In the world of cloud computing and content delivery, StackPath has emerged as a strong contender, particularly for businesses looking to accelerate their websites, apps, and content through edge computing and advanced CDN (Content Delivery Network) solutions. Originally known as MaxCDN, StackPath has evolved to offer a comprehensive suite of edge services designed for performance optimization, security, and scalability.
In this review, we’ll look at what StackPath offers, its key features, pricing, and whether it stands up to the competition in 2025.
What is StackPath?
StackPath is a cloud services provider that focuses on delivering edge computing and content delivery network (CDN) solutions. It enables businesses to improve website and app performance by caching content at the “edge” — meaning closer to the end users, ensuring faster load times, reduced latency, and a smoother experience for global audiences.
Originally founded in 2015 and initially branded as MaxCDN, StackPath rebranded to focus on its full range of services beyond just CDN, such as security services, edge computing, and cloud hosting. The platform promises to deliver performance, security, and scalability for businesses of all sizes.
Key Features of StackPath
1. Global CDN (Content Delivery Network)
One of StackPath’s core offerings is its Global CDN. CDN is essential for improving website speed by reducing latency and delivering content from servers located closer to the user’s geographical location.
- High-Performance Caching: StackPath’s CDN caches static and dynamic content across its network of strategically placed data centers around the world. This reduces load times, especially for heavy websites, images, and videos.
- Edge Locations: StackPath has over 45 edge locations worldwide, ensuring low-latency content delivery across North America, Europe, Asia, and more.
- Instant Purge and Control: Users can purge or clear cached content instantly for precise control over what gets delivered to users.
2. Web Application Firewall (WAF)
In addition to CDN services, StackPath includes an integrated WAF designed to protect your site from malicious traffic, attacks, and other security threats. The WAF offers:
- Real-time Attack Detection: Protects against threats like SQL injections, cross-site scripting (XSS), and DDoS attacks.
- Customizable Rules: You can fine-tune the security rules based on your specific requirements.
- Automated Threat Protection: Block bad traffic and automatically mitigate known threats.
3. Edge Computing Services
StackPath brings edge computing capabilities to developers and enterprises, allowing them to run applications and processes at the edge of the network, close to users. Key features include:
- Edge Functions: A serverless platform for running custom code closer to users, improving performance and reducing latency.
- Real-time Data Processing: Helps with data processing for IoT devices and apps that require low-latency, high-throughput environments.
- Scalable Infrastructure: Easily scale edge functions based on demand, ensuring efficient use of resources.
4. DDoS Protection
With advanced DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) protection, StackPath ensures your website stays online and operational during attacks:
- Mitigation at the Edge: StackPath can absorb and mitigate large-scale DDoS attacks at the network’s edge before they even reach your server.
- 24/7 Monitoring: Continuous monitoring to detect and defend against malicious traffic.
5. SSL Encryption & Secure Connectivity
StackPath offers SSL encryption out-of-the-box, ensuring that all data transferred between users and your website is secure. The service includes:
- Free SSL certificates to encrypt your traffic.
- Automatic HTTPS redirects to ensure all connections are secure.
- TLS 1.3 support for faster, secure communication.
6. Global Load Balancing
For sites with high traffic or those running across multiple regions, StackPath’s global load balancing ensures traffic is distributed efficiently across your infrastructure. Key features include:
- Automatic Failover: If one server or data center goes down, traffic is rerouted to ensure minimal downtime.
- Performance-Based Routing: Automatically routes traffic to the server closest to the user with the lowest latency.
StackPath Performance
When it comes to performance, StackPath’s CDN is designed to be highly efficient, with a focus on low-latency content delivery. With over 45 edge locations, StackPath guarantees fast delivery worldwide, even for content-heavy sites.
Performance metrics in terms of speed are generally positive. StackPath users report significant improvements in load times, with speeds often being faster than traditional web hosts or CDNs. StackPath’s edge computing capabilities and network optimizations ensure that content delivery is both reliable and fast, even under heavy load.
StackPath Pricing
StackPath offers flexible, pay-as-you-go pricing, based on usage. Here’s a general breakdown of the pricing structure:
- CDN Plans: Prices start at $10 per month for a basic plan with 1 TB of bandwidth and 1 TB of storage. More advanced plans offer additional bandwidth, storage, and more features like WAF and edge computing services.
- Edge Computing: StackPath’s edge functions are priced based on execution duration and data transfer. Typically, they charge per request and for the compute time consumed.
- WAF & Security Services: You can add extra security services like the WAF and DDoS protection to your plan, with prices starting around $20/month for a basic configuration.
While StackPath’s pricing is competitive, especially for businesses looking for an integrated CDN and security solution, it’s important to note that prices can scale up quickly depending on your website’s traffic and resource usage.
StackPath Pros & Cons in 2025
StackPath Pros
- Global Reach: With 45+ edge locations, StackPath ensures low-latency performance worldwide.
- Security Features: Integrated WAF, DDoS protection, and SSL encryption provide excellent security without third-party integrations.
- Easy Setup: StackPath is relatively easy to set up with clear documentation and a user-friendly dashboard.
- Edge Computing: StackPath’s edge computing capabilities are useful for running serverless functions closer to the user, improving app performance.
- Customizable: StackPath’s CDN and security tools offer a high level of customization for specific use cases.
StackPath Cons
- Pricing Can Scale Quickly: While affordable at lower tiers, the price can increase significantly as your bandwidth, traffic, or resource usage grows.
- Learning Curve: For beginners, the platform can be slightly overwhelming, especially when using advanced features like edge functions or fine-tuning WAF rules.
- Limited Enterprise Features: Some users report that StackPath lacks certain enterprise-level features that competitors like Cloudflare or AWS CloudFront offer.
StackPath vs. Competitors
While StackPath offers robust CDN and edge computing features, it faces stiff competition from Cloudflare, AWS CloudFront, Fastly, and others. Here’s how it compares:
- Cloudflare: Known for its advanced security and global CDN, Cloudflare is a major competitor to StackPath, particularly for those who need strong protection against DDoS attacks and bots.
- AWS CloudFront: CloudFront is widely used in enterprise environments with strong integration capabilities, but it’s more complex and often more expensive compared to StackPath.
- Fastly: Fastly is another CDN with edge computing capabilities, favored by real-time applications like media streaming. StackPath offers competitive performance but may fall short for highly specific use cases that Fastly handles better.
Is StackPath Worth It in 2025?
If you’re looking for a comprehensive CDN solution with built-in security and edge computing capabilities, StackPath is a strong contender. It offers an easy-to-use platform, excellent security features, and great global performance. Its pay-as-you-go pricing is competitive, but businesses that anticipate high traffic or need enterprise-level features might find the costs scaling up quickly.
Overall, StackPath is a great choice for businesses looking for a reliable CDN, security, and edge computing solution, but if your needs are more specific or you require enterprise-grade integrations, other providers like Cloudflare or AWS CloudFront might offer more options.
Final Verdict:
Pros:
- Excellent global CDN and low-latency content delivery.
- Strong security features (WAF, DDoS protection, SSL).
- Powerful edge computing and serverless functions.
- Affordable pay-as-you-go pricing.
Cons:
- Pricing can scale quickly with increased usage.
- Slightly complex for beginners, especially with advanced features.
Best For: Small to medium-sized businesses and developers looking for a straightforward, reliable CDN and security solution with the ability to scale.
