Best free and paid-for mobile antivirus apps

Mobile antivirus can help protect you against phishing scams, where criminals trick you into clicking a dodgy link and revealing your personal details on a fake website. We checked its effectiveness when we put free and paid-for mobile antivirus apps through our lab tests and compared them against the built-in security that comes with Apple and Android phones.

We subject each mobile antivirus app to at least 200 of the most up-to-date known phishing sites on the internet. All the mobile antivirus apps we tested were better at detecting phishing sites than the built-in protection from Apple and Android. However, Apple wasn't far off our lowest-scoring app on test, F-Secure Total.

Below, we reveal the percentage detection rate of the best free, best paid-for and worst overall third-party mobile antivirus apps, compared with the basic built-in protection of iOS and Android. 

Scroll down to discover which mobile antivirus was best.

Need antivirus for your laptop or desktop PC? Check out our pick of the best antivirus, including free antivirus.

Best free mobile antivirus

Even though it will cost you nothing, the best free mobile antivirus app in by our tests is really effective at flagging phishing sites and handling any malware before it causes damage.

Malware is less of an issue for phones than PCs, particularly for Apple iPhones. But that doesn't mean the threat won't increase. We tested all the mobile antivirus on Android phones, as they are more targeted by malware threats.

Based on the software we tested, you can save up to £40 annually by opting for a free antivirus app. The most expensive antivirus we tested this year was among the lowest-scoring. By contrast, the top-scoring free antivirus app was the second highest-scoring – a single percentage point behind the leader, which is a paid-for mobile antivirus app.

The main disadvantage of free antivirus apps is that they're typically littered with in-app ads, usually highlighting paid-for alternatives. This can make free software a chore to use. Our testing criteria take this into account, and we list the level of ads present and how intrusive they are. Our Best Buy free mobile antivirus app doesn't have this problem.

When compared with paid-for equivalents, free antivirus tends to lack additional features, such as a password manager or anti-theft functions. This shouldn't be a deal breaker as you can usually separately download similar features for free.

Scroll past our table to find out more about the software rated the best in our tests.

A note on our tests: We test all mobile antivirus on Android phones as they're more targeted by malware threats. Malware aimed at Apple iOS (the iPhone operating system) is exceptionally rare.

All the software we tested can be downloaded from the Apple App Store and Google Play store. 

Our lab tests reveal your phone is a tempting target

Callum Pears, Which? antivirus expert: 'We know that phones are a rich source of personal and private data, especially as more online tasks are migrated over to convenient and always on-hand mobile apps. Cyber criminals know this, too, and are likely expanding their attacks beyond computers to also target phones. 

'Our lab tests have shown that native built-in protections are far from flawless - see do mobile devices need antivirus. Preempting a potential rise in more sophisticated future attacks could save you from worrying later on. Selecting a quality mobile antivirus, even one of the top-notch free versions available, may be the best solution.

'All of the mobile antivirus we've tested have been subjected to countless malware and phishing test pages in our lab, so we can assess their reaction and performance in tackling threats. We have granted free access to our lab results so you can prepare for a potential threat tomorrow, today.'

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Sophos Intercept X for Mobile, 87%, Best Buy, Great Value, free

• Pros: Ad-free, Excellent anti-phishing, Strong anti-malware
• Cons: A couple of false positives
• Availability: Free / Sophos.com

Sophos has produced a phenomenal free mobile antivirus app – it performed so well in our tests that it was just a single percentage point away from the best overall mobile antivirus we tested this year, a paid-for app. 

Sophos Intercept X has superb and consistent anti-malware. It performs strongly against downloaded and installed threats, as well as those found on connected external devices, such as micro-SD cards. Its anti-malware is simple to understand, showing a simple dialog box with threat details and actions it has taken to handle or remove any malware.

Its anti-phishing capabilities are similarly strong. It successfully detected 84.5% of the phishing sites we threw at it. It acts by blocking and closing websites immediately and shows a warning dialog. It also only flagged two false positives.

The app is easy to use and navigate. The main screen shows your phone's security status and displays your options.

