Avast Free Antivirus VS Malwarebytes

Malwarebytes vs. Avast: Which One Is Better?

In 2022, online protection is a must. Without it, you’ll risk losing your data, getting your computer hijacked, and being attacked by ransomware, among other things. With hackers finding new, sophisticated ways of penetrating security, an antivirus is the only thing that can keep the threats at bay. Now, while there are many free offers on the market, they aren’t nearly as good as the paid alternatives.

If you’re looking for a good antivirus, both Avast and Malwarebytes will be a decent pick. These are leading solutions with strong fan bases and solid protection – but which one is the more suitable option? To help you better understand the pros and cons of both products, we made this comparison page. We took our time with testing and had all the necessary details to share with you.

Join us, and let’s look at the free editions, the paid options, the features, and pricing, among other factors. That will allow us to compare Malwarebytes and Avast and determine the winner. We’ll start with the standout features of both antiviruses and talk about the important extras. At the very bottom, you’ll find the final verdict with our recommendations.

Comparative analysis of Avast and Malwarebytes Antiviruses

Here’s a list of Avast extras that are not available with Malwarebytes:

• SecureLine VPN. It costs $89.99 a year, and there’s a 7-day free trial to test it. Compared to the leading Virtual Private Networks like ExpressVPN and NordVPN, it’s not as impressive. Still, this is a decent tool and comes for free if you purchase the Ultimate Avast.
• Passwords+/Premium. The “plus” edition is available for free. It syncs across all your devices, secures your accounts, and more. Premium costs $19.99 a year and is capable of strengthening passwords and sending warnings whenever an account is breached.
• Secure Browser. It is Avast’s own, highly secure browser that comes with built-in security features. According to the experts (including our team), it’s quite good at protecting users against modern threats.
• Safe Price. If you’re shopping online regularly, this browser extension will be right up your alley. It finds all the latest coupons, allows you to compare prices in different stores quickly, and find the best deals.
• Cleanup Premium. For boosting overall system performance and getting rid of junk, this is a decent tool. It will cost you $59.99, however, which is kinda steep compared to most rivals.
• Driver Updater. This tool does exactly what the name suggests: it updates the drivers on your OS. The Driver Updater constantly scans the system and automatically downloads all the latest updates.
• Email Protection. Similarly to the previous extra, EP does just that – protects you from any potential email threats.

And here are the Malwarebytes exclusives:

• Chromebook protection. It’s a specialized version of the antivirus that handles phishing, ransomware, and, of course, malware. While Chromebooks have excellent built-in protection against most types of attacks, they are still vulnerable to phishing and ransomware.
• Live chat. It is the fastest way to get a hold of the company’s agents and get help. Sadly, the agents aren’t as fast or informed as we’d want them to be, but the live chat is still faster and more useful than the ticket system. Malwarebytes lacks phone and email support, though, both of which are available with Avast.

Malwarebytes free vs Avast free

Both companies offer free editions of their antivirus software. Malwarebytes Free doesn’t provide real-time protection, which means you can only use it to clean an already-infected computer. While it’s better than nothing, we urge you to upgrade to one of the paid versions to secure your device. And don’t forget to take advantage of the Malwarebytes free trial before doing that (it lasts for 2 weeks).

In contrast, Avast free protects in real-time. On top of that, the users can get a Password Manager and a Secure Browser for free. In many ways, Avast offers one of the best free antivirus solutions out there. Another important fact: Malwarebytes free is only available for Win and iOS. Avast is also compatible with Android and Mac.

In any case, none of these products will be able to provide comprehensive protection. That’s because they lack ransomware, spyware, anti-phishing, and keylogger protection. Plus, they don’t include any firewalls. For that, it’s necessary to upgrade to paid antivirus programs. Let us talk about all the available packages with Avast and Malwarebytes in the next section and compare them to each other in more detail.

Paid Malwarebytes vs Paid Avast: Which is better?

With Malwarebytes Premium, the paid edition, you’ll get:

• Real-time protection
• Protection against spyware and ransomware
• A secure browser

The Premium for Home, the most expensive tier, includes the same set of features. The only difference – it protects up to ten devices.

And here’s what Avast Internet Security has in stores for you:

• Anti-ransomware protection
• A powerful two-way firewall
• Anti-phishing and hijacking protection
• A Sandbox (allows to run potentially dangerous files in a safe environment safely)

Avast Premier, the next package, adds:

• Webcam protection
• Data Shredder
• Automated updates

Finally, Avast Ultimate features:

• Cleanup Premium
• SecureLine
• Password Premium

Avast is ahead of its rival, not only regarding the free edition but also the paid versions. While Malwarebytes does offer a decent set of features, it’s still not on par with it. Besides, Avast is a very user-friendly and intuitive antivirus, and it won’t take long to learn your way around it.

The main features of Malwarebytes and Avast Antiviruses

Features

Avast is known as one of the most comprehensive and feature-packed antivirus products. It also offers an impressive list of extras, as we just discussed in the previous section. SecureLine VPN, Secure Browser, and Passwords are just some of the available tools. Malwarebytes has the AdwCleaner (gets rid of apps that slow down performance) and Browser Guard (extension for Chrome and Firefox for blocking adds).

Reliability and Security

Avast and Malwarebytes are quite different in the way they approach threat detection and elimination. Therefore, it’s a bit hard to rate these security products in the same way. We took our time running in-house tests and compared our results to third-party labs to come up with the most objective results. Learn more about those further down this post.

Performance of Antiviruses

System impact is a critical factor when choosing an antivirus package. These days, most leading solutions have a low impact on system resources, but it’s still essential to check before you commit. In the most recent AV-Test report, we can see that Avast earned a perfect 6/6 score in Performance. Malwarebytes was the close second with 5/6.

AV-Comparatives also gave Avast the highest possible rating (Advanced +). Sadly, Malwarebytes wasn’t included in this test. Our team of experts ran both programs on ten different devices and agreed with these independent lab testers: Avast is, indeed, the winner.

