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Best for Multiple Devices
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Perfect third-party test results, verifying comprehensive antivirus, ransomware, and malware protection
Includes advanced security features like a VPN, firewall, data breach alerts, privacy tools, device optimization, and more
Best for a Cybersecurity Suite
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4 plans available, all including antivirus, malware, ransomware, and hacking protection, Cloud backup, and a secure password manager
Option to add VPN connection, dark web monitoring, privacy monitoring, and more
Compatible with Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS on up to 10 devices depending on plan
Norton 360 offers identity theft protection, parental controls, and a VPN. If that’s more your speed, you probably won’t mind the wide price ranges. Norton offers no free lunches, so to speak. If you want this security software, you’ll pay for a subscription.
Avast isn’t centered on monitoring your children or giving you more Wi-Fi coverage but rather on protecting you while shopping or working online. If you’ve been the victim of a phishing email, Avast may be your ticket to safety.
Both Norton 360 and Avast are some of the best antivirus software we've tested. But let’s compare these two popular products and see which is the best antivirus software for you.
One of the main differences between Norton 360 vs. Avast is the pricing inequity. Norton is cheaper than Avast, even for the top-tier plan. That can be enough to draw many users to Norton (at least until the renewal price hike). However, Avast has a free antivirus plan to consider.
Another downside to Avast is that it doesn’t offer parental controls. If you’re a parent concerned about your child’s internet usage, Avast can’t help, but Norton can. Norton Family allows you to review online searches and videos to see what content your kid is seeing.
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| Starting price | $35.88/yr (first year only) | $29.99/yr (first year only) |
| Max number of protected devices | Up to 30 devices | Up to 10 devices |
| 24/7 customer support | ||
| Compatibility | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS | Windows, macOS, Android, iOS |
| Free version | ||
| Real-time protection | ||
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| Learn more | Get Avast Read Avast Review |
Get Norton Read Norton Antivirus Review |
Norton and Avast are similar where it counts. We expect the best antivirus programs to protect against ransomware and phishing, as both contenders do. You’ll also want an antivirus that is compatible with whatever device you use, and both Norton 360 and Avast Premium cover the most popular platforms.
So what’s different here? For one, Avast antivirus software won’t give you an ad blocker. Instead, you can get the free Avast browser, which is designed to block adware. Norton 360 includes its ad blocker with the antivirus suite.
Avast also has a free version of the antivirus, which Norton doesn’t offer at this time. With its most premium plan, Norton covers a third of the devices that Avast will cover, so that may make a difference if you have multiple options that need antivirus protection.
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Our Pick
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| Price range | $35.88-$119.88/yr (first year only) | $29.99–$99.99/first yr |
| Best value plan | Avast One Silver for $35.88/yr (first year only) | Norton 360 Deluxe for $49.99/yr (first year only) |
| Money-back guarantee | Yes — 30 days | Yes — 60 days |
| Learn more | Get Avast Read Avast Review |
Get Norton Read Norton Antivirus Review |
Is Norton free? No, but Norton 360 offers the lowest pricing plan at $29.99/yr (first year only). If you want the best value plan, you’ll still only pay $49.99/yr (first year only).
Avast bursts out of the gate at $35.88/yr (first year only) for the cheapest plan. We chose the Silver Device Protection plan as Avast’s best value pick simply because you get coverage for three devices instead of one. It includes the Avast Email Guardian that flags suspicious communications for scams and phishing. You’ll also get protection against ransomware and website scanning that searches for malware threats.
The Norton 360 Deluxe plan, which covers five devices, is still priced fairly at $49.99/yr (first year only). You’ll get a password manager, dark web monitoring, and SafeCam for securing your webcam.
Alternatively, if you only need antivirus security for one device, Norton Antivirus Plus only costs $29.99/yr (first year only), and you still get the Smart Firewall, real-time threat protection, and 2GB cloud backup.
What if you don’t like the antivirus you choose? Are you stuck with a plan that doesn’t meet your needs? Fortunately, both antivirus programs understand a user’s need to try before committing. Avast has a 30-day money-back guarantee. But Norton 360 goes even further with a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you can kick the tech tires longer.
| Feature |
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Our Pick
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| Manual and scheduled scans | ||
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| Firewall | ||
| Parental controls | ||
| Password manager | ||
| VPN | ||
| Ad blocker | ||
| Device optimization tools | ||
| Learn more | Get Avast Read Avast Review |
Get Norton Read Norton Antivirus Review |
Norton 360 gives you plenty to love if you want a feature-rich environment. You get the usual antivirus offerings like ransomware and phishing protection. You also reap the benefits of Norton Secure VPN for even more security when on the go or using your home network.
Norton Family even offers parental controls that allow you to monitor your child’s online activities and customize those activities and times for what you feel is appropriate. You won’t need to pay extra if you want a password manager, either, because Norton 360 has that, too.
Avast offers a decent plan with phishing and ransomware protection. The antivirus works to keep scams from your inbox by flagging suspicious incoming emails before they reach your inbox. The ransomware security is part of a six-layer protection feature that Avast claims will protect users from the latest malware threats.
As far as extras, there isn’t a lot to see here. The firewall is a nice feature to have, but it only works for Windows users. You won’t get things like parental controls or a password manager either.
