MacKeeper Review 2024: Mac’s Best Friend

MacKeeper worked seamlessly for us. From a nearly instant tech support chat built right into the product to additional features such as a virtual private network (VPN) and an ad blocker, this Mac product was impressive. 

There are very few cybersecurity products built specifically for macOS. When we come across one, we get excited. MacKeeper reviews online can be predominantly negative, but we wanted to see if those were right. From what we could see in our product testing, those negative reviews are unfounded. 

Overall, we were happy with the security and performance MacKeeper provides, making it one of the best antivirus programs for Mac.

MacKeeper at a glance

Price	$10.95-$89.40/yr
Free plan	Yes
# of devices protected	1 - 3
Malware scans	Manual and scheduled scans
Real-time protection	Yes
EICAR test results	2/3
Firewall	No
Phishing protection	No
Compatibility	macOS
Extras	VPN, data breach monitoring
24/7 customer support	No
Learn more	Get MacKeeper

Our experience

We had a good experience testing MacKeeper on our Macbook Air. It was nice to find an antivirus program designed for our device, instead of a watered down program made for Windows.

Once the software was setup, we were unclear about the available scans. Our download started with the Find & Fix scan, which went through our device for cyberthreats, performance issues, and junk. We could also assign an email for data breach monitoring. This scan was a breeze.

But there's also a tab labeled Antivirus, where you need to set up real-time protection. We had to allow MacKeeper some permissions on our device to enable real-time protection and run scans. 

We played with every feature and security tool listed in the dashboard. Everything worked seamlessly and didn’t make our Mac buggy or slow. Even with the VPN and the ad blocker running simultaneously, there was no lag time on our browser.

Overall, we were very pleased with our MacKeeper experience. From easily accessible customer support to useful features, we were impressed with its speed and usability. MacKeeper is a solid piece of security software for macOS.

Who is MacKeeper best for?

• Recommended for Mac users wanting performance and safety tools

It’s often said that macOS is so secure it doesn’t require any virus protection. Although Macs are notably more secure than PCs, there have been plenty of instances where Macs have become infected with a virus, spyware, scareware, and expensive ransomware. 

If you’re a Mac user who wants protection, MacKeeper may be the product for you. In addition to virus and malware protection, MacKeeper also offers performance-enhancing tools. 

It will even update apps that may not automatically update, so anyone looking for performance tools may also want to check out MacKeeper.

MacKeeper prices and subscriptions

MacKeeper has a limited free version plus paid subscriptions that range from $10.95-$89.40/yr. All MacKeeper plans offer the same features, the only difference is how long your subscription term is and how many devices you wish to cover.

MacKeeper can be expensive compared to other top providers. However, you'll be able to receive all the features listed on its site versus other antivirus providers that focus on Windows. 

Here's how MacKeeper compares to other antivirus plans that include a VPN:

• Norton: $39.99/first yr
• TotalAV: $39.00/yr (first year only)

Because you don’t need a VPN if you’re using MacKeeper, it may be worth the cost if you think about the price of an average antivirus product (around $50 per year) and an average VPN product (around $35 per year) bundled together.

	Free	Full
Price for first year	Free	Starts at $71.40/yr
# devices supported	1	1 - 3
Compatible with	macOS 10.13 or later	macOS 10.13 or later
Manual and auto scan
Phishing protection
Firewall
Real-time protection	For one week
Ransomware protection
Performance optimization tools	One-time use
VPN
Ad blocker

MacKeeper security features

MacKeeper provides real-time antivirus protection plus features like ID Theft Guard, a Duplicates Finder, and an Update Tracker to help you get the most out of your Mac. The Update Tracker is helpful in allowing you to update apps on your Mac that may not update automatically. (It updated our Zoom app.)

However, it has some gaps when it comes to antivirus protection — there's no firewall or phishing protection included.

Malware and antivirus scan

When you install MacKeeper, it automatically prompts you to run a scan. Once finished, you can continue to manually run scans with MacKeeper’s antivirus whenever you like. 

Automatic scans are run once a day, but there’s an option to customize the auto scans. The antivirus software is pretty straightforward, and the security features on the dashboard are user-friendly.

Phishing protection

According to MacKeeper’s support, there's no phishing protection. But you can use the ID Theft Guard feature to scan your email for potential threats. 

We scanned our email and it came back with no threats detected.

Firewall

According to MacKeeper’s support team, there's no firewall feature for MacKeeper but it does encourage you to enable its VPN, Private Connect. 

A built-in VPN is a nice additional feature that means we don’t have to pay for a separate VPN product.

Real-time protection

As long as you have MacKeeper running in the background on your Mac, real-time protection is enabled. 

Some Mac customers running an older version of Mac have reported issues with the real-time protection, but MacKeeper’s techs have a solution. The real-time protection runs both antivirus and anti-malware, but also identity protection technology such as ad blockers. You get a lot from this product.

Ransomware protection

Ransomware is another part of the nasty malware family. Because MacKeeper is running real-time protection to keep you safe from viruses, it’s also scanning for potentially unwanted applications (PUAs) that may contain ransomware. 

There’s no need to worry about turning on this feature, as it comes standard and is already active.

Anti-fraud protection

The ID Theft Guard feature not only scans emails for spam, scams, and phishing attempts, but it also monitors your data in real time. This means that while MacKeeper is running, it’s making sure nothing is happening with your personal information. 

