Richtechy analyzes the best free antivirus for windows 10, currently available. The usability and effectiveness of each item on this list have been carefully examined.
If you plan on surfing the internet, installing an antivirus software on your computer is essential, mainly due to the proliferation of iframes containing infected advertisements, spam full of malware and drive-by downloads that infest even the most legal, honest and popular of sites.
To evaluate the performance of each antivirus, our reviews have put together the data collected by AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives, two authoritative testing labs that deal with malware and security.
These two labs, test a software’s ability to identify infected files and sites, protect users from drive-by downloads, and prevent uninfected software from being blocked because it is mistakenly deemed malicious.
In addition, both AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives also observe the impact of an antivirus on the general performance of the system. In addition to analyzing the data collected by these two prestigious laboratories, we have also tested each antivirus in person to evaluate the user experience and the type of functionality it offers.
The best free antivirus for windows 10
Although, all the antivirus software we have reviewed, have done a good job of protecting us against malware, Kaspersky Free Antivirus 19 has the most efficient malware detection engines that we have seen in a free product. This software also has minimal impact on system performance.
In recent tests, Avira Free Antivirus has also achieved impeccable performance in threat detection, although AV-Comparatives has found that Avira’s software has a significant impact on system performance when downloading and installing programs.
However, if you would prefer not to install a third-party software, you can always try using Windows Defender, Microsoft’s integrated antivirus: it activates as soon as you install Windows 10 and is at least as effective as most of the alternatives offered by third parties.
With that said, we present to you the best free antivirus for windows 10 to help keep your personal computer safe.
1. Kaspersky Free Antivirus – A perfect choice
Email scan form | An executable rescue disk from external media is available as a separate download
- Outstanding performance in malware detection
- Silent detection mode
- Impact on the minimum system
- There are no tests dedicated to the free version
Kaspersky Free Antivirus uses the same detection engine as the excellent commercial products offered by the same manufacturer, which certainly makes it one of the best malware tools currently available.
During installation, you will be asked if you want to use the recommended configuration that will automatically eliminate malicious files, adware, auto-dialers, suspicious software and those that could be exploited by criminals to damage your computer or your data. You can change these settings at any time.
You will also be suggested to create an account, but since it is not necessary to have a profile to use this software, you can avoid doing so. Kaspersky Free is installed with a 366-day license that automatically renews itself upon expiration.
With its simple and clean interface, the Kaspersky Free Antivirus client resembles its paid counterpart very much. The main screen shows the status of your protection and options for scanning your system and updating the virus database, as well as various other additional tools. Some options are disabled, and by clicking on it you will be asked to purchase one of the paid Kaspersky anti-malware suites.
Kaspersky Free also includes a plugin that will allow you to check if there are dangerous links in the results of your searches. We were pleased to find that this plugin does not change your default homepage or search engine, even if it needs permission to read all your browser data.
This free version of Kaspersky’s software includes tools for scanning files, the web, instant messaging, networks and emails, although you will not be able to customize or disable security settings. The advanced settings will allow you to schedule the scans and define what their sensitivity will be, the default behavior of the program and what kind of notifications to receive.
Unfortunately, the free version of the Kaspersky software does not appear in most of the test results of the anti-malware labs, which is why we had to rely on the performance statistics of the other Kaspersky products that use the same detection engine.
Even if the performance of the free and paid antivirus should be the same both in the tests carried out in the real world and in those with the reference samples, the slight uncertainty due to the fact of having to use this type of method remains the only thing reserved against what seems to be truly the perfect free antivirus.
During the two consecutive months of testing carried out by both AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives, Kaspersky’s detection engine defended the system against 100% of the reference samples and exposure to malware in the real world. In AV-Comparatives’ real-world malware exposure texts, Kaspersky’s software detected 99% of threats, and there were no false positives.
The performance data provided by AV-TEST show that this antivirus has had a much more incisive impact on the loading time of websites than that of most competing software, especially on a low-consumption Core i3 system. The AV-Comparatives tests did not give the same result, and instead indicate slowdowns in the times of the first start of the applications and in those of copying the files.
