TotalAV vs. AVG Technologies: Which Is Right for You in 2024?

Find the best antivirus for you and your devices.
We compare security, extra features, ease of use, and more to help you decide.

TotalAV vs. AVG Technologies: Which Is Right for You?

Sam Boyd
Sam Boyd
Chief Editor

TotalAV vs. AVG Technologies: Which Is Right for You?

TotalAV is a reliable antivirus program that includes a really good malware scanner, plus powerful additional features and an easy-to-use, well-designed interface.

AVG is also super reliable and includes a comprehensive malware scanner and excellent additional features. However, its user interface isn’t quite as intuitive as TotalAV’s, and its web protection is slightly weaker.

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TotalAV is better for web security, features, and ease of use. If you want an antivirus with great web security and an intuitive user interface, go with TotalAV.

AVG is better for customer support. If you want intuitive and responsive live chat support, go with AVG.

Malware Protection

TotalAV 

TotalAV uses Avira’s anti-malware engine to scan your computer for malware, including trojans, worms, rootkits, cryptojackers, and more. There’s no impact on your system speed while scanning, and a full disk scan usually finishes in about an hour.

TotalAV detected nearly every malware sample during testing. To test TotalAV’s malware scanner, I downloaded over 1,000 malware samples to my Windows 11 computer and ran a full system scan (you can also choose a quick, smart, or custom scan). The scan was over in an hour or so, and it didn’t cause any slowdown to my system.

The real-time protection was equally impressive. I also tried to download the same 1,000 malware samples with TotalAV’s real-time protection running, and it blocked every malware sample. Finally, TotalAV successfully stopped multiple simulated ransomware attacks I tried to run on my machine.

AVG 

AVG shares the same anti-malware engine as Avast. Like TotalAV, it scans your computer for malware, including trojans, worms, cryptojackers, and more. I didn’t notice any impact on my computer while running AVG’s deep scan, and it finished slightly faster than TotalAV’s full disk scan, taking only 45 minutes.

The malware scanning results were as good as TotalAV’s. I tested AVG’s malware scanner by downloading the same 1,000 malware samples I used to test TotalAV, and AVG detected nearly every sample on my device.

AVG’s real-time protection works really well, too. It blocked every malicious file sample I tried to download and successfully stopped multiple simulated ransomware attacks.

Web Security

TotalAV

TotalAV’s anti-phishing tool (WebShield) stops you from visiting dangerous websites. It uses an AI-based detection system and an online database containing millions of known phishing sites to do this.

TotalAV blocked most phishing sites in my tests. I tested its web security by visiting hundreds of sample phishing websites and was impressed by how well it performed.

I also like how you can download WebShield for free. Even if you decide against purchasing TotalAV, it’s worth installing WebShield to protect yourself against phishing websites.

AVG

AVG’s web protection also stops you from accessing dangerous websites. Similar to TotalAV, it uses an AI-based system and an online database. I tried visiting the same phishing websites I visited while testing TotalAV, and AVG performed really well, blocking all the websites that TotalAV blocked.

AVG also provides an additional security extension (AVG Online Security) for free. So if you’re already running another antivirus but want additional web protection, you can download AVG Online Security and get extra protection while browsing.

Features

TotalAV

TotalAV offers coverage on up to 8 devices and includes:

  • Real-time malware protection.
  • System optimization tool.
  • VPN (virtual private network).
  • Password vault.
  • Identity theft protection (US only).
  • Data breach monitoring.
  • 30-day money-back guarantee.

I really like TotalAV’s system optimization tools. Many optimization tools on the market only include junk and duplicate file cleaners, but TotalAV’s optimization tool also comes with an application uninstaller, startup manager, and browser clean-up tool. After running the optimizer, I noticed a significant improvement in my computer’s speed.

I’m also a fan of TotalAV’s VPN.It disguises your IP address behind a virtual one to keep your data safe online, and it works well. It comes with over 70 server locations, and I hardly noticed any slowdown when connected to them — I could even stream HD video.

AVG 

AVG offers coverage on up to 10 devices and includes:

  • Web protection.
  • Firewall.
  • Rescue disc.
  • VPN.
  • Password protection.
  • Dark web monitoring.
  • System tune-up tool.
  • Anti-tracking.
  • 30-day money-back guarantee.

AVG’s system optimization tools work just as well as TotalAV’s. They’re also a lot more in-depth than most optimization tools on the market. They speed up your computer, free up disk space, and even detect and remove unnecessary programs. Like with TotalAV, I noticed my computer running faster after using AVG’s system tune-up tool.

However, I wish AVG provided a password manager. TotalAV has a password manager, and while it’s pretty basic, it’s better than what AVG offers. AVG only has a password protector tool, which prevents specific apps from reading, changing, or deleting passwords. Honestly, I found it pretty useless when tons of password managers on the market (including some built into antivirus programs) can do this and much more.

Ease of Use

TotalAV 

TotalAV offers a simple and intuitive dashboard that only took 5 minutes to install on my device. Each of TotalAV’s features are accessible from a sidebar, and you can find all of the advanced customization features in the settings menu.

TotalAV also offers an online dashboard that includes FAQs and video tutorials. Unfortunately, the online dashboard doesn’t include remote device access.

I like TotalAV’s mobile apps. They’re available for Android and iOS and are just as simple to use as the desktop version of TotalAV. Like the desktop version, the mobile apps provide great features, but they also add a mobile phone optimizer and app lock (Android only).