Despite being a free product, Intercept X has no ads and even includes a few extra features such as a password manager and a QR scanner. It also alerts you if any operating system update is available. This is often one of the best and easiest things to do to keep your device's native security up-to-date and ready to combat any threats. 

If you're worried installing it will slow your phone down, don't be. All this has only a very minimal effect on your device's battery life.

Verdict: The best free mobile antivirus available

Our other free mobile antivirus results

Avast Mobile Security for Android, 82%, free

• Pros: Sound anti-malware, Effective anti-phishing
• Cons: Noticeable ads shown in-app and during setup, A lot of false positives
• Availability: Free / Avast.com

Avast’s free mobile antivirus impressed with excellent anti-malware, being more than 99% effective at countering downloaded and installed malware in our tests. It also performed capably with malware from externally connected devices, such as micro-SD cards – although this was slightly less effective. 

The warning messages are detailed and provide various options for how to act. They are a tad small, however, and can be easily missed.

Phishing detection was similarly potent  – it could successfully identify 78% of the phishing sites we subjected it to. The warning dialog box is descriptive and recommends leaving any suspect websites. But, crucially, it doesn't actively block it, leaving you with the choice on how to proceed. 

It also came with one of the higher false positive rates we witnessed, with five wrongly flagged sites.

You will see ads, which isn't unexpected with a free mobile antivirus program. You see a promotion for paid-for equivalents during the initial download, plus some ads displayed in-app.

There are plenty of extra features, including a file scanner, photo vault, app manager, wi-fi speed tests and network inspector. You probably won't need these.

Avast's free mobile antivirus is quick and easy to install. The app’s main menus and settings are easy to navigate and clear throughout. As with the other mobile antivirus we tested, it uses very little battery life.

Verdict: Excellent free protection

AVG Free Antivirus for Android, 82%, free

• Pros: Great anti-malware, Solid anti-phishing
• Cons: Five false positives recorded, Some visible ads
• Availability: Free / AVG.com

AVG’s free software is another impressive antivirus. It deals with malware capably, combating more than 99% of downloaded and installed threats. It had a slightly weaker performance when scanning for malware from external devices, detecting just 94% of threats in our tests. Despite a slight drop in quality when it comes to external devices, the overall performance is still excellent, and it still works even when you aren't connected to the internet.

Its anti-phishing is great, although not as good as some other software on test. False positives were also on the high end - we recorded five false positives, which is among the most we saw. 

It has a few extra features, notably a file scanner and photo vault to back up your personal pictures. Like most mobile antivirus we tested, its effect on your phone's battery life is minimal. 

Some noticeable ads are peppered throughout, including promotions for AVG’s paid-for antivirus. While these aren't too intrusive, they do set this AVG software apart from the higher-scoring Sophos Intercept X.

Verdict: Solid free mobile antivirus

Google Play Protect, 39%

• Pros: Pre-installed
• Cons: Weak anti-malware and anti-phishing performance
• Availability: Free / Built-in with Android

This is your base level of protection for Android devices. Unlike most free mobile antivirus, as it's built-in protection, there are no annoying ads.

Its anti-malware capabilities are limited compared with the mobile antivirus apps we tested. It can't scan and clean any external storage device that's connected and doesn’t work if your phone isn't connected to the internet. 

Anti-phishing is also fairly weak – it detected just over 30% of the phishing sites we threw at it. That's pretty poor and is easily beaten by all the third-party mobile antivirus we tested. It also flagged seven false positives, one of the highest rates we recorded in our tests.

Verdict: Base protection, nothing more

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Best antivirus for Android mobile paid

Although excellent security isn't exclusive to paid-for antivirus, as seen with the best free mobile antivirus available – what sets them apart are the extra features they often come packaged with. These can include a VPN, password manager and a raft of anti-theft features. Although these are nice extra security goodies, they are not must-haves and are widely available for free elsewhere.

Make sure your mobile antivirus is worth your money by picking one of the best paid-for programs from our independent lab tests. Scroll past our table to find out more about the software we tested.

A note on our tests: We test all mobile antivirus on Android phones as they are more targeted by malware threats. Malware aimed at Apple iOS (the iPhone operating system) is exceptionally rare.

