Independent · sourced · Updated June 2026
Best Antivirus Software (2026)
The cheapest antivirus software is Avast at $0/mo. 4 offer a free tier (Avast, AVG, Comodo). This page compares 9 options on entry price, free tier, HIPAA/SOC 2 and best-for — every figure linked to its source, updated June 2026.
9 options compared on price, free tier, compliance and fit — ranked cheapest-first. Every figure links to the vendor's own page and the date we captured it; quote-only tiers show “—”, never a guess.
Key takeaways
- Cheapest: Avast at $0/mo (Avast Free Antivirus).
- Typical paid price: from $2.08/mo, median $3.33/mo, up to $8.33/mo — across 9 with published pricing.
- Free tier: Avast, AVG, Comodo, Bitdefender.
- Tracked: 9 vendors, data current through 2026-06-15.
Comparison
| # | Antivirus Software | Entry price | Free | HIPAA | SOC 2 | Best for | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Avast | $0/mo Avast Free Antivirus | Yes | — | — | Budget users wanting a full-featured forever-free antivirus | avast.com |
| 2 | AVG | $0/mo AVG AntiVirus Free | Yes | — | — | Budget users wanting a genuine forever-free antivirus (Windows, Mac, Android, iOS) | avg.com |
| 3 | Comodo | $0/mo Comodo Free Antivirus | Yes | — | — | Security-focused users who want prevention-based (not just detection-based) protection | antivirus.comodo.com |
| 4 | Bitdefender | $2.08/mo Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (1 device) | Yes | — | — | Windows-primary households wanting strong detection with low system overhead | bitdefender.com |
| 5 | McAfee | $2.5/mo McAfee Basic | No | — | — | Households with unlimited devices needing a single subscription | security.org |
| 6 | Kaspersky | $3.25/mo Kaspersky Standard | No | — | — | Non-US consumers wanting top detection rates at competitive prices | security.org |
| 7 | ESET | $3.33/mo ESET NOD32 Antivirus (1 device) | No | — | — | Security-focused users who value a vendor with a clean track record | security.org |
| 8 | Malwarebytes | $3.75/mo Malwarebytes Standard (1 device) | No | — | — | Users who want a secondary malware scanner alongside another antivirus | security.org |
| 9 | Norton | $4.99/mo Norton AntiVirus Plus | No | — | — | Families wanting bundled antivirus + identity theft protection | us.norton.com |
Prices are the lowest published self-serve monthly rate as captured on the linked source. Annual-billing and usage details are on each vendor's record in our open dataset.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest antivirus software?
Avast has the lowest published entry price at $0/mo (Avast Free Antivirus), as of 2026-06-15.
How much does antivirus software cost per month?
Across the 9 antivirus software with published paid pricing, the median starting price is $3.33/mo, ranging from $2.08/mo to $8.33/mo, as of 2026-06-15. 4 also offer a free tier.
Which antivirus software have a free plan?
Avast, AVG, Comodo, Bitdefender offer a free tier.
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How we compiled this
Prices fetched directly from official vendor pricing/product pages where possible (Norton, Avast, Bitdefender, Comodo). Where official pages returned JS-only renders, 403/504 errors, or geo-redirected to non-USD regions (McAfee timed out repeatedly; Kaspersky www.kaspersky.com redirects to kaspersky.de; ESET store renders prices client-side only; Malwarebytes pricing is JS-rendered with placeholders), pricing was sourced from security.org antivirus review pages (a reputable, annually-updated comparison site) and cross-checked against official product pages for plan structure. All monthlyUsd figures represent the annualized monthly rate (annual price / 12) for plans billed annually. Renewal/regular prices used where both intro and renewal prices were found; first-year intro prices noted in plan notes. accessedAt = 2026-06-14 on all sources.
Last verified 2026-06-15. We re-check published prices and compliance on a recurring cadence and update this page when they change.
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