Tests from both labs, however, observed that the impact of Kaspersky Free on system performance was less conspicuous, or at least on the same level, than that of most competing software.
Score: 5/5
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2. Microsoft Windows Defender (Windows Security on Windows 10)
The built-in protection by default in Windows systems is excellent and certainly one of the best free antivirus for windows.
Integrated in Windows 8 / 8.1 / 10 | Available for Windows Vista / 7 in the Microsoft Security Essentials | It works on any Windows system | Windows Defender Offline is available as a separate download
- Excellent interface for Windows 10
- Good performance in malware detection
- You won’t need to install third-party software
- The impact on the system is more significant than one might think
Windows Defender, the virus protection built into Windows systems from 7 onwards, has improved over the years, and has achieved excellent performance in the most recent tests carried out by various independent bodies.
Its impact on system performance is not excessive, and is practically unnoticeable on most PCs. In fact, Windows Defender slows down the loading of web pages much less than most competing software. However, using Windows Defender rather than third party software may not provide you with any performance improvements.
The performance tests of this software by AV-Comparatives have revealed that any other antrivirus has a lesser impact on the overall system performance than Windows Defender, which slows down the copying of files and installation operations in particular. The tests performed by AV-TEST confirmed the slowdown of the installations, even if this laboratory has had less problems with copying the files.
The interface and functions of Windows Defender vary according to the version of the system on which it is installed. The Windows 10 Security feature opens on a screen that gives you an overview of your protection status, including the dates when the software was last updated or scanned for malware.
Each function has a page dedicated to it. Protection from viruses and other threats is entrusted to fast, complete or customized scans, and it is also possible to perform an intensive scan in offline mode suitable to face the threats more difficult to remove. You can manually update virus definitions and enable or disable options such as cloud and real-time protection: using the latter is not really a good idea.
The “Performance and Device Integrity” section monitors any problems that may arise in the system over time, and offers an “Install from scratch” option that reinstalls Windows allowing you to keep your files and most settings.
In the firewall tab you can open ports, configure notifications and define specific settings for private and public networks. The “App and browser control” page allows you to decide the degree of severity of Smart Screen, which can warn you against (or even block) unknown apps to the Microsoft verification service.
On the “Virus and Threat Protection” page you can also choose to disable Security notifications, so as to obtain an excellent silent detection mode.
Family filters are found under “Family Options”. This page offers the possibility to manage the profiles of minors who use WIndows devices, allowing you to activate filters for web content, controls on the apps that are installed and the time spent in front of the screen.
Ransomware protection and file recovery are new features that store backup files on Microsoft OneDrive, although by default you will only have 5 gigs of space available.
Although Windows Defender has not always had the best performance over the years, the results of the last few tests have been excellent.
In the results of the most recent tests performed by AV-TEST, Windows Defender managed to protect the system from all the malware contained in the reference samples, and from almost all the infected files to which the system was exposed in the real world during a period of two months of testing, reaching a percentage of 99.9% in real world malware exposure tests carried out in February. The tests carried out by AV-Comparatives on real-world threats confirmed this trend, attributing a 100% accuracy rate to Windows Defender.
Microsoft’s antivirus suite is so effective that unless you need specific features or a slight performance improvement, it doesn’t make much sense to install third-party antivirus software right now.
Score: 4.5 / 5
3. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition
The free and highly customizable version of the award-winning Bitdefender antivirus
Available on Windows 7/8 / 8.1 / 10 | Scan your system immediately after installation: It offers a tool for scanning folders and individual files
- Good performance in malware detection
- Low incidence of false positives
- There are no tests dedicated to the free version
- You need to create a Bitdefender account
The free Bitdefender antivirus suite does not have the same number of features offered by paid counterparties, but uses the same detection engine. Unfortunately, just as in Kaspersky and Avira, the free version of Bitdefender has not been the subject of many tests, which means that we had to rely on the results of the other Bitdefender products that uses the same malware detection engine.
After installation, a process which also includes a scan of the threats already present on your system, you will be asked to create a Bitdefender account. Unlike what happened during our last tests, we couldn’t start the antivirus until we signed in to an account.
