What you need
- A Mac with macOS 13 (Ventura) or later — Apple Silicon (M1 and newer) or Intel. The download page has a separate build for each.
- An Astria VPN account (email and password). No account yet? The free 24-hour trial is issued in Telegram by the bot @AstriaVPN_bot and gives you a real account for one device.
- An internet connection for the first sign-in, and an administrator password if macOS asks for it when you approve the background service.
Step 1: Download the installer
Open astriavpn.com/download on your Mac. The page has a separate build for each system. Choose the macOS build for your chip: the card “macOS 13+ · Apple Silicon” for Macs with M1 and newer, the card “macOS 13+ · Intel” for older Macs.
Not sure which chip you have? Open the Apple menu → About This Mac and look at the “Chip” line: “Apple M1”, “M2” and similar mean Apple Silicon, “Intel” means Intel.
Downloads are available to account holders: click “Sign in to download”, sign in with the email and password of your Astria VPN account, then use the download button on the card of your chip. The installer — a file ending in .dmg — is saved to your Downloads folder.
Step 2: Open the installer and drag AstriaVPN to Applications
Open the Downloads folder and double-click the .dmg file. macOS mounts it as a disk and opens a window with two items: the AstriaVPN app icon on the left and a shortcut to the Applications folder on the right.
Drag the AstriaVPN icon onto the Applications folder: press and hold the icon, move it over the folder and release. The app is copied in a few seconds. Nothing else has to be installed by hand.
When copying is finished, close the window and eject the disk image (in the Finder sidebar right-click the “AstriaVPN” disk → Eject). You can delete the .dmg file afterwards.
Step 3: Open the app for the first time
Open the Applications folder (in Finder choose Go → Applications, or use Launchpad) and double-click AstriaVPN.
The app is signed with an Apple Developer ID and checked (notarized) by Apple. The first time you open a program downloaded from the internet, macOS asks you to confirm: the window says that “AstriaVPN” is an app downloaded from the internet, that Apple checked it and found no malicious software. Click “Open”. The wording and the buttons follow your macOS language (the screenshot is from a Mac set to Russian).
The app starts and shows the sign-in screen — the next step.
Step 4: Sign in to your account
On the sign-in screen enter the email and password of your account, tick that you have read and agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms of Use, and click “Sign In”. The button stays inactive until the fields are filled in and the agreement is ticked.
Two links sit under the button. “Forgot password?” opens the password recovery page in your personal account at billing.astriavpn.com. “Trouble signing in?” opens a short help sheet with a short explanation and three actions: “Forgot password” (the same recovery page), “Help page” (our help page at astriavpn.com/support#forgot-password) and “Contact support” (a message to support@astriavpn.com).
After signing in you land on the Connection tab. The end date of your subscription is shown under the connection controls.
Step 5: Read the “Start here” hint
The first time you open the app after signing in, a short hint appears over the main screen: “Start here — choose a location, a connection type and press the star”. Click “Got it” to close it.
It does not appear again. Then follow the next steps: choose a location, choose the connection type, and click the star.
Step 6: Allow the background service (once)
Important: until you switch AstriaVPN on in System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions → App Background Activity, you cannot connect to the VPN. If you connect and nothing happens, check this switch first.
Astria VPN needs a small background service to build the secure tunnel and to run Kill Switch. The first time you sign in, macOS may need your approval for it, and the app shows a banner: “Allow the background service — Open System Settings → “Login Items” and turn on AstriaVPN — this is needed once for the VPN to work.”
Click “Open Settings” in the banner (or open System Settings yourself), go to General → Login Items & Extensions and switch AstriaVPN on in the list of items allowed to run in the background. macOS may ask for your Mac password or Touch ID. The banner disappears and you do not need to do this again.
In System Settings the item looks like this: General → Login Items & Extensions → the section about background activity of apps → AstriaVPN switched on. The screenshot shows only this part of the window.
Astria VPN does not ask for a “VPN configuration” permission (the system window “add VPN configurations”): the secure tunnel is created by the background service, so you will not see that window. macOS may ask for your Mac password or Touch ID once when you switch the item on — enter it only in the system window.
Important: until you switch AstriaVPN on in System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions → App Background Activity, you cannot connect to the VPN. If you connect and nothing happens, check this switch first.
Step 7: Connect with one click
The main screen is the Connection tab. The status line reads “Not connected” with the hint “Click the star to connect”. Choose a location first (next step), then click the Astria star in the middle of the screen.
The status changes to “Connecting…” and, in a few seconds, to “Connected — Traffic protected”. The star turns green and you see a timer and the live upload and download speed. Click the star again to disconnect. The app also lives in the menu bar: its icon shows the state and lets you connect or disconnect without opening the window.
The address line under the timer (your address inside the tunnel) can be hidden with “Show connection speed” in Settings.
Step 8: Choose a location
Click the Location field to open the list of countries. Each country shows its number of servers and its current response time; green means fast. Use “A-Z” to sort by name or “By speed” to put the quickest countries first, type in the search box to find a country, and click the refresh button to re-measure.
Click a country to expand it and pick a specific server. Turn on “Auto (fastest server)” and the app picks the server with the lowest ping each time you connect. Click “Done” to close the list. The new choice applies the next time you connect.
Step 9: Choose the connection type — start with AstriaVeilLink-5
Under “Connection type” you pick one of five AstriaVeilLink modes. We recommend AstriaVeilLink-5 for everyone: it is a direct encrypted connection with the highest speed and stability, and it is the default.
If a particular network gives you an unstable connection, step down one mode at a time — AstriaVeilLink-4, then -3, -2 and finally -1. Each step down trades a little speed for more reliability headroom. The choice applies the next time you connect.
