Fastly vs. Cloudflare: Performance, Pricing & Security

Fastly and Cloudflare software, also known as Content Delivery Network (CDN) solutions, improve website performance. In addition to increasing website performance, they have built-in security features to protect websites from malicious attacks.

Both software solutions possess many of the same features, such as large file delivery, cache control, and Distributed Denial of Services (DDoS). These products may have the same features but may be implemented differently.

Fastly vs. Cloudflare Comparison table

Starting price

$50 per month of CDN traffic

$20 per month (Pro plan)

Businesses package costs

Starts from $50 to $1,500, with the price based on usage

$200 per month

Performance

Faster cache & purge times

Wider network coverage

Content Updates

Quicker updates on content

Better performance when a business is regionally or globally dispersed

Security Features

Distributed Denial of Services

Prevent snooping with Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC) & DDoS

Web Application Firewall

Yes

Yes

SSL & TLS encryption

Yes

Yes

Security Center

Provides 24/7 support and threat detection

Continuously scans network & sends notification on findings

Cloud WAF

Yes

Yes

Developer’s experience

Positive

Positive

API customization

Provides more flexibility and options

Touted as more straightforward to use due to documentation availability

Network Architecture & Edge Locations

Operates in a limited global environment using edge devices with minimal hops versus going to a centralized server

Focuses on a global network using edge devices that include implemented advanced security features

AI & Machine Learning for CDN Optimization

Has more granular control with AI-powered configurations

Offers a broader selection of AI features that are easier to implement

Sustainability & Energy Efficiency

Focused on conserving energy for businesses by minimizing data transfers through enhanced and efficient service delivery

Future goal is to use 100% renewable energy sources to support network

Better pricing: Cloudflare

Fastly and Cloudflare offer free and paid plans, but a free plan has functional limitations. Each company charges for its services differently, using a tiered pricing concept.

Fastly pricing

Fastly pricing is based on a “pay-per-use” pricing model that charges for bandwidth measured in gigabytes. Their tiered pricing for features includes compute and image optimization, network services, security, and edge cloud support. Fastly provides annual contracts with discounted rates for committed usage.

Cloudflare pricing

Cloudflare uses a subscription model with different tiers, such as Free, Pro, Business, and Enterprise. Additionally, Cloudflare offers tiered pricing depending on the features added. They separate billing for each domain. Enterprise organizations can offer special customer pricing through a Service Level Agreement (SLA). Cloudflare offers annual billing discounts that are lower than monthly payments.

Fastly vs. Cloudflare: price comparison

Companies must determine how to use a cloud-based Content Delivery Network (CDN) service by comparing their usage. Will a committed usage amount be better than an enterprise-customized SLA? Each company needs to calculate the respective cost each CDN business will charge and make a financial decision for this category.

Winner: Cloudflare

Better performance: Both

Fastly and Cloudflare are known for being excellent Content Delivery Network (CDN) solutions.

Content Delivery Networks store businesses’ digital data on edge servers closer to business offices, which helps reduce travel time and latency. Digital data is website content, HTML pages, images, and videos that travel through the Internet. Content Delivery Networks lessen the travel time through the Internet.

Content Delivery Networks reduce latency by storing cached copies of data on servers near business offices. Edge servers use optimized routing with built-in intelligent algorithms that send a cached copy to a recipient in a business office.

Fastly performance

Fastly performs slightly better than Cloudflare due to its faster cache purge times that lower latency. It is customizable with more granular control over configurations that impact performance optimization. Fastly also offers streaming media delivery in real-time that allows the sent media to start playing immediately without being fully downloaded.

Cloudflare performance

Cloudflare has an extensive global network of data centers. Its global network reaches more countries than Fastly’s network. This wider global network that Cloudflare supports has locations Fastly does not.

Fastly is better for a business if low latency is essential to success and sensitive data is not being processed routinely. On the other hand, an international business processing highly sensitive data should select Cloudflare.

Businesses must weigh the pros and cons of each product and make a decision that addresses all their business needs.

Winner: Tie. It depends on business needs.

Better security: Cloudflare

Both products have dedicated security resources for a regional or global network. Fastly and Cloudflare have implemented Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS), Web Application Firewalls (WAFs), Secure Socket Layer (SSL), and Transport Layer Security encryption to protect data.

Fastly security

Fastly meets the requirements for protecting a business network from cybersecurity threats despite focusing on network performance. It is certified by the International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) 27001:2013 standard for the Information Security Management System (ISMS).

Cloudflare security

Cloudflare meets the same certification standards as Fastly, meaning both have passed third-party audits. Cloudflare has also implemented Domain Name System Security Extensions (DNSSEC), adding a layer of protection that authenticates DNS records and prevents spoofing attacks. The DNSSEC security feature also adds cryptographic signatures to DNS records.

Though both products focus on security, Cloudflare emphasizes security more. Cloudflare security features are:

• Domain Name System security
• Cloud-based Web Application Firewall 
• Secure Sockets Layer certification
• Distributed Denial of Service Mitigation

Winner: Cloudflare security exceeds the required security certification standards.