Bitdefender’s main interface is deliberately essential. A simple window shows you if your protection is up to date or not, and a button to start the system scan. There is also a box where you can drag files and folders to perform an instant check, which is ideal when you come across an unknown file.
The settings menu gives you access to the event log, (which includes information about scans, updates and detections), quarantined files, and the sites, files and directories you want to exclude from scans (a particularly useful feature for those developers who don’t want the files they just created to be labeled as potential threats).
There are also options to disable real-time protection, which we do not recommend using, and, under “Account Info”, it is possible to disable the pop-up advertisements of paid Bitdefender products.
Through your Bitdefender account, you can check some basic information about the protection status of your computer, and know what threats the software has protected you from recently. Bitdefender is in default silent detection mode, so it won’t interrupt you while you play or watch movies, and it doesn’t include additional modules or plugins.
Bitdefender’s threat detection engine offers good protection from malware, although the latest results vary widely from test to test.
Bitdefender has successfully defended the system in all the latest tests carried out by AV-Comparatives on real-world threats. According to AV-TEST, on the other hand, Bitdefender protected the system from 100% of the malware contained in the reference samples and which it encountered in the real world in January, but its performance in the real world dropped to 98.8% in February , a slightly disappointing figure compared to the latest results we had observed.
The incidence of false positives has always remained low, and compared to competing software Bitdefender has had a very discrete impact on the system performance both in the AV-Comparatives and in the AV-TEST tests, especially when it comes to loading websites and file downloads.
Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition seems to be a great choice for anyone looking for an easy-to-use and effective protection tool.
Score: 4/5
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4. Avira Free Antivirus
Offers robust antivirus protection | Works on Windows 7/8 / 8.1 / 10 | Ability to create an executable rescue disk from external media | Optional free VPN
- Good performance in malware detection
- Low incidence of false positives
- Impact on the minimum system
- There is no silent detection mode, so pop-up notifications will stop Netflix, your game session etc.
Avira Free Antivirus 2019 is an essential and simple to use software, although we were surprised by the relatively high impact revealed in the last performance tests carried out by AV-Comparatives, which highlighted significant slowdowns in the time of downloading files from the web.
The main application, however, is well-designed. Avira has chosen not to fill its client with functions, but instead to present a series of optional extras that you can choose to add both during installation and after, and which include a tool for scanning networks, a 500MB VPN service free and other tools for system optimization.
The Avira interface is essential and very compact. It opens with a page showing the status of your protection, which modules are active and some advertisements for Avira paid products.
Since this is the free version of Avira, some modules are only available for Pro users. You can use the module for real-time protection, but not the tools dedicated to web and email security, which are only available in the Pro version. Its firewall settings plug directly into the Windows firewall, and are pleasantly easy to use.
You will be able to perform complete, customized and predefined scans on active processes, on local and removable media. Everything has been made deliberately simple to use, so there aren’t many other options to crowd the page.
The “Quarantine” and “Activities” pages show you what the program did, while Avira’s advanced settings allow you to configure the behavior and sensitivity of the scan tool, to decide which files to exclude from the analysis and to disable the warnings acoustic.
Avira Antivirus Free uses the same detection engine as the paid counterparts, to which we had to refer for the test results.
Avira’s detection engine performed one of the best in the latest real-world tests performed by AV-Comparatives, blocking 100% of malware without detecting false positives. A more thorough test for false alarms found only four errors, which is definitely a good result.
AV-TEST has also discovered that Avira has protected the system both against exposures to malware present in the real world and to those included in the reference samples with 100% accuracy, that is, without detecting any false positives, but has also found that the impact of antivirus on system performance has increased slightly compared to previous tests.
Score: 4/5
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5. Avast Free Antivirus
Clear data collection policy, in which you can decide not to participate
Email scan form | Ability to create an executable rescue disk from external media Windows XP SP2 / Vista / 7 SP1 / 8 / 8.1 / 10
- Effective detection of drive-by downloads
- Silent detection mode
- Simple and modern interface
- An incidence of false positives greater than that of some rivals
- The default installation options include potentially unwanted software
Avast’s free antivirus is complete and generally performs well. It shares the same detection engine as AVG, which Avast purchased in 2016. However, the two clients are not the same, and during the tests we observed small differences in performance, which generally depend on the type of interaction required by the user when a threat is detected.