Malware Protection

Protection against modern-day malware is the #1 task of any antivirus. It is the most critical aspect when choosing a solution for your device. In May 2019, Avast had a 5.5/6 score in AV-Test “trials”, which is almost a perfect result. It prevailed in zero-day attack prevention and detection of widespread malware. Malwarebytes only received a rather sad 2/6 score. It detected 90% of the zero-day threats and 99.6% of widespread malware.

AV-Comparatives gave Avast the ADVANCED rating in the RWP (Real-World Protection) test. Malwarebytes wasn’t ready to let this lab test its product, which speaks volumes about their confidence in their product. The verdict is simple: Avast is the apparent winner in malware protection.

Ransomware Detection

None of these products provide ransomware detection/protection with the free editions. You’ll need to buy one of the paid packages for that. We tested both solutions thoroughly and concluded that they are similarly good against ransomware. Sadly, the leading third-party testers didn’t rate Avast or Malwarebytes based on ransomware protection.

Phishing Detection

Again, Avast free and Malwarebytes free won’t protect your OS from phishing. You’ll get anti-phishing modules with the entry-level commercial tiers. Avast has an excellent anti-phishing module that successfully alerts the user and keeps “bait” at bay. We were impressed by how fast it detects and eliminates these types of threats. The company uses artificial intelligence to fight phishing.

Malwarebytes, in turn, wasn’t nearly as impressive. While it did detect most of the potential threats, it still lets some of them pass by undetected.

Is Malwarebytes the same as Avast

The short answer – no, it’s not the same. True, these two products do have similarities (and that’s one of the reasons why they’re often being compared to each other). However, they do have their differences. As we just learned from the previous section, both antiviruses have unique features that make them stand out.

Avast’s strongest suit is its advanced AI and machine learning approach. The company constantly updates the database, and, according to the experts, Avast blocks 1.5 billion attacks per month. Malwarebytes, in turn, heavily relies on zero-days detection and protection. It means it prevails at dealing with threats that aren’t included in any databases yet.

So, as you can see, a more detailed comparison of antiviruses proves that they are quite different. The approaches vary, and they both have their pros and cons. Before committing to any of these solutions, read our final verdict – it will help you to make a more weighted decision.

Pricing of Avast vs Malwarebytes

Using Malwarebytes and Avast at the same time

An important fact: Malwarebytes Free can work “hand-in-hand” with more traditional antivirus programs. As long as it’s not providing real-time protection, you can use the on-demand scanning feature to get rid of day-one threats. It is fully compatible with Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, and, of course, Avast.

On the other hand, you can’t use Avast with other full-fledged antivirus products with real-time protection. If you own the free editions of Malwarebytes and Avast, it would be best to run them along with each other. That will give you the best of both worlds. Even if you own Malwarebytes Premium, you can still have it working side by side with another antivirus. Here’s how to do that:

• On the main dashboard, you’ll find three menus: Detection History, Scanner, and Real-Time Protection
• The Real-Time Protection menu includes four options
• It is highly recommended to turn them all off to avoid any potential conflicts

Some experts claim that you can leave the Ransomware, Exploit, Malware & PUP protection modules on, but we recommend against that. Malwarebytes’ standout feature is on-demand scanning (you can set up automated scans as well). Let Avast deal with real-time threats instead.

Avast or Malwarebytes for Mac: Which one is better

We’ve been mainly talking about the Microsoft Windows OS until now, so it’s time to discuss the Apple OS. Is Malwarebytes for Mac a more favorable pick, or should you go with Avast? We already mentioned that Avast free is compatible with all four major platforms, while Malwarebytes free only supports Win and iOS.

Both solutions are fully compatible with Mac when you switch to paid editions. Malwarebytes Premium offers a 14-day trial and requires macOS 10.11 or higher to run. Avast Premium provides a 60-day free trial and works flawlessly on macOS 10.10 (Yosemite).

Feature-wise, the Mac packages aren’t in any way different from the Windows packages. That means you’ll still get real-time protection with Avast Free Mac Security, while Malwarebytes will be limited to on-demand scanning. Therefore, for some basic entry-level protection, Avast malware protection will be a more reliable pick. In the most recent independent lab tests, it managed to detect and eliminate 99% of the planted threats.

Final Verdict: Malwarebytes vs Avast

This is it for our comparison! In our opinion, the Avast software is the better pick, as it’s more feature-packed and significantly stronger against malware and phishing. Plus, the free edition is quite effective against most modern-day threats, and the overall system impact is lower. For a regular modern user, it can be the starting point and provide decent protection before they upgrade to a paid package.

Even when you do switch to the higher tiers, Avast will still be a more favorable choice than Malwarebytes. It comes with more features, more extras, and is overall a more reliable antivirus. However, Malwarebytes is more affordable, and it’s available for Chromebooks. As mentioned, the best thing to do here would be to install the free editions of both products as they work flawlessly with each other.

Malwarebytes and Avast are two credible options for anyone thinking about bolstering the security of their devices. In this Malwarebytes vs Avast comparison, I’ll go much deeper than threat detection capabilities.

With both providers having so many users, it’s assumed they must be going the extra mile to protect the security of their customers, so I wanted to put their protection efforts to the test. I performed tests to check how easy the software is to use, how it affects PC performance, the support available when things go wrong, and more.

Want a quick answer? Avast came out on top in its heavily discounted pricing for first-year customers, its range of customer support options, and its ability to detect and block the malware test samples I threw at it. It includes features like a VPN with all plans, a password manager, and webcam protection to enhance your online privacy further. If you want to know more about each provider, stay tuned for the full comparison below.

Summary: Malwarebytes vs Avast

Malwarebytes

• Regularly updated malware database
• VPN is included
• Malicious links/phishing protection

Avast

• Strong malware protection scores
• Webcam protection
• Automatically updates apps

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Background

Malwarebytes

Malwarebytes, founded in 2008 by CEO Marcin Kleczynsk, began as an anti-malware detection tool. Around a decade later, the California-based company introduced additional protection to its software, such as spyware detection, and more recently added VPN to its premium security offering.

Avast

Avast, another well-known name in the IT security space, has been in business since 1998 and operates from the Czech Republic. In 2006, Avast acquired AVG, allowing it to combine the best bits of both businesses to offer a more enhanced internet security product.

