Top 5 Best Antivirus For PC In 2021

There's not much to say. Here are the best antivirus for PC in 2020:

• Norton
• McAfee
• Panda
• ESET Smart Security
• Avira Premium

You can also read: The 7 Best Programs to Clean Your PC.

1.Norton 360

This is the first on our list of the best antivirus for pc, Norton 360 is the gold standard among antivirals.

The antivirus engine based on the Artificial Intelligence and self-learning tools perfectly protect devices from all types of cyber threats.

We have tested many antivirus for Windows 10 for security, and Norton was one of the best, scoring highest in detecting infected objects.

Norton's anti-malware system, called SONAR, ensures that your device is protected against all known cyber threats associated with viruses.

Norton 360 Features:

• Virus Protection. A 100% protection guarantee even against advanced viruses and malware, including ransomware and spyware.
• Storage in the cloud. You can store up to 75 GB of important files in Norton secure storage.
• Built-in firewall. Scans your network for cyber threats.
• Parental Controls. Advanced settings to help protect your children online.
• VPN reliable. High network speed, unlimited traffic and good choice of server locations.
• Norton also offers a set of extensions to protect your Web navigator.

Norton Anti-Virus is fairly easy to use for users of any skill level, and the program doesn't slow down your computer, unlike many other antivirus programs I've tested.

The scanner motor is quite light: I was able to watch movies and edit videos without problems while scanning, i.e. the processor was not overloaded.

All Norton 360 tool packages are a good example of value for money. We analyzed the Norton 360 Deluxe plan, thinking that it would only give us a money-back guarantee (60 days) if we didn't like something.

But after trying all the other antivirals later, we decided to keep this one.

Norton 360 Security Features

Norton 360 is built on 5 core security features:

• Device security.
• Cloud backup.
• Secure VPN.
• Password manager.
• Parental control (only in 360 Deluxe and 360 Premium rates).

Below is a detailed analysis of each of these features.

The security of your device

For this reason, Norton is constantly at the top of the list of products ciberseguridad and it is an application that provides a high level of antivirus protection. Norton has done an excellent job protecting my computer in 17 different tests. malware, a result comparable to other well-known antiviruses, including Bitdefender and McAfee.

Cloud Backup

The cheapest Norton 360 Standard plan includes 10 GB of cloud storage for backups. Norton 360 Deluxe has 50 GB, and the most expensive Norton 360 Premium has 75 GB.

parental control

I believe that quality parental control software is an important investment for all parents, and Norton offers the best parental control in my experience.

Secure VPN

Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps protect financial data, passwords, and other personal information sent from your device when using the Internet. Using a VPN is especially important when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks.

Password manager

Norton Password Manager lets you:

• Store usernames, passwords, text notes, contact details and payment card information using secure 256-bit AES encryption.
• Evaluate the security of your passwords.
• Generate new strong passwords.
• Automatically change passwords for over 60 sites including Facebook, Amazon and eBay.
• Automatically populate account data, addresses, and billing information for sites.

Conclusion

Norton's cyber security toolkit works much better than other antiviruses. The application itself is fast, easy to use, and Norton makes sure that all computers are protected from any cyber threats. If you need a high-performance antivirus for your PC, Norton is your best choice.

Download Norton 360 Here.

2.McAfee

McAfee Total Protection offers the best antivirus features. The program is fast, scans your device perfectly, and offers many additional features to protect your PC.

Among McAfee's features:

• 100% Anti-Virus Protection. The antivirus and anti-virus scanning engine is one of the best in its class – it shows excellent malicious virus detection statistics during tests.
• Optimizes PC battery performance. Provides the ability to reduce battery power consumption (great feature for PCs) portable).
• File shredder tool. Get rid of files containing sensitive information securely.
• Scan for vulnerabilities. Scan your device and install important updates for the Windows operating system and applications.
• Reliable VPN. Encrypts your internet traffic, offering good network bandwidth and unlimited traffic.

McAfee also includes powerful identity protection tools that use advanced credit history monitoring and dark web scanning technologies to look for signs that your personal information has been stolen. McAfee is currently offering 40% off the first year of a Total Protection subscription.

McAfee Security Features

McAfee Total Protection protects against viruses, malware, spyware and extortion, as well as offering Internet protection against suspicious and vulnerable sites.

In the case of zero-day attacks, Total Protection was able to detect and prevent 99 percent of such attacks, putting it on par with popular brands like Avast and Bitdefender.

When testing Total Protection With other types of malware, it was able to provide 100% protection. And despite McAfee's better results compared to previous years, Norton 360 remains the leader among all antiviruses.

But Total Protection provides users with a wide range of features, from online security to unrecoverable file removal and more:

• Optimize computer performance.
• Encrypted storage (128-bit encryption).
• Secure home network (firewall).
• Password manager.
• Compatibility with multiple devices.

