Norton vs. Webroot 2024: Which One Checks All the Boxes?

Norton offers a myriad of features but at a premium price, while competitors like Webroot provide security at a more affordable cost, albeit with fewer features.

Mary James, Author

Catherine McNally, Editor

Last updated Dec 7, 2023

We receive compensation from the products and services mentioned in this story, but the opinions are the author's own. Compensation may impact where offers appear. We have not included all available products or offers. Learn more about how we make money and our editorial policies.

5.0

Editorial Rating

On Norton 360 Antivirus's website

Antivirus Software

Norton 360 Antivirus

Save up to 58% your first year

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
Available for up to 10 devices depending on plan
Multi-tab navigation may be overwhelming at first

4.6

Editorial Rating

On Webroot's website

Webroot

Fast, cloud-based scans
Ransomware reversal technology
Internet Security Plus plan required to clean device

Norton and Webroot are both award-winning antivirus solutions with a variety of features included, like anti-malware and firewalls. Norton does offer more features, like parental controls, while Webroot antivirus costs considerably less while still providing excellent internet security.

If features like dark web monitoring are your focus, you’ll likely want to go with Norton. But if you’re looking for solid protection as well as a handful of extra features that stay within your budget, Webroot is the better choice.

We’ll break down the biggest differences between these two antivirus providers as well as what each offers (or doesn’t offer) to help you in your search for the perfect antivirus.

In this article

Norton vs. Webroot review at a glance
Norton vs. Webroot: pricing
Norton vs. Webroot: features
Norton vs. Webroot: test results
Norton vs. Webroot: compatibility and customer support
Norton vs. Webroot FAQs
Bottom line: Is Norton 360 better than Webroot?

Norton vs. Webroot review at a glance

At first glance, Norton offers more than Webroot as far as features are concerned. Norton provides parental controls and 24/7 support in some of their plans, but these features aren’t included in any Webroot plans.

When you look at the pricing, however, you see that Norton is significantly more expensive in the long term for people who want antivirus protection and don’t need a lot of extras. Webroot includes identity protection features in its top-tier plan, the same as Norton, but at a lower initial cost and renewal price.

Norton 360: Best for extra features
Webroot: Best for the price

Norton vs. Webroot compared

	Norton 360	Webroot
Starting price	Starts at $29.99/first yr	Starts at $23.99/first yr
Free version
Max number of protected devices	10	10
24/7 customer support
Compatibility	Android, iOS, Windows, macOS	Windows, macOS
Phishing protection
Ransomware protection
Parental controls
Ad blocker
Learn more	Get Norton Read Norton Review	Get Webroot Read Webroot Review

One of the most notable differences is Webroot’s lack of 24/7 customer support. While Norton provides you with 24/7 live chat as well as other avenues for support, Webroot’s support is limited to weekdays.

Additionally, Norton offers compatibility with more platforms than Webroot. If you find conflicting information online, it’s because Webroot offers a plan called WiFi Security, which is a virtual private network (VPN) that works on more platforms. This is an additional product that can be added to any Webroot plan you choose.

While Webroot’s base price is higher than Norton’s, the overall pricing structure is lower. Webroot’s highest tier of protection, the Premium plan, is akin to Norton’s Select + Lifelock plan, which offers identity theft protection. Webroot’s cost for that is $77.99/first yr, while Norton’s is $99.99/first yr.

The biggest difference is in the renewal pricing. All of Norton’s renewal pricing is right around double the introductory price. Some plans cost more than double, while the Select + Lifelock plan comes in just under double at $179.99 for the second year. Webroot doesn’t have that high of a price hike, with renewal pricing costing anywhere between $16.00 to $52.00 more, depending on the plan you choose.

Norton vs. Webroot: pricing

	Norton 360	Webroot Our Pick
Price range	$29.99–$99.48/first yr	$23.99–$77.99/yr
Best value plan	Norton 360 Deluxe for $49.99/first yr	Webroot Internet Security Complete for $47.99/first yr
Money-back guarantee	Yes — 60 days	Yes — 70 days
Learn more	Get Norton Read Norton Review	Get Webroot Read Webroot Review

We chose Norton 360 Deluxe as the best value because it gives you almost all the features you need. Norton’s AntiVirus Plus plan is a little basic, and the Standard Plan doesn’t include parental controls.

If you want to go all out with the Norton 360 Select + Lifelock plan, you’ll get all the identity theft protection of LifeLock, but the price jumps to $99.99/first yr. That’s just for the first year. The renewal price is a whopping $179.99/yr for the Select + Lifelock plan.

