Adware and viruses are an everyday part of Internet life. If you haven’t been affected yet you’re one of the lucky few. Right now is the best time to make sure you’re safe by installing effective antivirus software. There are many companies making antivirus software so it can be a confusing choice.

Protecting your computer is not something that can be delayed because every year millions of computers are hit by viruses or adware. Viruses can steal personal information and pass it back to criminals or the infected computer can be used for illegal activities such as attacking government services.

We review a range of antivirus software to give you info on which might suit your needs best. Some factors in choosing great antivirus software can be measured and compared directly while some are somewhat subjective, such as ease of use and effectiveness of support services.

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Antivirus Winners

1st Place Winner

2nd Place

3rd Place

Best for Included Backup Storage

We’ve gone right into the pro’s and con’s of the packages. But you understand your needs best, so if you’ve got a particular feature mix you’re after feel free to dive into our comparisons.

Antivirus Review Comparison Table

McAfee Review

I use McAfee products on my personal home systems. McAfee has a long history of being at the forefront of internet security. They have shown they can develop their defenses to meet the new threats to our security that appear every year.

Protection against ransomware, which is an increasing security threat, comes with their malware and antivirus protection. As they are are a large company and part of the Intel family of computer companies they can give plenty of support, including real-time chat.

Recommendation

McAfee Internet Security is great for home use to protect multiple devices. Use quick scanning most of the time.

Read my full McAfee review here.

Bullguard Review

Bullguard fills the market spot for a lower cost yet still respectable antivirus solution. Independent testing has, at times, shown lower day zero threat detection but by 4 weeks out updates usually plugs almost all security holes. Protection against ransomware, which is an increasing security threat, is claimed for its most recent releases.

The base version has avoided many of the bells and whistles of higher end products which gives it a very straight forward user interface that will appeal to less sophisticated users. This may find it a place in some families.

Recommendation

Recommend considering for family use as Bullguard products have family friendly controls and features for internet safety for children and teens.

Avira Review

Avira is a German company that has been supplying computer security products since the 80’s. They keep their products competitive by actively updating to handle new threats. Recently, handling of ransomeware has been added to meet this growing threat.

Avira has a free version as an entry point. However, I personally recommend that paid versions are used due to the extra features included.

Avira scores highly in independent testing.

Recommendation

Avira provides very strong antivirus checking. Home versions best for those covering a smaller number of devices.

Norton Review

I don’t use Norton products on my personal home systems. Although Norton has a long history in internet security I have had poor user experiences with their installation and uninstall user interfaces. They have shown they can develop their defenses to meet the new threats but their user experience has been slow to improve in my personal view.

Protection against ransomware, which is an increasing security threat, comes with their malware and antivirus protection. They have moved their offering to a security suite approach that adds extra complementary features to their previous antivirus focus.

Recommendation

Norton Security can be used to protect multiple devices but you need to consider the limitations of the implementations on the various systems.

Although technically very competent, in my view, more user-friendly solutions are available.

Read my full Norton review here.