Many of these features, including a password manager, a safe internet browsing extension, and performance optimization tools, are not unique. These features are offered by many antivirus programs like TotalAV. But if you need a multi-functional antivirus at an affordable price that is significantly lower than many premium antiviruses like BullGuard and AVG, McAfee will be a worthy choice.

Conclusion

McAfee Antivirus offers excellent quality of service, especially if you need protection for multiple users with devices on different devices. OSAlong with quality tools for identity protection, you get an excellent antivirus (considering that you can protect both devices) Android as iOS).

Sometimes, threat scanning with McAfee Antivirus can have a negative impact on device performance, but a wide range of additional features, including Secure VPN, negates this disadvantage.

Download McAfee Here.

3.Panda

Panda has a wide range of security features, including file encryption settings, VPN, anti-theft tools, parental controls, password manager.

It has features not found in most other antiviruses, including the “Virtual Keyboard,” which provides protection against hackers tracking keystrokes.

It seems to me that Panda wants to be “the best at everything” with a wide range of features for all users, without paying enough attention to the sophistication and functionality of each of these features.

I have tested over 30 different antivirus programs for Windows and Mac, and Panda performed quite well on most indicators. However, I think they can be better in many ways. Below I show you the antivirus test results and all its additional features.

Panda's security features

Panda claims that its security software is able to detect 100% of threats on your PC. It performs well in most tests, but I have to admit that some of the results left me quite surprised.

All elements are arranged clearly and conveniently on the screen, making it easy for inexperienced users to navigate.

Virus scan

I appreciate the detection level of the virus scanning module. During the first scan, the antivirus detected more than 95% of malicious .exe files.

There are three scanning options:

• Critical Areas. Scans your computer's memory, active processes, and other places where viruses tend to hide.
• A full scan. Scans all files on your computer.
• Selective Scans. Scan individual files and folders.

Panda says it uses big data and machine learning to proactively detect threats before an attack occurs. However, when testing the real-time protection feature, the antivirus failed to detect one of the folders with the test malicious files, even though the protection worked for 20 minutes.

File encryption and destruction

The file encryption tool is very easy to use. Panda uses a password store, a password manager with a built-in file encryption tool. Once set up, you can simply right-click on the file to be encrypted, select Password Store 12 > Encrypt, and create an encryption password to protect the files.

This tool also offers the following options:

• Delete the original files after encryption.
• Create a self-recovering archive so that users can decrypt files without the Password Vault.
• Store encryption passwords for encrypting individual files in the password vault.

You can also permanently delete files from my computer with the file shredder feature, which prevents hackers from accessing deleted files using advanced hacking methods.

Conclusion

Panda's scanner does a great job during testing and I'm very happy with some of the extra features, especially the tool to clean an infected PC. However, some other features didn't impress me at all and I think Panda's packages are overrated.

However, the company does offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, so it's worth giving Panda a try to decide for yourself if this antivirus will work on your PC.

Download Panda Here.

4. ESET Smart Security

ESET Smart Security Premium is a lightweight and reliable antivirus that won't slow down your PC in any way.

ESET's antivirus scanner has proven to be particularly effective. I especially liked its Ransomware Shield feature, which monitors and evaluates the behavior of all applications, blocking anything that might resemble ransomware.

Important features

• Password Manager. Not only will it save your passwords, but you can also automatically replace them in the corresponding forms.
• Secure Storage. Encrypt and store important data: photos, legal documents, etc.
• Bank Payment Protection. This module will protect your payment information while shopping online.
• Webcam Protection. This module will display notifications whenever any application tries to access the computer's webcam.
• Anti-Theft. Helps you find your lost or stolen device using the ESET Anti-Theft online dashboard.

An ESET license for one device cannot be called very cheap, but with a subscription for several years at once, everything becomes much more profitable. The most advanced plan will allow you to protect up to 5 devices at a time, which further reduces the price.

It also offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try ESET yourself and put it to the test without risking anything.

Safety

Combining the antivirus features of Eset Nod32 Antivirus and ESET Internet Security into one package, ESET Smart Security Premium offers users a comprehensive set of security features to ensure the integrity and security of their devices. Some of the notable features where Smart Security Premium differs from many include the following:

• Independently tested antivirus protection
• ESET includes antivirus protection that has proven to be one of the most effective on the market.

We always emphasize the importance of having effective protection against zero-day attacks (threats so new that the vulnerabilities have not even been documented) and ESET's nearly 100% detection rate is clear evidence that it has the ability to stop these threats early.

Top-notch Internet Security Tools

In addition to one of the most powerful antivirus engines on the market, ESET Smart Security Premium includes a range of online security tools. These include anti-phishing protection, which monitors and protects against attempts to steal personal information by fraudulent sites. It also includes intelligent cloud scanning, which compares system files against the whitelist used by the ESET Live Grid database.

Scan controls help you stay in control

Once the system is up and running, of course, all of Smart Security Premium's scheduled, on-demand, and real-time system settings must be initiated to ensure everything is running reliably.

