Norton Antivirus Review 2026: Is Norton 360 Good?

Norton 360 is one of our top-rated all-in-one antivirus programs. It scored 18/18 on AV-TEST across Windows, macOS, and Android and passed all three of our malware and phishing tests.

It's best for people who want one app to cover everything. Depending on the plan, Norton adds a VPN, password manager, dark web monitoring, parental controls, and cloud backup on top of real-time malware protection. 

The tradeoff is price. There's no free version, and some features only work on Windows. Below, we break down our hands-on testing, features, pricing, and third-party lab results.

Overview

Price	Starts at $29.99/first yr
Free plan	No
# of devices supported	1-10 (Unlimited with select LifeLock plans)
Malware scans	Manual and scheduled
Real-time protection	Yes
EICAR test results	3/3
Firewall	Yes
Phishing protection	Yes
Compatibility	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS
Extras	Parental controls, dark web monitoring, cloud backup, software updater
24/7 customer support	Yes
Learn more	Get Norton 360 Antivirus

Star rating summary

Our experience

Norton performed well in our Windows testing. The main dashboard clearly labels antivirus features like scans and Scam Protection along with extras like the password manager and virtual private network (VPN). 

From the Device Security section, we performed several scans to test Norton 360. The first quick scan we ran detected a dummy malware file we planted on our device prior to installing Norton. 

The Norton dashboard includes a Protection Score that gave us recommendations to set up Secure VPN and install Norton on up to five devices.

When you install Norton 360, Windows Security may turn off its antivirus protection when you install Norton 360, so the two programs don't run at the same time.

Mobile experience

We also downloaded Norton 360 on our Android device but were underwhelmed by the app. The experience started off promising, with the Smart Scan being completed almost instantly. 

There wasn't a message indicating that our scan was complete, which was initially confusing. Norton just redirected us to the main dashboard, which read, "You are protected."

We started downloading malware test files, but Norton didn't detect them. Even after running another Smart Scan, Norton still didn't detect any threats.

Based on our assessment, Norton's Android security and scam protection features don't scan malicious downloads. They flag threats such as untrusted certificates, data-harvesting apps, and phishing links.

Norton did flag the phishing test site we visited. But overall, the Android app's results were less clear than the desktop app's.

Norton 360 prices and plans

Norton ranges in price from $29.99–$59.99/first yr and comes in four main tiers: Antivirus Plus, Standard, Deluxe, and Premium.

The Standard plan starts at $39.99/first yr, the Deluxe plan starts at $49.99/first yr, and the Premium plan starts at $59.99/first yr. 

Norton Antivirus Plus is the most basic version, which costs $29.99/first yr and provides coverage on one device.

	Norton Antivirus Plus	Norton 360 Standard	Norton 360 Deluxe	Norton 360 Premium
Price for first year	$29.99/first yr	$39.99/first yr	$49.99/first yr	$59.99/first yr
# devices supported	1	3	5	10
Compatible with	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS
Manual and auto scan
Phishing protection
Firewall
Real-time protection
Password manager
VPN
Dark web monitoring
Parental controls
Privacy monitor
Cloud backup	2 GB	10 GB	50 GB	75 GB
Learn more	View plan	View plan	View plan	View plan

Norton also sells Norton 360 with LifeLock plans that cover unlimited devices. We focus on the four core plans above.

Prices for Norton 360 seem to be on par with other antivirus software costs. For example, you can get Malwarebytes for $44.99–$199.99/yr with coverage for up to five devices.

McAfee offers some similar features with price points that are close to Norton at $39.99–$199.99/yr, but you may find a few more options with Norton 360, such as webcam protection and cloud storage.

Don’t forget Norton 360 offers seven-day free trials and a 60-day money-back guarantee, so you can try it before you buy it.

Norton 360 antivirus features

Norton offers the standard antivirus features, including protection against malware, phishing, hacking, and other cyberthreats, along with Norton's Virus Protection Promise.

Norton also includes several extra features, so you can rely on Norton for most, if not all, of your cybersecurity needs. One of Norton's standout features is Norton Secure VPN, which is included with every 360 plan. 

Malware and antivirus scan

Norton 360 uses a database of known malware and artificial intelligence (AI) to analyze files that enter your device, then blocks files it identifies as malicious. Its machine-learning tools may improve detection of stealthy viruses.

Norton also monitors the behavior of newly installed applications. When an app accesses your network connection and behaves suspiciously, Norton reports it to you.

Phishing protection

Norton 360's phishing protection comes from the Norton Safe Web extension. Norton Safe Web analyzes the sites you visit for security risks and blocks malicious sites. With this extension, you may see a red warning in your Norton desktop app when visiting unsafe websites. 

There's also Norton Safe Search, which shows safety ratings before visiting a website. The possible alerts are:

• Green OK: This site is safe.
• Orange exclamation point: Be cautious, this site may not be safe.
• Red X: This site isn’t safe.

Norton Safe Web is available for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, and Microsoft Edge. 

Finally, Norton Scam Protection includes Safe SMS, which scans text messages for scam links.

