“Avira Web Safety and Avira Prime work simply fantastic, however are priced too excessive for what they’re.”
Execs
Good malware safety file
Provides a month-to-month antivirus plan
Features a VPN
Features a password supervisor
Cons
Dwell chat availability is kind of restricted
Free model lacks browser safety
Month-to-month plans are costly
Renewing the annual plan prices extra
In 2024, you want higher antivirus safety than your working system gives without spending a dime. That doesn’t imply it’s a must to pay a excessive charge or join a long-term subscription.
The perfect antivirus software program is inexpensive and provides dependable safety and good customer support. I just lately researched Avira’s antivirus options and reviewed Avira Prime to learn the way simple it’s to make use of and whether or not it provides good worth for the cash.
Tiers and pricing
Avira has a free model, a primary antivirus subscription, and a premium plan. Avira
Avira provides a month-to-month subscription plan, which is kind of uncommon for antivirus software program. Most require an annual subscription. As you may anticipate, a one-year plan is a a lot better deal.
Avira Web Safety for one laptop begins at $7 per thirty days, $35 for the primary yr (renewing at $71), or $126 for 2 years. That will increase to $10, $97, and $172, respectively, if it is advisable defend 5 Home windows PCs or Mac computer systems. You get real-time malware prevention and safety, a free password supervisor, a VPN with a 500MB per thirty days cap, and a software program and driver replace supervisor.
The free model has lots of the identical options, however lacks browser safety and buyer assist. Meaning you gained’t get alerted about contaminated file downloads. Stopping a virus is clearly higher than cleansing it up after your laptop has already been compromised. There are higher free antivirus apps should you don’t have room within the funds for malware safety.
I examined Avira Prime, the premium model that helps cell units, consists of a vast VPN, and has system optimization utilities. The worth begins at $10 month-to-month for 5 units, $60 for the primary yr (renewing at $110), or $205 for a two-year subscription. For households, there’s a 25-device plan for $13 per thirty days, $135 yearly, or $260 for 2 years.
Avira has a beneficiant 60-day money-back assure for all paid plans, so you may strive any plan risk-free to seek out out if it meets your wants.
Design
My Home windows 11 set up was pretty latest, however Avira discovered loads of points. Digital Developments
Avira’s Home windows app put in in underneath a minute and instantly supplied a whole system scan. It shortly checked for privateness issues, efficiency points, and viruses.
After Avira started scanning for outdated apps, progress slowed and stopped for a few minute at 78%. I began to fret that one thing went fallacious, but it surely ticked forward to 79 and 80%, then wrapped up with a community test in a couple of seconds.
Avira discovered two outdated apps, 22 privateness settings to replace, and flagged 520 registry entries within the efficiency assessment. I’d just lately put in Home windows 11 on this check laptop, so I used to be shocked to see so many points.
Nonetheless, I selected the large blue Repair points button. Home windows updates accounted for the outdated apps and a lot of the different points had been associated to default Microsoft settings as nicely.
With my laptop safe, I began to discover the app. The default standing tab reveals the inexperienced checkmark indicating my laptop is protected. On the safety tab, I can begin a virus scan, change safety choices, see quarantined information, and test the firewall. That was all in good condition.
Avira’s app is laid out properly and is straightforward to make use of. Digital Developments
The privateness tab proved extra attention-grabbing. That’s the place I discovered settings for the bundled VPN, password supervisor, and extra. The efficiency tab has PC cleanup and optimization utilities, however the preliminary system scan already took care of these.
I discovered the app to be easy and setup was quick, so I moved on to testing the options.
Options
Avira antivirus has a superb monitor file on AV-Take a look at, however there have been misses. Av Take a look at
The primary job of antivirus software program is to guard your laptop from malware. There are third-party cybersecurity labs that constantly consider the main antivirus options so we will check out how nicely Avira performs.
In response to AV-Take a look at outcomes, Avira has a superb file, but it surely’s inferior to many different antivirus options. Whereas Norton has earned an ideal safety rating since 2015, Avira missed some zero-day threats in checks carried out in July and August 2023 and had ongoing points from 2016 to 2021.
Take a look at malware was caught by Avira Prime’s browser extension, stopping the obtain. Digital Developments
Avira’s malware safety has been extra dependable just lately, so I made a decision to spot-check it for myself. I visited Wicar.org, an internet site that hosts innocent information that you need to use to check antivirus software program. Avira’s Protected Purchasing browser extension recognized the threats and blocked downloads.
Avira Prime’s VPN has two U.Ok. servers, and one labored with the BBC’s iPlayer. Digital Developments
I additionally examined the VPN by selecting a server in London and opening the BBC’s iPlayer web site. Sadly, it advised me I’ve to be within the U.Ok. to make use of iPlayer, suggesting the VPN wasn’t working. Avira Phantom VPN Professional additionally has a server in Manchester, so I attempted that one and it labored. Typically it’s a must to mess around with settings in a VPN to discover a connection that unlocks geo-blocking. Nonetheless, the very best VPNs deal with streaming higher.
Like Norton and Bitdefender, Avira Prime features a password supervisor. I examined it out and autofill labored as anticipated. I additionally created a safe notice that syncs throughout units.
Help
On my second strive, I used to be linked to Avira buyer assist. Digital Developments
Avira’s assist middle has a chat choice, so I attempted it late within the night and an AI assistant named Mark instantly responded. It advised a couple of assist paperwork, however none addressed my query. Mark supplied to create a assist ticket since no dwell brokers had been on-line, including {that a} response may take longer than ordinary resulting from a excessive quantity of requests.
I attempted once more the following day throughout regular enterprise hours. AI Mark answered, however after I wanted extra assist, a human got here on and shortly solved the problem.
General, Avira assist is nice, however many different antivirus options supply 24/7 assist, which might make a distinction while you’re going through a severe laptop downside.
Privateness and safety
Avira states that it gained’t promote or share your private information. I didn’t even need to dig by way of the privateness coverage to seek out that out, as a result of it’s on the Avira Free residence web page. It’s additionally within the privateness coverage.
I couldn’t discover any data of Avira safety breaches or privateness issues. The corporate was based in 1986, in order that’s a protracted file of treating prospects with care.
Is Avira antivirus best for you?
Avira Web Safety and Avira Prime supply good malware safety, however can’t compete with the very best antivirus software program on pricing or efficiency. McAfee and Norton have cheaper annual plans and higher antivirus data.
The month-to-month plans are distinctive, however costly. In case you knew you wanted further safety for a quick time period, it’d make sense to get Avira for a month or two. Nonetheless, AVG Antivirus Free may be all you want.
There’s not something terribly fallacious with Avira Web Safety or Avira Prime, however there are higher and lower-cost choices.
