McAfee and Avast are two of the biggest names in cybersecurity, each offering great deals on antivirus software. Since pricing and features are similar, choosing between them can be difficult.
I’ve written in-depth reviews of both to provide real-world testing. A head-to-head comparison of basic and advanced features, customer service, and usability will help you decide whether McAfee+ or Avast One is the best antivirus software for your Windows PC and Mac.
Tiers and pricing
McAfee doesn’t offer a free plan, so Avast is the best choice if you don’t want to pay for antivirus protection. Avast earned a spot on our guide to the best free antivirus software.
Avast One Basic includes antivirus prevention and protection for one device, protected folders to safeguard your files against ransomware, and email scans for malware. There’s even a limited VPN with a cap of 5GB per week. This free version of Avast One might be all you need.
McAfee always offers a discount on the first year of service. Avast and most other antivirus apps follow this pattern. Those initial savings are nice, but it’s important to note that renewal prices will be significantly higher. Malwarebytes stands out for its consistent annual pricing, which is quite rare.
McAfee’s Basic antivirus app starts at $30 annually and renews at $90. It’s a surprisingly complete solution for one device, offering real-time prevention and protection from viruses, an unlimited VPN to protect your privacy, a password manager, and identity theft monitoring.
Avast One Silver takes a different approach, offering protection of three devices for $28 the first year, renewing at $80. It expands what’s included with the free app, adding a VPN with no data cap and servers in over 50 locations.
If you have more than one device, McAfee+ Premium is a good idea. For $45/$150, you can install the app on all your devices with no limit. McAfee bundles some PC cleanup apps at this tier.
For $63/$180, Avast One Gold protects five devices and includes a suite of cybersecurity software to clean up your PC, avoid scams, and browse anonymously with an unlimited VPN.
McAfee and Avast offer plans that include $2 million in identity theft insurance and more. McAfee+ Ultimate is $200/$280 Platinum for one person or $250/$425 for two adults and parental controls. Avast One Platinum costs $120/$300 and covers six family members and 30 devices.
Features
Malware protection
Since the No. 1 job of antivirus software is protecting your computer from malware, I’ll start with the protection scores from the third-party cybersecurity researchers at AV-Test.
Over years of ongoing evaluations, McAfee’s antivirus earned a perfect score for the last four years. Avast rated well also with only eight months showing minor weaknesses in the last eight years, the latest three years ago.
I did spot-checks by visiting a website that hosts harmless malware for testing. Both blocked the faux viruses and popped up warnings to alert me to the potential threat.
McAfee+ Premium and Avast One Gold performed equally well. Still, neither can compete with the near-perfect protection available from Norton and Bitdefender.
Scam and tracking protection
Viruses aren’t the only trick hackers use. Email scams and trackers can accumulate enough personal details to build a profile for cyberattacks.
McAfee includes text scam protection, while Avast alerts you of email scams. Those are nice additions that help you avoid sophisticated and subtle attacks.
A virtual private network helps and the best VPNs encrypt your data and disguise your location, keeping your online activity from falling into the wrong hands.
You get an uncapped VPN with the McAfee Basic and Avast One Silver. Both successfully fooled Google, which returned results for the server locations I selected in Peru and Italy.
Special features
McAfee includes a password manager that helps simplify signing in on various devices while keeping your credentials secure. Avast doesn’t include this feature, so if you don’t already have a better password manager, McAfee offers a bit more value.
Avast and McAfee bundle several other services and utilities if you subscribe. For example, dark-web monitoring checks for online leaks of your personal data, and PC cleanup tools upgrade outdated drivers that could have vulnerabilities. Many antivirus apps have similar features.
Customer support and usability
I checked the ratings on the Microsoft Store and TrustPilot to get an overall rating of these companies. While my McAfee support experience was slow, it was faster than email and I got a good answer to my question. However, most customers agree Avast has much better support.
Avast One Gold offers 24/7 customer support via chat, and I found it’s among the best available. McAfee+ Premium also provides round-the-clock assistance but could have long queues. I waited 13 minutes for help from McAfee, while Avast support replied in seconds.
Basic operations are simple with either app, but Avast One is more user-friendly. Guides helped me get started and I enjoyed the well-designed interface. When I wanted to access McAfee’s extra features, I was surprised that most were jammed into one narrow panel.
Protect your PC and Mac
You’ll be safe with McAfee+ Premium or Avast One Gold antivirus protection. Both deliver solid security for your computers and mobile devices at affordable prices. The free Avast One Basic app might be all you need, giving Avast a big advantage in this comparison. Avast Silver also undercuts McAfee Basic’s price while matching most of its features.
While McAfee protects an unlimited number of devices with its mid-tier McAfee+ Premium, Avast’s affordable family plans cover up to 30 devices. There are better deals on antivirus software, and you don’t always have to pay more to get good protection.
I liked Avast One’s app better overall and recommend it over McAfee. If neither meets your needs, check out our guide to the best antivirus software for more options.
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