ESET Antivirus Review 2024: Features, Pros & Cons

ESET is one of the best antivirus software providers, offering various security features through its different plans. ESET Antivirus pricing starts at $39.99 per year for one device for the first year and allows you to add more devices for a fee. Businesses can also jump on any of its business plans, which cost as low as $211 per year for five devices.

This antivirus software offers excellent diagnostic and anti-phishing tools and more security features to protect you against cyber attacks and provide web and email protection. Popular features of ESET Antivirus include:

• Secure data encryption
• Network inspection
• Online diagnostics
• Threat detection
• LiveGuard protection against new threats
• Brute force attack protection
• Password management
• Banking and payment protection
• Webcam protection
• Parental control
• Multi-platform support
• Cross-platform protection

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1

TotalAV

Price

$19 for the first year

Built-In Internet Security

Yes

iOS & Android Protection

Yes

1

TotalAV

Learn More

On TotalAV's Website

2

Norton Antivirus

Price

$29.99 your first year

Secure VPN

Yes

Password manager

Yes

2

Norton Antivirus

Learn More

On Norton's Website

3

Surfshark

Price

$2.49 per month

Firewall

No

Email Security

No

3

Surfshark

Learn More

On Surfshark's Website

4

ESET

Price

$10.50/month for the first year

Unlimited VPN

Yes

Identity Protection

Yes

4

ESET

Learn More

On ESET's Website

Apart from how well ESET Antivirus protects your devices from cybersecurity attacks and threats, this antivirus software allows you to customize its security features. It also packs helpful cybersecurity features, such as webcam protection and device control. The most common features that set ESET apart from its competition are:

LiveGuard Advanced

ESET works so hard to keep you safe, that its cloud-based scanner flags suspicious samples known as “zero-day” threats and sandboxes them to the cloud for analysis. That means ESET Antivirus can keep you from both renowned and novel threats.

Banking and Privacy Security

With ESET, you can conduct sensitive transactions, such as online shopping, and safely access your banking apps and crypto wallets—free from keyloggers. That’s because whenever the antivirus software detects you’re on a financial site, it automatically activates a secure browser mode with encrypted communication features.

Botnet and Webcam Protection

ESET Antivirus helps block malicious traffic faster by constantly monitoring your applications. It will detect if an app attempts to use your webcam and alert you so you can stop such access. The software also protects against botnet malware, so your computer isn’t used for network attacks.

Device Control

ESET allows you to manage device connections and activities with specific rules for specific devices. For example, as a network administrator, you can prevent access to insecure content from your devices. You can also prevent authorized device connection to specific ports or restrict access privileges. ESET users can also prevent data duplication, such as transferring private business data onto external devices.

This ESET Antivirus feature is also suitable for preventing an outsider from hacking your data with a foreign device, such as Bluetooth.

Parental Control

You can also set website categories on your devices, blocking or allowing specific websites and applications from specified users, such as children and teenagers. You’ll also gain access to the visited pages.

These ESET Antivirus features go a notch higher to protect your remote and active online activities. However, remember that you’ll need to purchase most of them as add-ons or buy more expensive plans to access them.

Pros

ESET has excellent antivirus functionality and provides plenty of customizable cybersecurity features. ESET Antivirus performed well in our independent testing, obtaining solid scores from AV-TEST and getting the top position amongst AV-Comparatives. It was one of the two antivirus providers with zero false positives.

ESET doesn’t stop at assuring you that no virus will penetrate your data or privacy; it provides you with ample time to test its features and strength.

Cons

Compared to other antivirus software, you’ll find that ESET Antivirus is quite expensive. Moreover, its lower plans lack features, such as a firewall and password manager, that are included in other providers’ basic plans. You won’t find VPN functionality even on ESET’s highest plan.

ESET’s pricing plans are also quite complex. You’ll first need to know which one caters to your devices. Then, you have to deal with calculating the cost of additional devices and subsequent subscriptions. While testing ESET, we also observed that the software has a noticeable impact on device performance, especially during scanning. It also requires lengthy updates. Moreover, its user interface and customizations are easier for more technical users.

