McAfee Antivirus review: is it worth it in 2024?

McAfee stands as a recognizable name in the cybersecurity industry in 2024. Its antivirus software is feature-packed, user-friendly, and, most importantly, secure. Like most other antivirus programs, McAfee includes a VPN, password manager, and identity protection for full-fledged customer security.

Although the introductory plan of McAfee Antivirus is quite expensive compared to other top antiviruses on the market, it includes a password manager called True Key and a reliable VPN. Furthermore, upper-tier plans are relatively budget-conscious while still including plenty of exclusive features.

Most importantly, McAfee Antivirus has proven to offer reliable protection. We performed in-house tests and referred to independent testing to compare the results.

Continue reading this McAfee Antivirus review and see how secure it is compared to other anti-malware products. You’ll be able to decide for yourself whether this software is good and worth buying.

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McAfee Antivirus pros and cons

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McAfee review: key takeaways

• Security. We gave McAfee Antivirus a 90% malware detection score based on our internal testing. The security solution has also been scored positively during independent third-party reviews.
• Performance. McAfee Antivirus has demonstrated relatively light CPU usage (30-80%) during both quick and full system scans, and they didn't take a long time. When it comes to Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS apps, the antivirus offers relatively seamless performance and user-friendly navigation.
• Features. McAfee Antivirus comes with an array of helpful features that are bound to strengthen any user’s security, including True Key (password manager), VPN, Tracker Remover, WebAdvisor, and Advanced Firewall.
• Pricing. Compared to other top antiviruses, McAfee Antivirus offers one of the more expensive basic plans ($39.99/month). However, it includes features that other antiviruses might not offer even on higher-tier plans.

Is McAfee safe?

McAfee Antivirus demonstrates excellent malware detection scores in both in-house and independent tests. The main downside is that the Basic plan is limited to one device, which restricts users aiming to introduce antivirus protection across multiple personal systems on a budget.

During our in-house testing of real-time protection, we tested 10 live malware samples, and McAfee swiftly found all of them, thus garnering a 100% success rate. However, it let past one malicious application from the web during a malicious URL test, which is why the overall score is 90%.

The quick scan took around 2 minutes (scanned almost 4 thousand files), during which time CPU load was around 35%. The CPU usage was more significant during a full system scan that lasted around 40 minutes – it ranged between 30-80%.

Normally, while browsing or using standard programs on your operating system, you can expect the CPU usage to be around 10-30%. That said, McAfee Antivirus' amazing malware detection results are worth the temporarily increased CPU load. Also, most antivirus tools increase CPU usage during full scans, and some are much worse than McAfee. For example, Avira Antivirus’ CPU load went up to 86% during the full scan.

McAfee also shows perfect results during various independent antivirus lab evaluations. For example, AV-TEST analyzed McAfee in December 2023, and the antivirus performed flawlessly. It provided 100% protection against zero-day malware and detected 100% of widespread and prevalent infections.

Another auditor worth checking is AV-Comparatives. Their comprehensive tests show that McAfee Total Protection performs exceptionally well in various situations (real-world protection, malware protection, performance). For example, the most recent Malware Protection Test revealed a very high 99.95% score.

How much does McAfee antivirus cost?

McAfee offers a range of different payment plans based on how many devices you want to protect. The most popular antivirus plan is split into 5 alternatives, although you’ll also find subscriptions to other McAfee products like PC Optimizer. Plus, more variability is included when you consider that there are individual and family variations.

The introductory Essential plan covers 5 devices and includes a good selection of cybersecurity tools (antivirus, VPN, password manager, firewall). However, it’s worth upgrading if you want a more well-rounded security package.

Unfortunately, there’s no free version for desktop (instead, you can get a 30-day free trial), although there is a basic free app version for Android and iOS.

Here's the breakdown of McAfee's Total Protection pricing tiers. Note that the included features are split into three fundamental categories (identity, privacy, security).

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It’s worth reiterating that the prices mentioned above are introductory offers and therefore only last for your first year’s subscription. After that, your subscription will renew automatically and the price will likely increase. However, you may be able to negotiate a better renewal offer or cancel your subscription and rejoin as a new customer to make the most of any special offers. Plus, the prices and features are for individual plans.

With that said, if you opt out of McAfee’s auto-renewal scheme, you’ll lose out on some exclusive benefits. This includes the VPN and Virus Protection Pledge, which offers a refund if you get a virus McAfee can’t remove.

