Antivirus options

Antivirus Solution
Options Analysis

Twenty Windows antivirus products, each scored on six criteria: protection, trust, cost, upkeep, PC CPU/RAM usage and false alarms. The scores come from 2026 independent lab tests, and costs are estimated per year. Technical merit carries the most weight.

Published on Oct 2026
Kris Khaira

Author: Kris KhairaI've been building software since I was 9 (34 years ago), and getting paid for it since I was 17 (26 years ago). Find out more about my work at kriskhaira.com.

Top 3 out of 20
Worst 3 out of 20
Trend Micro Internet Security ranks 17th of 20. It's light on the PC, but it got the lowest award (“Tested”) in all three 2026 AV-Comparatives tests (AV-Comparatives, 2026). It also raised 83 false alarms in the real-world test, the most of any product, where the average was 8 (AV-Comparatives, 2026). And it had the lowest protection score of 16 products in AV-TEST’s Jun round (AV-TEST, 2026). Its business edition, Worry-Free, appears in no 2026 lab test at all.

Overall score, all 20 products

Weighted total out of ±40. Hover for details.

Top 3Worst 3Others
All 20 compared

Options

Each cell shows the score (−2 to +2) and the evidence behind it. Click a column header to sort. The top 3 rows are tinted green and the worst 3 red. Lab figures: AV-Comparatives Real-World, 2026 · Malware Mar, 2026 · Malware Sep, 2026 · Performance, 2026 · Business, 2026 · AV-TEST, 2026 · SE Labs, 2026.

# Product Total Score±40 Summary 🛡️ Protection×5 · independent lab tests 🤝 Trust×4 · vendor record 💰 Cost/yr×3 · 3 PCs, renewal ⏱️ Upkeep×3 · nags, renewals 💻 PC CPU/RAM usage×3 · slowdown score, lower is better 🎯 False alarms×2 · total across 3 tests

Costs are estimates in RM for 3 PCs at the renewal (year-2) price. Foreign prices are converted at about RM 4.20/USD and RM 4.90/EUR. “est.” means no Malaysian price was found. Free editions of Avast and AVG are licensed for home use only (AVG EULA, 2026).

Not ranked, because fewer than two labs tested them in 2026: AhnLab V3, Avira Free, Webroot, PC Matic, Comodo/Xcitium, 360 Total Security, and Trend Micro Worry-Free (business).

Selection criteria

What each criterion means

Six things decide whether an antivirus is a good choice. They're listed from most to least important.

🛡️ Protection weight 5

How much malware it actually stops. This comes from three independent labs, which attack PCs with real threats every month: AV-Comparatives (Austria), AV-TEST (Germany) and SE Labs (UK). A product's award drops if it blocks too much that's safe.

🤝 Trust & privacy weight 4

An antivirus can see everything on your PC, so the company behind it matters. This looks for fines, data sales, government bans and renewal traps.

💰 Cost per year weight 3

What 3 PCs cost each year after the first-year discount ends. Prices are Malaysian where available.

⏱️ Upkeep weight 3

The time it takes from you: installing, renewing, closing pop-ups and avoiding upsells. Built-in protection needs none of that.

💻 PC CPU/RAM usage weight 3

How much it slows the PC down when you open apps, copy files or browse. AV-Comparatives measures this as a slowdown score, where lower is better.

🎯 False alarms weight 2

How often it blocks something safe. Too many false alarms train people to click “allow” on every warning, including the real ones.

Method

How the scores work

Each criterion is scored from −2 to +2, then multiplied by its weight. The weighted scores add up to the total, out of ±40. Ties are broken by the heaviest criterion first.

CriterionWeight+2+10−1−2
🛡️ Protection5Top award across AV-Comparatives, plus 6/6 at AV-TEST or AAA at SE Labs2nd-tier award, or one weak testOne lab only, or mixedLowest or 3rd-tier awardsUntested in 2026, or worst in a test
🤝 Trust & privacy4No incidents foundMinor or old incidentAggressive marketing, renewal trapsRegulator action, or a national-security banSold user data, or sanctions plus cheating tests
💰 Cost / yr, 3 PCs3Free≤ RM 150RM 150–300, or unknownRM 300–500> RM 500
⏱️ Upkeep3Built in: nothing to install or renewSet and forgetSome nags or renewal stepsHeavy nags, upsell, steep auto-renewAds, bundled junk, hard to cancel
💻 PC CPU/RAM usage3Slowdown score ≤ 55–1010–15, or not measured15–25> 25
🎯 False alarms2≤ 10 across 3 tests11–2526–4546–80> 80

Time, money and PC resources carry equal weight. Business editions are scored on AV-Comparatives’ Business Security Test where they differ from the home product (AV-Comparatives, 2026).