These are the main antivirus features that ESET offers its users.

Web and Email Protection

ESET technologies eliminate existing threats and prevent all types of threats from infiltrating your networks or devices. ESET Antivirus software scans the websites you browse and checks your incoming emails to ensure no suspicious email attachment or link gets through. It blocks websites with malicious content, and its anti-phishing functionality detects and blocks phishing sites. An antispam feature also keeps unwanted emails out of your inbox.

ESET Antivirus’ web protection layers come integrated, so there’s no need for browser installations.

Firewall

ESET gives users an additional layer of protection via its firewall feature that controls incoming and outgoing network traffic. We love that this antivirus software enables customization of its firewall settings for your public, home or work profiles. You can filter content, allowing or blocking connection with selected websites, applications, services or port numbers. You can also specify what ESET should do with specific IP addresses or domain names. The software will also alert you of any unauthorized network activity.

Password Protection

ESET uses a 256-bit advanced encryption standard to store and organize your passwords, so you can automatically fill them in forms and protect them from hackers. You can also integrate with Google Authenticator to initiate two-factor authentication (2FA) and improve your password security. To further protect your passwords, ESET will send you security alerts whenever your passwords are at risk.

System Diagnostics

ESET Antivirus provides a regulated diagnosis of your system and generates a security report that shows an overview and in-depth view of your computer’s state and running processes. ESET also alerts you of suspicious files that may have disallowed a malware scan.

Pricing and Features	ESET NOD32 Antivirus (Essential Security)	ESET Internet Security (Advanced Security)	ESET Smart Security Premium (Premium Security)
Pricing for First Year	$39.99 for one device	$49.99 for one device	$59.99 for one device
Supported Devices	Windows and macOS devices	Windows, macOS and Android	Windows, macOS and Android
Web and Email Protection	✓	✓	✓
Ransomware, Malware and Phishing Protection	✓	✓	✓
Firewall	X	✓	✓
Password Manager	X	X	✓
Diagnostics	✓	✓	✓
Device Control	✓	✓	✓
Banking and Payment Protection	X	✓	✓
Parental Control	X	✓	✓
Secure Data Encryption	X	X	✓
Customer Support	✓	✓	✓

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ESET makes its antivirus features available in different pricing packages for individuals, homes and businesses. Its clear listing of features and pricing makes choosing one that suits your needs and budget easy. However, note that the prices given are for the first term. You’ll need to pay more for subsequent subscriptions. Also, each additional device costs $5, and you can only pay per year.

Group discounts are available for ESET antivirus users, and you can save up to 15% on multi-year purchases of ESET’s higher plans. Also, there are four plans for small and medium-sized businesses, starting at $211 per year. You can connect at least five devices and access features such as server security, advanced threat defense and full disk encryption. Businesses can also customize the highest plan, starting at 26 devices.

ESET offers a 30-day free trial on all plans, giving you enough time to test its features. There’s also a 30-day money-back guarantee for a refund in case the antivirus software provider does not meet your needs.

Not only does ESET Antivirus do well to protect your devices, but it also runs several processes to keep you safe from infiltration. For example, you’ll benefit from its idle-state scanning that performs scans on your devices even when you’re not using them, so it can detect inactive threats that can cause damage. Its advanced memory scanner also detects hidden threats with multiple layers of encryption. Even new and emerging threats are detectable with ESET Antivirus’ process of fishing out suspicious traits.

Should You Trust ESET Antivirus?

While ESET offers features that protect your remote and online activities, there are better antivirus software providers. For one, ESET Antivirus offers minimal protection on its basic plan, ESET NOD32. You’ll need to choose a higher plan to enjoy advanced antivirus features. Even firewall, password manager, VPN and multifactor authentication, which some antivirus providers offer in their lowest plans, are missing in ESET Antivirus.

ESET offers protection for Windows, Mac, Android and Linux devices. ESET Antivirus plans for individuals and homes come with one user license, while the business plans start with at least five devices. ESET allows you to protect as many devices as you want, but you’ll need to pay an extra $5 for each device you add to your license. Also, note that the features and functionalities you’ll get on these devices differ. For example, you won’t find the new Intel Threat Detection Technology, which exposes threats avoiding detection on macOS and Windows ARM devices.

