Astrill is one of the few VPN companies that names China on its own website, and it sells mainly to expats and travelers. Getting it to work there comes down to three things: install it on every device before you land, pick the right protocol, and keep a way back in when something gets blocked. Everything below comes from Astrill's own site and setup manuals, checked on November 4, 2026. Plans and prices are on the Astrill listing, and our guide to VPNs for China compares it with other options.

Before you leave: buy, install and sign in

Do all of this at home. Freedom House reports that hundreds of VPN services are unavailable in Apple's App Store in China, and that Google search and many other Google services are blocked there, so downloading an app after you arrive may not work.

  1. Buy a plan on astrill.com. One month costs $30, one year $180 and two years $300. Astrill's refund policy says all sales are final, suggests buying the shortest plan if you want to try it, and says no refund is given if your internet provider blocks the VPN. You can pay by card (including UnionPay), PayPal, bank wire, WeChat Pay, AliPay or Bitcoin.
  2. Skip the iPhone in-app plan unless an iPhone is all you use. It costs $29.99 a month, covers one iOS device and gives you no choice of protocol. A plan bought on the website covers up to 5 devices connected at once, plus one router.
  3. Sign in to download. Astrill's apps only download for an active account, so buy first, then sign in on the Downloads page from each device.
  4. Install and test on every device. Connect once on each laptop, phone and tablet, then update the apps the day you leave.
  5. Save the backup addresses. If astrill.com won't load, Astrill runs a mirror at astrill-mirror.com and a Tor address listed in its FAQ. Note your login email and password somewhere you can reach offline.

Set up Astrill on Windows or Mac

The Windows app supports Windows 10 and 11.

  1. Download the installer from Astrill's Downloads page. On Windows the file is astrill-setup-win.exe; on a Mac it is astrill-setup-mac.dmg.
  2. Run it. Windows may show a security warning, which Astrill says you can accept. On a Mac, Ctrl-click the file and choose Open if macOS blocks it.
  3. Follow the installer and restart the computer when it finishes, as Astrill recommends.
  4. Open Astrill (a gray star icon) and sign in with the email and password from your sign-up.
  5. The app starts in OpenWeb mode. To send all your traffic through the VPN, open the OpenWeb menu in the title bar and choose StealthVPN.
  6. Pick a server from the drop-down and press the OFF button to connect. It turns to ON once you're connected.
  7. Right-click the Astrill icon in the system tray and choose Check My IP. If the page shows an Astrill IP address, the VPN is working.

Set up Astrill on Android

  1. Install Astrill VPN from Google Play, or sign in on Astrill's website and download the APK file. Astrill's manual also explains how to install the APK from a Windows PC over a USB cable.
  2. Open the app and sign in.
  3. Choose a server from the drop-down list and tap the red button.
  4. Allow the request to create a VPN connection.
  5. Switch to StealthVPN and connect again. Under VPN options you can choose Fast (UDP) or Reliable (TCP) and set the port to Auto, 80, 443 or a number of your own.

If the app won't install, Astrill's Android page suggests turning off your antivirus app for a moment and trying again.

Set up Astrill on iPhone or iPad

  1. Install Astrill VPN from the App Store before you travel. Astrill warns that fake apps copy its name and star logo, so use the link on its own Downloads page.
  2. Sign in with your Astrill account.
  3. Tap Allow when iOS asks to add a VPN configuration, then confirm with your passcode or Touch ID.
  4. Pick a server and tap the red OFF button to connect.

StealthVPN isn't available on iPhone or iPad. Astrill lists OpenWeb, WireGuard and OpenVPN for iOS, and OpenWeb is the one it describes for censored countries.

Which protocol to use in China

  • StealthVPN is Astrill's own protocol, based on OpenVPN with an extra layer of obfuscation. Astrill's FAQ says it is hard for countries with heavy censorship such as China to detect and block. You can run it over TCP or UDP on almost any port, so you can make it look like web traffic on TCP port 443 and switch when one combination stops working. It runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and routers.
  • OpenWeb is Astrill's other in-house protocol, from 2009. Astrill says its traffic looks like ordinary HTTPS browsing, and it switches servers within seconds because it doesn't hold a fixed connection open. On desktop you can set it to cover your browsers only. It works on every Astrill app, including iOS.
  • OpenVPN is the protocol to avoid. Astrill's own protocols page says firewalls detect it easily and that China often blocks it.
  • WireGuard is fast and available in Astrill's apps, but Astrill makes no claims about it in China.

A sensible routine is StealthVPN on laptops and Android phones, OpenWeb on iPhones, and OpenWeb as the first thing to try when StealthVPN won't connect.

Keep Chinese apps working with Smart mode

With every site going through a foreign server, local banking, payment and news services can refuse you or slow down. Smart mode sends international sites through the VPN and lets local sites see your real IP. Astrill describes it as a feature for internet users in China and says it works only in some countries, with a list available from support. For StealthVPN, OpenVPN and WireGuard, the website filter has a Tunnel only international sites mode and an Unblock sites mode, which tunnels only sites blocked in your country. Astrill says Unblock sites works in some countries and names China as one.

Servers and the VIP add-on

Astrill lists servers in 119 cities across 58 countries, including Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. If speed to Asia matters, the VIP add-on starts at $10 a month for 100 GB of traffic on VIP servers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, the US, Japan, Singapore, Korea and China. It also gives your traffic priority on every server and adds multi-hop, which works only with OpenWeb.

When Astrill stops connecting

Freedom House reports that VPN blocking in China usually gets worse before high-profile events such as legislative sessions. When a connection fails:

  1. Change server, then switch between UDP and TCP or try another port.
  2. Swap StealthVPN for OpenWeb, or the other way round.
  3. Contact Astrill support. Live chat and email run 24/7, though its support page says operators help in English only.
  4. Fall back on a second VPN from a different company. Proton VPN's free plan includes its own Stealth protocol on one device, with no data limit and no ads, which makes it a cheap backup to install before you go.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology banned unlicensed VPNs in 2017, and providers need government approval to offer one. Freedom House reports penalties for users: in August 2023 a software programmer was fined 200 yuan for using an unauthorized VPN, and police confiscated 1.1 million yuan of his income. Your risk depends on who you are and what you do online, and we can't give legal advice. If your employer offers an approved company connection, ask about it before you rely on any consumer VPN.