Best freeware virus remover

If you'd like to take a step up in securing your PC without taxing your wallet, it's hard to beat Bitdefender's free antivirus software for Windows The Windows security software offers real-time monitoring for viruses, malware, spyware and ransomware protection. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition is easy to set up and stays out of your way until you need it. And the protection this antivirus product offers is solid. Bitdefender antivirus software consistently earns top marks for its antivirus protection and usability from the respected AV-Test independent testing lab.

The free antivirus version covers one Windows PC. Malwarebytes does protect your PC from a virus or malware attack, scoring reasonably well in recent independent testing for guarding against malware threats. But that's not really what Malwarebytes is known for.

If you find yourself in trouble, the go-to disinfectant for many is Malwarebytes. To get the antivirus company's free antivirus version, download this trial version , which "downgrades" to a no-fee on-demand cleaner with fewer features that detects and removes viruses and malware when you run an on-demand antivirus scan after 14 days. In addition to the four antivirus apps we recommend above, a handful of other anti-malware tools are worth considering among the best antivirus protection if you find them at a better price or just prefer to use one over our picks above.

It feels like McAfee Antivirus has been around forever, first on its own in the '80s, then as part of Intel starting in , and then again on its own when Intel spun it off in And McAfee Total Protection has been around forever because quarter after quarter it creates solid, modern antivirus software that protects your PC.

In recent evaluations by AV-Test, it had high scores on both protection and performance. Maybe this antivirus provider is not as well known to consumers because of its focus on enterprise security, Trend Micro antivirus quietly brings its business expertise to the home with its Trend Micro Maximum Security tools. Trend Micro's software earns high marks from AV-Test -- consistently scoring well for detecting zero-day attacks and widespread viruses and malware. And Trend Micro does a good job of not taxing system resources.

Free version? It earns high scores for usability and offers solid virus protection. The free antivirus version of Sophos Home gives you virus protection for three Windows PCs -- using the company's high-scoring anti-malware tool -- plus a day trial of the company's malware-removal tool. Test after test, Avast Antivirus for Windows performs well for malware detection with options ranging from Avast free antivirus software to Avast Premium Security. And we've included its antivirus in our list of recommended security app options before.

But Avast was in the news for several months for its non-antivirus business, so we looked at the company, specifically reports at the end of that Avast allegedly collected user data with its browser plug-ins and antivirus software and then sold data it collected through its Jumpshot subsidiary in early In response to the reports that his company gathered and sold the details of its customers' online activities, Avast CEO Ondrej Vlcek said in a statement that he understood that his company's actions raised questions of trust in his company.

To address that, Avast terminated Jumpshot data collection in January and closed its operations because the data collection business wasn't in line with Avast's privacy priorities.

These newer reports follow another in from Avast that its internal network was breached , possibly to insert malware into its CCleaner software, similar to an earlier CCleaner hack that occurred prior to Avast's acquiring the Windows utility. Avast is now saying the right things about taking its customers' privacy seriously , but it only came to that point after reacting to investigative reporting that revealed the Jumpshot practices.

The CCleaner revelations, while concerning, were self-disclosed, which is important to building user trust. We hope Avast's more privacy-friendly policies mean that there will be no further Jumpshot-style activities and it returns to glory as one of the best antivirus software. In the meantime, we'd recommend using one of the many other solid choices in this realm listed above.

Because the company has been in the news the past few years, let's talk about Kaspersky Lab -- specifically about the federal ban that blocks US government agencies from using Kaspersky Antivirus products. Based in Moscow, Kaspersky Lab has for years produced some of the best antivirus software for business antivirus needs and home customers.

Most antivirus companies limit the free version of their software to only offer basic protection. Windows Defender is not a bad antivirus — it even ranks a little bit better than some third-party free antiviruses.

