Are you using a WiFi connection or are you hard wired to your modem/router? I use SS and routinely see a 400 mbps delta when comparing a wired vs wireless/WiFi device both on VPN and the same server. Hard wired will always give you the best performance.
Hard wired media server w/ VPN active…
Wireless device on WiFi w/ VPN active…
This right here 
I pay for 1 gbps service and routinely see over 600 mbps through my wired devices. With devices on WiFi, running VPN and on the same VPN server, I only see around 200 mbps.
ISP data rates, wired vs wireless and device type are all major factors in performance. And that’s all before you even get into regional issues and VPN servers.
Hard wired media server w/ VPN active…
Wireless device on WiFi w/ VPN active…
WVSquirrel…
What app is that you are showing your speeds?
Is it available to be installed using downloader on Android devices?
If so, where can it be located please?
Thank you.
I don’t have Xfinity but have Vexus internet. I have some of the same problems using my VPN with the speed dropping. I’m in the center of the country and prefer to use the Dallas server or streamer. My speed w/o VPN runs 280-320ish most of the time but the Dallas server with VPN about 3-4 days ago speed was 35-40 and if I switched to Atlanta or Miami the speed increased barely to 40-45 a negligible increase. All VPN usuage is through Wireguard protocol. I’ve tried several out of country servers and sometimes Mexico City is 50-60 but mostly it’s like the Dallas server. We had a power outage for 2-3 hours 3-4 days ago and I treated that as a reboot of the server since everything went down and I didn’t go outside to start up a generator since power would be restored soon. Still can watch just about most all I’m wanting to watch, sports playoff games as well as other channels but my normal speed through my VPN was 80-120 until just less than a week ago. Thought it was all on me until I read a lot of other people are having some of the same problems. Hope someone figures it out and if I figure something out I’ll do the same sharing info.
I live about 40 miles away from Buffalo, so I use that Surfshark server also. I just tested my speed on my laptop with the VPN connected, and it was 358Mbps (wireless). Using Analiti to test my speed on my FS4K, connected to the same wireless network and the Buffalo server, I get 31Mbps. This further confirms my suspicion that the reason for the slower speed is hardware related, since the device (FS or computer) has to encrypt/decrypt the data with the VPN. The slower FS speed is because there isn’t enough processing power (CPU) to encrypt/decrypt the data “real time”, hence the slowdown.
I have Xfinity and get the same readings as you
The company is called “Ookla” and I’ve used them for years. Yes, they have both an app and a website.
App is called “Speedtest by Ookla” and it can be dl’d from the Google Play Store for Android.
Their website is https://www.speedtest.net/ and it works very well also.
Reboot your router? Works for me.
Yes, but I’m comparing speeds on the same devices. It used to be about a 60% drop in speed when using Firestick 4kpro, but now is a 90% drop on the same device and same TV. Something else is happening that causes this.
I follow docsquiffy.com and his recommendation is to force stop but to not dump cache. I’ve been doing that for a couple weeks and have noticed a bit of an improvement.
Question for BobC?
How can you say my issue is device processing power/ability related? As I said earlier…
3 different devices ( FS 4K MAX, Onn 4K & FS 4K)
showing same poor reduction in speed NOW when they ALL averaged 80 - 85 for last 6 months?
Used 3 different VPN’s (Express, SS & Proton) and they All give almost identical results?
No additional apps have been added to these devices in the last 6 months. I don’t see where the processing demands would be any greater now than it was 6 months ago when my speeds averaged 80 - 85 Mbps when using my VPN…
I am also having same problem, using IPVanish, with VPN off I am getting 375mbs, with VPN on it drops to 20 to 30 mbs, started about a month ago, same thing on firestiick 4k and firestick 4kmax. I use the analiti app. I will keep following this thread hoping someone finds the answer.
The reason I suspect that the speed difference between my laptop and FS4K is that both are connecting to the same network, and both give similar results without the VPN. There is a huge difference in processing power (CPU) and memory (RAM) between my laptop and FS. My laptop uses an Intel i5-7440HQ (2.8GHz quad-core CPU, 32GB RAM). As I’ve mentioned before, a VPN uses encryption and decryption when sending/receiving data. If there isn’t enough processing power to handle the encryption/decryption processes in “real time”, it will become the bottleneck and limit the VPN speed to the maximum speed that the encryption/decryption can be processed.
If the speed reduction when the VPN is enabled was due to the VPN service speed, I would expect that a computer and FS would give similar results. However, since they don’t, then the difference must be due to the hardware differences.
I tend to agree with your thinking…and heres my reason. I have a friend with decent 100mb down speed but kept having issues streaming on devices but not his computer. So what I did was setup a pc(simple server) to drag in his iptv via ethernet and on a vpn set up on that pc only. Now the pc has what the other devices want so we stream it locally via wifi and no vpn needed on the various devices since the pc has already handled that. The result was buffer free streaming to all devices. The pc handles the heavy lifting putting the other devices with less power at ease 
So everyone using a FS (weak processer) will have this issue???
I don’t think so…
I tend to believe that the issue here IS NOT the FS or Onn 4k processing capabilities because if that was it, I never would have averaged 80 - 85 Mbps in the past and now around 30 Mbps…
Did All of my devices suddenly have some type of electronic stroke to put them in a condition where they now have less processing power than they did in the past when my speed average was 80 - 85 when using VPN?
I am sure that there are many, many FS useres that are getting well above 30 Mbps while using VPN … (I was one of them before this issue)
I have seen post where some FS users were getting as much as 120 Mbps with FS while using VPN, so at this point, I’m not convinced my device processing is the culprit in this case.
Thanks for your input
My 4k Max averaged 110 on a 150 service with an active VPN. I haven’t used one for some time though.
Make sure you clear the cache on all your apps. Sometimes I get some real bad buffering on fire stick 4K Maxx due to the cashe getting loaded up and need to be clean. It also affected my downloads.
Did you change any settings in your router like setting up a wireguard vpn. Asus routers with this set up and disabled will affect vpn speeds. Just a thought.
While I agree hard wired is the most stable, with wifi6, 6e and the high tech routers now out on the market, some wifi will give faster speeds than ethernet given the right set of conditions. I would always recommend testing both in case someone’s particular setup works differently than the results you posted.
Here is a portion of an article “8 Factors that Affect VPN Speed” from zenarmor.com:
Due to the time required for data packets to go back and forth, VPN traffic is taking longer than normal. A VPN’s speed may also be impacted when it is encrypted. If your device’s CPU and Internet connection are both fast, its performance will be enhanced.
Generally, it is preferable to utilize a faster CPU if you can improve performance. However, most routers perform poorly due to their RAM. If you increase your RAM, you will have access to more threads, which is crucial given the volume of network activity between devices and torrent sites.
