Pros & Cons
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- Perfect scores from two antivirus testing labs
- Excellent phishing detection
- Clear, simple user interface
- Free
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- Lacks bonus features found in competing free apps
- Some recommended fixes require payment
AVG AntiVirus for Mac Specs
| Malicious URL Blocking | |
| On-Access Malware Scan | |
| On-Demand Malware Scan | |
| Phishing Protection |
Windows Defender protects hapless users who fail to install antivirus protection. The XProtect feature in macOS just isn’t in the same league. You really need to install an antivirus app on your Mac, but you don’t necessarily have to pay for it. AVG AntiVirus for Mac is free, and while this bare-bones software doesn't do much beyond taking care of basic antivirus tasks, it gets top scores from the antivirus test labs and aces our phishing protection test. If you're willing to pay for a more robust antivirus, however, Bitdefender Antivirus or Norton 360 Deluxe both get top lab scores and offer security options well beyond the basics, making them our Editors' Choice winners.
How Much Does AVG AntiVirus for Your Mac Cost?
As noted, AVG is completely free. Avast and Avira also offer free antivirus for macOS. However, like Avast, AVG is only free for noncommercial use. If you want to use AVG’s antivirus technology in a business setting, you must splash some cash for AVG Internet Security.
Commercial Mac protection from Bitdefender, F-Secure, Intego, and Webroot costs $49.99 per year for a single license. CleanMyMac, ESET, G Data Antivirus, and Trend Micro Antivirus go for about $10 less. In most cases, $10 above the single-Mac price gets you three licenses; another sawbuck raises that to five. With AVG’s free antivirus, pricing tiers are irrelevant.
Like Avast and CleanMyMac, AVG requires macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) or newer. If you're a prudent user who always accepts operating system upgrades, this shouldn't be a problem. However, if you're stuck using an old macOS version, consider ProtectWorks or Intego Mac Internet Security X9. Intego supports macOS 10.9 (Mavericks) and later, while ProtectWorks goes all the way back to 10.6 (Snow Leopard).
Getting Started With AVG AntiVirus
AVG’s Mac protection is free. You can download and install it without giving AVG your email address (though the app encourages you to create an account). After a quick installation and granting the typical permissions, it’s ready to protect your Mac.
AVG’s main window is a dark gray expanse with four large panels. Panels labeled Computer and Web & Email appear highlighted with a green-circled checkmark icon, meaning these two are active and available. Panels representing protection against Hacker Attacks and support for secure Payments are dimmed and have a lock icon. Clicking one of the locked panels triggers an invitation to purchase AVG Internet Security.
At the bottom, centered below these panels, is a button labeled Run Smart Scan. This launches a multipurpose scan that includes a quick scan for malware. A link near the bottom right corner brings up a menu of other available scan types, including a deep, full-system scan.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)The Smart Scan has three parts: checking for virus definition updates, scanning likely locations for malware, and examining advanced issues. On my test system, that last scan warned of folders not protected against ransomware, network monitoring not enabled, and the possibility of DNS-based attacks. Clicking the big Resolve All button revealed that this scan is a glorified upsell, with resolution possible only if you purchase the AVG suite.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)Lab Scores
When reviewing Windows antivirus utilities, I look at test results from four independent labs and perform my own hand-on testing with live, wriggling malware samples. That's not as dangerous as it sounds. I use virtual machines, so if malware wreaks havoc, I revert to an earlier clean snapshot. I’m not equipped to perform that level of testing on macOS, so results from the two labs that test Mac antivirus take on greater importance.
Avast acquired AVG almost 10 years ago and merged the two antivirus detection engines. Thus, I am not surprised to see that the two get precisely the same scores from AV-Comparatives in the latest tests. Both earn the top score against all three sample groups: macOS malware, macOS PUAs (potentially unwanted applications), and Windows malware.
AV-Test Institute also includes both AVG and Avast in its latest report. This lab rates products on Protection, Performance, and Usability; that last category refers to minimizing false positives. Both Avast One Basic and AVG score the maximum of six possible points in each category for a perfect score of 18 points.
