All About Cookies is an independent, advertising-supported website. Some of the offers that appear on this site are from third-party advertisers from which All About Cookies receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear).
All About Cookies does not include all financial or credit offers that might be available to consumers nor do we include all companies or all available products. Information is accurate as of the publishing date and has not been provided or endorsed by the advertiser.
The All About Cookies editorial team strives to provide accurate, in-depth information and reviews to help you, our reader, make online privacy decisions with confidence. Here's what you can expect from us:
Best for Affordable Premium Protection
/images/2024/05/17/7249df62-b35e-4ac5-bfc4-0e28a6a30b9e.png)
Anti-ransomware, spyware, adware, worms, Trojan, and rootkits protection
Real-time protection scans, phishing and scam site prevention, and ability to quickly isolate dangerous files
Choice between 3 plans, all of which include a VPN, Safe Browsing, and 24/7 customer support
Best for Family Security
/images/2023/01/17/logo-mcafee-antivirus.png){kind=logo}
Premium antivirus, scam, and web protection, plus a VPN, identity monitoring, and secure password manager
Extremely low performance impact on devices in third-party tests
Top plans include protection for unlimited devices, a very rare perk
In this close comparison, we scored McAfee slightly higher than Aura. Aura Antivirus is a suitable choice for users seeking standard features, such as malware protection and safe browsing, as well as advanced security features like a virtual private network (VPN), password manager, ad blocker, identity theft protection, and financial fraud protection.
In addition to award-winning antivirus protection, McAfee also offers a comprehensive cybersecurity bundle that includes options such as a secure VPN, credit monitoring, identity theft protection, and coverage for ransomware damages.
We’ve tested the best antivirus solutions, and here we compare Aura Antivirus and McAfee, offering a head-to-head breakdown of their pricing, features, test results, compatibility, and more.
 |
 Our Pick | |
| Star rating | ||
| Starting price | $36.00/first yr | $39.99/first yr |
| Max number of protected devices | Up to 10 devices | Up to unlimited devices |
| Malware scans | Manual | Manual and scheduled |
| Real-time protection | ||
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| 24/7 customer support | ||
| Compatibility | Windows, macOS, Android | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, ChromeOS |
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
We use our proprietary grading rubric in all of our testing, which considers ease-of-use, third-party testing scores, internal testing scores, price, compatibility, and features offered, among other metrics.
This means that our testing process is designed to ensure that the product isn't too confusing, protects as it claims, and offers you a lot for a reasonable price. We download and run each program on our own computers on home networks, just like you would. Our ratings reflect the real-world performance of the antivirus product. This ensures that we can recreate a similar experience for you and give our best advice on whether or not it's worthwhile.
To learn more about how we test, check out our full antivirus testing methodology here.
Cost is a primary factor when selecting a premium antivirus solution. Aura and McAfee offer comparable basic plans, as both of these products check for online threats to keep your device more secure. But McAfee ranges up to $199.99/first yr for the Ultimate plan. Comparatively, Aura costs $60.00/first yr for its Ultimate plan.
Aura offers multiple plans and includes a variety of bonus digital privacy and security features, such as a password manager and ad blocker. Although Aura offers solid real-time protection, it only offers three types of manual scans (quick, full, and custom). It doesn't have the option to schedule malware scans.
McAfee has been a leading player in the antivirus space for years, consistently scoring well in third-party testing. McAfee offers multiple plans, including an option to protect an unlimited number of devices. A firewall and VPN are included in all of its plans.
McAfee offers more antivirus features than Aura, and its competitive plan pricing is also a benefit. Aura is slightly less expensive than McAfee, with its starting plan. McAfee costs $39.99/first yr, while Aura’s entry plan is $36.00/first yr. That isn’t a big gap, especially when you consider McAfee covers up to unlimited devices, whereas Aura’s starter antivirus plan protects only three devices.
However, Aura offers a better introductory price, renewal rate, and advanced digital security features, making it our pick for best value.
Our Pick |
| |
| Price range | $36.00-$60.00/first yr | $29.99–$249.99/yr |
| Best value plan | Ultimate plan for $60.00/first yr | Advanced plan for $89.99/first yr |
| Money-back guarantee | Yes, 60 days | Yes, 30 days |
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
Aura Antivirus offers three standalone plans, although Aura Identity Theft plans also include the antivirus software bundled.
