ExpressVPN has retired its Aircove VPN router range and replaced it with a new model called Fortify.
Fortify is built in partnership with router manufacturer GL.iNet, using that company’s Flint 2 hardware as its base. It is a significant step up from Aircove on paper. The new router supports the Wi-Fi 6 (AX6000) standard across dual bands, with headline speeds of up to 1,148 Mbps on the 2.4GHz band and 4,804 Mbps on 5GHz.
It also moves from Aircove’s 2×2 antenna setup to 4×4 MU-MIMO, meaning more devices can maintain a strong connection at once.
According to TechRadar’s reporting, the router runs a quad-core 2.0GHz processor with 1GB of DDR4 memory and 8GB of eMMC storage, alongside two 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports and four standard Gigabit LAN ports.
ExpressVPN says WireGuard throughput on Fortify reaches roughly 900 Mbps, nearly three times the 330 Mbps figure quoted for Aircove. The router can handle up to 86 simultaneous devices and runs on GL.iNet’s own router interface, which includes multi-WAN failover, smart queue management and the AdGuard Home ad-blocking tool built in.
Fortify is listed at $199.99 in the US and £180.99 in the UK, and became available through GL.iNet’s website on the day of launch. The package includes twelve months of ExpressVPN’s Advanced plan, which the company values at $119.95, along with its ExpressKeys password manager and ExpressMailGuard email protection tools.
Both the original Aircove and the portable Aircove Go have been pulled from sale immediately, though ExpressVPN says existing owners are not being left stranded. Security updates and support are promised through 2027 for Aircove and 2028 for Aircove Go, and current owners can get 20% off a Fortify router by proving they already own one of the older models.
Explaining the move to a third-party hardware partner rather than continuing to build its own routers, Zac Eller, ExpressVPN’s GM of Global Partnerships, said the companies believed “together we can do more for customers than either of us would alone.”
The arrangement lets GL.iNet handle hardware design and manufacturing while ExpressVPN focuses on the VPN software and privacy features running on top of it, a split that mirrors how several rival providers now approach router hardware.
For UK households, a dedicated VPN router remains one of the more practical ways to protect every device on a home network at once, including smart TVs and consoles that cannot easily run VPN apps of their own.
VPNCompare has previously looked at how the Aircove Go router performed in practice, and Fortify’s jump in WireGuard throughput suggests the successor should cope far better with full-speed UK fibre connections.
ExpressVPN remains one of the more established names for anyone considering a VPN, whether on a router or a standard app, and VPNCompare’s in-depth review covers its wider feature set in more detail.
Fortify is available now in both the US and UK, giving British buyers a straightforward upgrade path from Aircove without waiting on a separate regional launch.