All prices listed are correct as of March 2024, based on the companies' own websites and rounded to the nearest 50p. 

Need a new phone? See our expert pick of the best smartphones for all budgets

TrendMicro Mobile Security for Android, 88%, Best Buy, £20

• Pros: Supreme anti-malware capabilities, Strong phishing detection rate, Anti-theft features included, Easy to use
• Cons: Slightly more taxing on battery life
• Availability: £20 a year / trendmicro.com

TrendMicro’s Mobile Security is the best mobile antivirus we tested this year. It’s a malware hunter, detecting and dealing with 100% of the malware we threw at it. That includes both downloaded/installed malware and those on infected external devices, such as SD cards. 

This exceptional protection also doesn’t require an internet connection, as it works even when your phone is offline. 

Its phishing detection rate is also very strong, successfully recognising 82.5% of our phishing sites. It blocks malicious websites and shows a clear warning. This phenomenal protection also only resulted in a single false positive.

The app has a clear menu structure and intuitive navigation. You also get extra features, most notably, anti-theft features. 

This mobile antivirus app uses more battery life than is typical for other mobile antivirus apps we tested, but it remains relatively minimal. 

Verdict: The best mobile antivirus currently available

G Data Mobile Security for Android, 85%, Best Buy, £8

• Pros: The best at spotting phishing sites, Excellent anti-malware, Anti-wipe features included
• Cons: Dependent on an internet connection, Some warning boxes could be clearer
• Availability: £8 a year (converted from USD) / gdatasoftware.com

This software performed exceptionally well with downloaded and installed software infected with malware, identifying 100% of the malicious software we used in our tests. 

It also performed well with malware loaded to an external storage device, although in this instance, some small amounts of malware did hit the device. 

It’s excellent at spotting phishing sites, too, flagging an impressive 85.5% during our tests. That was the best phishing detection rate of any antivirus. And not a single false positive was flagged.

It's mainly easy to use, although some commands can be confusing. The warning messages could be clearer – especially for anti-malware, which could be easily missed and lack in-depth details on any threats. Its phishing warning box is much clearer, however, and either blocks sites outright or requires you to respond if you want to continue to the suspect website.

The main disadvantage of this software’s protection is that it’s dependent on an internet connection. This means you may be susceptible to threats that initiate when your device isn’t connected. However, potential malware threats will most likely come while surfing the internet, so this shouldn't be a major concern.

An array of extra features are included, such as anti-wipe counter measures, which prevent criminals wiping your personal data from your device. These extra features do mean this antivirus uses more battery life than is typical, although this remains relatively little.

Verdict: The best for anti-phishing

Other paid-for mobile antivirus app test results

Eset Mobile Security, 82%, £9

• Pros: Brilliant anti-malware, Easy to use
• Cons: So-so phishing detection, Sparse on extra features
• Availability: £9 a year / eset.com

Eset Mobile Security only missed a tiny fraction of malware from external sources in our tests. This protection remains active even without an internet connection. 

It proved more mediocre in our phishing detection tests, spotting just 68% of the sites we ran it through. This isn't terrible and is still more powerful than the best built-in protection, but it's easily eclipsed by other software on test, including our best free mobile antivirus.

Its a solid app to use, with the menus being clear and easy to navigate. The warnings it gives are expressive and provide a good level of detail. For phishing, it blocks the malicious sites and asks how you would like to proceed. It's sparse on features and also has no anti-theft abilities. 

McAfee Mobile Security, 80%, £40 (rises after the first year)

• Pros: Excellent anti-malware, Great phishing detection, Minimal false positives
• Cons: Malware warning messages could be clearer, A bit sparse on extra features, Unclear price
• Availability: Initial price £40 (rises after the first year) / mcafee.com

As one of the big antivirus names, expectations of McAfee will be high. Its mobile antivirus performed well in our malware tests, catching the vast majority of the malicious nasties we sent its way – although it wasn't flawless. This protection extends offline, too. 

It sniffed out a respectable 79% of our phishing sites. This is good, although not as good as our best free mobile antivirus. It did have one false positive. 

