Have a look to see how it fairs against other options: Best VPNs for iPad and Best VPNs for iPhone.

That’s particularly important here because it allows 10 devices to be connected simultaneously, meaning your family can be covered with a single payment without needing to spring for paid add-ons (although those are available at $4 per device).

That makes buying a plan as simple as it gets, and every single one has 24/7 support for anyone that needs it, as well as a laundry list of features.

These include the Internet Kill Switch to shut down all traffic if your VPN drops for any reason, as well as a free NAT firewall and Adblocker that might make you tempted to run it even when you wouldn’t necessarily need a VPN.

All plans include 256-bit AES encryption and access to the full server count, too, which some rivals charge extra for.

Even the app, which has seen a facelift in recent times, is much nicer to look at. That sounds like a silly thing to say, but if you’re likely to be looking at it multiple times a day it’s nice to know it’s responsive and has light and dark mode options.

You’ll find a variety of VPN protocols to choose (more on those in a moment), and you can use Smart Tunneling to ensure certain apps go via a VPN while others don’t. You can now link servers together to double up on encryption if you really want to push obfuscation to the next level.

Performance

A VPN that slows your traffic to a crawl isn’t likely to be used for long, and while FastestVPN’s name may set expectations, it’s not quite top dog when it comes to speed.

Servers have recently been updated to 10 Gbps options, and there are four different protocols to make use of, with Wireguard, OpenVPN (TCP and UDP options) and IKEv2 available.

I tested around a dozen locations from my MacBook Air, using my upgraded gigabit internet speed, and found speeds to reach around 60% of my download speed at their peak, and upload speeds fared better.

It’s not quite the fastest around, but if you’re just looking to cover your digital tracks or watch Netflix in another country, it’ll certainly tick those boxes.

I’m particularly pleased that server latency is shown when you’re picking a server, as that can make a difference, and that’s not all.

FastestVPN also highlights certain streaming-focused servers to help get around geoblocking, meaning I was able to test Disney Plus, Netflix, BBC iPlayer and more from the comfort of my home in the UK. It’s worth noting results vary when using servers not specifically highlighted as being ‘Streaming’ servers, but there’s still plenty of choice.

Speaking of choice, FastestVPN has more than 800 servers, which is a lot – but in context, that’s dramatically less than NordVPN or ExpressVPN. Still, the price difference makes that easier to swallow.

Foundry

Privacy & Security

So, you can stream from other territories, but what about privacy? After all, it can be tricky to verify a “no logs” policy since it’s tricky to prove you’re not doing something (in this case, logging user data).

As with some of its contemporaries, FastestVPN is headquartered in the Cayman islands and has undergone a third-party audit from Altius IT. The report found that, outside of logins and billing, no user activity data is held by FastestVPN, and you can download the results to see them for yourself.

Pricing and plans

We’ve always advised caution against paying for multiple years of a VPN in advance, just because legislation around the sector continues to shift regularly. And yet, the pricing for FastestVPN makes it hard not to just stump up the $40 for an annual membership (sometimes $30).

The $5 rolling monthly contract is cheaper than some rivals, but an annual membership for $20 is also a great deal. Still, for just $40 it’s hard not go for a full lifetime membership – particularly if the service continues to improve at the same rate it has over the last few years.

Should you buy FastestVPN

Fantastic pricing, a thoroughly improved app and a whole host of additional features make FastestVPN an easy service to recommend, particularly anyone looking for an easy-to-use VPN that adds some additional utility for experts, too.