Much like Bitdefender, Avira is highly dependable, which is clear from its excellent threat-detection scores. But what really sets it apart from its competitors is the fact that it’s a very lightweight antivirus that will provide you with all the essential forms of protection without slowing down your device.
Avira offers four subscription options. The first one is free and, aside from virus protection and a few other useful features, such as PC optimization, harmful website blocking, and a VPN, it doesn’t include much else. Moreover, even though there’s a VPN available, it has a data cap of just 500 MB per month.
To truly comprehend why we consider Avira to be among the best security software for Windows 10, we recommend that you get either Internet Security or Avira Prime, since the Antivirus Pro package, which is $44.99 per year, doesn’t differ much from the free option. Purchasing Internet Security, on the other hand, will put email protection, a password manager, and an automatic software updater at your disposal.
If, in addition to an antivirus and other tools we’ve already mentioned, you’d also like to have PC-speed and tune-up features, you might want to take a look at the Avira Prime pricing plan. It’s also the only subscription with which you receive unlimited VPN access.
The technology that makes Avira one of the top antivirus scanners on this list is called Protection Cloud. It’s integrated into the program’s real-time scans, thus enabling Avira to immediately send any suspicious activity it detects to the cloud for analysis. The cloud database is updated with 10,000 new strains of viruses on a daily basis.
Another perk of cloud scanning is that it puts very little strain on your computer’s CPU. Unlike McAfee, which tends to take up more than 50% of your CPU’s power, Avira won’t need more than 20 to 25%.
The user interface of this Windows antivirus is exceptionally intuitive. You’ll be able to execute complex commands to keep your computer safe even if you’re not the most tech-savvy.
On the downside, while an extra firewall isn’t always necessary, it’s definitely helpful in limiting the chances of a network breach. Unfortunately, Avira has no firewall of its own; instead, you can only manage the Windows firewall from Avira’s app. If its developers were to add this feature, Avira would easily compete with Bitdefender for the number one spot on our “Best Antivirus for Windows 10” list.