Our best value choice, the Deluxe plan, jumps to $119.99/yr, which is more than double the first-year price, so you’ll need to decide if Norton is really worth it before your renewal date.

Not sure if you need LifeLock identity protection? Check out our Norton LifeLock review to find out what coverage it provides and how it can protect you from fraud and identity theft.

Webroot is a little more reasonable when it comes to pricing. Even though our best value choice, Webroot Internet Security Complete, is $47.99/first yr, it renews at $79.99/yr. That’s a much more reasonable renewal price than Norton.

Webroot’s Premium plan is comparable to Norton’s Select + Lifelock in that it offers identity theft protection coverage, but the cost is easier on your wallet at $77.99/first yr. The Internet Security Plus and Basic plans each cover you when it comes to malware detection and ransomware protection, but neither of these plans include device enhancements. This is why we feel the Complete plan is the best value.

Most tech products offer a 30-day money-back guarantee, but Norton offers a 60-day money-back guarantee and Webroot offers a 70-day money-back guarantee. Those are extremely generous. Webroot’s return policy, plus its reasonable pricing and useful features, make it the better choice when it comes to price.

Winner: Webroot. It was really close, but Webroot offers a little more for a less expensive price. Also, the renewal pricing for Webroot isn’t as huge of a price hike as Norton’s.

Norton vs. Webroot: features

Feature	Norton 360 Our Pick	Webroot
Manual and scheduled scans
Phishing protection
Ransomware protection
Firewall
Password manager
Parental controls
VPN
Device optimization tools
Ad blocker
Learn more	Get Norton Read Norton Review	Get Webroot Read Webroot Review

If you’re looking for a single product that helps you bundle your antivirus, VPN, identity theft protection service, and password manager into one, Norton definitely does that. The Select + Lifelock plan includes all of those services in one security suite.

Webroot only offers a VPN as an add-on, but it does offer password protection, which is powered by LastPass, and device optimization tools. These can help with system performance and overall malware protection by keeping your device running the way it should. Unfortunately, there are no parental controls to help you monitor your kids online.

As far as the main security features are concerned, both Norton and Webroot offer what you need to keep your computer virus- and malware-free in regard to routine real-time scans, a firewall, and anti-phishing technology.

A screenshot of the Webroot SecureAnywhere antivirus scan results, showing that a scan of about 738,000 files took 3 minutes and 36 seconds.

Malware is different than an ordinary computer virus and includes all forms of malicious software like ransomware, spyware, and adware. These can range from annoying, like adware, to downright dangerous, like ransomware. It’s important to use antivirus software to keep yourself protected online.

Winner: Norton. Even though you have to purchase a more expensive tier for the VPN and parental control options, they’re still options with Norton — and they’re not available with Webroot.

Norton vs. Webroot: test results

No matter what you’re shopping for, be it antivirus or a new pair of shoes, it’s likely you read reviews before you buy. Third-party testing is like a well-educated review of antivirus software. Independent testing labs like SE Labs put antivirus software through rigorous protection tests on all sorts of viruses, malware, and even good software that might get flagged as bad (called a false positive) to make sure the antivirus works the way it claims.

These results are essential for making sure you’re purchasing a product that’s constantly evolving with cyber threats to keep you protected.

Norton vs. Webroot SE Labs scores

	Norton 360[1] Our Pick	Webroot[2]
Total accuracy	97%	95%
False positives	2%	2%
SE Labs rating	AAA	AAA
Learn more	Get Norton Read Norton Review	Get Webroot Read Webroot Review

Norton and Webroot SE Labs test results from Jul-Sep 2023.

These are great results for both products: AAA scores for both and minimal false positives. You can see that testing against real-world threats returned pretty good results. Considering the tests have been fairly recent, you can trust each of these software providers is able to protect you against emerging threats. Online threats evolve quickly, and software you were using six months ago can be woefully out of date and unable to defend against new threats. It’s important to use software that updates itself at least monthly and keeps up with regular testing at least every six months.

We wanted to compare Norton and Webroot’s results on more than one third-party testing site. AV-TEST is a reliable and reputable testing site in addition to SE Labs. Unfortunately, Webroot hasn’t submitted testing to AV-TEST since 2019. Norton, on the other hand, continues to submit for testing regularly and performs well in all those tests.

Winner: Norton. The scores were close, but Norton performed better for “total accuracy.” Norton also continues up-to-date testing with more than one independent lab.

Norton vs. Webroot: compatibility and customer support

	Norton 360 Our Pick	Webroot
Windows
macOS
Android
iOS
Browser extensions
24/7 support
Customer support options	Live chat, phone, support forums, online guides, Facebook, Twitter	Email, support forums, online guides
Learn more	Get Norton Read Norton Review	Get Webroot Read Webroot Review

We tested both of these products, and one of the key performance factors we looked for was whether or not your computer slows down when scans are running.

