2013 Antivirus Software Reviews

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AVG Anti-Virus Software 2013 Overall Score: 75%

AVG is best known for their quality, free antivirus software. This year it continues to perform well and is a great option for those just looking for basic protection. Upgrading to their paid antivirus program brings some great extra perks, including parental controls, which is rare for a non internet security suite.

We did find a few areas of concern, however. For one, while their antivirus protection is generally good, in our tests AVG missed one scareware-style virus and some well-known viruses were extremely difficult or impossible to remove — not good.

The user interface is inefficient and cumbersome and technical support is limited and not free.

However, AVG has gained solid respect in the marketplace and we'd recommend it.

Certified by:

• Anti-Malware Test Lab
• AV Comparatives
• AV-Test
• ICSA
• Malware Research Group
• PC Security Labs
• VB Bulletin
• WestCoast Labs

AVG generally performs well at real-time antivirus protection and spyware scanning. While it doesn't rate as high as some of the other top products, it has collected more certifications than anyone else.

However, we were alarmed that AVG missed a well-known scareware program and completely locked up our testing computer. This really is unacceptable.

We were also not comfortable with the split in scanning options. An "Anti-Rootkit Scan" was offered outside of the "Whole Computer Scan". We think the "Whole Computer Scan" should be comprehensive and you shouldn't have to run two separate scans.
Resource usage for AVG Anti-Virus 2013 was low to average with a few irregular peaks.

CPU usage when running idle was well below 1%, but spiked randomly. During a full-system manual scan, AVG was fast and didn't cause any drag to the system. CPU was at 38% while memory was only at around 66%.
AVG's user interface offers a great look with up-to-date graphics. However, usability hasn't been given the same attention.

The "Overview" page offers several areas to navigate to. However, once you've finished one area, there is no "back" button or menu options to navigate to the next section. You're forced to re-open the Overview page. Time-consuming.

Then, the "Advanced" page simply offers too many choices for the average user.
AVG offers several technical support options. Free support is available via FAQs, forums, chat and limited phone support.

Phone support, however, doesn't include virus removal or software setup assistance unless you pony up for either a one-time fee of $19.99 or a year's subscription for $199 (or a Family plan for $299). Other companies offer their support entirely for free, so we find this approach over the top.

Their chat and forum options are helpful, but we found their FAQ pages cumbersome and not very useful.
AVG Anti-Virus 2013 is set to automatically download and install updates as they become available.

Though it's not clear when these are set to occur or an option for manual settings.



AVG Anti-Virus 2013 offers several notable extra features.

PC Analyzer scans your system for registry errors, junk files, fragmentation, and broken shortcuts.

It's offered as a free trial, but then requires a fee for regular use.

Android Protection protects your Android device from viruses and malware attempting to sabotage calls, texts and downloads.

Email Scanner scans all incoming email attachments.

AVG has earned a strong reputation in the marketplace by offering a free, very capable antivirus software. Their paid version offers a few extra benefits, but for an even greater investment, positioning their free version, perhaps, as the better choice.

Their antivirus protection is generally good, but not perfect.

We find their technical support inadequate and have suggestions for improvements to their user interface.

They have earned many certifications, and we agree AVG is a competitive product, but we find other products outperform.