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IPVanish vs Astrill compares a cheap household VPN with an expensive China specialist. IPVanish, owned by Ziff Davis in the US, allows unlimited devices, costs $2.19 a month on two years and passed a Schellman no-logs audit in 2025, VPN.com notes. Astrill charges $30 a month for StealthVPN and OpenWeb, built for the Great Firewall, with no audit and no refunds, Gizmodo found.
This guide compares evidence, devices, China, price, refunds, streaming and fit.
IPVanish vs Astrill on Evidence
An audit is a snapshot; repeated ones show practices holding.
Schellman’s 2025 audit found IPVanish does not store connection timestamps, traffic, DNS queries or IP addresses, VPN.com notes, following a Leviathan audit in 2022. Astrill has no independent audit, Tom’s Guide notes, and its policy says it keeps your connection time, IP, device type and app version during each session.
VPN.com also notes IPVanish has a past ownership controversy and has been sold twice. Our VPN audit tracker compares records.
Devices
Count every device first.
However, very large accounts may be flagged, one review notes.
Therefore, families get the most from IPVanish.
Unlimited devices can be flagged above about 50, one review notes.
IPVanish allows unlimited simultaneous devices on every plan. Astrill allows five, VPN.com notes, with its VIP add-on lifting the limit and adding router support.
Large households fit IPVanish without extras.
China
No VPN can promise constant access in China.
Astrill’s StealthVPN avoids deep packet inspection and OpenWeb disguises VPN traffic as browsing, TechRadar notes, and VPN.com says Astrill historically stays online when China tightens controls. We found no China test for IPVanish in our sources.
For mainland China, Astrill is the specialist.
Price and Refunds
Pay monthly first if you try Astrill.
IPVanish costs $2.19 a month on two years with a 30-day refund, VPN.com notes. Astrill costs $30 a month, $180 a year or $300 for two years, and Gizmodo found it does not refund.
IPVanish is far cheaper and safer to test. Our renewal price guide compares renewals.
Torrenting
Pick a P2P server first.
Also, Astrill’s Smart Mode keeps local traffic outside the tunnel.
Check your client’s IP first.
VPN.com lists a SOCKS5 proxy in all IPVanish plans, though one 2026 review says it was quietly removed, so check before relying on it. We found no torrent-specific tools for Astrill in our sources.
Torrent users lean towards IPVanish.
Network, Streaming, Owners and Base
More servers mean more options when one is busy.
IPVanish runs more than 2,400 servers in over 90 countries, VPN.com counts. Astrill runs more than 300 servers in over 57 countries, and Cloudwards found it can now reach more streaming platforms than before.
IPVanish has the far larger network.
Read both privacy policies.
Ziff Davis owns IPVanish in the US, alongside StrongVPN. VPN.com places Astrill in the Seychelles, outside Five Eyes.
Our VPN ownership guide explains why owners matter.
Who Each Is For
In short, the IPVanish vs Astrill choice comes down to where you live.
IPVanish suits families and anyone outside China who wants unlimited devices, a recent audit and a low price. Astrill suits people in or travelling to mainland China who can accept its price, logs and lack of refunds.
Some China travellers keep a cheaper VPN for use at home.
Apps and Extras
Also, VPN Sharing helps cover gadgets that cannot run apps.
Astrill offers two kill switches and VPN Sharing, which turns one device into a hub for others, TechRadar notes. IPVanish’s apps include split tunnelling and WireGuard, one 2026 listing notes, and run on Fire TV.
Both cover the usual platforms; check your devices first.
Routers and a Simple Test
Astrill’s VIP add-on adds router support, and it works with DD-WRT, Tomato and Asuswrt-Merlin, our tables record. IPVanish offers pre-flashed router setups, one 2026 listing notes.
A router covers every device behind it.
Use IPVanish’s 30-day refund window to test it at home. If you are heading to mainland China, pay for one month of Astrill first, since it does not refund.
Install both before travelling.
Protocols and Support
IPVanish supports WireGuard, OpenVPN and IKEv2, one 2026 listing notes. Astrill adds its own OpenWeb and StealthVPN to WireGuard and OpenVPN, Tom’s Guide notes, though OpenVPN connections were slow to start in TechRadar’s tests.
At home, WireGuard on either is the fast default.
One 2026 review reports user complaints about IPVanish support and connection drops on some devices. Astrill’s apps look dated but work straightforwardly, TechRadar notes.
Send each a question before paying for a long plan.
Who Should Look Elsewhere
Weigh that first.
Torrent users who need open ports and anyone wanting open-source apps should look beyond both. People in China who want an audited service face a hard trade-off, since Astrill has no audit.
Our audit tracker lists alternatives.
How We Research
This page draws on VPN.com’s IPVanish and Astrill coverage, a 2026 IPVanish review, and Tom’s Guide’s, TechRadar’s, Gizmodo’s and Cloudwards’ Astrill coverage. We cross-checked these sources against each other, and where they conflict or something can’t be verified, we say so in the text rather than guessing. We checked time-sensitive figures, including prices in US dollars, on 8 October 2026. The main source we relied on is VPN.com’s IPVanish review. Our full approach lives on the About Us page.
IPVanish vs Astrill FAQ
IPVanish for households and price; Astrill for mainland China.
Yes, by Leviathan in 2022 and Schellman in 2025; Astrill has no audit.
IPVanish, with no limit.
Gizmodo found it does not; IPVanish gives 30 days.
IPVanish, at $2.19 a month on two years.
The Verdict
IPVanish vs Astrill: IPVanish for unlimited devices, a recent audit and a low price; Astrill only when mainland China is the job.