Its settings are easily accessible but could be clearer in places, especially with warning messages. While the phishing warnings are bold and clear, the malware warnings are notably less bold and can even be missed. 

It's a bit lacking in extra features for a paid-for antivirus app, which is disappointing. You do get access to a VPN and safe browsing, though.

Norton Mobile Security for Android, 79%, £13 (rises after the first year)

• Pros: Great anti-malware, Good phishing detection, Clear warning messages
• Cons: A lot of false positives, Lacking many extra features
• Availability: £13 (rises after the first year)/ Norton.com

Norton, like McAfee, is another big player in the antivirus market. Its mobile antivirus is largely solid with strong anti-malware, being over 99% effective against the nasties we subjected it to in our tests.

Its phishing spotting abilities were a touch behind its rivals, with a good detection rate of 76.5%. It didn't impress us with the number of false positives, flagging six. 

It has no anti-theft features, which is disappointing, but it does have some helpful tips for securing your device. For example, it can tell if you lack a lock screen on your phone and will recommend a fingerprint lock be set up. 

The app is easy to use, being a doddle to navigate through. Its warnings regarding malware or phishing threats are clear, bold and descriptive.

Avira Antivirus Security Pro, 77%, £30

• Pros: Superb anti-malware, Decent phishing detection, Minimal false positives, Anti-wipe features included
• Cons: Warning messages could be clearer, Dip in anti-malware capabilities with connected external devices
• Availability: £30 a year / Avira.com

Avira’s mobile antivirus performed flawlessly in our malware tests, catching 100% of the malware present. While still impressive, it has a noticeable dip in its anti-malware capabilities when it comes to nasties found on connected external sources, such as micro-SD cards. 

Its ability to recognise phishing sites was good, catching 76% of the phishing sites we exposed it to. It also flagged only a single false positive. Avira has packed in extra anti-theft features, including anti-wipe technology that prevents criminals from purging your personal data (such as emails and texts). It's easy to use, although the warning messages could be clearer.

F-Secure Total, 66%, £60

• Pros: Great anti-malware, No false positives
• Cons: Substandard anti-phishing capabilities, Sparse extra features, Some warning boxes can be easily missed
• Availability: £60 a year / f-secure.com

This software has superb anti-malware abilities, catching nearly everything we subjected it to. 

Its phishing capabilities are comparatively poor, based on our tests – of all the third-party software we tested, it recorded the lowest detection rate. It didn't flag any false positives, however. 

The software is largely easy to use and shows good warning messages, although some are small and could be easily missed. It also includes extra features such as parental controls. Disappointingly for a paid-for antivirus app, it lacks anti-theft features, but you can get these for free elsewhere – see what should I do if my phone is stolen.

Do mobile devices need antivirus?

The threat of malware remains relatively low on phones and other mobile devices, at least when compared to PCs. But the popularity and wide use of mobile devices will inevitably lead to greater attention from cybercriminals. Undoubtedly, more malicious programs will be specifically designed to target mobile devices in the future.

Both Android and iOS have built-in protection that detects threats and scans your downloaded apps. However, although this built-in protection is great to have, and both the Apple App Store and Google Play (the main Android app store) are continuously inspected for malware-infested apps, this is far from infallible.  

Android devices face more issues than Apple iOS, partly due to being a more diverse operating system (with many different manufacturers using it), the wider global use of Android devices and Apple’s greater emphasis on encryption. It's for this reason that we test all antivirus apps on Android devices. 

Phishing is a different matter, regardless of whether you use an Android or Apple phone. Our tests revealed that all the mobile antivirus we tested is better at identifying phishing sites than built-in software. But there was a difference in how effective each app was – some detected the majority of phishing sites we threw at them, others detected less than half.

Apple’s Safari blocker performed the best of any built-in software, but it was worse (if only marginally) than the lowest-performing third-party antivirus (which detected 47.5% of phishing threats). In our tests, iOS detected just 46.5% of phishing sites, whereas the best free mobile antivirus detected 84.5% and our best paid-for mobile antivirus detected 85.5%. 