- AstriaVeilLink-5 — direct encrypted connection, high speed and stability (recommended, start here).
- AstriaVeilLink-4 — maximum speed under encryption, for open networks.
- AstriaVeilLink-3 — reliable privacy and protection that works almost anywhere.
- AstriaVeilLink-2 — maximum privacy and protection for the most demanding networks.
- AstriaVeilLink-1 — enhanced privacy and the most cautious mode; the last step.
Step 10: Turn on the protection features
Open the Settings tab. The Connection section holds the switches that keep your data protected. Recommended setup: leave Kill Switch on, keep “Ads & trackers” and “Malicious sites” on in the DNS section, and keep the connection type on AstriaVeilLink-5.
- Kill Switch — blocks the internet if the tunnel drops, so nothing leaks outside the protected connection. Changes apply immediately and the connection restarts.
- Show connection speed — shows the timer, the live speed and your address inside the tunnel on the Connection screen.
- Launch at login — starts Astria VPN minimized in the menu bar when you log in to your Mac.
- Connect automatically — brings the tunnel up when the app launches (a server and a connection type must already be chosen).
- Refresh Server List — fetches a fresh list of servers and their addresses; use it if a server’s address changed or the list looks outdated.
- DNS protection — your DNS queries are answered by Astria VPN’s own resolver on the VPN node, inside the encrypted tunnel, without third-party DNS providers. “Ads & trackers” blocks banners, analytics and telemetry; “Malicious sites” blocks phishing and malware domains. DNS filtering does not block YouTube video ads. Settings are saved on the server and take effect as soon as the VPN connects.
- Parental controls — an optional switch that blocks adult (18+) sites on the node’s secure DNS; it is unrelated to privacy.
Step 11: Check the speed
Settings → Speed Test measures your speed and response time to your Astria VPN server, through the tunnel. It works only while the VPN is on: when it is off, the button is greyed out and the window explains “Turn on VPN: the test measures speed and latency to your VPN server; no third-party services are used.”
Connect first, then open Speed Test and click “Start Test”. The test uses your own VPN server, not an external website, so it shows the quality of your protected connection. It takes about half a minute: a live chart shows the download and upload phases.
The result shows ping and jitter, download and upload speed and the latency under load, with a short rating. Click “Retry” to measure again.
Step 12: Account, devices and language
At the top of Settings you see your account: email, subscription end date and “Active Sessions” — how many of your allowed devices are signed in (for example “3 of 3”). Open it to see your devices and sign any of them out, or choose “End all sessions”. “Sign Out” signs this Mac out of your account.
At the bottom of Settings choose the app language — English, Russian, Ukrainian or Chinese; the app switches at once. “About” shows the app version and has “Check for updates”, the Privacy Policy, the Terms of Use and the open-source licenses.
Step 13: Contact support in the app
The Support tab opens an end-to-end protected chat with our team; we usually reply within an hour. Describe the problem and attach a screenshot, a file or a voice message with the buttons next to the message field. You can also write to support@astriavpn.com.
If something goes wrong, open Settings → Application log and use “Send to Support”: the log records what the app does (sign-in, server list, connections), and tokens, keys and passwords are removed before anything is written.
Quick tips for the best protection
- Keep the connection type on AstriaVeilLink-5 and only change it if a network is unstable.
- Leave Kill Switch and DNS protection on at all times.
- Turn on “Launch at login” and “Connect automatically” so the protection starts with your Mac.
- Run the speed test only after you connect — it measures the path to your VPN server.
- Send the application log to support if you contact us about a problem.
Frequently asked questions
Which download do I need — Apple Silicon or Intel?
Choose “macOS (Apple Silicon)” if your Mac has an M1, M2, M3 or newer chip, and “macOS (Intel)” for older Intel Macs. Open the Apple menu → About This Mac to see your chip.
Which connection type should I use on macOS?
Use AstriaVeilLink-5. It is the recommended default — a direct encrypted connection with the highest speed and stability. Switch to -4, -3, -2 and -1 only if a network makes the connection unstable.
Why does the app ask me to allow a background service?
The tunnel and Kill Switch need a small helper that macOS runs in the background. macOS asks you to approve it once in System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions; after that the banner is gone.
How do I connect and disconnect?
Open the Connection tab and click the Astria star. It turns green when you are connected. Click it again to disconnect. You can also use the Astria icon in the menu bar.
What does Kill Switch do?
It blocks the internet if the tunnel drops, so your data never travels outside the encrypted connection unnoticed. Changes apply immediately and the connection restarts.
Why is the Speed Test button greyed out?
The test measures your connection to your VPN server, so it works only while the VPN is connected. Connect first, then open Settings → Speed Test.
How many devices can I use?
The number depends on your plan (1, 3 or 5 devices). Settings → Active Sessions shows how many are in use and lets you sign a device out.
Does Astria VPN block ads?
Yes — ad and tracker blocking works at the DNS level on the VPN node. YouTube video ads cannot be told apart from the video by DNS, so they remain.
Is split tunneling available on macOS?
Not yet. Split tunneling is available in the mobile apps; for the macOS app it is in development, together with a manual choice of apps and sites.
What if I forgot my password?
The password is recovered on the website, in your personal account: open billing.astriavpn.com, choose “Forgot password?”, enter your email and follow the link in the email we send you. The app itself has no password reset. If the email does not arrive, check your Spam folder and write to support@astriavpn.com.
Where do I get help?
Open the Support tab in the app for a protected chat, or write to support@astriavpn.com. You can send the application log from Settings.
Get the app
Download Astria VPN for macOS from the download page, or start with the free 24-hour trial in Telegram.