Note: Even if the prices exceed your budget, there is no need to worry. Simply check out our page for McAfee coupon and promo codes and grab the best discounts.

McAfee security features

As one of the best antivirus offerings, McAfee has a very sophisticated suite of security features. From constantly protecting your computer against cryptojacking, ransomware, and other malware, to offering you additional features to speed up your web browsing and protecting your documents, data and passwords. Simply put, it’s got everything you need to make your internet experience safe and smooth.

But what exactly are these McAfee security features? Let’s break it down.

McAfee scans

McAfee offers three types of scans. You can check your system with a Quick or Full scan as well as select specific folders and files for examination. The quick scanning option is said to take between 5 to 10 minutes, while the detailed one – approximately 30 minutes. We’ve tested this antivirus ourselves to check these promises.

We’ve planted 10 malicious files on a Windows 11 virtual machine sporting 3.99 GHz 4 CPUs with 20GB of RAM. We tested both scanning options, and here are the results:

• Quick scan. The quick scan looks for malware in places where it is most likely to hide. McAfee scanned around 4000 files in around 2 minutes and found 40% of malware samples. The CPU load didn't go above 35%, which isn't a significant increase from the average 10-30%, so you shouldn't notice longer loading times or sluggishness.
• Full scan. Scanning almost 190000 files took roughly 40 minutes, and McAfee found 50% of infiltrated malware. During this time, CPU load was very light – it stayed around 30%, although it had spikes of 80% at certain times.

What’s also worth mentioning is that McAfee additionally offers a Secure Apps feature. It looks out for the essential security patches and lets you know when any of your apps need to be updated to reduce the risks of potential cyberattacks.

All in all, McAfee scans provided solid performance during our tests. It’s nice that the estimated duration times were accurate but we’d advise always opting for a Full scan. Since malware can hide in unexpected places on your system, it’s vital to check as many files as possible to find it.

McAfee’s scans are effective but can be time-consuming and overbearing on your system. So, if you’re looking for something more efficient, check out TotalAV antivirus. During our in-house TotalAV Antivirus tests, the quick scan took mere seconds and had 8-38% CPU load, while the full scan took over 6 minutes, and the CPU load was as small as 17% at times.

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Firewall

McAfee firewall operates as a secure wall that filters processes that seem malicious and blocks access to the device. Generally speaking, it’s designed to identify threats before they enter the system to prevent cyberattacks more efficiently.

In our opinion, McAfee firewall is highly functional since it allows you to do the following:

• Open certain ports so a service from another device could access your system.
• Block or allow specific internet connections and IP addresses.
• Hide the PC from others using the Stealth mode.
• Easily disable the internet connection on the device with the Lockdown feature.
• Use the Net Guard feature to see who tried to connect to your device and whether you want to trust them.

When we tested the usability of the firewall, we found it to be user-friendly – everything’s carefully put under the corresponding tabs for convenience.

The McAfee Antivirus firewall is an essential feature, and it shouldn’t be taken for granted. Some top antiviruses – including Surfshark Antivirus or Trend Micro – don’t offer built-in firewalls at all.

Another thing to note is that not all antiviruses offer advanced firewalls. However, if you invest in McAfee+ plans, you get to enjoy Advanced Firewall, which protects against data exfiltration attacks.

Tracker Remover

McAfee’s Tracker Remover is a handy feature that helps you clean up your computer to improve security and speed. It scans your computer for cookies and temporary files, which can consume valuable space and provide a threat actor information about you.

Once the Tracker Remover has found tracking cookies and junk files you could do without, it provides you with a report, letting you know how much space you could free up. There is an option to look at everything Tracker Remover has unearthed. Or you could take the simple way and continue the cleanup with just a click of a button.

File Shredder

McAfee’s Shredder tool is one of our favorite features. Ordinarily, safely disposing of files isn’t quite as simple as hitting Delete. This will only move it as far as your Recycle Bin, which can still be accessed by anyone who gets hold of your machine. And even if you bypass or empty your Recycle Bin, your deleted data will still stay on the disk, which means it could be recovered.

With McAfee’s Shredder feature, you can make sure your file is gone forever. It works by overwriting the file’s data a number of times before it’s deleted.

There are three levels of shredding security on offer here:

• Basic overwrites the file twice before deletion
• Safe overwrites the file five times before deletion
• Complete overwrites the file ten times before deletion.