ESET scanning covers local drives, virtual/network drives and removable media, so everything running and connected to your system is protected. Additionally, files are automatically scanned when they are opened, created and executed.

I was particularly pleased that users have the option to change any of these default settings. This allows you to easily set up some very specific scanning rules – for example, enable automatic scanning of executable files, but disable protection against opening the files.

In addition, the system (by default) knows how to apply different levels of protection. Just like the scanning rules, any of these parameters can be changed to make the scan work exactly the way you want it to.

For example, files that have not changed since the last scan run are not scanned again. However, by disabling the “smart optimization” option, you can disable this feature and force the scan to start.

Host-based intrusion prevention system

Next on the list of interesting features that ESET has developed for Smart Security Premium is the Host-based Intrusion Prevention System (HIPS). HIPS works by protecting users’ computers from the network layer to the application layer (essentially all connection layers) and offers comprehensive protection against all possible threats. It does this by carefully observing the characteristics of the host operating system and monitoring it for signs of suspicious activity.

HIPS is a powerful form of antivirus protection that often runs on enterprise-grade endpoints such as servers and workstations, and for good reason. It deeply checks the state of the operating system to ensure that critical system components, such as registry files, for example, are not tampered with by a rootkit that could not be detected during the previous detection stages.

Scanning in standby mode

It is difficult to avoid the fact that performing a full scan of files and directories will lead to a decrease in system performance.

ESET allows you to enable standby scanning in the advanced setup menu in the antivirus configuration. Standby scanning will automatically start automatic scanning of files and directories while the computer is in standby mode, even when the computer is in presentation mode, locked, or when your account is logged out.

I enabled this feature and locked my computer for twenty minutes while I tested. It was great to know that while I was working in the garden, the scanning engine would automatically start and check my directories for threats.

Phishing protection

In terms of Internet security, ESET Smart Security Premium contains an anti-phishing engine that automatically intercepts and blocks web pages that distribute materials related to phishing attacks and social media attacks.

I love the fact that it is possible to go to a page and report incorrectly blocked pages to improve the accuracy of the feature for other users. I also liked that ESET's phishing filter is whitelisted, so you can add websites that have been incorrectly flagged as phishing sites.

When this web access protection is used with other program features, including real-time protection, scheduled scanning, and the ability to scan downloads in progress.

Conclusion

ESET won't slow down your computer and will protect it from viruses, ransomware and theft with advanced technology. ESET will also give you access to many useful features, including a password manager, secure vault, online payment protection and advanced anti-theft systems. A single device license may seem expensive, but ESET's multi-device price will be much more beneficial over several years.

Download Kaspersky Here.

You can also read: The 7 Best Programs to Hide IP

5. Avira Prime

Using cloud-based device scanning technology, the antivirus delivers very fast and accurate results; during testing the program, it scored 100 points for detecting malicious viruses of both old and new generations.

In addition to a first-class virus scanner, Avira offers:

• Protection against potentially unwanted programs. This shield prevents unwanted programs hidden in licensed software from infiltrating your device.
• Firewall Manager – Optimize your firewall settings according to the level of protection you need.
• Web Protection. Protect your device from infected content and phishing sites.
• Email Protection - Scans email attachments to clean out viruses and malicious links.
• Update your software. Automatically update many popular programs.

Outdated software can expose your device to a variety of threats, so I liked that the software update tool can detect and update them automatically.

I found 17 programs on my PC that needed updating – some of them hadn’t been updated in a long time! The app automatically found and installed all the updates.

I tested the Avira Prime toolkit which includes Phantom VPN (with unlimited browser traffic). You can protect up to 5 devices including Mac, Android and iOS. iPhoneThis antivirus is not as cheap as the Norton 360 Deluxe suite, but thanks to all the optional tools.

Avira Security Features

• Avira is a lightweight antivirus that offers a comprehensive set of easy-to-use tools for all major devices, including PC, Mac, Android and iOS devices.
• Avira has all the security tools needed to have a good antivirus in 2020, including real-time scanning, malware attack prevention, and web protection.
• My tests with Avira began with the launch of the “Smart Scan,” which quickly scanned my home PC for viruses, security issues, privacy settings, junk files, and more.
• The “Smart Scan” really impressed me. In just a few minutes, it managed to detect 17 privacy settings that could compromise my data security, including location sharing and app permissions that give access to all my data. It also found almost 1GB of data to clean up, 4 legacy apps that needed updates, and 3 apps that slowed down my computer’s startup.
• With just one click, Avira changed all of these settings, fixing privacy issues, cleaning up unnecessary data, updating outdated apps, and changing the settings for apps that open automatically at startup.

It was a great and incredibly fast way to optimize my system and privacy settings.

Conclusion

Avira antivirus can indeed be called one of the most reliable on the market and its detection level is hard to beat. It is a powerful, yet very lightweight program. My favorite tool here is the application updater, because now the boring but very important process of updating applications can be automated!

Download Avira Prime Here.