8 suites compared on AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives results, system impact, and first-year and renewal prices.
Editorial score 9.0 out of 10First term
$59.99
first year
30-day money-back guarantee
Editorial score 8.8 out of 10First term
$49.99
first year
60-day money-back guarantee (annual plans)
Editorial score 8.6 out of 10First term
$59.99
first year
30-day money-back guarantee
Editorial score 8.5 out of 10First term
$69.48
first year
30-day money-back guarantee
Editorial score 8.5 out of 10First term
$39.991
first year
30-day money-back guarantee (secondary source)
Editorial score 7.6 out of 10Regular price
$99
per year
30-day money-back guarantee (annual plans)
Editorial score 7.5 out of 10First term
$44.852
first 15 months
30-day money-back guarantee
Editorial score 7.4 out of 10First term
$59.99
first year
60-day money-back guarantee
| Ranked8 suites | Bitdefender#1 overall | Norton#2 overall | ESET#3 overall | Avast#4 overall | McAfee#5 overall | TotalAV#6 overall | Surfshark (Surfshark Antivirus)#7 overall | Malwarebytes#8 overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score & price | ||||||||
Editorial score 9.0 out of 10 | Editorial score 8.8 out of 10 | Editorial score 8.6 out of 10 | Editorial score 8.5 out of 10 | Editorial score 8.5 out of 10 | Editorial score 7.6 out of 10 | Editorial score 7.5 out of 10 | Editorial score 7.4 out of 10 | |
$59.99first year | $49.99first year | $59.99first year | $69.48first year | $99regular price; intro at checkout | $59.99first year | |||
| Renewal / year | Not stated | $124.99×2.5 year one | Not stated | $99.99×1.4 year one | Not stated | $99 | Not stated | Not stated |
| Devices | 5 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 5 | 4 | Unlimited | 3 |
| Money-back | 30 days | 60 days(annual plans)Longest | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days(secondary source) | 30 days(annual plans) | 30 days | 60 daysLongest |
| Independent lab results | ||||||||
| 3 | 99.5%ADVANCED+Highest | 99.3%ADVANCED+ | 98.5%ADVANCED | 99.3%ADVANCED+ | 98.5%ADVANCED | 99.0%ADVANCED+ | Not tested | 98.8%STANDARD |
| 3 | 5 | 5 | 2Fewest | 5 | 4 | 5 | Not tested | 39 |
| AV-TEST Windows4 | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 5.5 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT | 6 / 4.5 / 6Jun 2026Certified | 6 / 6 / 6Aug 2026TOP PRODUCT |
| 9 | 8.7lower is better | 4.9lower is better | 9.5lower is better | 5.2lower is better | 3.1lower is betterLightest | 30.5lower is better | Not tested | 19.1lower is better |
| In the ranked plan | ||||||||
| VPN | 200 MB/day | Internet Security tier | Unlimited | Plus tier | ||||
| Password manager | Premium tier | Not confirmed | Total Security tier | |||||
| Cloud backup | 50 GB (Windows) | Not confirmed | ||||||
| Breach monitoring | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Ultimate tier | |||||
| Parental controls | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | Not confirmed | |||||
| Free version | Windows only | Scanner only | ||||||
| Platforms | ||||||||
| Windows | ||||||||
| macOS | ||||||||
| Android | ||||||||
| iOS | ||||||||
| Verdict | ||||||||
| Best for | overall protection | all-in-one suite | for low false alarms | free antivirus | for older or slower PCs | for beginners | VPN + antivirus bundle | second-opinion scanner |
| Vendor pricingOpens the vendor's site. Some links are affiliate links. |
Prices are USD before tax for the plan each vendor leads with, read on its own pricing page on 12 Nov 2026. First-year prices are usually introductory; renewal is what you pay from year two, and “Not stated” means the vendor did not publish it. Black Friday prices are marked. McAfee: mcafee.com blocked our checks; prices from a secondary source updated 26 Aug 20261. Surfshark Antivirus: Surfshark showed us local-currency prices; USD figure from a secondary source updated 4 Nov 20262. Lab rows: AV-Comparatives Real-World (Feb–May 2026)3 and Performance (Sep 2026)9; AV-TEST Windows (Aug 20264, Surfshark Jun 20268). “Not tested” means the product was not in that test.
Editorial scores weight lab protection 40%, value 20%, performance 15%, features 15% and trust 10%. Kaspersky is excluded because it can no longer be sold or updated in the US; here's why.
Same criteria and sources for all 8 suites.
The 2026 ranking
Scores weight lab protection 40%, value 20%, performance 15%, features 15% and trust 10%. Prices are the plan each vendor leads with; renewal is what you pay from year two.