Malwarebytes vs Avast pricing

Kicking pricing off is Malwarebytes, which has four different pricing tiers, each with additional features to align with the added cost. Something to note about Malwarebytes is that there’s no incentive to sign up for an annual plan rather than paying monthly as there are no deals or discounts for new users.

Malwarebytes Free is a fundamental anti-malware tool without the bells and whistles of its premium plans. With its free plan, you’ll be able to run on-demand malware scans to check for existing threats on your system. If you need protection beyond malware detection, its premium plans might be better.

Malwarebytes Premium comes in at $39.99 per year and includes the base features of the free plan plus much more. Instead of only checking for existing threats, this plan uses real-time scanning to detect and block malware the moment it reaches your device. You’ll get a malicious link scanner that warns of dangerous websites and phishing protection that scans for websites ready to trick you into handing over sensitive data. It comes with ransomware, zero-day exploits, brute force, and uninstall protection. Malwarebytes Browser guard is also included, blocking ads and trackers from following you around the web. This plan lets you install and use the software on a single device.

Malwarebytes Premium Plus Privacy is the provider’s top subscription, costing $99.99 annually. Premium Plus Privacy is essentially the same as the other two premium plans with the addition of a VPN. While this may not be a game-changer for some, a VPN (Virtual Private Network) bolsters your online privacy by hiding your online activities from your ISP with a virtual IP address. A VPN will also enable you to enjoy the content and TV channels you already pay for at home worldwide.

Malwarebytes gives users a 30-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to get a refund within a month of signing up if you’re not entirely satisfied. It has apps available for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, and its browser guard has extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari.

Avast has a slightly broader range of subscriptions to choose from and, in the same way, includes different features with each pricing tier.

Avast One Free antivirus is the provider’s base software and arguably the most popular among free antivirus users. Unlike Malwarebytes Free, Avast’s free offering goes way beyond malware protection, offering useful features like online banking protection, leaked password monitoring, and tools to optimize system performance. Its performance optimization tools are also limited, meaning it’ll show you improvements with the option to apply them when you upgrade. Avast One Free Antivirus also includes a VPN as standard – although this does have a 5 GB data cap which you’ll often use quickly when watching shows on platforms like BBC iPlayer.

Next is Avast Premium Security, costing a subtle $39.99 for the first year before raising the price to $69.99 after twelve months. This plan is a step up from its base subscription as it includes additional features such as malicious website scanning, which will redirect to a secure page if dangerous links are detected. Ransomware protection is also included, which checks for RDP exploits, brute force login attempts, and patches any vulnerabilities found on your OS. Avast Premium Security can be installed on a single device.

The Avast One Individual plan comes next at $50.28 in year one, increasing to $99.99 after it renews. This plan lets you install the software on up to five devices with a single account and for users who want the next level of cybersecurity for their devices. Advanced performance optimization tools are included to speed up your system. Unlike Avast One Free, you’ll get unlimited VPN usage that lets you binge media and surf the web without limits. Data breach alerts, ad tracker blocking, and a smart firewall are also included.

Avast one Family lets you install the software on up to thirty devices with six individual accounts for those that need protection for the whole family. That’s not to say you could only share the account with family. It could be with anyone you trust to split the $69.48 first-year subscription fee. After twelve months, it goes up to $139.99 and offers the same features as the Avast one Individual plan.

All Avast subscriptions include a 30-day money-back guarantee for you to try the software before committing long-term. Apps are available on Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

Effectiveness against malware

If you’re thinking of choosing Malwarebytes or Avast for their anti-malware capabilities, it is vital to ensure they’re up to finding common and more sophisticated threats hidden deep in your file system.

With both providers performing regular malware database updates to keep up with the latest threats, I used my own PC to perform some test lab experiments to see how each held up when I put them up against some test malware samples.

I performed several tests, including real-time malware scanning, to see how the software would react to malware samples downloaded from the internet. I then performed quick and full on-demand scans to look for threats already lurking on my system.

For context, I downloaded three live virus samples consisting of compressed executables containing adware and trojans. I also downloaded four test malware samples from the EICAR (The European Institute for Computer Antivirus Research), including an executable, a .txt file, and two zipped executables.

Real-time test

First up, I enabled real-time scanning for both software providers (individually to avoid software conflicts) and proceeded to download the EICAR samples.

Malwarebytes didn’t perform too poorly, picking up the raw executable and the first compressed executable, but it missed the .txt and the second zipped executable. However, it did block all of the live samples without me having to unzip the files.

On the other hand, Avast missed all of the samples during the real-time testing phase, which was a little concerning.

On-demand scan results (quick)

I turned off the real-time scanning feature for both providers and proceeded to run a quick scan with each software. Unfortunately, both Avast and Malwarebytes allowed all virus samples during this stage.

On-demand scan results (full)

For my last test, I let a deep scan of my system run for each provider to see how they reacted.

Malwarebytes Premium performed identically to how it did during real-time scanning, blocking all live samples and only detecting two of the EICAR samples.

However, Avast One performed exceptionally, blocking every one of the EICAR and live samples – which is interesting considering it didn’t see all of these in real-time.

To put some weight behind my own tests, I took my research to another level by checking out what some of the leading antivirus test labs, AV-Comparatives, and AV-Test had to say about each of the providers I tested.

AV-Test carries out several antivirus benchmarking tests each year, but for the purposes of my research, I was mainly interested in the Malware Protection Test. This test uses deep analysis to understand how antivirus products detect and quarantine malware threats in an offline environment, such as those aiming to infect systems through an external drive.

Meanwhile, the Real-World Protection Test from AV-Comparatives measures the effectiveness of antivirus products based on how they react to threats obtained online from malicious websites.

AV-Comparatives

I checked AV-Comparatives July-October 2021 Real-World Protection Test to understand the false positives (erroneously blocked files) from Malwarebytes and Avast. The test used around a thousand popular applications to see how each software classified them, and Avast scored 3.5 (lower is better), whereas Malwarebytes produced a much higher 12.0.

