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Astrill vs AirVPN is a rare match of two VPNs that reviewers say work in China, built on very different values. Astrill uses its own StealthVPN and OpenWeb protocols at $30 a month and logs session data. AirVPN, founded in 2010 by privacy activists, runs the open-source Eddie client, needs no email and forwards up to 20 ports. Gizmodo found it reliable in China in 2026.
This guide compares China use, anonymity, evidence, ports, price, ease and fit.
Astrill vs AirVPN in China
Install either before you travel; app stores may be blocked on arrival.
Astrill’s StealthVPN avoids deep packet inspection and OpenWeb disguises traffic as browsing, TechRadar notes; VPN.com says it historically stays online when controls tighten. AirVPN can run OpenVPN over TCP port 443, the port used by ordinary secure web traffic, ProPrivacy notes, and Gizmodo found it reliable in China.
Astrill has the longer specialist record; AirVPN is a credible, cheaper alternative for technical users.
Anonymity and Logging
Write down any AirVPN account details somewhere safe.
Eddie can also route traffic through Tor, ProPrivacy notes.
Astrill has no independent audit, Tom’s Guide notes. Its policy says it keeps your connection time, IP address, device type and app version for the length of each session. AirVPN needs no email and accepts several cryptocurrencies, ProPrivacy notes.
For anonymity, AirVPN is clearly ahead.
Astrill vs AirVPN on Evidence
Open code is not an audit, but it lets experts check the client.
Neither has a full no-logs audit. AirVPN’s open-source clients let outsiders read its code, and it publishes live load for every server. In 2024 it stopped serving users in Italy rather than apply the Piracy Shield blocklists, our review notes.
Our VPN audit tracker lists audited providers.
Ports and Torrenting
Pick a server near you.
Bind your client to the VPN before downloading.
Secure any service you expose through an open port.
AirVPN lets you forward up to 20 ports, ProPrivacy notes, useful for torrent clients and home servers. We found no port forwarding for Astrill in our sources.
Torrent users and self-hosters should pick AirVPN.
Price
Compare totals over the term you plan to keep.
Astrill’s VIP add-on costs extra on top.
Astrill costs $30 a month, $180 a year or $300 for two years, and Gizmodo found it does not refund. AirVPN works out to about $4.31 a month on a one-year plan, Cloudwards notes, and sells a three-day plan for testing.
AirVPN is roughly a seventh of Astrill’s yearly price. Our renewal price guide compares renewals.
Ease of Use and Devices
On iPhone, AirVPN users rely on standard OpenVPN or WireGuard apps.
Astrill’s apps look dated but are straightforward, TechRadar notes, and include two kill switches and VPN Sharing. AirVPN’s Eddie client has 12 tabs of settings, Cloudwards found, and no iOS version.
Beginners will find Astrill easier; experts will enjoy Eddie.
Count every device before choosing.
Both allow five devices on their standard plans, VPN.com and ProPrivacy note; Astrill’s VIP add-on lifts the limit and adds router support.
A router running either VPN covers everything behind it.
Who Each Is For
Pick by whether ease or control matters more.
Both are long-running services with very different philosophies.
Astrill suits China residents who want a polished, specialist service and can accept the cost, logs and no refunds. AirVPN suits technical users who want anonymity, open-source tools and open ports, in China or elsewhere.
Test AirVPN on its three-day plan before committing.
Protocols
Astrill’s OpenVPN connections can be slow to start, TechRadar found.
At home, WireGuard on either is the fast default.
Astrill supports WireGuard and OpenVPN alongside its own OpenWeb and StealthVPN protocols, Tom’s Guide notes. AirVPN supports WireGuard and OpenVPN, including OpenVPN over unusual ports such as TCP 22 and 443, Gizmodo notes.
Both give you ways around blocked ports.
Networks and Paying
Test first.
Astrill runs more than 300 servers in over 57 countries, VPN.com counts. AirVPN runs about 200 servers in some 22 countries, vpnpro counts, and publishes live load for each.
Astrill offers more locations; AirVPN shows more about each one.
Astrill accepts cards, PayPal, bank transfer and cryptocurrency including Monero, our tables record. AirVPN accepts several cryptocurrencies and needs no email, ProPrivacy notes.
For anonymous payment, AirVPN keeps fewer details.
Streaming, Kill Switch, Owners and Base
Cloudwards found Astrill reaches more streaming platforms than before; reviewers report AirVPN failing on major platforms, our review notes. Astrill offers two kill switches, and AirVPN’s Eddie has a Network Lock.
Test any kill switch by switching Wi-Fi off and on while connected.
VPN.com places Astrill in the Seychelles. AirVPN remains based in Perugia, Italy, and still describes itself as run by activists and hacktivists. We put the two side by side in our FastestVPN vs AirVPN comparison.
Those roots shape each service: commercial specialist against privacy collective.
How We Research
This page draws on Tom’s Guide’s, TechRadar’s, Gizmodo’s, Cloudwards’ and VPN.com’s Astrill coverage, Cloudwards’, ProPrivacy’s and Gizmodo’s AirVPN reviews and our AirVPN review. 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 Tom’s Guide’s Astrill review. Our full approach lives on the About Us page.
Astrill vs AirVPN FAQ
Astrill for a polished China service; AirVPN for anonymity, open source and price.
Reviewers say so: VPN.com for Astrill, Gizmodo for AirVPN.
AirVPN needs no email; Astrill logs session data.
AirVPN, at about $4.31 a month on one year.
We found none; AirVPN forwards up to 20 ports.
The Verdict
Astrill vs AirVPN: Astrill for a specialist, easy China service at a high price; AirVPN for anonymous, open-source access at a fraction of the cost.