Since we are experiencing a huge amount of negative reviews in the internet, we have updated our rating and do not recommend Avira Antivirus at this moment.
by Stephan Kubrik
digitalwelt Lead Columnist for IT Security
What many do not know: So a little hint in advance:
Before extending the Avira license, you should first compare the prices. It is often the case that the purchase of a completely new license for Avira is cheaper than simply extending the already installed product. Anyone who has already installed Avira Antivirus receives a message and can easily extend the license. The disadvantage: Often this costs more than if you had simply bought Avira initially.
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But that should not really be the disadvantage of Avira Antivirus software. After all – Avira is one of the most well-known antivirus programs in the American market for many reasons as of 2024.
In 2024 Avira is clearly one of the market leaders in antivirus programs. Not many haven’t heard of Avira. Not without reason —Avira Holding has been in the antivirus market since 1986. At that time Avira was known as AntiVir. It’s obvious they are a strong competitor in their space due to the time they’ve been in business.
Avira Antivirus Virus Coverage
5 out of 5
Let’s face it, there are over 1 million computer viruses worldwide according to the BBC. Symantec claimed more than 5 years ago that it could detect 1,122,311 viruses. However, it’s not about how many viruses an antivirus program can detect—it’s about how many they can’t. 99.9% of all viruses are long extinct. It’s that one powerful virus in a million that destroys your computer.
So how does Avirus compare to other antivirus software?
How up-to-date is Avira when it comes to detecting viruses? It would help very little if a virus was already on the computer and Avira detected it much later after updating.
The answers come from experts such as members of EICAR—the most well-known and reputable organization for IT security. EICAR also developed Trusted IT Security—a method to test the security strength of antivirus software. And for some time now, antivirus programs that pass these tests use the EICAR anti malware badge. Avira is one of those antivirus companies high on the list as one of the safest antivirus tools with the best virus coverage — all tests passed.
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User Reviews for Avira Antivirus
3 out of 5
“Do not ask the doctor, ask the patient,” is a Chinese proverb. This is undoubtedly a great sentence to live by when reviewing antivirus programs.
Recent developments in the Avast Antivirus 2024 updates as of November 2024 have revealed some problems. Avast is experiencing a lack of service, thus thousands of negative reviews has been published in the last few weeks. We have therefore updated our rating from 5.0 to 3.0.
Before Avast suddenly experienced these problems, everything seem to be in order. Find below the positive aspects of Avira:
Ultimately, users who have been using Avira for years know it lives up to it’s reputation as one of the best antivirus tools. The Social Listening Tools we used evaluated users’ opinions about Avira Antivirus from November 2023 to November 2024 and found the following positive user reviews:
“Absolutely Reliable”
More than 30% of users praise the reliability of the software in finding harmful substances on the computer. Avira Antivirus, it is said, has successfully found and blocked viruses on many occasions. Some reviews pointed out: Occasionally, users switched off the update functionality of Avira. The result: antivirus detection features are not updated and the PC is compromised.
“Low on memory”
We tested Avira extensively for software performance and users also had something to say about it. Many computer enthusiasts don’t like when background tasks, tools and software slow down the operating system. When using Avira, users noticed that it ran without obstructing the operating system’s performance. Avira thus takes up very little resources and is still a strong piece of antivirus software!
“Installation Issues – Help!”
Apparently not everything is completely flawless—some users report installation problems. Installation problems of some users, however, should not dissuade you from considering this product. The problem is obvious: every computer system is different. And in some, there are side effects. Advice is needed and the best thing about Avira: Support is always there. Nevertheless, we wanted to mention installation problems exist when trying out Avira Antivirus, and they were were repeatedly spotted during our research.
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Software Performance of Avira Antivirus
4 out of 5
Avira even works on computers with low storage and capacity. The trick is simple: use as little resources as possible and work as efficiently as possible. This successful and efficient system utilization is attributable to the fact that Avira does not offer many “bells and whistles”, as do numerous other features and functions that are intended to motivate the user to buy additional products — Avira Antivirus focuses on the essential functions of the software. The result: The processor utilization is low and system resources are thus spared.
Avira Antivirus Valur for Price
5 out of 5
Avira Antivirus has three things that make it unbeatable in combination: the very low price, the very wide brand recognition, and the highly praised reliability.
Where’s the catch? Simple:
Avira is an incredibly low price and a quality antivirus software product. The amount of installations brings the small company from the German town of Tettnang with an annual turnover of almost 70 million euros. The success of the company is thus passed on to the user. Quality for a low price.
Support / Service for Avira Antivirus
2 out of 5
Update as of November 2024: Hundreds of users are reporting a huge lack of service that have appeared almost over night. Avast seem to experience some heavy problems at the moment. We have therefore updated our rating.
This was our review before November 2024:
For some it’s a website, for others it’s the biggest handbook in the world—we’re talking about Avira Answers: With nearly 10,000 topics under the Avira Answers website, there is hardly a topic left unmentioned. We recommend reviewing that website and take the FAQ to heart and browse Avira’s blog.
But the best comes last:
Avira offers technical support via email and phone!
This makes Avira #1 when it comes to personal support. It goes without saying that email and phone support is not for Avira’s free version.
Support / Service for Avira Antivirus
3 out of 5
Update as of November 2024: Avira seem to have shut down it’s service. Since we are experiencing a huge amount of negative reviews in the internet, we have updated our rating.
Find below the rating before November 2024:
Avira has made a name not only in Germany. According to Avira, more than 560 million installations have already been made worldwide. This is almost as many as the number of users on Instagram. Avira has more installations than active users on Twitter. Thus, it becomes clear how well known Avira is.
So it’s not a question of quality, but of taste. Some like Norton, while others like Avira. Compared to other known antivirus software, Avira is a top competitor. The only thing that stands out is the low price. Therefore, the low price can prevail in the decision. Many people like Avira because of the price.
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by Stephan Kubrik
Stephan Kubrik is a Computer Scientist and expert on VPNs and computer viruses. Stephan has been researching for the Fraunhofer Society and has been developing software for the autonomous discovery of computer viruses and trojans using artificial intelligence.
He was previously a Research Associate at the Technical University of Cologne, studied Computer Engineering, and regularly publishes in IT magazines and journals, including the PC Magazine and digitalwelt.
digitalwelt Lead Columnist for IT Security
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Recent developments in the Avast Antivirus 2019 (Did you mean Avira) updates as of March 2020 have revealed some problems. Avast (Did you mean Avira) is experiencing a lack of service,