Additionally, the Real-World Protection Test puts antivirus providers up against 743 online malware samples to score a protection rate out of 100 percent. Malwarebytes blocked 740 of the threats producing a protection rate of 99.6 percent, while Avast blocked 742 of the samples to achieve a 99.9 percent protection score.

AV-Test

One of the latest Malware Protection Reports from AV-Test scored Avast 100% for protection against zero-day malware attacks, including web and e-mail threats for September and October 2021. It also achieved 100% in September and October 2021 for the detection of widespread and prevalent malware discovered in the last four weeks.

In contrast, a report from Av-Test for the same period scored Malwarebytes 98.5 percent for protection against 0-day malware attacks, inclusive of web and e-mail threats in September 2021 and 98.5 percent in October 2021. For detection of widespread and prevalent malware discovered in the last 4 weeks, it scored 100% in September and October 2021.

This aligns with the detection rates performed in my own tests where Avast picked up all of the threats during on-demand scanning – making it the clear winner of this category.

Impact on PC performance

Nobody wants any software to grind their system to a halt, even if the application (like anti-malware) is intended to help your system by removing malware that “could” slow down your PC. To ensure this doesn’t happen to you with Avast One or Malwarebytes, I conducted a series of tests to see how each provider affected my PC during on-demand scanning and while they ran in the background.

I ran each test in unison with Windows Performance Monitor to capture real-time resource utilization to monitor my CPU usage, memory, and disk resources.

First up, I ran full and quick on-demand scans to see how long each software would take to complete. Malwarebytes took 256 minutes to finish a full scan, scanning 859,819 items in total. It completed the quick scan in 90 seconds.

Avast took just 60 minutes to complete the full system scan but didn’t go into as much depth, scanning 1870000 files. It ended the quick scan in 146 seconds.

These are interesting results considering Malwarebytes went into more depth with its scan, yet Avast was the provider that detected the most malware samples.

While each scan ran, I recorded my findings in the table above to depict how the scans used the resources on my PC.

While Malwarebytes ran in the background (with real-time scanning), its control CPU, memory, and disk utilization percentages were lower than those observed with Avast. Likewise, Malwarebytes was also lower in its CPU, disk, and memory utilization during full scans.

I took my research to AV-Test and AV-Comparatives to understand how my results stood up against the lab test benchmarks produced by the two leading antivirus testing providers.

First off, I looked at AV-Comparatives’ Performance Test for October 2021. For context, the test breaks results down into the following categories:

• Downloading files
• Browsing websites
• File Copying: first and subsequent run
• Installing and uninstalling applications
• Archiving and unarchiving
• Launching applications: first and subsequent run

The report showed that Avast One achieved an almost perfect performance score, with the only areas for improvement being during first runs when launching applications.

Malwarebytes didn’t perform well, failing on first and subsequent runs when launching applications.

Malwarebytes vs Avast Features

While antimalware is crucial for finding threats that infect your system through malicious links and existing threats lurking on your system, Avast and Malwarebytes software go beyond basic malware detection. Check out a list of the features each provider offers below.

Malwarebytes Premium Plus Privacy

• Anti-Spyware
• Antivirus and antimalware
• Ransomware Protection
• Online Threat Protection
• Secure VPN
• Anti-phishing and link scanning

Avast Premium Security

• Block malware
• Safely run suspicious apps
• Permanently shred sensitive files
• Secure passwords
• Block spam and phishing emails
• Safer shopping
• Webcam protection
• Lock out hackers with an advanced firewall
• Scan for wi-fi security weaknesses
• Get an extra layer of ransomware security
• Automatically update apps
• Install on all your devices

While some features overlap, both providers have some exclusive tools. I’ve explained some of them below to help you understand how they’ll benefit you.

Malwarebytes

• Online Threat Protection: Malwarebytes Browser Guard prevents trackers from following you around the web, blocks ads, and restricts dangerous content to provide you with a safer browsing experience.
• Secure VPN: Malwarebytes includes a VPN to bolster your online privacy. Choose from one of the available locations when you’re abroad, and you’ll be able to enjoy the content you already pay for at home from anywhere. It’ll also add a layer of protection on public wifi to encrypt your connection, hiding your activity from hackers trying to spy on your connection.
• Anti-phishing and link scanning: Many websites appear online to steal your sensitive activity by appearing as an authentic website you trust. Malwarebytes scans your web activity for malicious websites and blocks the connection to ensure you never fall victim to a scam.

Avast Premium Security

• Permanently shred sensitive files: When you move a file to your recycle bin and empty it, hackers can retrieve those files with the know-how to access them. Avast’s file shredder deletes all traces of your sensitive files so they’ll never fall into the wrong hands.
• Automatically update apps: Malware and viruses are evolving every day, so your software must keep up with the latest malware definitions. Avast keeps your app and database updated automatically, so you’re never left open to vulnerabilities.
• Safely run suspicious apps: Some apps downloaded from the internet contain malicious code even if they appear to be from a trusted source. Avast scans these apps and blocks them if suspicious behavior is detected, and if you choose to run them anyway, Avast will continue to monitor usage for signs of dangerous activity.

Sign up & Installation

No user wants to jump through hoops to sign up for a subscription, so getting up and running with your new antivirus software should be more accessible than ever. I went through the signup process for each provider to see how easy it was to get started.

Malwarebytes was reasonably straightforward to get up and running, consisting of the typical checkout and payment experience, with options like Paypal, debit, and credit card to complete payment. Auto-renewal is enabled by default, so you’ll need to turn this off if you don’t intend to renew.

Download and installation involved obtaining the free version of Malwarebytes (which was installed within a couple of minutes) and then entering a license key to upgrade to the premium experience.

I tested the money-back guarantee to request a refund that required me to create a ticket. It took over a week to get a response after nudging support on their Twitter account.

Avast One Individual had a similar story with an easy signup process with the usual payment methods. I downloaded and installed the software within a few minutes, and I was able to run a scan within the first ten minutes of signing up.

I contacted Avast live support to test the money-back guarantee, and my refund was processed the same day.

How easy is the interface to use?