The most consistent lab record of 2026
$59.99first year
Total Security · 5 devices · Renewal price not stated by vendor
View Bitdefender pricing (opens Bitdefender site in a new tab)Read the full reviewWindows, macOS, Android, iOS30-day money-back
The fullest feature set, with the steepest renewal
$49.99first year
360 Deluxe · 5 devices · Renews at $124.99/yr
View Norton 360 pricing (opens Norton site in a new tab)Read the full reviewWindows, macOS, Android, iOS60-day money-back
Light, precise and honestly priced
$59.99first year
HOME Security Essential · 3 devices · Renewal price not stated by vendor
View ESET pricing (opens ESET site in a new tab)Read the full reviewWindows, macOS, Android, iOS30-day money-back
Best free antivirus
$69.48first year
99.3%Real-World
$69.48 first year
View pricing for Avast (opens Avast site in a new tab)Best for older or slower PCs
$39.991first yearUnverified
98.5%Real-World
$39.991 first year
View pricing for McAfee (opens McAfee site in a new tab)Best for beginners
$99per year
99.0%Real-World
Best VPN + antivirus bundle
$44.852first 15 monthsUnverified
Not tested
$44.852 first 15 months
View pricing for Surfshark Antivirus (opens Surfshark site in a new tab)Best second-opinion scanner
$59.99first year
98.8%Real-World
$59.99 first year
View pricing for Malwarebytes (opens Malwarebytes site in a new tab)Every figure links to its source. Prices and lab results verified 12 Nov 2026.
Ranked #1 of 8
Bitdefender has the cleanest lab record of the eight products we track: ADVANCED+ in every AV-Comparatives protection test it entered in 2026, a perfect 18/18 at AV-TEST, and AV-TEST's Best Protection award for 2025. The VPN in Total Security is a 200 MB/day taster, and Bitdefender does not print its renewal price on the product page.
$59.99 first year · 5 devices · Renewal price not stated by vendor · 30-day money-back guarantee
Runner-up: Norton 360 Deluxe (8.8/10). We may earn a commission through affiliate links.
By need
Lab coverage differs by platform: Windows is tested every two months, Mac and Android a few times a year, iPhone not at all. Each guide uses only the evidence relevant to it.
Where the labs test most: AV-TEST every two months, plus AV-Comparatives’ hardest tests.
Our pickBitdefender Total Security$59.99 first year, 5 devices
Also ranked: Norton, ESET, Avast
See all 4 picksOnly products the labs actually tested on macOS in 2026 make this list.
Our pickNorton 360 Deluxe$49.99 first year, renews $124.99
Also ranked: Bitdefender, Avast, ESET
See all 4 picksFree engines with real lab results, and the limits you accept for paying nothing.
Our pickAvast Free AntivirusFree (Windows, Mac, Android, iOS)
Also ranked: Bitdefender, Malwarebytes
See all 3 picksHead to head
How we work
We don't run a malware lab, and we never imply that we do. Protection and performance come from AV-TEST4 and AV-Comparatives3, two independent labs that publish their methods. We read every vendor's US pricing page ourselves and date every figure.
Some buttons are affiliate links via /go redirects; most go straight to official pricing pages. Commission never moves a product up or down.
ADVANCED+ award Lower award
Surfshark is not in AV-Comparatives' test series.
Year two
Most suites are sold at a first-year discount and renew automatically at full price. These are the renewals vendors actually print.567
ESET is the exception we found: its one-year prices are not introductory discounts. Bitdefender, Surfshark and Malwarebytes Standard don't publish a renewal price on the pages we checked, so we can't chart them.
Straight answers based on published lab reports and vendor pages. No hype, no invented test results.
On the 2026 lab data we track, Bitdefender Total Security: 99.5% in AV-Comparatives' Real-World Protection Test (ADVANCED+), 18/18 at AV-TEST in August 2026, and AV-TEST's Best Protection award for 2025. Norton 360 Deluxe is close behind and includes more extras.
No. We don't run a malware lab, and we say so. Our protection and performance scores come from AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives, two independent labs that publish their methods. We check prices and plan contents on vendor sites ourselves and date every figure.
Since 2024 the US Commerce Department has prohibited Kaspersky from selling software or providing updates to US customers. Kaspersky still scores well in lab tests, but we don't recommend a product most of our readers can't legally buy or keep updated.
Defender is built into Windows and was Approved in AV-Comparatives' 2025 summary. The products ranked here scored higher in 2026 tests and add things like multi-device plans, VPNs and password managers.
Notice for US readers
The Commerce Department banned new US sales from 20 Jul 2024 and updates from 29 Sep 2024. If you still have it installed, it is no longer receiving protection updates. We do not link to Kaspersky.
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