If you often find yourself questioning the website you're on, or if you have been susceptible to malware or phishing in the past, installing mobile antivirus will provide more security. That's particularly the case if you have an Android phone.

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Mobile antivirus features

Mobile antivirus apps vary in terms of the extra features they offer. Although having these in one app can be handy, you can usually get them for free elsewhere. Here's a list of the typical features we've seen:

Backup

Preserves your personal information by saving it online using cloud (internet-based) storage, as well as on your device. Backup happens either according to a schedule or before you complete a remote wipe. Backups can be restored to any compatible device.

Call/SMS blocking

Filters and blocks unwanted calls and texts, with warnings when you receive a suspicious text.

Remote lock

Locks down your device remotely via SMS or web browser interface, preventing unauthorised access. Some apps even allow you to create a customised lock-screen message that displays your contact details, which could help result in the safe return of your device.

Remote photo

Helps identify unauthorised users of your phone or tablet by taking their photo and sending it to you via email. Some apps take snaps through the device's camera and email them to you when a password is entered incorrectly a few times.

Remote wipe and anti-wipe

Preserves your privacy by enabling you to wipe all contacts, calendars, photos, texts, browsing history and memory card in your phone. Anti-wipe prevents others from doing this to your device. 

Safe browsing mode

Checks webpages in real time, as you’re browsing the web, keeping you protected when you click on links or every time you type in a web address.

Sim lock

Stops others from using your phone or tablet by locking it down when the Sim card is removed.

Find out how to create secure passwords

How do I check for viruses on my phone?

There are some common signs to watch out for that can tell you if your phone is infected with a virus or other kinds of malware:

• Your phone is slow - whether when opening apps or responding to your commands
• Battery life drains very quickly
• Lots of strange pop-ups keep showing
• New apps appear on your phone’s home screen that you don’t remember downloading
• You have higher than typical phone bills
• You have higher than typical data (4G and 5G) use
• Any other unusual activity or changes to your phone that you can’t explain

You can also run a system scan of your device. To do this, download a free mobile antivirus - which protects your card details if your phone is infected with malware, which could transmit your information to criminals - and do a full scan. The best free antivirus can detect and immediately remove malware and other malicious software from your phone.

How we test mobile antivirus

At the Which? labs, we test each mobile antivirus app against at least 1,000 malware programs per download. These programs are as up-to-date as possible and loaded onto a phone. The best software can detect malware before it lands, and then quarantine and destroy it. If it does manage to land, we monitor the software's reaction in dealing with the threat.

We also test how each software copes with malware threats from a connected external device. For mobile devices, this is commonly an infected micro-SD card. We load the card with up-to-date malware and see how each antivirus app reacts when the card is connected to the phone.

We consider it a miss if an app allows a malware program to successfully perform any malicious activity on the device's operating system.

We also assess how overzealous each mobile antivirus is. We don’t want it flagging or blocking sites and software that are perfectly safe to use. So, we mix malicious and non-malicious items together and count the amount of safe items each antivirus wrongly flags.

Phishing is debatably the bigger threat for mobile devices. We test this by selecting 200 of the most up-to-date known phishing sites on the internet and access them via our lab phone with each antivirus downloaded. We do this on the phone's default browser and monitor the antivirus' response. We concentrate this test on pages optimised for mobile browsing and compare each mobile antivirus app with the built-in protection found on Android and iOS.

We know one of the greater concerns with mobile antivirus is its effect on battery life. We test how taxing each is on two diferent smartphones: a powerful top-of-the-range model and a more basic, less powerful phone. We note the change in battery life based on standard daily use of both devices. 

Based on our tests, we found this tends to be minimal in most cases.

Ease of use is another key consideration. For this, we delve into things such as how easy each app is to install and uninstall, the ease of navigation through menus and options, how intrusive or aggressive any ads are, and what kind of help and support each antivirus offers.

Our tests are used to create an overall test score for each mobile antivirus app we test. This is never based on price. The score is based on:

• 75% - Protection (including anti-malware and phishing)
• 20% - Ease of use
• 5% - Use of resources

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