Running scans, enabling protection, and seeing the threats that have been picked up shouldn’t be a painful process. To test how user-friendly each software was, I worked through the options available with Avast one and Malwarebytes Premium.

Malwarebytes uses a simple dashboard that allows you to access everything you need when you open the application. You can use a toggle to enable features like malware and web protection, and the scan options let you run an on-demand scan and show reports of previous scans.

Turning on the VPN is also straightforward, allowing you to connect quickly or select from a specific location.

While the interface is basic and includes all the functions advertised, some advanced users may feel the lack of customization leaves much to be desired.

Avast Antivirus has a much more intuitive and feature-rich dashboard to align with the additional features of the security suite. Advanced users will find a wealth of options to set up a customized protection experience, and beginner users will also find it easy enough to perform basic actions without any effort.

From the main dashboard, you’ll see your protection at a glance. When things are running well, you won’t see any actions, but if there are priority items, this is where they’ll appear first.

Additional utilities are listed in the left-hand menu, including security protection features beyond malware scans and reporting.

Customer Support

Knowing someone is available to help when things don’t go as you expected is vital, especially when you’re paying a fee for software to protect you from online cyber threats. I checked out the support channels available with both providers to see what support options were available.

Malwarebytes support can be accessed by clicking the question mark in the app. While there’s a LiveChat option, this puts you through to a bot that asks you to open a ticket when it doesn’t have an automated response for your query. There are many video tutorials and how-to guides, but these aren’t ideal when you have an urgent inquiry.

There is a Facebook and Twitter account for Malwarebytes, but these are geared towards sales, in my opinion. When I reached out on Twitter, for example, I was advised to raise a support ticket to answer my query.

Avast Premium Security is more of what I expect to see in terms of customer support. While there isn’t an option to talk to a human over the phone, a 24/7 LiveChat option puts you in touch with an agent instead of a chatbot.

For less urgent questions, Avast offers a jam-packed knowledge base aimed to resolve most issues, and if you can wait a while, they also have support available by email.

Malwarebytes vs Avast conclusion

If you missed the winner earlier in this article, Avast One leaped ahead of Malwarebytes Premium. Not only does Avast offer more advanced features like performance optimization tools, a password manager, and wifi vulnerability scanning, but it bundles these into discounted pricing packages to suit every budget.

Customer support with Avast is available when you need it, and most importantly, it does exactly what it’s meant to as an antimalware product – detecting and blocking every malware sample it came up against during on-demand scans.

See also:

The term virus is a kind of malware whereas the malware is widely used for malicious content that tries to steal or harm your data. Malwarebytes and Avast are not direct competitors as both provide different types of security.

Avast is famous in antivirus industry, while Malwarebytes is well known as a useful anti-malware tool. In this post, we will review Malwarebytes and Avast. We will also discuss, “Can we use both software at the same time?” And features and pros and cons of both.

Avast and Malwarebytes: Features

The main features of Avast and Malwarebytes are given below:

Highlighted Features of Malwarebytes:

• It protects your useful information from hackers and attackers
• Clean up infection system
• Protection against fraud websites
• Stop malware attacks
• Protect your important documents from ransomware
• Can detect 0-day malware
• Safe browsing for Windows and Android
• Protection against spyware
• Bad apps detection (Chromebook and Android)

Highlighted Features of Avast Antivirus

• The software protects against ransomware, malware, and, webcam spying
• Protection against phishing sites
• Strong protection against virus
• Software Updater
• Fast scan without affecting system
• Cleaner & Booster
• Real-time monitoring
• Safe Shopping (browser plugin)

Difference Between Avast and Malwarebytes

Malwarebytes

Pros:

• The software can quickly eliminate the most advanced spyware and malware from your device with its robust scan system.
• Malwarebytes is the best spyware and virus removal software that is recommended for laptop and PC for its quick scan and detection technology.
• Malwarebytes is easy to use and offers a user-friendly interface as compared to other antiviruses. It has simple design and is easy to use for operators.

Cons:

• Malwarebytes is unable to fix the defective software or file it recognizes.
• Typically it relocates the infected file instead of deleting or removing it.
• It is unable to detect an infected file or folder from the archives.

Avast

Pros

• Avast Anti-Virus has compatibility with approximately all operating systems like Windows 10, 8.1, 8, and 7. It is also accessible for android and Mac OS.
• The software won many awards for being one of the best antiviruses software, and various organization has rated it excellent antivirus and proved from different laboratory tests. Avast is a trusted software.
• The antivirus also has some extra features related to security in addition to its customization ability.

Cons

• Avast did not perform well in terms of phishing. There is a need for extra caution to prevent phishing attacks on your PC or mobile devices.
• The Password manager function of Avast is not robust, like many other antiviruses software. The problem can be minimized using premium services.
• Avast doesn’t inform you while sharing your data with the server of the company.

Antiviruses Comparison

Malwarebytes – one of the most popular anti-malware protection applications that was first released in 2006. Later on, various updates continue to add up in software and are still coming regularly to the date. It is well known for its reliability and capability to locate multiple threats quickly, including all types of malware.

In contrast Avast is one of the leading companies operating in the cybersecurity market. The company makes use of next-generation technologies to provide its users with trustworthy and innovative software that prevents and protects them against any cyber threats.

Can You Use Avast and Malwarebytes Together

Many people ask the question that “Can we use both Avast and Malwarebytes together on the same system”?. The direct answer to the question is No! You can not use both pieces of software at the same time on a single system. It is because both pieces of software may resist against each other. Some people complain that their antivirus software automatically stops working after 5 or 10 minutes when they were using both Avast and Malwarebytes at the same time.

Moreover, the internet connection issue could be faced. When it was checked through a test for three days, the results showed that they worked great when operated individually, but when they run together, they affect the speed of the system, internet connection speed and many times, both software unusually stopped working.

Recommendations

While both Avast and Malwarebytes offer excellent protection, but their differences are significant. In case you only want baseline protection, and you are not willing to pay for now, it is recommented to use free version of Avast Antivirus protection software and also use Free Malwarebytes for on-demand scanning.