Better developer experience: Fastly

Developer tools are a must for this type of software to build and deploy web applications. However, we will cover differences in the learning curves, performances, and customization.

Fastly developer experience

Fastly is considered more challenging for developers to learn.

Developers must learn a powerful domain-specific language called Varnish Configuration Language (VCL). VCL is also known as a web application accelerator that handles HTTP traffic. This language lets users define logic for caching, routing, and manipulating requests and responses, so it’s highly customizable for caching.

Cloudflare developer experience

Cloudflare provides a user-friendly interface and dashboard, making learning easier for beginners.

Cloudflare Worker’s platform uses JavaScript-based programming to manipulate data on edge computing devices. The JavaScript language does not provide granular control like the VCL language. JavaScript programming requires access to robust security tools to prevent vulnerabilities like Cross-Site Scripting (XSS) attacks that can be exploited.

Winner: Fastly due to more granular control, despite not being user-friendly.

Better network architecture & edge locations: Both

Fastly and Cloudflare use software-managed network solutions in their respective CDN solutions. Both control the network infrastructure using software differently.

Fastly Network Architecture & Edge Locations

Fastly’s software-defined network (SDN) manages network infrastructure through a centralized management system, allowing for flexible control and dynamic data routing.

The SDN is the decision-maker that decides how data is processed in the cloud or on an edge computing device. This decision is made in real time based on network conditions. The SDN controller manages edge devices, routing, bandwidth allocation, network behavior, and security policies from a centralized location.

Cloudflare Network Architecture & Edge Locations

Cloudflare uses a serverless model focusing on application development to allocate resources dynamically.

While SDN interacts with network hardware from a single location, the serverless model is triggered by a web application’s code. The serverless model is not concerned with server infrastructure. Instead, it reacts to application demand, and the cloud service provider automatically provisions resources to scale and manages the infrastructure necessary to run the code.

Winner: Tie. The serverless model is more cost-efficient using a pay-per-use model, but SDN provides greater visibility and control.

Better Use of AI for CDN optimization: Both

Both software solutions use artificial intelligence on their platforms. Each company uses AI to improve content delivery speed and efficiency, taking different approaches to enhancing CDN functionality.

Fastly’s use of AI for CDN optimization

VCL coding allows developers to write customized AI logic for different content delivery scenarios. It also allows developers to create customer caching strategies and optimize dynamic content. Fastly’s AI-created apps provide greater flexibility using VCL coding.

Cloudflare’s use of AI for CDN optimization

Cloudflare’s user-friendly interface contains pre-built AI features that can be integrated into content delivery operations. Its AI-driven content is easier to implement and less flexible than Fastly’s AI apps.

Winner: Tie because this in-house business decision depends on several factors. Is the business international? What’s a higher priority, security or performance? How often do unique delivery scenarios occur? Decision-makers must answer these types of questions before a business decides.

Better sustainability & energy efficiency: Both

Both companies are environmentally conscious of how they impact the environment. Fastly and Cloudflare are making efforts to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.

Fastly sustainability & energy efficiency

Fastly is actively pursuing a network architecture that minimizes data transmissions using edge computing, which reduces energy consumption. Fastly also focuses on efficient data caching and delivery, which reduces computational waste. Fastly is partnering with sustainable cloud providers that are environmentally conscious.

Cloudflare sustainability & energy efficiency

Cloudflare is committed to cloud-based services that minimize carbon emissions. Cloudflare is moving away from on-premises hardware to help reduce carbon emissions. They are focused on using energy-efficient hardware equipment and are committed to using renewable energy in future projects.

Winner: Tie.

Fastly pros and cons

Fastly is a very good CDN software solution, but businesses must clearly understand its pros and cons.

Cloudflare pros and cons

Cloudflare is a popular CDN service for any business with international customers.

Should your business use Fastly or Cloudflare?

Selecting the right CDN for your business is an important decision. Decision-makers must comprehensively understand the company’s operations and how to get the most productivity from a CDN product. They must also know why customized AI logic is required or why a user-friendly platform with various AI features is better for the company.

To answer these questions, businesses may need to create a project charter. The charter outlines the purpose, goals, scope, and key stakeholders in deciding on the best product.

Business use cases:

Choose Fastly if:

• Content delivery scenarios require highly customizable AI logic to meet the unique scenario requirements.
• You have a competent development team that either knows VCL and edge computing or can quickly learn the required skills.
• The business requires flexibility in AI-based content optimization to meet customer needs urgently.

Choose Cloudflare if:

• The workforce is not highly skilled in IT software development and requires a user-friendly platform that uses a variety of ready-made AI features for CDN optimization.
• The business must combine AI-powered security features and optimal CDN performance to ensure data is protected and delivered on time.
• Because non-technical and technical users are involved in the business process, you will need a simple implementation process for AI-driven content delivery.

Methodology

The methodology compares each product’s categories and how the features perform in those categories.

All CDN service providers perform these routine optimization tasks, like configuring cache settings, minimizing latency, or optimizing content by compressing files. After decision-makers and project charter stakeholders have evaluated each product, they must prioritize what is essential. They also must accept any cons associated with the decision without impacting the overall goal.