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. This product by parent company Clario is built for internet security, antivirus protection, improving Mac’s performance, clearing junk files, and bundling services to deliver a Mac-forward product with ease of use in mind.

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’s no free plan, but that also means MacKeeper isn’t selling your information, which is often the case for free cybersecurity products. Overall, we were happy with the security and performance MacKeeper provides. Take a look for yourself.

MacKeeper overview

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 pros and cons

MacKeeper features

MacKeeper includes multiple 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.)

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 is 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 is no firewall option 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. It’s easy to 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:

• VPN: Built-in VPN
• StopAd: 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

MacKeeper doesn’t have a lot of test results from independent testing. AV-Comparatives listed MacKeeper as “Not Approved,” but there’s no clear-cut reason why. In the review, MacKeeper did better than some of the best antivirus competitors with security, and there were no red flags indicated. The AV-Comparatives review even praises some of MacKeeper’s features. Because MacKeeper has done a major overhaul of its branding and affiliate partnerships, it’s tried to show its value.

The AV-TEST results for MacKeeper are dated (December 2020), but the results were excellent when tested. MacKeeper has a blog page dedicated to its increased performance efforts. There is a lot of information and opinion on the internet about MacKeeper, but it all seems to be outdated. Overall, we had a pleasant experience with the product and wouldn’t hesitate to use it ourselves.

Our MacKeeper experience

As mentioned above, we had a good experience with MacKeeper. We used it on our Macbook Pro running the latest version of Ventura with an M2 chip. We did some testing on our Chrome browser but mostly tested on Safari. Because we were focused on testing for an actual Mac, we did not test on iOS. 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.

After activation, we were given a thank you page with support numbers. Then, we dug into the product. Scans ran quickly. Nothing took longer than 30 to 45 seconds to complete in regards to scanning for viruses, duplicate files, adware, memory, or any of the other optional scan-based features. Cleaning and implementing recommended changes were also quick and created no additional issues. The update tracker installed a Zoom update we’d been putting off. And even the customer support window built into the dashboard was easy and fast to use.

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

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 4 (latest version: 4.11) for MacOS 10.9—10.10

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.

MacKeeper cost

MacKeeper provides many options for subscription plans. It offers a Premium Services package that seems intense. It’s nearly $700 a year, but it also supports your phone and tablet (not just Apple tablets), as well as your Wi-Fi and other devices. Although we would love to have someone help with our wonky printer that never seems to work correctly, $700 a year seems like a lot. It would definitely be worth it for a business looking to do some self-management if they couldn’t afford a full-time IT person.

Aside from the premium services package, MacKeeper has regular packages for one or three Macs as well as support for your mobile Apple devices. The annual bundled price comes in at just over $70, which seems a little high for an antivirus product, but there are a lot of features. 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.

MacKeeper plans and prices

MacKeeper 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 is refreshing to be able to use a product that delivers on all the features offered on the website. It definitely has more features than ad blockers for macOS and Safari or Mac-focused VPNs alone.

Learn More

On MacKeeper's website

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• ID Theft Guard feature scans your emails
• Easy, fast, knowledgeable customer support

• No free version

We would love to see MacKeeper undergo third-party testing because it’s been more than two years since the last test date. While we’re creating a wishlist, some type of parental controls would be nice. Otherwise, MacKeeper is a product worth putting on your Macbook.

Author Details

Mary James

About the Author

Mary lives in Los Angeles and has been writing about tech for over 5 years. When she's not writing for work or fun, you'll find her in a theatre, at the movies, volunteering, or hiking the gorgeous SoCal landscape.