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FastestVPN review: There are several reasons to use a VPN. Maybe you have private files that you don’t want to see compromised. Perhaps you want to use Netflix from another country and find your next binge-able show. Or maybe you want to bypass the firewalls of a country, so you have the freedom to surf every wave of the web.
Whatever the reason, I am here to tell you about FastestVPN, a VPN company based in the Cayman Islands. I will go over the pros and cons of VPNs, privacy laws, and features. Next, I’ll tell you how it was tested, the subscription options, how customer service works, and finally, what the app itself is like. At the end of this article, you will be an expert on FastestVPN, and you will know whether it is right for you or not.
FastestVPN review: Privacy and logging
The website of FastestVPN has a clear header indicating that the service has ‘No Logs whatsoever,’ with the text ‘We never log your internet activities.’ Nobody can follow you after visiting a particular website while you are connected to our server. Under the heading ‘Privacy Policy,’ we found almost the same message, with a little extra detail: We don’t save your logs anyway. Any information or logs related to your browsing history – the websites you visit, the content you download or stream, your traffic destinations, or your DNS queries – will remain with you and you alone’.
This sounds great, but there is no way to know if the company is adhering to these no-logging claims. It’s pretty much the same story with most VPNs, but some (TunnelBear, NordVPN, ExpressVPN, more) have subjected themselves to a public audit, which is real proof that they are doing what they promise. That’s a significant improvement over the usual ‘you can trust us, no, really’ approach, and we hope more providers will do the same in the coming years.
FastestVPN review: Performance
The FastestVPN website is not embarrassed to unblock its website because it boasts that the service allows you to ‘stream, buffer, view and listen to content that is censored and restricted – from anywhere in the world.’ Our real-world experience was a little different. For example, when we connected to FastestVPN’s server in the UK, we couldn’t get into the BBC iPlayer because the site displayed its usual ‘this content is not available at your location’ error.
Amazon Prime Video also blocked us, but we did manage to access US Netflix, and we had some limited success with Disney+ (the US servers didn’t work, but we were able to stream content via the UK and some other countries). Not great at all, but maybe good enough for some.
Our privacy tests gave more positive results, with multiple sites unable to detect IP or DNS leaks. FastestVPN also includes blocking ads, at least according to the website. We’re skeptical about the type of ad-blocking included with many VPNs because it often makes no difference at all, but FastestVPN was a surprise: it made even the most addressed pages readable again. The system isn’t as effective as free tools like uBlock Origin. Still, it’s good enough to be useful, especially since VPN-level blocking means it works automatically on any device you connect to without installing any more software.
Our speed tests found FastestVPN delivering 35-50Mbps in the UK on our 75Mbps test line. Forget the name; it’s far from being the fastest VPN – most of the quality competition manages 65Mbps+ on the same connection.
However, 35-50Mbps is perfect for many situations, and we found that FastestVPN scored to deliver similar speeds across the network. Even switching to the more remote servers made little difference, with connections from the UK to Brazil, Australia, India, and Hong Kong all capable of downloading speeds from 20 to 40Mbps.
FastestVPN review: Pricing and plans
FastestVPN’s 1-month plan averages $10, but this drops to a low $2.49 on the annual plan, a small $1.11 per month if you pay three years in advance, and a small $0.83 on the 5-year plan. We tend to avoid long-term contracts, but when prices are so low, there is minimal risk. That five-year protection costs just $49.95, for example; you could opt for a ‘sensible’ short-term monthly account with CyberGhost, but you’ll have spent $51.96 in only four months.
Whatever your preference, you can pay by card or PayPal, and there’s a 15-day money-back guarantee if something goes wrong. Some providers allow 30 days, but that’s plenty of time to understand if the service works for you; make sure you test the speed, unblock it, and all the other things you need as soon as you sign up.
Final words
Although it has a small network, FastestVPN can still be a great choice because of its privacy and security. The many features that make it possible to bypass censorship and generally anonymous online browsing. FastestVPN can get past Netflix Us, Disney+, and BBC iPlayer, but the lower server availability means you will miss out on a few Netflix libraries and streaming services outside the US. That’s it for our FastestVPN review.