To make life easier, you can shred your entire Recycle Bin or Temporary Internet Files in one go.

McAfee WebAdvisor

As soon as you’ve downloaded McAfee, you will get a suggestion to install McAfee's browser extension. This extension, named McAfee WebAdvisor, gives you easy access to McAfee’s suite of security features.

In our McAfee WebAdvisor review, we found that it protects against malware and phishing attempts while you’re online without hindering your browser’s performance. When testing the feature, we used 10 malicious URLs. WebAdvisor was very effective, warning about 100% of threats. On the downside, the Antivirus allowed one website to download malware, decreasing the overall protection rate to 90%.

McAfee WebAdvisor supports Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge web browsers.

McAfee’s password manager: True Key

McAfee’s password manager, True Key, is one of the better-known password managers out there. And with good reason. It lets you manage your passwords while also keeping them safe and secure.

True Key uses AES-256, one of the strongest encryption algorithms out there, to make sure no one can break through to your login credentials. Only you will be able to decrypt your passwords.

The app also offers multi-factor authentication to secure your account even further. You’ll have to utilize at least two methods before you can log in. You can add more factors if you want to up the security further.

Here is everything McAfee True Key password manager has to offer:

• Logins – store all of your credentials in one, secure place.
• Safe Notes – write down sensitive information in a safe note.
• Wallet – keep credit card details protected and quickly accessible.
• Export data – easily retract private information when needed.
• Import passwords – get passwords from LastPass, Dashlane, as well as Chrome and other browsers.

During our tests, the autosave and autofill features worked perfectly, which is another reason why McAfee Antivirus is worth consideration. Although most top antiviruses come with password managers, this is not a given. For example, you get the feature with TotalAV only if you pay for the top-tier plan (TotalAV Total Security).

True Key is available on Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Microsoft Edge web browsers.

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VPN

McAfee VPN is another useful feature that can help you secure your online activities and remain anonymous when browsing. Compared to the leading best VPN services like NordVPN or Surfshark, it provides basic security and privacy essentials.

The VPN is available for Windows, Android, and iOS users, while NordVPN and Surfshark are also available for macOS and Linux users. Furthermore, both offer more servers in more locations compared to McAfee VPN that offers 50 server locations (e.g., Switzerland or Japan). NordVPN has 6300+ servers in 111 countries, while Surfshark VPN – 3200+ servers in 100 countries.

In terms of features, here’s what McAfee VPN includes:

• A kill switch – stops internet traffic if a VPN connection drops to prevent data leaks.
• Auto-connect options – you can choose to automatically enable a VPN connection on insecure networks or Wi-Fi only, as well as on all networks.
• Trusted Networks – specify trusted networks that would be excluded from a VPN connection.

When we tested McAfee VPN, it used AES-256 encryption and employed the fast WireGuard tunneling protocol. When we performed testing on ipleak.net, the McAfee VPN’s kill switch was effective, and the connection remained stable.

Identity theft coverage & restoration

McAfee tries to ensure that your private data would not be compromised by offering a variety of services for identity protection: credit and transaction monitoring, security freeze, identity theft coverage, and more. You can see the Protection Score of your device based on how many security tools you use.

You can also use the Personal Data Cleanup tool – fill in your details and McAfee will monitor data brokers and analytics if any of them compromise your privacy. There’s also an option to provide your email and they should check the Dark Web for leaked information.

What’s worth mentioning is that McAfee offers $1 million ID theft coverage in case your data has been compromised. However, you should check the Terms of Use whether this option is available in your region.

Overall, McAfee identity theft coverage, restoration, and protection is a full package of features that add an additional layer of security to your private data. Yet, it’s essential that you use all the available features to benefit from the offering.

Other security features

The McAfee antivirus suite includes numerous more minor perks besides the robust features we covered previously. Here’s a quick introduction to some that are worth mentioning but don’t warrant extensive explanation.

• McAfee Assist – Protection Setup. Unlimited plan users can reach out to customer service specialists without scheduling to receive assistance with the setup process.
• Online account cleanup. Premium and above plans offer the feature to delete old accounts you no longer use. All you have to do is enter your email address.
• Scam protection. As the name suggests, the feature notifies you if email, text, or social media messages are scams.

How to install McAfee

Installing McAfee Antivirus is a quick and smooth process. Here are the basic steps you need to take to get to enjoy the full security package.

