Fastly CDN
Image optimization software
Live stream software
Video platform as a service (VPaaS) software
Content delivery network (CDN) software
Application server software
Load balancing software
Web server accelerator software
Video software
Web accelerator software
- Features
- Ease of use
- Ease of management
- Quality of support
- Affordability
- Market presence
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Pay-as-you-go
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Small
Medium
Large
- Media and communications
- Retail and wholesale
- Arts, entertainment, and recreation
What is Fastly CDN
Fastly CDN is an edge cloud content delivery network used to cache and deliver web content, APIs, and media with low latency and high throughput. It is typically used by engineering, DevOps, and digital product teams to accelerate websites and applications, manage caching behavior, and route traffic at the edge. The platform emphasizes programmable edge logic (via VCL and edge compute) and real-time configuration/analytics for operational control. It is commonly deployed alongside origin infrastructure and other security and observability tools.
Programmable edge caching control
Fastly provides fine-grained control over caching and request/response handling using VCL and edge configuration primitives. This supports advanced use cases such as custom cache keys, header normalization, conditional routing, and tailored TTL/invalidation strategies. Compared with many image-focused optimization tools in the reference set, Fastly is designed for broader HTTP delivery and edge logic rather than only media transformation.
Real-time configuration and purge
Fastly supports rapid cache invalidation and configuration changes that can be applied quickly across the edge network. This is useful for frequently updated content, incident response, and release workflows where stale content has business impact. The operational model is oriented toward engineering teams that need immediate control rather than a purely UI-driven media pipeline.
Integrated edge compute options
Fastly includes edge compute capabilities (e.g., Compute@Edge) that allow running application logic closer to users. This can reduce origin load and latency for personalization, authentication helpers, and lightweight API processing. It differentiates from many products in the reference set that focus primarily on image/video transformation and asset management rather than general-purpose edge execution.
Higher implementation complexity
Advanced features often require knowledge of caching semantics, HTTP behavior, and VCL/edge programming concepts. Teams without dedicated web performance or platform engineering resources may face a steeper learning curve than with turnkey image optimization services. Misconfiguration can lead to cache fragmentation, unexpected bypass, or content staleness.
Not a full media platform
Fastly can deliver video and live streams over HTTP, but it does not replace end-to-end video platform functions such as encoding/transcoding pipelines, DRM packaging workflows, or a complete media asset management layer. Organizations needing a VPaaS-style workflow may still require additional specialized services. Image optimization features exist through edge logic and integrations, but they are not the primary product focus compared with dedicated image optimization platforms.
Cost management can be challenging
CDN and edge compute costs can vary significantly with traffic volume, cache hit ratio, and egress patterns. Without careful monitoring and tuning, usage-based billing can be difficult to predict for spiky workloads or large media delivery. This is a common constraint for CDN-centric products versus fixed-scope optimization tools.
Plan & Pricing
Tiered packages (Network Services & Compute)
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Network Services — Basic | $1,500 per month | 100M requests/month; 20 TLS domains; 30M monthly image requests; 2 mTLS; 1M WebSocket minutes; Standard support. |
| Network Services — Starter | $6,000 per month | 500M requests/month; 40 TLS domains; 150M monthly image requests; Unlimited mTLS; 1M WebSocket minutes; Gold support. |
| Network Services — Advantage | Contact sales | 2B requests/month; 80 TLS domains; 800M monthly image requests; Gold support. |
| Network Services — Ultimate | Contact sales | 5B requests/month; 150 TLS domains; 2.5B monthly image requests; Enterprise support. |
| Compute — Starter | $500 per month | 500M requests/month; CPU time per request 20 ms; GB-seconds duration 5M; 20 services. |
| Compute — Advantage | Contact sales | 2B requests/month; 20 ms CPU time; 20M GB-seconds duration; 30 services. |
| Compute — Ultimate | Contact sales | 5B requests/month; 20 ms CPU time; 50M GB-seconds duration; 50 services. |
Usage-based pricing (Full Site Delivery / Pay-as-you-go)
Pricing model: Pay-as-you-go (billed per-region) Free tier/trial: 100 GB bandwidth free per month; 1 million requests free per month (see details below).
Bandwidth (per GB, billed per GB per region per month)
- 0 - 100 GB: Free (per-region)
- 100 GB - 10 TB: Africa $0.28; Asia $0.19; Australia $0.19; Europe $0.12; India $0.28; Mexico $0.16; North America $0.12; South America $0.19; South Korea $0.28
- Next 10 TB: Africa $0.24; Asia $0.14; Australia $0.14; Europe $0.08; India $0.24; Mexico $0.12; North America $0.08; South America $0.14; South Korea $0.24
Requests (billed per 10,000 requests per region per month)
- 0 - 1,000,000: Free
- 1,000,000 - 100,000,000: $0.01 per 10,000 requests
- Next 100,000,000: $0.0095 per 10,000 requests
Other relevant pay-as-you-go components (examples from official pricing page)
- Image Optimizer (billed per 10,000 image requests): 0-100,000 free; 100k-10M $0.50 per 10,000; 10M-50M $0.15; 50M-150M $0.07; 150M-500M $0.03; 500M-1B $0.02; 1B-5B $0.015; beyond 5B $0.01.
- Managed TLS: 0-5 domains free; beyond 5 domains $20 per domain/month (Non-Profit CA / BYO certificates); Managed TLS Commercial CA billed at $275 per domain/month. Mutual TLS: 0-2 domains free; beyond 2 domains $500 per domain/month.
- Object Storage: 0-5 GB free; 5 GB - 50 TB $0.02 per GB/month; 50 TB - 500 TB $0.018; beyond 500 TB $0.017.
(All pricing and tiers above taken directly from Fastly's official pricing page.)
Seller details
Fastly, Inc.
San Francisco, CA, USA
2011
Public
https://www.fastly.com/
https://x.com/fastly
https://www.linkedin.com/company/fastly/