Firewall

Norton Smart Firewall monitors network traffic to help block unwanted apps and users from accessing your device and information. The Smart Firewall is also designed to detect cryptojacking attempts in your web browser and help prevent them from running.

Network protection

The Norton Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) scans network traffic for threats that exploit security vulnerabilities. It also analyzes your home network for threats that try to access your device without permission.

The IPS works with your firewall to detect malware and block it from accessing your network. Norton integrates this function with Safe Web, and it works on Windows and Mac devices.

Real-time protection

Norton's Exploit Prevention identifies behavior associated with software exploits and blocks programs that attempt to use those techniques. This feature helps protect against zero-day exploits, which target vulnerabilities before a security update is available. 

Exploit Prevention is available on Windows devices but isn't available for macOS.

Norton recommends keeping Exploit Prevention and IPS turned on for the best protection.

Bonus features

Some of the notable bonus features you’ll find with Norton 360 antivirus are parental controls and the Norton Secure VPN. You also get dark web monitoring and SafeCam, which both protect against unique threats to your data and privacy. We’ll cover these in more detail below.

SafeCam

SafeCam is a Windows-only feature that monitors attempts to access a webcam. It alerts the user to access attempts and blocks unauthorized access, which could help prevent webcam hijacking.

Norton Family

Norton Family gives parents tools to monitor their children’s online searches and video views. It also includes age-appropriate monitoring and screen time controls for school hours.

Norton Family works on Windows 7 and later, Android 8 and later, and the current and two previous versions of iOS.

Norton Password Manager

You need a unique password for each of your online accounts to keep your information safe. But with numerous accounts, that can become a hassle.

With Norton’s password manager, you can create complex passwords that are harder to hack while storing them securely in your online encrypted vault. This feature is available across platforms so you can use it with a browser extension on desktop or with a mobile app for iOS or Android.

Norton Secure VPN

Norton Secure VPN is included with Norton 360 and helps keep your devices secure when using public Wi-Fi, as many of these networks aren’t safe. The VPN hides the internet data going to and from your device, so your personal information is less likely to be intercepted by hackers.

Dark web monitoring

Cybercriminals use the dark web to buy and sell your personal information. With Norton dark web monitoring, you get a notification if your information is found found on dark web forums. 

The service regularly searches places where information is frequently traded and alerts you if your data turns up. You can enter information like email address, phone numbers, credit card details, and more for monitoring.

LifeLock identity theft protection

With LifeLock identity theft protection, Norton scans for the use of your personal information and looks for threats. You'll get alerts about possible threats by phone, email, text, or mobile app.

There are also U.S.-based identity restoration specialists available to resolve identity theft issues. This plan includes $1 million worth in coverage for legal and expert assistance with identity theft problems, plus up to $25,000 in stolen funds reimbursement.

Cloud storage

Norton Cloud Backup stores and protects your files and documents to help prevent data loss in case of hard drive crashes, stolen devices, and ransomware attacks. You can create a cloud backup for specific files and even copy files from your computer to the cloud. 

At this time, Norton Cloud Backup only works with Windows.

Norton 360 test results

To assess Norton 360’s performance, the All About Cookies team uses European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research (EICAR) test files to check whether the antivirus detects known test threats. These hands-on checks cover scan performance and malware detection.

We also consider independent results from AV-TEST, AV-Comparatives, and SE Labs, which compare Norton 360’s protection, performance, and usability with other antivirus products.

EICAR test results

• Result: 3/3

EICAR offers tools to help evaluate the effectiveness of cybersecurity products. The samples provided safely simulate malware to evaluate how effectively your antivirus detects threats.

Test	Norton 360 score
Manually downloaded malware	Pass
Drive-by malware downloads	Pass
Phishing detection	Pass

Norton passed all three EICAR tests. We attempted to manually download an EICAR dummy file and were hit with a drive-by malware download, but Norton detected and canceled both files. 

It also blocked the phishing test webpage once we installed the Norton Safe Web extension.

AV-TEST results

• Result: 18/18 scores across Windows, macOS, and Android. 

AV-TEST evaluated Norton 360's ability to detect and block malware, as well as its effect on computer speed.

Test type	Windows score	macOS score	Android score
Protection	6/6	6/6	6/6
Performance	6/6	6/6	6/6
Usability	6/6	6/6	6/6
Total	18/18	18/18	18/18
Date	June 2026	June 2026	July 2026
Link to test	Link	Link	Link

In its latest test rounds, AV-TEST gave Norton 360 perfect scores for protection, performance, and usability on Windows, macOS, and Android.

AV-Comparatives test results

• Result: Top protection scores and low performance impact score.

AV-Comparatives is an independent testing organization that evaluates antivirus software in rigorous, real-world tests.

Test type	Mobile security	Real-world protection	Malware protection	Performance impact (Lower is better)
Score	99.6%	100%	99.97%	5.3
Platform	Android	Windows	Windows	Windows
Date	May 2026	July-August 2026	March 2026	April 2026
Link	Link	Link	Link	Link

In the real-world protection test, Norton received the highest protection rate, along with Avast and AVG. 

In the malware protection test, Norton tied for second with Avast, AVG, Kaspersky, and McAfee. F-Secure and TotalAV came in first with a 100% protection rate, 0.01 percentage points ahead of Norton.

