This lab, too, included a test using malware aimed at Windows. In the macOS malware test by AV-Comparatives, most charted products scored 100%. In the latest report, seven products achieved a perfect 18 points, all six points for all three criteria. A high usability score reflects a small number of false positives, legitimate programs and websites identified as dangerous. Protection against malware protection is essential, of course, as is a low impact on performance. A product can earn up to six points for each. The researchers at AV-Test Institute evaluate Mac antivirus products on three criteria: protection, performance, and usability. When we first rounded up Mac antivirus products, we only selected those with at least one certification, but at present, many of them don't appear in either lab's test results. Two large labs include macOS antivirus products in their testing, but the slate of products for testing is variable. But actual test results published by an independent lab give you more reliable information.

User reviews can be helpful, if you discard the very best and very worst of them.

When you go to select a new washer, refrigerator, or other appliance, chances are good you research it first. If you're using a Windows security product from one of these companies, it might make sense to do the same on your Macs. ESET Cyber Security for Mac, Malwarebytes for Mac Premium, and Vipre Advanced Security for Mac are among those that earned three stars. Another seven managed a decent three-star rating, but there isn't room for all of those. Ten commercial macOS antivirus products that earned 3.5 stars or better appears in the list at top. At the high end, you pay $99.99 per year for a three-license subscription to Intego Mac Internet Security X9 or Airo Antivirus for Mac. With Sophos Home Premium, $60 per year lets you install and remotely manage protection on 10 Macs or PCs. McAfee goes beyond that, with a $59.99 per year subscription that protects all your Macs, PCs, Android, and iOS devices. ProtectWorks is unusual in that a single $29.95 payment lets you protect all the Macs in your household, with no subscription needed. We’ve put dozens of Mac-focused antivirus products through testing and evaluation, so you can have some help figuring out which will work best for you.Īs with Windows antivirus tools, the most common price is just under $40 per year for a single license. To make sure that doesn’t happen, you need antivirus protection on your Macs. Malware attacks and exploits, including pernicious ransomware, can break into your Mac. Yes, macOS is intrinsically more secure than Windows, but it’s not perfect. PC stands for personal computer, and a Mac is a personal computer too. I think we can agree that you need antivirus protection on all your PCs.

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