Aura’s best value is its Ultimate plan, and although it’s the most expensive, it offers features such as fraud protection, theft insurance, and online account monitoring. Aura offers a 60-day money-back guarantee, which is twice the length McAfee provides at 30 days.
McAfee also has three plans with the antivirus included:
McAfee lists the Advanced plan as its best value, and we tend to agree. It costs more than the Premium and Essential plans, but for the price increase, you get additional features, including credit monitoring, credit lock, and $2 million identity theft coverage, to help you stay safe online. McAfee’s Ultimate plan, which has the most features, costs $199.99/first yr. Although we do think Aura Identity Theft outperforms McAfee Identity Theft Protection overall.
McAfee offers additional useful features, including parental controls and device optimization tools. However, Aura does come with an ad blocker and anti-tracker, which is useful for private web browsing.
|
Our Pick | |
| Manual and scheduled scans | Yes, manual | |
| Real-time protection | Yes, for Windows | |
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| Firewall | ||
| Device optimization tools | ||
| Parental controls | Not included | Yes, with the Family plans |
| Password manager | ||
| VPN | ||
| Ad blocker | ||
| Extras | Sensitive files vault, financial fraud protection, and identity protection | Identity theft protection and data removal |
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
Aura offers users a range of tools to enhance their security. It also focuses on identity protection features to ensure your data is secure. What you won’t find are the parental controls that many families feel are essential. However, Aura Parental Controls is offered separately from the antivirus solution.
Aura and McAfee are both feature-rich, but the only feature Aura offers that McAfee doesn’t is an ad blocker. McAfee includes unlimited device protection in addition to a secure VPN and a password manager. Additionally, McAfee plans include a firewall for an extra layer of security, a file shredder to free up space on your device, and parental controls with a Family subscription. McAfee also provides a notification to confirm your device is secure while using the internet, giving you peace of mind.
/images/2025/02/27/mcafee_review_0125_refresh_01.png)
Although McAfee is a more robust antivirus package, Aura Antivirus includes the essentials to protect you from malware. We consider phishing and ransomware protection necessary for optimizing data security. Aura’s real-time protection feature is available only for Windows, which is disappointing for macOS users. Aura also focuses on identity protection, including account monitoring, dark web monitoring, and spam call removal.
/images/2025/03/09/aura_weekly_report_.png)
We rely on third-party test scores to demonstrate how an antivirus program performs in real-world environments. Will it protect you from various computer viruses? Will the software slow down your device or cause applications to launch more slowly? Third-party tests give us these answers.
Unfortunately, Aura doesn’t have any third-party testing available, so we can’t verify the security protection. These third-party tests can be quite expensive. So, it doesn’t mean Aura Antivirus is not a good product, but it does mean we are limited to what we can know without more data.
We used AV-TEST scores to assess how well McAfee performed in rigorous testing scenarios.
|
Our Pick | |
| AV-TEST Windows score | N/A | 18/18 |
| AV-TEST macOS score | N/A | 18/18 |
| AV-TEST Android score | N/A | 18/18 |
| AV-Comparatives malware protection score | N/A | 99.95% |
| SE Labs results | N/A | 100% |
| EICAR score | 2/3 | 3/3 |
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
The most recent AV-TEST results show McAfee receiving perfect scores for Windows and a near-perfect score for Android devices. No test was performed for macOS, so we can’t confirm protection for that operating system. Since Aura Antivirus doesn’t have third-party testing, there’s no way to compare the two products.
For Windows protection, McAfee scored 100% in January and February. That’s higher than the industry average of 99.9%. In testing how much McAfee slows down the launch of popular websites, it scored 17% on a standard PC and a high-end PC. The industry average for both is 20%. There was one false positive for January and February, but the industry average is also 1, so that wasn’t concerning.
McAfee offers live chat support options, which we appreciate as a fast way to get help. Both services offer 24/7 support, making them easy to contact if something goes wrong.
|
Our Pick | |
| Windows | ||
| macOS | ||
| Android | ||
| iOS | ||
| Browser extensions | Chrome, Firefox, Edge | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari (iOS only) |
| 24/7 customer support | ||
| Customer support options | Phone, email, online guides | Phone, live chat, online guides, forums |
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
Aura’s interface was easy to use, and we experienced no noticeable interruptions in system speed during the scanning process. To give it a thorough run, we opened multiple browser tabs and ran the scan. A full scan checked over 300,000 files in around 10 minutes. The scanning process was a breeze, but we noticed you can’t schedule scans. Manual scans are the only option there.