The free option

Is the built-in Microsoft Defender enough?
For most PCs, yes.

Microsoft Defender ranks 5th, and it's the highest-ranked free option. It earned the top award with zero false alarms in the 2026 real-world test (AV-Comparatives, 2026) and full 6/6 protection at AV-TEST (AV-TEST, 2026). It's built into Windows, updated through Windows Update, and has no licence to expire (Microsoft, 2026). It also has a hidden strength. Its attack-surface-reduction rules block the script and brand-new-file lures behind most chat and email malware, on any Windows edition, with no extra licence (Microsoft, 2026). Installing any other antivirus switches those rules off, because Windows puts Microsoft Defender into disabled mode (Microsoft, 2026).

⚠️ False alarms rose in Sep

In the Sep malware-file test, Microsoft Defender dropped to a third-tier award because of 28 false alarms, even though it still blocked 99.89% (AV-Comparatives, 2026). Worth watching.

⚠️ It leans on the cloud

It catches 82% of malware with the internet off and 98% with it on (AV-Comparatives, 2026). Keep cloud protection on, and don't mark the connection as “metered”, which pauses updates.

⚠️ A bit heavier

It slows the PC more than most: a slowdown score of 12.9, against 3–5 for the lightest products (AV-Comparatives, 2026). On old PCs, adding RAM helps more than switching antivirus.

Rule of thumb: use Microsoft Defender, set up properly (below). If you'd rather pay for a product, the strongest overall are ESET HOME Security Essential (about RM 120 a year for 3 PCs) and Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (about RM 210). Don't run two antiviruses at once, because Windows doesn't support it (Microsoft, 2026).
Setup checklist

Getting the most from Microsoft Defender: about 20 minutes per PC

Each step uses only what's already in Windows 11, with no extra licence (Microsoft, 2026).

  1. Windows 11, fully updatedSet Windows Update to automatic. Windows 10 no longer receives security updates without a paid extension.
  2. No other antivirus installedThat leaves Microsoft Defender active, which its other protections need (Microsoft, 2026).
  3. Turn on real-time, cloud-delivered and tamper protectionTamper protection stops malware from switching Microsoft Defender off (Microsoft, 2026).
  4. Turn on reputation-based protectionCovers SmartScreen and blocking potentially unwanted apps (Microsoft, 2026).
  5. Turn on Controlled folder accessStops ransomware from changing documents (Microsoft, 2026).
  6. Turn on five attack-surface-reduction rules (run once in admin PowerShell)These target scripts, obfuscated code, brand-new executables, ransomware and email attachments (Microsoft, 2026). 
    Add-MpPreference -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Ids d3e037e1-3eb8-44c8-a917-57927947596d -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Actions Enabled
Add-MpPreference -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Ids 5beb7efe-fd9a-4556-801d-275e5ffc04cc -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Actions Enabled
Add-MpPreference -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Ids 01443614-cd74-433a-b99e-2ecdc07bfc25 -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Actions Enabled
Add-MpPreference -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Ids c1db55ab-c21a-4637-bb3f-a12568109d35 -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Actions Enabled
Add-MpPreference -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Ids be9ba2d9-53ea-4cdc-84e5-9b1eeee46550 -AttackSurfaceReductionRules_Actions Enabled
Set-MpPreference -PUAProtection Enabled
  7. Give everyday users Standard (non-admin) accountsMalware that runs without admin rights can do far less (CISA, 2019; ACSC, 2025).
  8. Watch for chat lures, and check WhatsApp's Linked devices regularlyFiles disguised as PDFs and bills are spreading over WhatsApp Web and Desktop in Malaysia (MyCERT, 2026; Kaspersky, 2026). Phones need no antivirus app: iPhone apps are sandboxed and can’t scan each other (Apple, 2024).

All sources