Free AntiVirus Software

As almost all PC users know good anti-virus software is critical as without it you will inevitably get a virus sooner or later & getting rid of it is far from trivial.  But paying for anti-virus software becomes an ongoing expense and paying for a subscription doesn't guarantee you'll have anything better than some of these top notch free versions.   We've used most of them - here are the 4 best.  



AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 9.0  ☆☆☆☆

5 Stars from CNET.  The free version does not include a Web shield, Game mode or advanced rootkit protection (unlike avast! below).

Download AVG Free


avast! Free Antivirus ☆☆☆☆☆

This is my current favorite.   Like the others it is free (although it does require you to register after 30 days).   Software & virus definitions are updated automatically at startup.   Also includes decent antispyware protection, a web shield, rootkit protection and Game mode.   Based on the other software mentioned on this page those features are usually reserved for the Pay versions.

Download Avast Free


Avira AntiVir Personal - FREE Antivirus  ☆☆☆☆

The free version does not include a Web shield or Game mode (unlike avast!).

Download Avira Free


PC Tools AntiVirus Free Edition ☆☆☆

A decent program but doesn't include any spyware detection.  I used it for a while but had difficulty turning it off in order to unlock a file for a System Restore.   Also seemed to be related to some crashes which lead to the need for the Restore.  

PC Tools does make an excellent but not free Spyware detector (Spyware Doctor).

Download PC Tools Antivirus Free



For additional reviews of these (as well as others not mentioned below) check out this relatively recent article from PC Magazine or see the review aggregation site consumersearch.