Question & answer

How much should antivirus cost?

Antivirus prices

In US dollars the first year costs between $29.99 for Intego Mac Internet Security and $144 for Aura. Half of the 12 products cost less than $54.99 in the first year.

The second year matters most when you compare. Across the 7 vendors that list a renewal price, year two costs 42.2% more on average. Another 5 vendors show only the first-year price.

Prices come from each vendor’s own website, in the currency they bill in. You can compare every vendor in the Price Index and the Renewal Price Index.

The short answer

For a careful user on one PC, free can be enough. If you pay, judge a suite on its renewal price rather than its first-year price. Pay more only for extras you will really use, such as an unlimited VPN or identity monitoring. Before you pay a renewal, check the new-customer price. The Price Index and the Renewal Price Index on this site show what each vendor charges.

In detail

List prices in this market mainly make the first-year discount look generous. What you really pay shows over several years. First-year prices differ a lot between vendors. On average, vendors charge noticeably more from the second year. Quality suites such as Bitdefender Total Security, Norton 360 Deluxe and ESET HOME Security sit within that spread. Each one covers its own number of devices.

Some extras are worth a higher price. An unlimited VPN is worth it if you would otherwise buy one separately. Identity protection with credit monitoring and insurance is really a separate product folded in. Cloud backup can be worth it too. Tune-up tools add less value. A pricier tier can also run the same engine as a cheaper one. Compare the feature table rather than the tier name.

Free is a fair price point too. Microsoft Defender plus sensible habits protects a careful user on one PC at no cost. The free versions of Avast and Avira also give real protection. The better question is which gaps you actually want to close. Then pay only for what closes them.

Calculate your true multi-year costSee the total over the years you keep it, the real average, and the renewal jump the teaser year hides.