However, it is not recommended to use two antivirus software running together on same system at the same time. Still, a system with two free options will not cause any clash because only Avast Antivirus solution will be actively protecting your operating system. Malwarebytes will be used on-demand when it is required.

In order to safeguard the computer, more and more users choose to install an antivirus program on their computers. The two most popular and most trusted programs are Malwarebytes and Avast. However, Avast vs Malwarebytes – which one is better for you? You may feel confused when selecting an antivirus program for your computer. Hence, in the following section, we will briefly show some differences between the Avast and Malwarebytes.

What Is Malwarebytes?

Malwarebytes, also known as the Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, is an antivirus program. It can be used in Windows OS, macOS, Android, and iOS so as to find and remove the malware. The Malwarebytes was first released in January 2006.

The Malwarebytes is available in several different editions including free and advanced paid editions. The free edition enables you to scan and remove the malware manually, while the advanced editions enable you to set a scheduled scan, real-time protection or scan the flash-memory.

What Is Avast?

Avast is a family of Internet security application antivirus software. It can also be used in Windows OS, macOS, Android, and iOS. The Avast antivirus program also includes several different editions including free and more advanced paid editions.

As for 2017, Avast is the most popular antivirus software on the market, owning the largest share of the market for antivirus applications.

Meanwhile, Malwarebytes vs Avast: which one is better for you? What are the pros or cons of these antivirus programs? In the following section, we will show you some basic information and some differences between Malwarebytes and Avast.

Malwarebytes VS Avast: Which One Is Better?

In order to compare Malwarebytes and Avast, we will briefly show their differences among the following factors.

• Security-related features.
• Protection against threats.
• System resource consumption.
• User-friendly.
• Price and popularity.

Then, we will show these differences of Avast vs Malwarebytes one by one.

Security-Related Features

First of all, let’s look at security related features. Malwarebytes does not provide too many different scanning features. It has got all basic features that every antivirus program has. Malwarebytes Premium adds the anti-malware and anti-ransomware features, protecting your computer from malicious and fraudulent websites.

However, Avast provides several different scanning features including the Smart Scan, Boot-time Scan, and Full Scan. It also offers the Wi-Fi Inspector Tools which can help you to scan the suspicious network so as to avoid attacking.

So, from the security-related features of Malwarebytes free vs Avast free, you can see that the Avast is a full-featured antivirus program, while Malwarebytes is only an anti-malware program.

Protection Against Threats

Secondly, we will show Malwarebytes vs Avast from the factor of protection against threats. The protection against threats is the most important feature of any security program you need to consider before choosing it.

According to the latest AV-Comparatives Malware Protection test, you can see that there are various antivirus programs being tested.

The ability of detection which includes online and offline detection rates and protection of antivirus programs has been tested.

Through the test, AV-Comparatives provide the ranking awards which are based on the level of false positive and the protection rates. Through the result, you can find that the Avast earned the first-highest advanced rating.

On the other hand, the Malwarebytes does not participate in any independent test because Malwarebytes does not specialize in detecting malware based on its signature.

Hence, from this aspect of this Malwarebytes vs Avast, Avast may be better than the Malwarebytes.

System Resource Consumption

Now, we will show the third aspect of Avast vs Malwarebytes. In this aspect, we will focus on system resource consumption. When selecting an antivirus program, whether the antivirus program affects computer performance should be taken into consideration.

So, in this section, we will show you the system resource consumption of Malwarebytes and Avast.

According to the AV-Comparatives latest performance test, you can find which antivirus program consumes fewer system resources.

In this test, there are various antivirus programs tested including the Avast. However, the Malwarebytes also did not take part in it.

In this test, there are several activities were performed under the Windows 10 RSS 64-bit system.

• File copying
• Archiving / unarchiving
• Installing / uninstalling applications
• Launching applications
• Downloading files
• Browsing Websites
• PC Mark 10 Professional Testing Suite

After the test, the Avast scored 5.5/6.0 in the performance test, as shown in the following picture. In addition, Avast ranked at the highest advanced award in that performance test.

However, Malwarebytes did not take part in this performance test. But from the community reviews, you can find that Malwarebytes has been criticized for consuming a large percentage of system resource.

Therefore, from the above Malwarebytes vs Avast, you may find that Avast is a little better than Malwarebytes on the system resource protection.

User-Friendliness

Now, we will show you the fourth aspect of the Malwarebytes free vs Avast free. In fact, this aspect – user-friendliness is difficult to judge since it can be decided by the user’s subjective judgment.

However, if the antivirus program is easy to use or the antivirus program looks well, it may receive favorable reviews since nobody wants to purchase a piece of antivirus software with a clumsy and gaudy interface.

In Malwarebytes 4.0, it comes with a new interface. In the main interface, there are 3 main sections including Detection History, Scanner, and Real-Time Protection. Click on a section will cause a flyout overlay to appear where you can change settings, view the quarantine or perform a scan. The following picture shows the main interface of Malwarebytes.

Here, let’s look at the main interface of Avast.

Avast uses an intuitive control panel so that you can access all options. There is a sidebar on the left so that you can perform specific tasks.

In addition, there is a large button on the right panel. In this way, it is easy for those who are using the Avast antivirus program for the first time to find the scanning button. The main interface is shown in the following picture.

From the user-friendliness aspect of Malwarebytes vs Avast, it would be difficult to judge which one is better. Both of them have a simple and clean interface, and they are easy to access almost options.

Price and Popularity

At last, we will show you the last aspect of Malwarebytes vs Avast – price and popularity. Both Malwarebytes and Avast provide the free edition. But as for the paid editions, the price of these two antivirus programs is different.

From the official sites, Malwarebytes Premium protecting one PC for one year is about $39.99. The Avast Premium protecting one PC for one year is about $69.99. However, for more price information, you can visit their official sites.

As for popularity, compared with Malwarebytes, Avast has a greater market share. It has got a great of downloads on CNET and has a great number of social media followers.

From above Malwarebytes vs Avast information, you should have a basic knowledge of which antivirus program is better. As a matter of fact, both antivirus programs have pros and cons. So before selecting an antivirus program, you can take all the above elements into consideration.

