Bitdefender has the best malware detection rate among AV comparison sites and runs quickly without impacting system performance. It also offers a selection of extra subscription benefits, such as machine protection or ransomware remediation, depending on the plan you select.

Its antivirus suite combines machine-learning with traditional signature-based scans to offer one of the best detection rates in its class. It also comes with a great web security suite as well as a fast VPN and complete program tune-ups, along with a secured browser, as well as a wealth of security features to help ensure your data is secure. In my limited tests the anti-spam feature of Bitdefender’s blocked less than 1percent of legitimate email and its ransomware security was equally effective.

A vulnerability scan is another feature that makes Bitdefender Threat Scanner stand out from its competitors. It scans for weak passwords and outdated drives, software and Windows vulnerabilities that can be exploited. This feature can be scheduled or manually run and takes about 5 minutes. It’s an improvement over websites competitors that normally require up to an hour to complete the same job.

When you encounter issues, Bitdefender’s customer support is available via live chat or phone and has been consistently among the fastest in the industry. The community forum is a great source of information to help you solve issues on your own. The knowledgebase of Bitdefender includes a large number of articles.