StackPath – Edge Computing, CDN, and Security Services

Overview

StackPath offers a platform of edge services designed to optimize performance and security for web applications and content. The company, founded in 2015, focuses on distributing computing and security capabilities closer to end-users, a strategy consistent with the principles of edge computing.

The core offerings include a Content Delivery Network (CDN) for accelerating content delivery, a Web Application Firewall (WAF) to protect against common web exploits, and DDoS protection services to mitigate denial-of-service attacks. StackPath's Edge Compute product provides virtual machines and containers at edge locations, enabling developers to run latency-sensitive applications closer to their user base. This architectural approach aims to reduce latency and improve responsiveness for globally distributed applications, a key consideration for high-performance web services, as discussed by Martin Fowler on microservices architectures.

StackPath is primarily used by developers and technical buyers seeking to enhance the performance and security posture of their digital assets. Its services are applicable for websites, e-commerce platforms, streaming media, and APIs that require global reach and protection against various cyber threats. The platform supports programmatic control over its services through a REST API, with SDKs available for Go and Python, facilitating integration into existing development workflows. Compliance certifications such as SOC 2 Type II, GDPR, and HIPAA are available, addressing regulatory requirements for specific industries.

The pricing structure is usage-based, with specific tiers for CDN, WAF, and other services. For instance, the CDN service begins at $10 per month for 100GB of data transfer, with higher tiers and custom enterprise pricing available for larger deployments. This model is typical for cloud infrastructure providers, aligning costs with actual consumption. StackPath's infrastructure is globally distributed, with edge locations designed to provide low-latency access to content and applications for users worldwide.

Key features

• Content Delivery Network (CDN): Accelerates delivery of web content, including static and dynamic assets, by caching data at edge locations globally.
• Web Application Firewall (WAF): Protects web applications from common vulnerabilities and attacks, such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting, as defined by Cloudflare's WAF explanation.
• DDoS Protection: Defends against Distributed Denial of Service attacks by filtering malicious traffic at the network edge.
• Edge Compute: Provides virtual machine and container deployment options at edge locations for low-latency application execution.
• DNS: Managed DNS services for fast and reliable domain name resolution.
• API and SDKs: Programmatic control over services through a REST API with official SDKs for Go and Python.
• Real-time Analytics: Dashboards and logs for monitoring traffic, performance, and security events.
• SSL/TLS Certificates: Integration with free and custom SSL/TLS certificates for encrypted communication.

Pricing

StackPath offers usage-based pricing across its services. The following table summarizes key pricing points as of May 2026. For detailed and up-to-date pricing, refer to the official StackPath pricing page.

Common integrations

• Content Management Systems (CMS): Integrates with popular CMS platforms like WordPress, Drupal, and Magento for CDN content delivery optimization.
• Custom Applications via REST API: Developers can integrate StackPath services directly into custom applications using the provided REST API.
• Go SDK Integrations: Facilitates integration for applications developed in Go, enabling programmatic control of StackPath services.
• Python SDK Integrations: Supports Python-based applications for managing CDN, WAF, and other StackPath services.
• Cloud Storage: Can be configured to pull content from cloud storage providers such as AWS S3 or Google Cloud Storage as an origin server for CDN.

Alternatives

• Cloudflare: Offers a broad suite of CDN, security, and edge computing services, including a free tier for basic website protection.
• Akamai: Enterprise-focused CDN and cybersecurity provider with extensive global infrastructure and advanced features for large-scale deployments.
• Fastly: Known for its real-time CDN and edge cloud platform, offering granular control and programmability via VCL (Varnish Configuration Language).
• Amazon CloudFront: AWS's own CDN service, integrated with other AWS services, suitable for users already within the AWS ecosystem.
• Google Cloud CDN: Google's CDN offering, leveraging Google's global network, often chosen by users of Google Cloud Platform.

Getting started

To get started with StackPath's CDN, you can use the Python SDK to create and manage a site. First, ensure you have the StackPath Python SDK installed.

# Install the StackPath Python SDK
pip installstackpath-api

Then, you can use the following Python code to create a simple CDN site:

from stackpath.api import StackPathClient

# Replace with your actual client ID and client secret
CLIENT_ID = "YOUR_CLIENT_ID"
CLIENT_SECRET = "YOUR_CLIENT_SECRET"

client = StackPathClient(CLIENT_ID, CLIENT_SECRET)

def create_cdn_site(display_name, origin_url):
    try:
        # Create a new CDN site
        site_data = {
            "display_name": display_name,
            "origin": {
                "pull_origin": {
                    "host": origin_url,
                    "strict_ssl": True  # Use SSL for origin requests
                }
            },
            "http_protocol": {
                "http": True,
                "https": True
            }
        }
        
        new_site = client.cdn.create_site(site_data)
        print(f"Successfully created CDN site: {new_site['display_name']} (ID: {new_site['id']})")
        print(f"Access it at: https://{new_site['delivery_domain']}")
        return new_site
    except Exception as e:
        print(f"Error creating CDN site: {e}")
        return None

# Example usage:
if __name__ == "__main__":
    site_name = "MyTestWebsiteCDN"
    # Use your actual origin server URL (e.g., your website's domain or IP)
    my_origin = "www.example.com" 
    
    created_site = create_cdn_site(site_name, my_origin)
    
    if created_site:
        # You can now further configure the site, e.g., add rules, purge cache
        print("CDN site creation process initiated. It may take some time for DNS propagation.")

This script initializes the StackPath client, then defines a function to create a new CDN site by specifying a display name and the origin server URL. After creation, it prints the details of the newly created site, including its unique delivery domain. Remember to replace "YOUR_CLIENT_ID" and "YOUR_CLIENT_SECRET" with your actual StackPath API credentials obtained from your account dashboard, and "www.example.com" with your actual website's origin.