Top best antivirus apps for Android phones

Applications on Google Play Store are increasingly infected with malware, which poses a threat to phones and tablets running the Android operating system. To protect your device, you should proactively install anti-virus software for Android and malware on your device.

These malwares not only increase the risk of stealing personal information, turning Android devices into tools for DDOS attacks, but also make your device heavier, affecting your work and entertainment performance.

Below are some antivirus software for Android you can refer to:

Best antivirus software on Android

1. Bitdefender Mobile Security

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Bitdefender Mobile Security

Bitdefender's Android security app offers near-perfect malware protection, minimal performance impact, Android Wear watch integration, a VPN client, and a malicious website blocker that works with most Android browsers.

It also has robust privacy tools, including app locking, WiFi scanning, anti-theft features, and data breach notifications. A newly added feature, Scam Alert, flags potentially malicious links in SMS text messages, messaging apps, and desktop notifications.

Bitdefender Mobile Security offers a 14-day trial. There's also a separate Bitdefender Antivirus Free app for Android (which is actually completely free) that only scans for malware.

The built-in VPN client only gives you 200MB of data for free—enough to check your email while traveling. If you want more data, you'll have to pay $7/month or $50/year.

Advantage

  • Top Malware Protection
  • Many useful features
  • Small system impact
  • Affordable premium version

Disadvantages

  • Expensive Unlimited VPN Options

2. Norton Mobile Security

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Norton Mobile Security

Norton Mobile Security, also known as Norton 360, offers the best malware protection of any Android antivirus app. Unfortunately, it no longer has anti-theft features, as well as contact backup and the Link Guard malicious link blocker.

Norton has also killed the free version of Norton Mobile Security and replaced it with a single-device security app that costs $15/year.

For $50/year, a version called Norton 360 for Mobile adds unlimited VPN service and tracking of your personal information on the “dark web.” The most expensive plan, Norton 360 Deluxe, at $105/year, is actually part of Norton’s antivirus lineup and lets you protect up to five Android, Windows, Mac, or iOS devices.

All of these subscriptions can be paid for right through the Norton app, with a 14-day free trial period.

Norton's most powerful feature is App Advisor, which checks apps on your device for large data usage and unusual behavior. It also checks apps in the Google Play Store for security and privacy risks before you even install the app.

Advantage

  • Intuitive design
  • Perfect malware detection
  • App Advisor beats the competition

Disadvantages

  • Lack of free option
  • No more anti-theft function

3. Avast Mobile Security

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Avast Mobile Security

Avast Mobile Security & Antivirus is one of the best, full-featured Android antivirus apps, offering everything from a privacy advisor to a system optimizer to a customizable blacklist.

But while Avast’s anti-malware protection is good, it’s not perfect. Some of Avast’s anti-theft features don’t work, and its call blocking feature is completely useless. Plus, the free version is riddled with annoying ads and constant upgrade prompts.

Those ads go away if you pay for one of Avast Mobile Security's paid versions, Premium ($2/month or $20/year) or Ultimate ($7/month or $40/year). Users of either paid plan also get additional anti-theft features, app locking, and tech support.

The only way to use Avast's SecureLine VPN is to pay for the Ultimate version. Since SecureLine costs $60/year on its own, paying the extra $20 for the premium Android antivirus and unlimited VPN data is worth it.

Advantage

  • Lots of free features
  • The premium version is quite cheap

Disadvantages

  • Anti-theft feature is unreliable
  • Too many ads in free version

4. Kaspersky Mobile Antivirus

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Kaspersky Mobile Antivirus

Kaspersky Mobile Antivirus, also known as Kaspersky Internet Security for Android, offers near-perfect malware protection, negligible system impact, and a really useful call blocker.

There are no ads in the free version, and there's little hassle in upgrading to a paid plan. Free users get call filtering, Android Wear support, and a robust suite of anti-theft features, but you have to manually scan each new app.

Paid users get automatic scanning of new apps, app locking, and blocking of known phishing sites. There's no WiFi network scanning tool, and no security tools like other Android antivirus apps currently offer.

If you’re just looking for malware protection, you won’t regret opting for the free version of Kaspersky Mobile Antivirus. While the paid version isn’t expensive, it’s not really necessary, and you can get more from Bitdefender’s paid app for less than $5.

Advantage

  • Call Blocking feature works well
  • No ads in free version
  • Powerful anti-malware protection

Disadvantages

  • Limited overall features
  • The free version will not automatically scan for new apps

5. Lookout Security & Antivirus

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Lookout Security & Antivirus

Lookout Mobile Security, now rebranded as Lookout Security & Antivirus or Lookout Personal, is one of the first and best Android antivirus apps in a long time. Its ease of use, clean interface, and lack of ads are its strengths.

But the cost of Lookout can add up quickly. The free version only scans for malware and locates lost phones.

The premium version costs $30/year and offers features like malicious website blocking and WiFi network scanning (which are typically free with other Android antivirus apps). Unlimited VPN and data breach notification services are included in the premium version.

At $100 per year, the "Premium Plus" plan is actually a pretty cheap identity protection service that offers many of the same benefits you'd get from LifeLock or IdentityForce.