In the case of Avast, it is very important to choose to change the settings during the installation and configuration of the software. More precisely, (unless you really want to take advantage of these options) it is advisable to disable the “Avast SafePrice” extension for price comparison, and prevent Avast Secure Browser from becoming your default browser, as well as disable the automatic launch of Avast on startup.
The default installation settings also include Online Security, a very useful browser plugin that scans websites for malware and blocks ad trackers, and an integrated password management tool, although we recommend that you use a dedicated program.
Avast is very clear about its data collection policy (all antivirus software collects information about its users’ habits and exposure to malware), and clearly tells you how to refuse to participate in the data collection.
The software has a simple interface that follows the Modern UI style of Windows 10, with a main screen showing the status of your protection and has a button for intelligent scanning. Other features are available on the “Protection”, “Privacy” and “Performance” pages.
You can perform different types of complete and partial scans; view which viruses have been previously detected; enable or disable the automatic scan of Avast files, web and emails; as well as look for potential vulnerabilities on your network, and create a rescue disk in case malware prevents your system from booting properly.
Avast offers both a “do not disturb” mode, which will not pop up when you are running certain programs in full screen mode, and the usual silent mode which will disable all pop-ups.
The program also has a free license that is automatically renewed, and which you can link to an Avast account. The client displays not too intrusive advertisements and buttons for extra functions that advertise paid products, which among other things include a firewall, a data shredder and a utility for cleaning the system.
Avast advanced settings allow you to add URLs not to be scanned, or to scan those URLs that could include unwanted but not harmful programs, you can also disable audio warnings and activate the super paranoid Hardened mode.
Since all laboratories test Avast’s free antivirus, we have a lot of relevant data at our disposal to refer to. Avast detected 100% of the real-world malware and AV-TEST reference samples over a two-month period, detecting only two false positives.
It also performed well in AV-Comparatives’ real-world tests, defending systems against 99.7% of the malware they came across online, but also detecting 15 false positives. Together with AVG, Avast is one of the antiviruses with the lowest impact on performance currently available.
Although installing it might be a little annoying because of the potentially unwanted extensions selected by default, Avast is certainly well equipped to defend your PC against various threats, despite there being some small problems with ease of use.
Score: 3.5 / 5
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6. AVG AntiVirus Free
Includes a shredder file to destroy infected folders
Email scan form | Rescue disk executable from external media available as a separate download | Windows XP SP3 / Vista / 7/8 / 8.1 / 10
- Silent detection mode
- Effective detection of drive-by downloads
- An incidence of false positives greater than that of some rivals
- The default installation options include potentially unwanted software
AVG was purchased by Avast in 2016, and both use the same virus database and the same detection engine. This is mainly reflected in the very similar performance of the two software during the tests, even small differences in their behavior can be observed, especially when user interaction is required, which can make a big difference.
The performances of AVG and Avast in the most recent tests have been practically identical, even if AVG lacks some additional functions, such as an integrated tool for creating rescue disks. The AVG rescue disk, which is used in the event that the malware present in the system makes it impossible to start your PC, must be downloaded separately.
As we mentioned earlier with Avast, it is a good idea to customize the installation options, and more specifically to choose not to install “SafePrice”, a browser extension for the price comparison that will appear every time you try to buy something online. If you are satisfied with the security offered by your current browser, you can also decide not to install AVG Secure Browser. If you choose to install it, be aware that it will become your default browser and that it will open automatically when you log in to your PC.
AVG’s gray and green interface gives you a quick overview of your protection status, indicates on which dates you last scanned and last updated, and includes a quick scan button, relatively discreet advertising Internet Security (a paid AVG software), and some inactive buttons that show you some functions that you can get by paying.
AVG Free offers real-time protection and the ability to perform scheduled and on-demand scans, but the client also shows which paid features you are missing, such as a firewall and tools for encryption and against phishing. If you wish, you can also associate AVG with an online account and add some extra paid features, including a VPN and a password management tool.
Additional settings and options are available in the menu on the top right of the client, including access to quarantined files and a file shredder, a tool that will allow you to permanently delete files from your PC.
