McAfee Mobile Security: The Best Android Antivirus in 2024?

McAfee is a big brand when it comes to Cyber-security. McAfee has been in the Cloud-to-device cyber-security business for over 3 decades now. Undoubtedly, McAfee has used its experience to create one of the best security solutions for all kinds of devices for a long time. But has McAfee been successful in creating the best antivirus for Android? Is the Malware Protection offered by McAfee best in industry? Without wasting any more time, let’s get going:

Table Of Contents
1. Malware Protection offered by McAfee Mobile Security 2. Effect on System Performance 3. Additional Tools 4. McAfee VPN 5. Anti-Theft Tools 6. Pricing

 

Malware Protection offered by McAfee Mobile Security:

Primary purpose of an Antivirus application is the security from Malware. Malware (Malicious Software) are constantly being used as a technique to steal and misuse user’s data. Most admirable antivirus applications for Android offer complete protection from Malware threats such as Bitdefender Mobile Security, Norton, etc.

Malware Protection offered by McAfee Mobile Security is second to none. There are various independent labs that evaluate the performance of such antiviruses. One such lab is AV-Test Lab. In a test conducted in July 2020, McAfee Mobile Security was able to detect and eliminate 99.9% of the Malware out of 3,345 samples. Although the score seems pretty good, rivals of McAfee like Bitdefender Mobile Security were able to detect all 100% of the samples.

Effect on System Performance:

Antivirus applications provide real-time protection from Malware and Cyber-threats. In order to alert the user instantaneously about any Malicious file or software, Antivirus applications keep running in device background constantly. In addition to that, if an Antivirus application comes equipped with Anti-Theft tools and the user chooses to take advantage of it, the application also uses Location services in the background at all times. Due to all these reasons, Antivirus applications can have a major impact on the device’s performance.

In my 7 Day usage of McAfee Mobile Security, I didn’t come across any major hit in device’s performance or battery. (Anti-Theft tool was On and was using the Location services in the background at all times.) AV-Test Lab came across the same finding in its evaluation regarding the effect on device’s performance and battery.

Similar tests when conducted on McAfee’s competitors like Bitdefender, Norton, and Kaspersky also gave similar results. Hence, McAfee and its rivals are yet neck and neck in the quest of being the best Antivirus for Android.

Additional Tools:

In the competitive environment, Antivirus applications are not only judged by the Malware Protection they offer but also on the basis of extra tools they offer.

When it comes to Additional tools offered, McAfee has no Competitor. McAfee offers the best of the best tools that are not generally available with any other competitors. These tools certainly take McAfee ahead of its rivals in the race of being the best Antivirus for Android.

McAfee VPN:

McAfee comes equipped with a VPN which although requires the premium upgraded version, can be really very useful. VPNs are highly advisable in order to maintain data security and privacy, especially on Android devices. McAfee VPN is a fine addition to the McAfee Antivirus.

In my 7-day usage, I found McAfee VPN to be extremely powerful. It also offered decent speeds while streaming.

Anti-Theft tools:

Thefts are the absolute worst nightmare when it comes to data privacy and security. Once your device is stolen, the intruder has a number of ways to access your data even if your device has a biometric lock. Therefore, most admirable antivirus applications come equipped with Anti-Theft tools.

Anti-theft tools include remotely wiping the data, triggering the alarm, locking the device, and locating the device.

However, not all of these tools function really well. Anti-Theft tools incorporated only in Bitdefender and McAfee were able to do the task at hand.

Number of other tools too come equipped with McAfee Antivirus that are not available with competitors. Look at the table below for a clear idea:

	McAfee	Bitdefender	Norton
Anti-Theft	Yes	Yes	Yes
Public Wi-Fi credibility advisor	Yes	Yes	No
VPN	Yes	Yes	No
Backup Feature	Yes	No	No
Privacy Advisor	Yes	No	No
Application Control	Yes	Yes	Yes
Call-Blocker	No	Yes	Yes

Pricing:

Pricing is a bit of a subjective topic. We can only compare the pricing of its McAfee and its competitors. But we can’t tell you which one to choose. It all depends on how much sensitive data you have on your mobile device; how much do you want to spend on it; etc.

There is absolutely no doubt, when it comes to functionality, McAfee is the best Antivirus for Android in the market. However, the price at which all these services are offered is much higher than its competitors.

Standard: $29.99

Plus: $79.99

Download: 

Verdict:

When we look at features, McAfee is the absolute best Antivirus for Android. The features that McAfee has to offer are not available anywhere else whichever price point. So, if you are a user who wants the absolute best, Go for McAfee Mobile Security.

But if you are an average user, like me, you wouldn’t mind losing a few features if you could save 50$ on the price. Therefore, if you are like me, I would suggest Bitdefender Mobile Security. (Read Full Review here)

We hope we were able to help you decide whether to buy McAfee and if McAfee is the best antivirus for Android available in the market. Do let us know your views on McAfee and which is your personal favorite, we love hearing from you.

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