More useful information you can find by watching this video:

Thanks to this post. It helped me to have a basic understanding of Avast and Malwarebytes. Through the Malwarebytes vs Avast, I also have known which antivirus program is better for me.Click to Tweet

However, in order to safeguard your computer and data, is a free antivirus program enough?

Obviously, it is not. So, what would you do if you want to better safeguard your PC or data?

Is Antivirus Program Enough?

In order to keep your PC and data well, only the antivirus program on your computer is not enough because the antivirus program may fail to work. For example, the Avast fails to open on Windows 10. In such a situation, your computer is easily attacked by the virus or some malware.

Hence, in order to provide better protection for your computer and data, it is recommended to create a system image when the computer is in a normal state. In this way, if your computer is attacked by virus or malware, you can use directly the system image to restore your computer to a normal or an earlier state.

Therefore, to create a system image, the professional backup software – MiniTool ShadowMaker is strongly recommended.

MiniTool ShadowMaker enables you to back up files, folders, disks, partitions and the operating system. It can also be used to clone OS from HDD to SSD with its Disk Clone feature and it would not bring any damage to the original data.

So, in order to create system image, download MiniTool ShadowMaker from the following button or choose to purchase an advanced edition.

Free Download

Now, we will show you how to back up the operating system with the professional backup software.

Step 1: Install and launch MiniTool ShadowMaker

1. Install MiniTool ShadowMaker on your computer.
2. Launch it.
3. Click Keep Trial to continue.
4. Click Connect in This Computer to enter its main interface.

Step 2: Select backup source and destination

1. MiniTool ShadowMaker is designed to back up the operating system. So, it chooses the OS as the backup source by default. If you want to change the backup source, click Source module to continue.
2. Click Destination module to choose the destination path to save the backup image. Here are four paths available. It is recommended to choose an external hard drive.
3. Then click OK to continue.

Step 3: Start to back up the operating system

1. After selecting the backup source and destination, you can click Back up Now to perform the OS backup immediately.
2. Or you can click Back up Later, but you need to restart it on the Manage page.

After creating the system image, you have provided better protection for your computer and data. You don’t need to worry about the virus attack or malware when the Windows Defender fails to work or the antivirus software fails to work. With this system image, you can restore your computer to a normal state if there are some problems or accidents.

So, besides the antivirus software like Avast or Malwarebytes, try to create a system image to better safeguard your PC and data.

MiniTool ShadowMaker is a user-friendly program that assists me in creating system image with a few clicks. I’d like to share it with more friends.Click to Tweet

Bottom Line

To sum up, this post has walked you through knowing some basic information about Malwarebytes and Avast. Through Malwarebytes vs Avast, you should have a basic understanding of these two antivirus programs and also have known which one is better.

In addition, in order to better safeguard your PC and data, it is recommended to create a system image. So, you can try MiniTool ShadowMaker.

After reading this post, if you have any problem with the content or MiniTool ShadowMaker, you can feel free to contact us via the email [email protected] or leave a message in the comment zone.

Malwarebytes vs Avast 2017 FAQ

About The Author

TinaFollow us

Position: Columnist

Tina is a technology enthusiast and joined MiniTool in 2018. As an editor of MiniTool, she is keeping on sharing computer tips and providing reliable solutions, especially specializing in Windows and files backup and restore. Besides, she is expanding her knowledge and skills in data recovery, disk space optimizations, etc.

On her spare time, Tina likes to watch movies, go shopping or chat with friends and enjoy her life.

User Comments :

Did you know that cyber threats exposed more than 4.1 billion records in the first half of 2019? The internet is no longer a luxury–it’s essential for staying connected with friends and family, working, and going to school. Without a strong and reliable antivirus program, your computer and personal information are at risk.

Two of the biggest names in the business are Avast and Malwarebytes. This article will break down the strengths and weaknesses of each program and help you decide which one is the best choice for you.

Pricing Structures

Both Avast and Malwarebytes offer free versions that provide more limited protection than their premium versions, but in a pinch even the limited protection is better than none at all.

Avast has three price tiers: Free, Premium, and Ultimate. Each is billed annually, with Premium coming in at $90 per year and Ultimate costing $120 per year. At the time of writing, Avast is offering a 50% deal for both subscriptions for the first year, bringing the price to $45 and $60. 

Avast Premium offers a 30-day free trial, too. There are also services like a VPN, an identity theft protection service, and an anti-tracker tool that can each be added on and are charged on annual subscriptions, too.

Malwarebytes has four pricing tiers including the free option: Premium for one device at $3.33 per month, or $40 per year; Premium for five devices at $6.67 per month, or $80 per year; and Premium + Privacy for $8.33 per month, $100 per year. 

It’s also worth noting that Malwarebytes forces you to sign up for a 14-day free trial through email, and you will subsequently receive a slew of marketing emails until you unsubscribe. 

Although Malwarebytes is more affordable at first glance, Avast offers protection for 10 devices at its base price. That equates to around $9 per device for a full year, while you would pay $160 for that same level of protection from Malwarebytes.

Winner: Avast

Features

Neither Avast or Malwarebytes offer a wide range of features in the free tier. The true comparison will lie in the premium versions. 

Free Tiers

Avast offers two main features in its free version: protection against ransomware, and protection against malware and viruses. It is a barebones antivirus program that gets the job done, but not much more than that.

On the other hand, Malwarebytes removes spyware and malware. That’s it. It doesn’t offer real-time protection or detection. It doesn’t watch for ransomware, either. While Malwarebytes is exceedingly good at spotting malware, the free version is a one-trick pony. 

Both free versions also monitor a single device only.

Premium Tiers

Once you invest a few dollars into your antivirus software, the number of features and tools available to you goes up quite a bit. Avast offers Wi-Fi network security checks, watches for unsafe and fake websites online, helps provide protections against phishing websites, and stops remote access attacks against your PC.

Avast also does this for up to 10 devices at a time. You can drop this protection to only a single PC or other device, but in doing so you save only $10 per year–not worth it, particularly when you consider the benefits of full-spectrum protection on all of your devices.