Also, ESET does not yet provide security solutions for iOS, so you can’t protect your iPhones, and its Essential Security plan, ESET NOD32, only supports Windows and macOS devices. Below are ESET Antivirus system requirements.

WINDOWS
Microsoft Windows 11, 10 and higher operating systems

macOS
macOS 12 (Monterey), macOS 11 (Big Sur), macOS 10.15 (Catalina), macOS 10.14 (Mojave), macOS 10.13 (High Sierra), macOS 10.12 (Sierra)

LINUX
Debian, Red Hat, Ubuntu, openSUSE, Fedora, Mandriva and most RPM and DEB distributions

	ESET Antivirus	Bitdefender	McAfee	Trend Micro
Rating
Starting Price (first year)	$39.99 per year	$29.99 per year	$29.99 per year	$19.95 per year
Free Version	No	Yes	No	Free tools are available
Firewall	Not available on its lowest plan	Not available on the basic antivirus plan	Yes	Yes
Web and Email Protection	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Password Manager	Only available for ESET’s highest plan users	Yes	Yes	Available on higher plans
Supported Devices	Windows, macOS and Android, depending on your plan	Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, depending on your plan	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS and ChromeOS, depending on your plan	Windows, macOS, Android, iOS and ChromeOS, depending on your plan
Multi-Platform Support	One device per subscription (additional device costs $5 extra)	Yes, at least three devices	Yes, at least five devices	One device per subscription
VPN Included	No	Yes	Yes (available on higher plans)	VPN Proxy One is available for the highest plan
Learn More	On ESET’s Website	On Bitdefender’s Website	—	—
Read Reviews	—	Read Bitdefender Review	Read McAfee Review	Read Trend Micro Review

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ESET vs. Bitdefender

ESET and Bitdefender are good antivirus options, especially since they earn top spots from AV tests. However, Bitdefender beats ESET when it comes to security enhancements, pricing, multi-platform support and more. For example, Bitdefender basic plan users will enjoy features, such as firewall and password protection, which require higher plan purchases on ESET. Also, it offers VPN functionality, and you can use the antivirus features on up to three devices without paying extra for each device—at cheaper costs.

ESET vs. McAfee

They have similar starting prices, but you’ll get more with McAfee. McAfee Antivirus’ basic plan enables connection with up to five devices. Also, unlike ESET, McAfee’s lower plans come with password manager and firewall functions, and you’ll access VPN functions on its higher plans. McAfee’s user interface is also easier to understand than ESET’s, which is better suited to advanced technical operators. Meanwhile, we experienced significant slowdowns and longer scans on both antivirus platforms.

ESET vs. Trend Micro

While both antivirus software products provide additional security features, Trend Micro offers a broader range, including identity theft and smart home protection. However, ESET NOD32, for essential security, supports connection with macOS and Windows devices. For Trend Micro, its basic plan only supports Windows computers. You can add other devices at an extra cost.

Also, unlike ESET, which allows you to add more devices at an additional cost, you’ll need to purchase individual licenses to use multiple devices on Trend Micro. That means you’ll end up paying more than ESET Antivirus users.

ESET is a suitable antivirus software for individuals, homes and small to medium-sized businesses looking to protect their devices and data from cybersecurity threats.

ESET Antivirus for Personal Use

ESET Antivirus is a reliable solution for individuals and families seeking to protect their devices from threats, especially if you want to customize your cybersecurity settings. While its basic antivirus plan supports only Windows and macOS devices, you can upgrade to higher plans to connect to your Android phones. You can also add as many devices as you want and enjoy more security on ESET’s higher security plans.

ESET Antivirus for Business Use

ESET Antivirus offers security solutions to protect businesses with a more extensive network of devices. There are plan options to choose from, supporting at least 26 devices, and you can contact ESET’s sales team to customize your antivirus software. That makes it possible to protect sensitive business data as your business requires.