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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
Best for a Solid Antivirus Protection
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Uses AI threat detection to stay on top of latest cyberthreats
All plans protect up to 10 computers and unlimited smartphones
Norton is the better antivirus overall, as it provides more than just antivirus protection; its plans come with plenty of extra security features like a virtual private network (VPN) and password manager. Norton also has multiple plans, starting at $29.99/first yr, to fit almost any budget.
Sophos antivirus doesn’t have as many plans and it’s not as budget-friendly. There are one-year, two-year, and three-year subscriptions available, starting at $44.99/yr for the one-year plan. However, all Sophos plans cover up to 10 computers, which is more than most Norton plans.
There’s a lot more to unpack regarding these two antivirus programs, so let’s find the best one for you.
One of the main differences between Norton vs. Sophos is that Norton offers several tiers with various amounts of cybersecurity features. You can cover one to 10 devices and all of the plans come standard with antivirus protection, cloud backup, and a password manager.
Other than choosing the length of your subscription term, all Sophos plans have the same features. If you’re new to antivirus software, Sophos makes choosing a plan easy. Every Sophos Home account protects up to 10 computers, so it may be better suited for large households.
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| Star rating | ||
| Starting price | Starts at $29.99/first yr | Starts at $44.99/yr |
| Max number of protected devices | 10 | 10 |
| Malware scans | Manual and scheduled | Manual and scheduled |
| Real-time protection | ||
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| 24/7 customer support | ||
| Compatibility | Windows, Android, macOS, iOS | Windows, Android, macOS, iOS |
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get Sophos |
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.
Overall, Norton is cheaper and offers a longer money-back guarantee.
Our Pick
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| Price range | $29.99–$99.99/first yr | $44.99–$104.99 |
| Best value plan | Norton 360 Deluxe for $49.99/first yr | Sophos Home Premium 1-year for $44.99/yr |
| Money-back guarantee | Yes — 60 days | Yes — 30 days |
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get Sophos |
Norton starts a bit cheaper than Sophos. It also has numerous plan tiers, with the price depending on the number of devices you want coverage for and the features that come with the plan.
The most you will pay for Norton is $99.99/first yr if you choose Norton Select with LifeLock. That plan protects up to 10 devices and has the most features offered, like a VPN, parental controls, and identity theft protection.
Norton picked its Deluxe plan as the best value, and we agree. For $49.99/first yr, you’ll get protection for five devices, 50 GB of cloud backup, parental controls, and other cybersecurity features.
The only difference between Sophos plans is the number of years you want to be covered. With Sophos, you can get antivirus protection for one, two, or three years.
We think the best value is to buy only one year of Sophos for $44.99/yr. Antivirus needs change, and we know many don’t want to be tied down for multiple years to one product. The price only drops about $10 per year if you select the three-year plan.
Sophos includes a 30-day money-back guarantee to try the product risk free. Norton provides a 60-day money-back guarantee, which is plenty of time to decide if the product is right for you. Both offer 30-day free trials as well, so you have plenty of time to determine which antivirus is best for you.
Norton offers extra features like a password manager, a VPN, and device optimization tools.
| Feature | Our Pick
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| Manual and scheduled scans | ||
| Real-time protection | ||
| Phishing protection | ||
| Ransomware protection | ||
| Firewall | ||
| Device optimization tools | ||
| Parental controls | ||
| Password manager | ||
| VPN | ||
| Ad blocker | ||
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get Sophos |
Both Norton and Sophos offer basic antivirus features like an antivirus scan, real-time antivirus protection, as well as protection from phishing and ransomware attacks. But when it comes to extra features, these two antivirus programs differ.
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Both antivirus platforms are good for families. Sophos has parental web filtering to give parents more control over what their children can access online. Norton also has parental controls and the School Time feature, which provides online restriction times during school hours.
Sophos comes with a hefty price tag when you consider all it lacks. Although you can protect up to 10 devices, it leaves out some desirable features.