If you don’t want to be annoyed by pop-ups when your antivirus detects something, you can activate the silent detection mode, you can also disable the AVG signature in outgoing emails, and customize the sensitivity and behavior of the AVG modules for real-time scanning, for email, web and software scanning. You can also uninstall each of the individual components, although we do not recommend that you do so.
To evaluate the performance of this antivirus, we considered the results of tests carried out by the most important laboratories on other AVG products that use the same detection engine. During the last two-month trial period, AV-TEST found that AVG products detected 100% of the malware encountered in the real world and a large number of malware present in the reference samples.
AV-Comparatives reports similar results, noting that AVG Free has detected 99.7% of the malware encountered in the real world. It must be said that in the AV-Comparatives tests dedicated to false positives, AVG mistakenly identified 15 non-infected programs as malware.
Like Avast, AVG has minimal impact on the performance of most systems. However, we would prefer that both Avast and AVG avoid automatically installing potentially unwanted browser extensions such as SafePrice.
Score: 3.5 / 5
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What to look for when buying an antivirus software
The key element of each antivirus is its detection engine, which establishes the potential danger of a software based on the databases containing the virus signatures, and on the heuristic analysis of their characteristics and their behavior.
Detection engines are the core of any company that creates antivirus programs, and typically the products that a developer offers for free are equipped with the same engines used by the paid counterparts. Paid products justify their price with extra features, such as firewalls and tools for system optimization
Modern antivirus software constantly checks your PC, and scans programs, files and sites in real time for potential threats. To make you feel even more relaxed, they also offer you the option of performing manual or scheduled scans. By default, most antiviruses perform an optimized scan that checks the files that are most likely to have been compromised.
With which method did we test antivirus software?
In determining the best free antivirus for windows 10, we used data on detection engines, not data based on a specific product. For example, we used the results of Kaspersky Internet Security to draw conclusions about Kaspersky Free, which also uses the same engine.
The data we considered was collected between January and May 2019, using the latest versions of the tested antivirus software. AV-TEST conducts both real-world tests, during which the systems are exposed to contaminated sites and emails, and tests based on reference samples, during which several thousand infected files collected in the four weeks are introduced into the systems previous.
AV-Comparatives also conducts a wide range of tests. The AV-Comparatives data we used in our review are those obtained from tests carried out in the real world (during which systems are exposed to sites infected by drive-by downloads), and those on false positives and system performance.
In all cases, we have directly quoted the percentages or numbers of malware exposures successfully prevented by antivirus during the tests, as well as the measurements regarding the performance and the results of the false positive tests, during which the software blocks are not registered. infected.
It is worth noting that performance varies widely from month to month. These changes are mainly due to the ability of antivirus to detect the most common malware at a given time, and to the speed with which their antivirus signature databases and heuristic rules for detecting malware are updated to adapt to new trends .
The performance tests performed by AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives assess the impact of the various antiviruses on some of the most common operations, such as downloading and installing applications, launching programs, copying files and browsing the most popular sites.
The price of free antivirus
Even if you don’t have to pay anything to use free antivirus, their creators will still have to finance their business somehow. This can happen in several ways. Some products, such as Avira, show advertisements that are not too intrusive, while other antivirus companies are paid to include in their installer or in their plugins some third-party services.
Any product that is also available in a paid version will encourage you to upgrade with varying degrees of insistence, and there are some software that includes features in its interface that can only be used by paying users.
Many antivirus software encourage users to register for a profile for free by offering online monitoring tools that you can use to manage and secure other devices (such as phones and tablets) associated with the same profile.
Antivirus software also automatically reports to their manufacturers when they come across an unknown file, whether infected or not. From the point of view of their creators, data collection is a very important function of free antivirus software. It is thanks to this feature that the malware databases to which the antivirus refer are constantly updated, helping to protect users and making both the free and paid software much more accurate.
On a final note,
Despite the drawbacks of freemium services, it would be unwise not to get an antivirus software activated on your PC for its protection. So if you are not going to be using the inbuilt Windows Defender security, you might want to try out one of the other best free antivirus for windows 10 listed in this article.
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