Norton ranked fifth in the performance test, down from second place. The test measures how antivirus software running in the background affects system performance.

Finally, Norton completed its second round of AV-Comparatives mobile security testing in May 2026. It came in fourth alongside Avast and AVG. Bitdefender came in first place as it scored 100%. 

SE Labs results

• Result: 99%

SE Labs is a U.K.-based third-party testing service that releases quarterly reports for both consumers and enterprises on the effectiveness of antivirus protection.

Test type	Home Anti-Malware Protection
Protection accuracy rating	97%
Legitimate accuracy rating	100%
Total accuracy rating	99%
Date	2026 Q2
Link	Link

In SE Labs' 2026 Q2 test, Norton 360 earned a 99% total accuracy rating and a AAA award, the highest rating SE Labs gives. It tied with McAfee and Sophos at 99%. 

Only Kaspersky scored higher, at 100%. SE Labs tested 11 products in total.

Norton 360 compatibility

	Compatibility
Windows
macOS
Android
iOS
Browser extensions	Yes — Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge

Norton includes its broadest feature set in its Windows app. The macOS app includes phishing protection and the Silent Firewall, but it doesn't include Exploit Prevention or SafeCam.

You can also download Norton Safe Web on most major browsers. 

Norton customer support

Support type	Norton
Email or live chat
Phone
Online guides or forums

Norton’s Help Center features trending topics and a community forum. Outside of using the Norton website, you can also message its support team on Facebook or X (formely Twitter). There’s also a chatbot support feature, which is open seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

We used live chat to ask how to confirm whether the firewall was on. We reached a live agent after clicking through several menu options. Once we connected, the agent was polite and knowledgeable, though response times were sometimes long.

Norton also offers phone support 24/7. To get in contact, you need to fill out a brief form and get a case number to give to the agent. There’s also a dropdown box to select your country and get a toll-free phone number to call.

Norton user reviews

• Apple App Store rating: 4.7/5
• Google Play Store rating: 4.6/5
• Trustpilot rating: 4.7/5

Norton receives high ratings on the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and Trustpilot. Apple App Store reviewers praise Norton support, although some report slow app updates. Google Play Store reviewers say Norton provides peace of mind.

On Trustpilot, 70% of reviewers gave Norton five stars, and 17% gave it four stars. Reviewers highlight Norton's ease of use and antivirus protection.

Top alternatives

Norton is one of our favorite antivirus programs, but that doesn't mean it's perfect. It lacks certain features for Mac, and it could get expensive depending on your antivirus needs. 

We've tested Norton alternatives and recommend these programs. Here's how Norton 360 compares:

Bottom line: Is Norton 360 good?

Yes, Norton 360 is a strong option for people who want antivirus protection with parental controls, dark web monitoring, a VPN, and scam protection in one subscription. Third-party testers give it high scores for protection, performance, and usability.

Norton doesn't offer a free antivirus plan, so you need a paid subscription. Its seven-day free trial and 60-day money-back guarantee give users time to decide whether the bundle fits their needs and budget.

Choose antivirus software based on the protection features you need and the price you're comfortable paying. If Norton 360 doesn't fit those priorities, compare it with other options in our guide to best antivirus software.

Check out our Norton comparisons for more insights:

• Norton vs. Bitdefender
• Norton vs. TotalAV
• Norton vs. AVG
• Norton vs. Aura Antivirus
• Norton vs. Microsoft Defender

Change logs

Test date	Change logs
September 25, 2026	AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 100% (Jul-Aug 2026); SE Labs: 99% total accuracy, 97% protection accuracy (2026 Q2)
July 21, 2026	AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 99.3% (Feb-May 2026)
April 30, 2026	AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 99.5% (Mar 2026), malware protection score: 99.97% (Mar 2026), performance impact score: 5.3 (Apr 2026)
February 12, 2026	AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 100% (Jul-Oct 2025), malware protection score: 99.98% (Sep 2025), performance impact score: 3.8 (Sep 2025)
October 13, 2025	AV-TEST Android score: 18/18 (Jul 2025); AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 100% (Jul-Oct 2025), malware protection score: 99.95% (Mar 2025)
July 7, 2025	AV-TEST Android score: 17/18 (May 2025); AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 99.5% (Feb-Mar 2025), performance impact score: 4.6 (Apr 2025)
April 2, 2025	AV-TEST 18/18 across all platforms
January 9, 2025	AV-TEST Windows score: 17.5/18 (Sep-Oct 2024); AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 99.8% (Jul-Oct 2024), malware protection score: 99.96% (Sep 2024), performance impact score: 7.6 (Sep-Oct 2024); SE Labs: 100% total accuracy (2024 Q4)
August 5, 2024	AV-TEST Windows score: 16.5/18 (Mar 2024), macOS score: 18/18 (Mar 2024), and Android score: 18/18 (May 2024); AV-Comparatives real-world protection score: 99.7% (May 2024), malware protection score: 99.97% (Mar 2024), performance impact score: 11.5 (Apr 2024); SE Labs: 99% total accuracy (2024 Q2)

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