Sophos offers a free firewall, but it’ll overwrite all the data on your computer when installed. Therefore, you’ll need to install the firewall on a separate computer. You also won’t get a VPN to make your online browsing safer, or a password manager to keep your credentials more secure.
Meanwhile, Norton packs a punch, with its basic plan including a password manager and 2 GB of cloud backup with its antivirus protection. The other plans all come standard with advanced features like a VPN, dark web monitoring, and more.
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When it comes to malware detection and prevention, we want to be sure you’re protected. Beyond our own testing, we refer to third-party test sites to know exactly how an antivirus performs in real-world environments.
To compare Norton and Sophos, we referred to AV-TEST. It recreates real-world cyberthreats to asses the performance of antivirus programs based on detection, prevention, and mitigation.
Our Pick
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| AV-TEST Windows score | 18/18 | N/A |
| AV-TEST macOS score | 18/18 | 18/18 |
| AV-TEST Android score | 18/18 | 17/18 |
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get Sophos |
Both Norton and Sophos had excellent scores with some minimal markdowns. Norton's Windows score was 18/18 due to some false positives. Unfortunately, Sophos has yet to be tested on Windows, so we can't verify its accuracy.
Although both Norton and Sophos scored well, Norton had higher total scores.
While both antivirus offer plenty of support options, Norton offers 24/7 customer support so you can get help whenever you need it.
Our Pick
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| Windows | ||
| macOS | ||
| Android | ||
| iOS | ||
| Browser extensions | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari | Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Safari |
| 24/7 customer support | ||
| Customer support options | Live chat, phone, online guides, support forums | Live chat, email, online guides, support forums |
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get Sophos |
The Norton interface was easy to use, and we had no issues with scanning, even with multiple browser tabs open. We also didn’t notice any lag with any of our running programs during scans.
The junk cleaner was a nice addition and helped to remove files we no longer needed, freeing up space on our MacBook device.
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While our overall experience with Sophos was positive, we did note that the scan function was confusing at first use. Sophos doesn’t have a quick scan button like most antivirus programs. There is a fast scan option instead, which is similar to a quick scan. The fast scan is worthy of its name, taking only around five minutes to complete.
The interface was simple, but you need to access the Sophos website to make changes or view a setting, which was frustrating for us during testing.
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Norton and Sophos have similar offerings for customer support, including phone, live chat, online guides, and support forums. However, Norton offers 24/7 phone support, while Sophos's support hours are limited to Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST. We do like that Sophos provides support videos, which could be helpful for visual learners.
We recommend TotalAV as the best alternative to Norton. It has the same starting price as well as high protection rates and bonus features like an ad blocker and password manager.
We think Sophos antivirus works well as antivirus protection and its top third-party test results indicate that its trusthworthy.
Norton's cons include a lack of a free version for basic protection and its expensive pricing after the first year rate.
We don’t recommend running Windows Defender if you have Sophos, as it may cause performance issues by taking up considerable RAM. One antivirus program should be sufficient to protect your device.
If we must choose one, Norton comes out on top. With so many features, like a secure VPN, cloud backup, a firewall, and so many other options, Norton is hard to pass up. It’s been a trusted name in antivirus software for many years, and that doesn’t look likely to slow down anytime soon.
We want to be clear that both Norton and Sophos are good antivirus programs. In our reviews and according to the third-party testing, these products offer security protection you can trust. Everyone needs antivirus protection and with prices starting at $29.99/first yr, we suggest giving Norton a try.
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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
As with all products, we know these two antivirus programs may not fit the bill for your particular needs. With that in mind, we have some alternatives you may like better.
| Antivirus | 
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| Best for | Bundled services | Parental controls | Phishing protection |
| Starting price | Starts at $29.99/first yr | Starts at $39.99/first 2 yrs | Starts at $24.99/yr (first year only) |
| Additional features | VPN, password manager, ad blocker, device optimization tools | VPN, identity protection, parental controls, password manager | VPN, identity protection, parental controls, device optimization tools |
| Learn more | Get Norton | Get McAfee | Get Bitdefender |
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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