AVG

AVG’s user interface is simple to use, and it only takes 5 minutes to install. However, for some features, you need to download separate applications, which gets a bit annoying. By the time I had AVG fully set up, I had installed more than 5 apps on my computer.

I was disappointed that AVG doesn’t offer any kind of online dashboard. They do have a cloud management console, but it’s for business plans only. That said, TotalAV’s online dashboard isn’t great either, so both antiviruses have room to improve in this area.

Finally, AVG’s mobile app for Android and iOS is pretty good and easy to use. I like how it includes a feature to boost your Android’s speed. When I tested it, it closed 44 unused apps, improving my speed significantly.

Customer Support

TotalAV

TotalAV’s customer support is pretty good. It comes with 4 options:

  • Live chat.
  • 24/7 phone support.
  • Email.
  • Knowledge base.

TotalAV’s live chat agents are friendly and helpful, but the support isn’t accessible everywhere. In some countries, you need to use a VPN to access it.

The email support is also helpful, but they took 18 hours to respond to my email, which isn’t the fastest response time.

TotalAV boasts impressive phone support, with fast connections to competent support reps and a range of local phone numbers for different countries.

AVG

AVG’s customer support is good too. It comes with the following options:

  • Live chat.
  • Phone support.
  • Email support.
  • Community forum.
  • Knowledge base.

I appreciate AVG’s live chat agents. Communicating with them proved much easier compared to TotalAV’s live chat representatives and I didn’t need to use a VPN. They were courteous, useful, and promptly answered all of my questions effectively.

The email support is quite helpful, but finding the contact address can be challenging. You have to disconnect from the live chat to have an email agent follow up or look up AVG’s support email using Google. With TotalAV, there’s a straightforward form on its website for email support.

AVG’s phone support is really good. I phoned at a busy hour, so a bot told me AVG would phone me back. I much prefer this to having to wait on hold for ages. When an agent phoned me back (about 20 minutes later), they were really helpful and answered all of my questions.

Starting Price
Money Back Guarantee
Free Trial
$19.00
30 Days
$39.99
30 Days
Security
Features
Ease of Use
Support
Pricing
10
9
10
9
9
9
7
8
8
7
Latest Positive Review*User reviews are not verified
Michel Davidenkoff
Sep. 30, 2024
Bien rapidde
Bien rapide, to the point et complet.Merci!
Stan Hornung
Sep. 30, 2024
heel duidelijke taal
prima heel tevreden
Lee
Mar. 22, 2022
wow so much hate!
really don't understand the hate AVG are getting! had ZERO issues for the...
Mike
Dec. 13, 2018
Works with most apps without any problems
Didn't slow my computer down. Works with most apps without any problems
Latest Negative Review*User reviews are not verified
Don
Sep. 20, 2024
what i dont get
some popups still come up. slows cpu clocking and constant popups for...
kwanele
Sep. 8, 2024
Unsatisfied
Good app but not that good because you have to pay for features you don't...
Jul. 12, 2023
Unethical Business Practice
I was on a free trial for the multi-device protection, but received no...
DORCAS I SOETAN
Apr. 21, 2023
Total scam
I subscribed for a year in May 2022 and canceled it within three months...
Our Verdict
Sam Boyd
Sam Boyd
Chief Editor
Both TotalAV and AVG are really good, feature-rich antiviruses with excellent malware detection rates. However, I think TotalAV just has the edge — it offers some great extra features, such as decent web security, excellent system optimization tools, and a really good VPN. And while the customer support can be slow (and the countries you can access the live chat from are restricted), the excellent and accessible phone support makes up for this. AVG’s malware protection is just as good as TotalAV’s, and I had a positive experience with its customer support team, but I don’t like how its features are spread across a bunch of different apps. Both products come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can try them risk-free.
Time To Decide Which One Is Best For You

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I find the best antivirus for me?

The first thing to do is to understand what you need — all antiviruses come with different internet security tools to help you stay protected, so identifying what level of protection you want will help you figure out which product is right for you.

Some antiviruses have a virtual private network (VPN), some have safe browsing extensions, and some have a password manager. Some only work on certain operating systems, while others cover all operating systems across multiple devices.

It’s important to compare the best antiviruses on the market to find the perfect one with the functionality you need.

What makes an antivirus secure?

A high-quality antivirus suite will detect, flag, and remove viruses and various types of malware. It will also offer real-time protection against all threats, regardless of whether you are browsing the internet, downloading software, shopping online, or opening email. For additional security, many antivirus suites offer a VPN, secure storage, and a password manager — these things all add several layers of protection against various cyber threats.

For more information on how antiviruses work, read this.

What do I need to look for when searching for an antivirus?

An antivirus needs to protect against all types of malware — trojans, rootkits, worms, spyware, viruses, ransomware, and anything else that might cause damage to your devices. This is done in a variety of ways, but the most essential feature of an antivirus is real-time protection — this makes sure that an active threat is effectively stopped before anything serious can happen.

Other things to look for include — excellent detection rates, fast system performance, included extra features (like a VPN, password manager, etc.), easy-to-use interface, good customer support, and overall value.

Go here for a list of the best antivirus software of 2024.

How do I know if one antivirus is better than another?

When researching antiviruses, it’s a good idea to visit a few well-known antivirus software websites such as Norton, McAfee, and Bitdefender to directly compare each antivirus’s features.

You can also look at the expert opinions of our reviewers at SafetyDetectives.com to find the most up-to-date information about the best cybersecurity products on the market today.

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