You can easily toggle this feature off or on.

Bonus features

MacKeeper’s bonus features help make it a bundled tool. With a VPN, ad blocker, and patch management feature all built-in, you could eliminate some of the products you’re already using. Here’s a list of some of the built-in bonus features:

• Privacte Connect: Built-in VPN
• StopAd: Browser extension that blocks ads such as pop-ups, as well as browser notifications and site trackers
• Update Tracker: Updates the apps on your Mac from a convenient location
• Smart Uninstaller: Helps you uninstall apps and deletes unneeded browser extensions, plug-ins, and widgets
• Duplicates Finder: Finds duplicate files to help you clean your memory
• Login Items: Lets you choose what apps launch on startup
• Safe Cleanup: Removes clutter, such as logs and caches, from your Mac
• Adware Cleaner: Gets rid of adware on your Mac

MacKeeper test results

With every antivirus program we review, we go through three categories of tests:

• Scan speeds: Measure how long it takes for the program to run different type of scans and how much the scans impact device performance
• EICAR tests: Use cyberthreat test files to safely test the antivirus ourselves
• Third-party test results: Review antivirus test results from independent research organizations 

MacKeeper had solid performance with all three categories. Its scan speeds were varied but didn't slow down our device. It passed all the EICAR malware tests. And its most recent AV-TEST scores were near-perfect.  

Scan speeds

• Result: Average

We couldn't find any traditional scan types from MacKeeper. There was a Find & Fix scan, which scanned our device for security, privacy, cleaning, and performance. There was also a scan on the Antivirus tab, which seemed to go through all the files on our device.

Scan type	Time spent
Find & Fix	1 minute, 34 seconds
Antivirus	35 minutes, 40 seconds

Surprisingly, the Find & Fix scan finished in under two minutes with results on all four categories. On the other hand, the Antivirus scan took almost 36 minutes, which is on the higher end but not terrible. 

MacKeeper didn't slow our device with either of these scans.

EICAR test results

• Result: 2/3

The European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research, or EICAR, develops test files for various types of cyberthreats. That way, anyone can test the efficiency of their antivirus from home without downloading real malware. 

We used three types of test files on MacKeeper: malware detection, drive-by malware downloads, and phishing page detection tests.

Test	MacKeeper score
Malware detection	Pass
Drive-by malware downloads	Pass
Phishing pages detection	Fail

Test results as of 08/23/2024.

When we first download the malware test files, MacKeeper did nothing to block download. But once we ran an antivirus scan, it flagged the EICAR files as threats for us to address.

MacKeeper didn't pass the phishing test but it doesn't have dedicated phishing protection so this is to be expected.

AV-TEST results

• Result: MacKeeper had top scores with only mark downs on the performance tests

AV-TEST is an independent research organization dedicated to testing security software. It runs three types of tests on antivirus programs: malware detection and protection, impact on device performance, and accuracy and usability when it comes to detecting cyberthreats. 

Test type	macOS Monterey score
Protection	6/6
Performance	5.5/6
Usability	6/6
Total	17.5/18
Date	March 2024
Link to test	Link

MacKeeper received perfect protection and usability scores. It detected 100% of the malware thrown at it and had zero false positive.

For performance, MacKeeper received a 5.5/6. The only category that had lower than industry average was for slowing installation of frequently-used applications. MacKeeper dropped performance by 37%, while the industry average was only 14%. 

MacKeeper compatibility

Although the Premium service on MacKeeper helps with all types of devices, that’s more of a paid form of tech support. When you’re looking at the normal product, you can see that MacKeeper is compatible with just Macs. It’s nice to have a Mac-focused product because so many products with a version for Mac usually have limited functionality.

Operating system:

• MacKeeper 5 (latest version 5.10) for macOS 10.11-10.12
  
• MacKeeper 6 (latest version 6.0) for macOS 10.13+

CPU:

• 64-bit Intel-based processor, Apple M1, or newer

RAM:

• 2 gigabytes (GB)

Disk Space:

• 113 megabytes (MB)

MacKeeper customer support

MacKeeper might have the most useful customer support we’ve ever encountered in any tech product. The built-in window is available from any portion of the dashboard and slides out on the right so you can ask a question. The technicians are so quick to answer and very helpful.

The one caveat to this is that they want to have a tech remote into your Mac and check everything for you. Even though Apple verified MacKeeper, we still aren’t keen on someone poking around in our Mac. 

When we explained we were working and didn’t have time, they were nice and stopped asking. Otherwise, MacKeeper’s support is on point. It also has a help center you can access with detailed tutorials.

Top alternatives

MacKeeper is one of our favorite antivirus programs for Apple, but what if your household is divded on operating systems? We've compiled recommendations of antivirus programs that excel for all platforms: 

FAQs

Bottom line: Is MacKeeper good?

Yes, MacKeeper is good. Despite the negative online reviews, this version of the MacKeeper product worked well for us. 

Because it’s one of the only cybersecurity products out there built for macOS alone, it's refreshing to be able to use a product that delivers on all the features offered on the website. 

While we’re creating a wishlist, a firewall and dedicated phishing protection would be nice. Otherwise, MacKeeper is a product worth putting on your Macbook. 

If you're still seeking an antivirus program, you can refer to our top alternatives or review our list of the best antivirus software.