1. Go to the website and pick the McAfee antivirus plan. Each subscription has a 100% money-back guarantee if the antivirus can’t remove a virus
2. Download the McAfee app. Click Downloads & devices on the dashboard and download the app for your OS
3. Complete the installation. Launch the installer and click Install
4. Get started. Once the installation is complete, click the Get started button. We recommend enabling real-time protection, the firewall, and the VPN for security from all sides

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Ease of use and compatibility

McAfee Antivirus is available on Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, and ChromeOS devices. Your experience with the security tool is likely to depend on which operating system you choose to use the antivirus on. Here’s a quick overview of what you can expect from different McAfee Antivirus apps.

McAfee desktop app

For this review, we tested McAfee Antivirus on a Windows 11 virtual machine with 20GB of RAM and 4 CPU cores allocated. We chose Windows for our in-house testing because it’s the preferred desktop OS of nearly 70% of the market.

It took around 15 minutes to complete the installation, which is considered very long. However, once set up, the essential functions were easy enough to find on the app. The home screen comprises of the protection score, Personal Data Cleanup, Antivirus, ID Protection, and Tracker Remover features.

You can see if the specific feature is enabled/disabled by the green On and red Off icons. All other McAfee features are accessible through the button with four bubbles on the left side of the screen.

Here, features are allocated under the corresponding sections:

• Protect your PC: Run a scan, Real-Time Scanning, Scheduled Scans, Quarantined Items, Firewall, Secure Apps, and an App Boost
• Protect yourself on the web: Secure VPN, Browser Security, Web Boost, and the Tracker Remover
• Protect your identity: ID Protection, Password Manager, and a File Shredder
• Protect your privacy: includes the Personal Data Cleanup tool
• More Security: shows Security History

We recommend going through the settings of some of these so you can make sure they’re working the way you want. For example, set your scheduled scans when you’re most likely to use your computer.

Overall, McAfee Antivirus is generally intuitive and easy to use. When it comes to navigating the interface, it’s more user-friendly than Norton 360 Antivirus’ interface. However, you can perform certain actions in fewer clicks on Avast Antivirus, and the more simplistic design of TotalAV makes it easier to figure out for first-time users.

McAfee mobile app

McAfee’s mobile apps for Android and iOS provide really quick, simple virus protection for your phone. There’s a free McAfee antivirus version for both Android and iPhone devices.

First, we tested the mobile app on Android, and we though it has a really clean interface that’s easy to use.

At the top of the app, you have the Quick Actions menu that advises you on certain actions, such as turning on notifications or checking whether or not your Wi-Fi connection is secure.

You also have an easy-to-navigate Security Center that allows checking your Protection Score and performing different scans (e.g., Wi-Fi Scan, Identity Scan, or Antivirus Scan).

The iOS version of McAfee Antivirus is basically identical to the Android version, and you get the same menus that you can navigate just as easily.

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McAfee customer support

When choosing an antivirus tool for your devices, you want to consider customer support as well. Thankfully, McAfee Antivirus’ customer support doesn’t disappoint.

The dedicated Customer Support page offers plenty of helpful guides and answers to frequently asked questions to enable you to resolve issues independently.

Another option is to contact Customer Service agents. You can do it via phone or an online form. Disruptively, the form requires to provide lot of personal data: full name, phone number, and email address. But when we reached out to McAfee Antivirus agents, they responded within a day.

The downside is that not all issues can be solved via chat/email. And not all issues can be solved via a phone call; however, when you get the chance to use phone support, it’s available 24/7, which is a major plus.

Video review

Get a look from the inside: we tested McAfee and shared our insights in the video below:

Final verdict

McAfee offers one of the most comprehensive online security suites we’ve tested, with a whole host of useful features to keep your devices safe. It’s an excellent antivirus, regardless of which subscription plan you choose.

While pricey, the McAfee Antivirus package grants excellent value for money by including a secure VPN, a password manager, identity protection tools, and various financial insurances. Most importantly, the antivirus showed marvelous results and efficiently dealt with the live malware samples and URLs we threw at it. Plus, independent testers echo our findings and wholeheartedly recommend McAfee antivirus.

However, it can be difficult to navigate McAfee’s subscription plans since so many options are available. Thankfully, even the basic plan includes a solid feature package, meaning you can’t go wrong with this provider.

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FAQ

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