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Avast SecureLine VPN is a nice addition, but Avast’s Ransomware Shield is what's impressive. You can select the protected file types you want to be monitored. This gives you more control to customize the options you want while not concerning yourself with the ones you don’t. If you don’t have many photos and are much more worried about someone using your documents, you can set up the protected file types to meet those specifications.
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Third-party testing gives users an objective view of how an antivirus performs under real-world stressors. We rely on third-party testing of performance, usability, and protection to show how an antivirus stands up to rigid scenarios that could happen to users. For our review of Norton 360 vs. Avast, we used AV-TEST to scrutinize these two products.
Our Pick
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| Windows score | 18/18 | 16.5/18 |
| macOS score | 18/18 | 18/18 |
| Android score | 18/18 | 18/18 |
| Learn more | Get Avast Read Avast Review |
Get Norton Read Norton Antivirus Review |
AV-TEST tests antivirus software for protection, performance, and usability against industry standards. Historically, Norton and Avast both received perfect scores from AV-TEST for all three categories. However, past tests checked the software against Windows 10. The most recent testing in March and April of 2024 tested on the Windows 11 operating system.
As a result, we saw a noticeable drop in Norton 360's performance (to 5/6) and a marginal drop in usability (to 5.5/6) due to two false malware detections. Norton was chiefly dinged for slowing down the launch of popular websites and the installation of frequently used apps.
Comparatively, Avast still crushed the Windows test. While both Norton and Avast displayed consistent results in the macOS and Android tests, Avast scored a cumulative total of 18/18 for all three operating systems.
| Feature |
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Our Pick
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| Windows | ||
| macOS | ||
| Android | ||
| iOS | ||
| Browser extensions | Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari, Opera | Chrome, Edge, Firefox |
| 24/7 support | ||
| Customer support options | Live chat, phone, email, online guides | Live chat, email, phone, online guides, social media |
| Learn more | Get Avast Read Avast Review |
Get Norton Read Norton Antivirus Review |
We had no trouble navigating Avast’s user-friendly interface. It was clean and worked without any issues. While you might see slower website response times on Windows, we experienced none of that using our Mac.
We tested the product using both the Smart Scan and the Deep Scan, and neither showed signs of slowing our system down, even with numerous browser tabs opened. Regarding that scanning speed, Avast is no slouch. We performed a Deep Scan, and it slashed through close to a million files in less than nine minutes.
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Similarly, after installing Norton 360 on our Macbook, everything that’s available for Apple users worked well. Again, we opened multiple browser tabs to test Norton’s mettle and saw no issues in performance while running virus scans — we scanned over 600,000 files in under ten minutes.
It’s typical for some antivirus programs to take hours to complete. We caught a quick glimpse of Norton flying through our files during the first few seconds of checking our device.
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As far as customer support, both antivirus programs give you multiple ways to get help if you need it. Norton 360 even gives you the option to message support through Facebook or Twitter. That’s a feature that we don’t often see with other software products.
Avast also has impressive customer service support. Users can call a toll-free number for assistance, 24/7, even for issues that aren’t Avast-related. You have access to the knowledge base if you want to try some troubleshooting on your own. The contact page will forward your request to an agent who can help with further issues.
We took advantage of the phone support and reached out to find out why the firewall wasn’t working for our MacBook. After a lengthy chat and remote access to our device, the rep was at a loss but noted he could not figure it out. He was polite and professional the entire time but wasn’t able to fix the issue.
There is no free version of Norton 360, but if you decide it’s not right for you, Norton gives you a 60-day money-back guarantee.
Norton 360 for mobile is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
Avast is compatible with iOS and Android devices.
For our testing and review purposes, we looked at all angles, including prices, features, and customer service. We also review third-party testing to see how these two services performed under heavy scrutiny. Avast Premium and Norton 360 are both solid, trustworthy antivirus programs, and each one has some unique features that may appeal to different users.
If you’re a parent of a preteen and need a way to monitor online activities, Norton puts the control in your hands. Alternatively, you may not care at all about parental controls and want a straightforward antivirus like Avast that gives you a simple interface with some cool features.
That said, when it comes to which is the better antivirus overall, we choose Norton 360 for a full suite of security features that give you the best overall security. When you combine a VPN, password manager, firewall, and everything else Norton 360 offers, it’s simply hard to beat. There’s a reason Norton has been in the antivirus game so long, and it seems to keep getting better.
But if you want to shop around, consider how Norton 360 holds up to other top antivirus companies:
| Antivirus | 
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| Best for | Best overall antivirus software | All-in-one software | Comprehensive security | Best value |
| Starting price | $29.00/yr (first year only) | $35.99/first yr | $29.99/yr (first year only) | $3.19/mo (billed annually) |
| Features | Zero-day scans, anti-phishing, ransomware protection, password manager, ad blocker | Antivirus protection, VPN, password manager, security for multiple devices | Antivirus, malware, ransomware, and hacking protection, Cloud backup, password manager | Antivirus protection, VPN, private search engine, data leak alerts |
| Learn more | Get TotalAV | Get Aura | Get Norton360 Antivirus | Get Surfshark Antivirus |
4 plans available, all including antivirus, malware, ransomware, and hacking protection, Cloud backup, and a secure password manager
Option to add VPN connection, dark web monitoring, privacy monitoring, and more
Compatible with Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS on up to 10 devices depending on plan
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