These days it’s hard to go without antivirus protection. If you don’t install a free or premium antivirus utility, Windows 10 activates the built-in Windows Defender. When you do install protection, Windows Defender politely steps aside. The problem is, tests show that Windows Defender isn’t as effective as the best third-party solutions, including free ones. You can do better than the built-in without expending your hard-earned cash. We’ve evaluated 17 free antivirus programs so you can choose the one that suits you best.
Table of Contents
1.) Avast Free Antivirus::
Avast is used by hundreds of millions of people and ranks high in nearly every “best list” of antivirus programs, and for good reason. If you want a solid program that is sure to block new threats but is still easy enough to customize, you should consider using it. Avast Free Antivirus is similar to Avira which we mention above; there are numerous components that you can install along with the virus shield that provide additional services related to security and privacy (more on those below).
2.) Kaspersky Free Antivirus:
Kaspersky Lab doesn’t advertise that it has a free antivirus product, and doesn’t make it easy to find the download page. Too bad, because this is one of the best free antivirus products we’ve ever tested, with a no-nonsense but comprehensible interface, a light-to-moderate system-performance impact and Kaspersky’s unbeatable malware protection. The only reason we’re not giving Kaspersky Free Antivirus a 4.5/5 rating is because it offers no extra features.
3.) AVG Antivirus Free:
AVG Technologies (see user reviews) is one of the biggest names in the antivirus industry and we love it because it runs constantly in the background without you having to do anything. As we mentioned above, AVG’s company recently merged with the developers of Avast. However, while both programs benefited from the collaboration, it seems AVG has gotten the shorter end of the stick. While it’s still a solid antivirus, AVG is much more like a “little brother” when compared to Avast.
4.) Avira Free Antivirus:
Avira Free Antivirus 2019 is relatively easy on system resources. Rather than cramming as many features as possible into a single utility, it presents a number of optional extras that you can choose to add at install time or after installing. These include a network scanner, a free 500MB per month VPN and system optimisation tools. Avira’s interface is clean and surprisingly compact. It opens on a tab that displays your protection status, which modules are active, plus a couple of adverts for Avira’s other products.
5.) Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition:
Same antivirus protection as for-pay Bitdefender. Excellent scores from independent testing labs. Top antiphishing score but Lacks all features of the for-pay Bitdefender beyond core antivirus protection. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition includes precisely the same antivirus technology found in the commercial Bitdefender Antivirus, without the paid edition’s many useful bonus features.
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