Neither Norton nor Webroot slowed us down, and we found the testing experience with both to be positive.

We also made a note of how long an initial first scan can take. While some antivirus programs run an initial scan for over an hour, Norton’s took around 10 minutes, while Webroot’s took about 4 minutes. This is fast and efficient, and we’re pleased with both results.

We tried Norton's junk file cleaner, which took a few minutes to identify files we could safely remove to improve our device's performance. — Norton antivirus junk scan

Both of these products were tested on Macs. Antivirus for Macs notoriously lacks features and functionality, but neither of these had any issues. However, we didn’t have access to all available features on either product due to differences between offerings for Windows and Mac operating systems. What was available to us worked well, was easy to understand, and we had overall positive experiences with both solutions.

A screenshot of Webroot's Advanced Settings menu with the Web Threat Shield tab chosen. Web Threat shield marks malicious sites and protects you from phishing attacks.

As far as customer support, we had uneventful experiences with both Norton and Webroot. Norton offers more options for contacting support, but both services allow you to reach out to customer service reps via chats on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.

Norton also provides a 24/7 live chat while Webroot offers email support, which can take up to 48 business hours to get a response. While there are support forums and online guides for both services, we found that Norton’s support section was more organized than Webroot’s.

Winner: Norton. The 24/7 live chat alone is worth the win, but Norton’s clean and organized support page is also a winner.

Norton vs. Webroot FAQs

Do Norton and Webroot do the same thing?

At the core, yes, Norton and Webroot do the same thing. However, because so many antivirus programs are similar protection-wise, many have expanded offerings to include extras like a VPN, a password manager, identity theft protection, and other features that increase your cybersecurity while helping to bundle essential services into a single payment.

It’s these little extras that help set products apart. Norton offers more of them than Webroot does, but Webroot is less expensive.

Can you run Norton and Webroot together?

No, you typically shouldn’t run two antivirus programs together. It’s highly likely that they’ll interfere with each other and leave you with less protection or conflict so much they create operational problems for your computer.

If you want to stack your security, you should be using an antivirus, a firewall, and a VPN together, but not two separate antivirus programs.

Is Webroot a Russian company?

No, Webroot is not a Russian company. Webroot is owned by OpenText, which is a company based out of Canada. OpenText is one of the top five largest tech companies in Canada and it also owns Carbonite, a backup and data protection company.

Bottom line: Is Norton 360 better than Webroot?

Norton and Webroot both offer award-winning protection that defends against viruses and malware. Norton edges Webroot out on features, compatibility, and customer service, but they’re close on protection.

If Norton’s features are important to you, it may be worth the higher cost to go with that product. If you’re looking for a solid antivirus solution and budget is your main focus, Webroot is likely the better choice.

A lot of products claim to be the best antivirus program, but “best” is subjective. Whether you’re looking for all the bells and whistles or proven security at a lower price, the best antivirus for you is going to be what meets your needs.

Norton vs. Webroot alternatives

McAfee: McAfee is the OG and offers so many products and services that you should be able to find something that fits what you want. If you’re sticking strictly with antivirus, all of McAfee’s plans include a VPN and tracker blockers so you can stay safe online.

Get McAfee | Read Our McAfee Review
Avast: Avast offers a free antivirus that can be upgraded to a paid plan if you want more features. If you do decide to purchase a paid plan, depending on your choice, you’ll receive a VPN, an ad blocker, device optimization tools, and identity theft protection services. Avast paid plans are $4.99/mo and $9.99/mo, respectively.

Get Avast | Read Our Avast Review
Bitdefender: Bitdefender offers device security with basic antivirus protection as well as privacy solutions and identity protection. You have the option to purchase what you need or buy a bundle. We found Bitdefender to provide excellent protection even with its limited features for Mac.

Get Bitdefender | Read Our Bitdefender Review

Enjoy Norton’s 100% Virus Protection Promise

5.0

Editorial Rating

On Norton 360 Antivirus's website

Antivirus Software

Norton 360 Antivirus

Save up to 58% your first year

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
Available for up to 10 devices depending on plan
Multi-tab navigation may be overwhelming at first

Author Details

Mary James

About the Author

Mary is a seasoned cybersecurity writer with over seven years of experience. With a B.S. in Liberal Arts from Clarion University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Point Park University, she educates audiences on scams, antivirus software, and more. Her passion lies in educating audiences on helpful ways to protect their data.