If you choose an antivirus program from a trustworthy company, then yes. All of the brands on this list here are perfectly safe to use — the only difference between their free and paid versions is that the paid software includes additional features, like a VPN, a password manager, and parental controls, as well as better customer support options. Avira is my 1 pick for the best free antivirus in If you need a free antivirus, take a look at our list of the best free antiviruses in or just download Avira Free.

If you want the best protection for all of your devices, you need to pay for a premium antivirus program like Norton or Bitdefender. While there are literally billions of malware attacks reported annually, trojans and adware are consistently the most common types of malware found on Windows computers.

Trojans look like other files with extensions like. If you decide to uninstall your third-party antivirus, your PC will automatically ask you to reactivate the Windows Defender antivirus.

Professional Reviews. Affiliate Commissions. Reviews Guidelines. Katarina Glamoslija Updated on: January 13, This article contains. Short on time?

Download Avira Free Security for Windows here. Quick summary of the best free Windows antiviruses for 1. Kaspersky — Free extras like a VPN, dark web monitoring, and a password manager.

With brilliant features of scanning and reports of the previous scans, you can definitely trust the services of MalwareFox to build you a cleaner and malware-free computer.

The simple interface and impressive features provided in the tool makes it a popular choice. When you install it for the first time, it would give you the day trial of the premium version and then reverts to the free version. Pros Cons Deep Scanning Free version is powerful enough for a regular user Can remove many different types of threat Real-time security unavailable in the free version Sometimes raises compatibility issues. It silently works on your system and monitor apps, browsers for any malware.

Despite being free, it is ad-free, does not prompt you to get the premium version, and is relatively light on the system. Pros Cons Available for free Clean and straightforward interface Very effective in catching even the rare malware No settings or options available for configuration. You can easily detect any malware on your computer and destroy it with the help of this tool very easily. And the process is not even that time-consuming. Pros Cons Great detection rate Scanning is quick Free of cost Multiple choice for selecting interface Slow updates Provide limited information about the threats.

Apart from malware scanning, McAfee comes with many other security features, too, like parental control, VPN, password management, and more. You get a few other additional features of protection as well. Its firewall is more effective than any others. Pros Cons Excellent exploit detection Comes with the application control Effective firewall for monitoring network Webcam protection feature Can lower down system performance Antiphishing is less effective.

The Antivirus is not just limited to protecting the computer but also provides all kinds of links and email protection.

It will never disturb you by pop-ups or notifications and work silently in the background. For removing the powerful malware, this tool is the ultimate solution.

It is explicitly designed for targeting spyware, adware, keyloggers, and other threats to your personal data. It's more of a system repair tool than a system protection tool, however, and you need to be careful where you get it from: there are fake versions in circulation designed to cause damage, not fix it.

The version linked here is the real deal. Most security software tries to stop malware and spyware getting onto your system. Emsisoft Emergency Kit doesn't: it's the call of security software, the app you use when your PC's been poked by something unpleasant. With two million malware signatures, Emsisoft Emergency Kit can restore almost any infected PC to rude health. Read our full Emsisoft Emergency Kit review.

Brian has over 30 years publishing experience as a writer and editor across a range of computing and technology titles, and has been interviewed multiple times for BBC News and BBC Radio. He is also a science fiction and fantasy author, writing as Brian G Turner. North America. The best malware removal software makes it simple and easy to prevent viruses, trojans, ransomware, and other infections on your computing device.

View Deal. Reasons to avoid - Paid competitors can offer more options. Avast Antivirus. Reasons to avoid - Advertising prompts. Kaspersky Anti-Virus. Reasons to avoid - Full Kaspersky suite offers better value.

Reasons to avoid - Might slow your device down - Sightly limiting options. Reasons to avoid - Prone to false positives. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition. Reasons to avoid - No options or settings. Avira Free Security Suite. Reasons to avoid - No anti-ransomware protection. Reasons to avoid - Scans can be rather slow - Not the best phishing protection. Reasons to avoid - Limited information about threats.

Emsisoft Emergency Kit. Reasons to avoid - Not as effective as resident tools.