Malwarebytes provides real-time, 24/7 monitoring for malware and other threats against your system. It also works to stop exploit attacks, as well as ransomware strikes. Malwarebytes also offers protection against malicious and fake websites to prevent stolen data and/or identity theft.

Premium + Tiers

Both companies have different names for their highest pricing tiers, so “Premium+” is the generic name for the highest possible price point.

Avast offers two additional tools at this range: the SecureLine VPN for safe and secure browsing regardless of the connection you use, and Cleanup Premium, a tool that improves PC performance by removing unnecessary files.

Malwarebytes’ highest price tier includes a VPN. The Malwarebytes Privacy VPN prevents unauthorized tracking, masks your location, encrypts your connection, and more–all while reducing the amount of lag traditionally associated with VPNs.

Both programs offer a large number of features, especially at higher price points, but Avast still comes out on top due to the larger number of features and the higher number of devices protected by the software.

Winner: Avast

User Interface

Avast and Malwarebytes both have relatively easy-to-use and understand interfaces. Avast has more options available to the user, while Malwarebytes is more simplified.

Avast shows you the status of your machine, but breaks down the options into three categories: Protection, Privacy, and Performance. Clicking any of these options shows you additional sections that are available to you. 

Malwarebytes shows your history, an option to start a new scan, and sliders that allow you to turn off web, malware, ransomware, and exploit protection. The settings menu is more comprehensive, but the main features of the tool are all available in one spot. 

The UI for Malwarebytes feels a bit dated versus Avast, and the lack of tools become readily more apparent when you compare the two options based on their interface.

Winner: Avast

Avast vs Malwarebytes: Which Is Best?

The two programs are both good at what they do, but it ultimately boils down to which one offers the widest range of protection for the best price. If you had to choose just one of these programs, Avast is your best bet.

It offers the best suite of features and the best bang for your buck. Malwarebytes is not bad by any means, but it’s much more limited and more expensive on a device-by-device breakdown.

Avast is a good antivirus and provides a decent level of security protection. The free version comes with lots of features, although it doesn't protect against ransomware. If you want premium protection, you'll have to upgrade to one of the paid-for options.

Lire la suite

Is there an antivirus better than Avast?

AVG is a better antivirus than Avast. That's because it offers more features with its both free and paid versions and is cheaper. Is Avast a Chinese antivirus? Avast Software s.r.o. is a Czech multinational cybersecurity software company headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic that researches and develops computer security software, machine learning and artificial intelligence.

Is Avast safe?

Always-on security that's built on Avast Free Antivirus (awarded PCMag Editors' Choice for 2021) and trusted by hundreds of millions of users. Rest assured that your personal information is safe and secure with Ransomware and Sensitive Data Shields. Does Avast steal data? The Avast Online Security browser extension was deleted from Mozilla, Chrome, and Opera marketplaces in December 2019 after claims that it was gathering a suspicious amount of user data — not only every website visited, but also user location, search history, age, gender, social media identities, and even personal

Does Avast slow down computer?

In some cases, Avast might load faster than some of Windows 10's default services, causing it to conflict with various processes. This more often than not leads to slowdowns on your device. Which version of Avast is best? When compared to other antivirus programs, Avast is roughly average in terms of expense. There are four main pricing tiers – Free, Internet Security, Premier, and Ultimate. If you're determined to pay for Avast, Internet Security is probably the best option for you.

Which is best McAfee or Avast?

As you can see, both programs got great results in terms of protection, performance, and usability. In addition, both Avast and McAfee managed to avoid false positives and detect 100% of 0-day malware attacks, which is higher than the industry average. However, McAfee is the leader when it comes to performance. Which one is better Malwarebytes or Avast? Malwarebytes is a better antivirus than Avast

Is Avast owned by Microsoft?

Malwarebytes is the overall winner as it offers more security-enhancing features and extra utilities in its security suites than Avast. Also, independent tests show that Avast is better than Malwarebytes in terms of both malware detection and system performance.

Lire la suite

Does Avast remove viruses?

Don't worry about viruses. Avast One scans and cleans the viruses currently on your device, and stops future viruses and threats from infecting your system. Get free protection, or upgrade now for premium coverage. How do I completely remove Avast Antivirus from Windows 10? Right-click Avast Free Antivirus, then select Uninstall from the drop-down menu. If prompted for permission by the User Account Control dialog, click Yes. When Avast Free Antivirus Setup appears, click Uninstall. Click Yes to confirm that you want to uninstall Avast Free Antivirus.

Is Windows Defender good enough?

Microsoft's Defender is pretty good at detecting malware files, blocking exploits and network-based attacks, and flagging phishing sites. It even includes simple PC performance and health reports as well as parental controls with content filtering, usage limitations, and location tracking. How do I disable Avast free antivirus in Windows 10? How to disable individual Avast Shields

1. Step 1: Open the Avast User Interface. To accomplish this, you can either type “Avast” into the Windows Start menu or click on Avast's notification area icon.
2. Step 2: Find Protection > Core Shields.
3. Step 3: Disable the right Shield and retry the action.

Is Avast a Chinese company?

Avast Software s.r.o. is a Czech multinational cybersecurity software company headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic that researches and develops computer security software, machine learning and artificial intelligence. What is best free anti spyware? Here are some of the best anti spyware software:

• TotalAV.
• Outbyte PC Repair.
• Restoro.
• Advanced SystemCare.
• Iolo System Mechanic.
• AVG Free Antivirus.
• Malwarebytes Adwcleaner.
• Avast.

Can Avast detect all viruses?

Our real-time antivirus for Mac scans for, removes, and stops all kinds of malware — from viruses to spyware to ransomware — as well as a wide range of other online threats to keep your Mac safe. Does Avast track? According to PCMag, the so-called "anonymized" web data can be "picked apart and linked back to individual Avast users." Avast can track everything – according to their own documentation, "track what users searched for, how they interacted with a particular brand or product, and what they bought.

Which version of Avast is best?

When compared to other antivirus programs, Avast is roughly average in terms of expense. There are four main pricing tiers – Free, Internet Security, Premier, and Ultimate. If you're determined to pay for Avast, Internet Security is probably the best option for you.