/images/2025/05/23/aura_antivirus_review_0525_refresh_antivirus_dashboard.png)
McAfee’s interface was also simple to navigate, and the full scan was quick to run. The firewall enhanced our online experience by monitoring both incoming and outgoing traffic.
/images/2024/08/05/mcafee_review_2024_refresh_10.png)
Some of the identity features didn’t work when testing the software on our MacBook, but it wasn’t a major issue, as switching to a different browser resolved the problem. We placed a call to support, and their advice worked. We experienced no lag time during scanning, and the real-time protection provided us with peace of mind without interrupting our online workflow.
Both Aura Antivirus and McAfee offer 24/7 phone support. However, McAfee offers 24/7 chat support, whereas Aura’s chat support is limited to M-F, 9 AM to 6 PM EST. McAfee provides videos to help you troubleshoot a problem yourself if you’d rather do so first. Similarly, Aura offers customers a comprehensive Help Center with self-guided FAQs and troubleshooting articles.
Aura Antivirus is good antivirus software. It includes identity theft protection services, a VPN, and secure browsing. It also has $1 million of identity theft insurance as an option with the Premium Identity Protection features.
McAfee is hard to beat with features like a firewall, a secure VPN, parental controls, identity theft protection, and a password manager, among the award-winning antivirus protection it offers. These features helped make it one of the best antivirus programs this year. But if you want antivirus with more budget-friendly options and fewer frills, there may be others that are better than McAfee for your needs.
It may be considered a con that Aura Antivirus doesn’t include its parental control software or offer firewall protection. If you’re not concerned about family options, that might not matter. A definite pro is the identity protection that you get with Aura, which includes not only insurance but also online account monitoring, home and title monitoring, and financial fraud protection. However, Aura Parental Controls are available with Aura Family, the identity theft protection suite.
Aura checks for malware when you run an antivirus scan. After that, you can review it for up to 7 days, then Aura will automatically delete the online threat.
Norton 360 and Aura Antivirus share some similar online protection features, but Norton offers additional benefits, including a firewall and cloud backup options, that Aura does not.
Overall, we think McAfee is the better antivirus software. It includes identity protection features and also provides a two-way firewall, credit monitoring, and ransomware coverage. You get plenty for your money, so if you’re in the market for a trusted name in antivirus, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed with McAfee.
But that doesn’t mean Aura isn’t worthy of consideration. Aura Antivirus offers exceptional identity protection features, and we think the $1 million theft insurance shows that Aura is serious about your security.
|
Our Pick | |
| Value | ||
| Features | ||
| Test results | ||
| Compatibility & customer support | ||
| Learn more | Get Aura Antivirus | Get McAfee |
Premium antivirus, scam, and web protection, plus a VPN, identity monitoring, and secure password manager
Extremely low performance impact on devices in third-party tests
Top plans include protection for unlimited devices, a very rare perk
If you’re still undecided and want to explore other antivirus options, we’ve included a list of tested and research-backed alternatives that offer varying price points and features.
Real-time protection from viruses, malware, and malicious websites
Includes the #1 ad blocker and also monitors for data breaches
Comes with a full suite of performance optimization tools to keep your device fast
/images/2024/02/21/avg_vs._totalav_antivirus_featured_image.jpg)
/images/2023/06/15/guardio_review.jpg)
/images/2025/04/27/windows_defender_vs._avast.jpg)
/images/2024/06/20/totalav_vs._kaspersky.jpg)
/images/2024/06/14/norton_vs._aura_antivirus.jpg)
/images/2024/06/07/norton_vs._trend_micro.jpg)
/images/2024/05/31/totalav_vs._malwarebytes.jpg)
/images/2024/05/31/norton_vs._avira.jpg)
/authors/patti-croft.png){kind=small}
/authors/kate_quinlan_headshot_april_2024.png){kind=small}
/images/2022/09/22/logo-totalav.png){kind=logo}
/authors/patti-croft.png)