Norton is my favorite antivirus in 2022. It includes a comprehensive anti-malware engine and a large number of additional features. Its interface is intuitive and it comes with a user-friendly online dashboard.
Avast was caught spying on users’ private data and selling it for profit, so you should avoid it. You can read more about the scandal here.
Avast vs. Norton — Final Verdict:
- 1st place:
Norton is better for malware protection, web security, features, ease of use, and customer support. If you want the best antivirus protection in 2022, then go with Norton.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
Avast vs. Norton: Malware Protection
Norton‘s malware scanner protects your computer from all kinds of malware, including worms, rootkits, trojans, and ransomware. It uses heuristic analysis, a huge malware database, and machine learning to catch known and emerging malware threats. There were no slowdowns for me while I ran the scan, and Norton scanned my entire computer in less than an hour.
To test Norton, I had an archive of over 1,000 malware samples on my computer. Norton’s malware scanner found and quarantined every sample, including those I’d put in password-protected folders.
Norton’s real-time protection is super reliable, too. I tried downloading the same 1,000 samples, and Norton blocked the download before it started. I was also able to stop multiple simulated ransomware attacks — some of which Windows’s own protections allowed through.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
Avast vs. Norton: Web Security
Norton includes a Safe Web feature that can keep your computer protected from all kinds of phishing attacks. When I tested Safe Web, it blocked every sample phishing site I tried to visit, including sample phishing sites that Chrome and Firefox’s built-in protections missed.
Norton’s web security also includes an “Isolation Mode”. This mode stops harmful web scripts from running in your browser by putting it into read-only mode. I wouldn’t enter personal information without isolation mode running.
Finally, Norton provides color-coded evaluations of each website in your search results. Green websites are secure, you should use caution when visiting orange websites, and red websites are confirmed as phishing websites or containing malware. The evaluations are pretty good, but sometimes they judge websites harshly, so you still need to use a bit of common sense when you have them enabled.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
Avast vs. Norton: Features
Norton offers coverage on up to 5 devices and includes:
- Smart firewall.
- Web protection.
- Parental controls.
- Password manager.
- Virtual private network (VPN).
- Identity theft protection (US only).
- Performance optimizer and clean-up tools.
- 50 GB Cloud storage.
- Dark web monitoring.
- 60-day money-back guarantee.
- And more…
Norton’s identity theft protections are the best on the market. The protections include credit report monitoring, legal assistance, and credit freezing. You also get $1M in coverage in case of identity theft.
I really like Norton’s VPN, too. It protects your data by hiding your IP address behind a virtual one. It also includes a strict no-logs policy, 256-bit AES encryption, and tracker blocking. I didn’t notice any slowdowns when browsing the web or streaming HD video on services like Netflix.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
Avast vs. Norton: Ease of Use
Norton is easy to download and install. Once you’ve installed Norton, you’re offered two different user interface options: Classic and My Norton. Classic provides you access to each of Norton’s features through large and easily accessible buttons. A button also launches Norton’s intuitive web dashboard.
My Norton is Norton’s updated UI, but honestly, it’s not much different from Classic. The features on the home screen are slightly different, and you get an added picture of a mountain climber, but that isn’t really necessary.
I tested Norton’s mobile apps on both Android and iOS, and I really like them. They’re easy to use, well laid out, and include unique features that aren’t on the desktop versions of Norton, like an SMS spam filter and App Advisor.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
Avast vs. Norton: Customer Support
Norton has two customer support options: live chat and phone support. Each option is accessible in languages including English, Mandarin, Dutch, German and Arabic. While Norton doesn’t necessarily offer 24/7 customer support, I never had difficulty connecting with a customer support agent.
In my tests, I always connected with a live or phone chat agent instantly. The agents were always super helpful, and they never had any difficulty solving the issues I raised with them — even if they were more technical issues. The agents consistently offered actionable steps on what I needed to do to resolve my issues.
We no longer recommend Avast due to allegations of its unethical practices involving user data. If you want a quality antivirus you can trust, go with Norton or one of our other recommendations for the 10 best antiviruses in 2022.