Bitdefender also holds perfect scores in the latest reports from both labs. Norton 360 Deluxe and F-Secure Internet Security also take the best possible score from AV-Test but don’t appear in the latest testing reports from AV-Comparatives.
Scan Choices
If you just click the big Run Smart Scan button, AVG checks for antivirus updates, scans the most likely places for malware traces, and “finds” issues that require upgrading to a paid product. Even with the necessity of clicking Next between each phase, this finished in less than two minutes on the MacBook Air I use for testing.
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Clicking the Run Other Scans link at the bottom right lets you choose a Deep Scan of the entire system, a Targeted Scan looking just at certain files or folders, or a scan of removable storage devices. Even the Deep Scan took just 25 minutes, not much more than half the current average of 46 minutes. I suggest you run a Deep Scan immediately after installing AVG to root out any lurking nasties.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)Avira Free Antivirus, ESET, Webroot AntiVirus, and others not only let you set up a schedule for regular malware scans, but they also schedule one by default, typically weekly. AVG does have a scheduler, but it starts out empty. It's up to you to set the schedule. You can add multiple daily, weekly, or monthly scans, each with its own configuration.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)Almost all the Mac antivirus utilities I've reviewed include the ability to detect Windows malware as well. True, malware designed for Windows can't run on a Mac, but eliminating it means there's no chance of it somehow leapfrogging to a Windows system on your network. AVG promises to detect and remove Windows and mobile malware, in addition to malware aimed at macOS.
To test an app's skills against Windows malware, I copy my current malware collection to a thumb drive and plug it into the Mac. As soon as I opened the drive, AVG immediately started wiping out the samples, quickly eliminating 72%. That’s better than the 61% it scored when last tested, but others have done better. McAfee’s Mac edition caught 96%, Avast got 97%, and Webroot reached an impressive 99%.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)Once again, malware written to run on Windows simply can’t harm your Mac. Even so, it’s encouraging when an antivirus goes the extra mile to ensure the elimination of Windows malware.
If you dig into the app’s settings, you’ll find a collection of tabs with Ransomware Protection at the far right. That makes sense. AVG AntiVirus Free on Windows includes a permission-based ransomware protection system, as does the free Avast One Basic. However, choosing this feature with the free AVG just displays an upsell page.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)Phishing Protection
Writing malware to steal sensitive information while evading operating system traps and antivirus defenses is tough. Why bother with that sort of elaborate chicanery when you can get the user to just hand over the desired information? Phishing websites mimic banks, financial sites, and other sensitive sites, trolling for innocents who will use the fake site to log in. When some poor sap enters a password, that account belongs to the fraudsters. Rather than fooling the operating system, they aim to fool the user.
My phishing protection test uses URLs reported as fraudulent on phish-tracking sites. I make sure to include some that haven't been analyzed and blacklisted yet. That's important because phishing sites are ephemeral. Once they've been blacklisted, the fraudsters just create new ones. Any effective phishing protection must be able to detect frauds, not just match URLs against a blocklist.
(Credit: AVG/PCMag)I launch each URL in four browsers: one protected by the product under testing on the Mac and three using Chrome, Edge, and Firefox's built-in antiphishing on Windows. For Windows, I've written a small program that launches each URL and lets me record the result with a click. On the Mac, it's all handwork; I've become adept at the necessary button-mashing, copying URLs from the list into the browser.
After recording all results, I discarded any URLs that didn't load correctly in all four browsers. I also discard any that don't truly fit the profile for phishing, meaning they don't attempt to fool visitors into giving away login credentials for a secure site.
When AVG blocked access to a problem page, it reported its action in a popup window and displayed a note in the browser explaining that it fended off an “infected website.”
AVG detected 100% of the verified phishing attempts against this test, which is precisely the same ones as its Windows equivalent, tested at the same time. Avira, McAfee, and Webroot also hit the 100% mark in their latest phishing protection tests.