Advantage

  • Good user interface
  • Powerful identity protection options

Disadvantages

  • Few free features
  • Heavy, slow scanning
  • Not much malware protection data

6. McAfee Mobile Security

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
McAfee Mobile Security

Like Avast, McAfee offers (or used to offer) a lot of useful features, but its free version is also full of ads and upgrade suggestions. Its malware protection is pretty good, if not great.

In the summer of 2021, McAfee Mobile Security removed many useful features, including App Lock, Guest Mode, Anti-Theft, Booster, and Memory Cleaner.

You get some cool stuff with the free version of McAfee Mobile Security, like tracking data usage by app and a WiFi security scanner.

You get a lot more with the Standard version, including a URL scrubber, 24/7 tech support, and no more ads. But it's a bit pricey ($30/year), while Bitdefender and Kaspersky give you similar features for less.

The highest paid tier, Plus, costs $80/year and gives you the features in the Standard version plus unlimited VPN access, but only for your phone or tablet. You can get one of the best VPN services to use on all your devices for less.

Advantage

  • Some pretty good free features
  • There is a VPN if you are willing to pay a lot of money

Disadvantages

  • The premium options are very expensive
  • Average malware protection
  • Too many ads in free version

7. Google Play Protect

Top best antivirus apps for Android phones
Google Play Protect

Google Play Protect is built into every Android device that runs Google Play, and it would be great if it worked well. Unfortunately, Google Play Protect's poor malware detection capabilities make a strong argument for many people to use a third-party Android antivirus app.

Google Play Protect's interface is minimalist, ad-free, and its system footprint is extremely light. Some of Android's other built-in features, including Find My Device and Chrome Safe Browsing, mirror what third-party antivirus apps do on the side.

The best thing about Google Play Protect is that Google can use it to remotely disable dangerous apps. This is true whether you run third-party antivirus software or not. This article recommends that you do not disable Google Play Protect.

But overall, Google Play Protect isn't the best way to protect you from malicious apps. For your own good, you're probably better off using another option.

Advantage

  • Small system impact
  • Good anti-theft tool
  • Built right into Android

Disadvantages

  • Few features
  • Poor malware protection

Have a nice time!

See more articles below:

Sign up and earn $1000 a day ⋙

Leave a Comment

How to fix iPhone that wont turn on

How to fix iPhone that wont turn on

Many different issues can cause your iPhone to become unresponsive or even not turn on. The good news is that you can fix most of these problems without having to take your phone to a repair center.

5 Most Popular iPhone Camera Filters

5 Most Popular iPhone Camera Filters

After testing all the photo filters on your iPhone, you will eventually come up with your favorites. These are the best filters to use on your photos.

How to set a password to download applications on Android

How to set a password to download applications on Android

To limit unwanted application downloads on Android, you should set a password to download applications on Android.

How to Install TWRP Recovery on Android (No Root Required)

How to Install TWRP Recovery on Android (No Root Required)

TWRP allows users to save, install, backup and restore firmware on their devices without worrying about affecting the state of the device when rooting, flashing or installing new firmware on Android devices.

How to keep your Android phone screen on

How to keep your Android phone screen on

On Android phones, there is an option to adjust the screen lock mode when the user is inactive. So how to keep the screen always on?

Why is the iPhone launch event time always 9:41?

Why is the iPhone launch event time always 9:41?

In Apple's new product launch events, including iPhone, iOS, macOS... the time stamp is always 9:41.

Apps to replace Androids default photo gallery

Apps to replace Androids default photo gallery

On the Google Play Store, there are many alternative applications to the default Android gallery. They provide more interesting features than the default gallery such as connecting to Dropbox or Google Photos accounts, etc. Depending on your needs and desires, you can choose the following applications.

Change notes on iPhone easily with this simple trick!

Change notes on iPhone easily with this simple trick!

iOS 18 added a new feature that simplifies this process and lets you access recent notes with just a few taps.

How to Stop Android Phones from Silently Eavesdropping

How to Stop Android Phones from Silently Eavesdropping

The Google voice assistant feature on the phone helps users a lot in their daily life and work. However, this can affect the privacy of users.

How to display multiple time zones on iPhone screen

How to display multiple time zones on iPhone screen

Instead of manually calculating the time difference between cities, you can use your iPhone to view multiple time zones.

How to Blur Peoples Faces in Photos Using iPhones Clean Up Tool

How to Blur Peoples Faces in Photos Using iPhones Clean Up Tool

Clean Up is a tool in the Photos app in iOS 18 that lets you remove unwanted objects from photos. However, it sometimes has the strange behavior of blurring faces instead of removing them.

How to show night health index on iPhone

How to show night health index on iPhone

The new iPhone update adds a widget that displays nighttime health information in the Health app. When you add the widget to your iPhone home screen, all health indicators are recorded when you use Apple Watch.

How to prevent Android apps from accessing the internet, using mobile data in the background

How to prevent Android apps from accessing the internet, using mobile data in the background

Do you often feel annoyed when every time you turn on 3G on your Android Smartphone, applications compete to notify Update while the budget for mobile data network is limited?

How to Find Leaked Passwords in the iPhone Password App

How to Find Leaked Passwords in the iPhone Password App

As soon as the Passwords app detects an account with a weak, vulnerable, or leaked password, it will notify you of the status of that password.

How to fix iPhone camera flashing error

How to fix iPhone camera flashing error

Are you having a flickering issue with your iPhone camera? There are many factors that can cause this issue, so don't assume it's a hardware issue and take it to the Apple Store right away.