McAfee vs Norton
Norton 360 and McAfee both combine antivirus with a VPN, scam protection, a password manager and identity monitoring. Norton's Deluxe tier stands out for parental controls and PC cloud backup, though these are unavailable on macOS. McAfee+ tiers extend antivirus to unlimited compatible devices and add data broker cleanup, with full-service removal in its Ultimate plans.
McAfee
Security & identity suiteChoose McAfee if… Choose McAfee if you want antivirus across many devices, including Chromebooks, plus data broker cleanup and scam detection for texts, email and video.
Visit McAfee Official vendor site
Norton
Security suiteChoose Norton if… Choose Norton if you mainly use Windows PCs and want cloud backup, parental controls and a VPN in one suite, with LifeLock tiers available for identity protection.
Visit Norton Official vendor siteKey differences
Side-by-side comparison
| Criterion |  McAfee |  Norton |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | VerifyVaries — see official pricing | VerifyVaries — see official pricing |
| Free plan | Not verified | Not verified |
| Free trial | Not verified | Not verified |
| Platforms | Not verified | Not verified |
| Integrations | Not verified | Not verified |
| Support options | Not verified | Not verified |
| Best for | Households wanting identity monitoring with antivirus, Families with many devices, Users worried about text and email scams | Windows households wanting an all-in-one suite, Families needing parental controls, Buyers who want identity protection from the same vendor |
| Main limitation | Several identity, credit and cleanup features are available only in higher McAfee+ tiers | Cloud Backup is only available on Windows, excluding S mode and ARM devices |
| Editorial score | Not yet scored | Not yet scored |
Indicators summarise the text beside them: Included Varies Not available Verify (pricing not yet editor-verified). McAfee: Last checked: not yet verified by our editors · Norton: Last checked: not yet verified by our editors.
Pricing matrix
McAfeePricing not yet verifiedPricing varies — check the official pricing page.
Official McAfee pricing ↗NortonPricing not yet verifiedPricing varies — check the official pricing page.
Official Norton pricing ↗“From” is the lowest paid price listed for that billing period, as captured from the official page on the check date. Currencies are never converted; plans and limits differ, so compare the full plan tables on each review.
McAfee at a glance
Pros
- Scam Detector covers texts, email and video
- McAfee+ plans offer antivirus on unlimited compatible devices
- Includes a password manager and VPN alongside antivirus
Cons
- Full-service Personal Data Cleanup is limited to the top Ultimate tiers
- Lower McAfee+ tiers provide data cleanup scans only
- Safe Family parental controls are listed only with the 10-device Total Protection option
- Several identity, credit and cleanup features are available only in higher McAfee+ tiers
- Operating system compatibility varies and is detailed on a separate system requirements page
Norton at a glance
Pros
- VPN included from Norton 360 Standard upward
- Scam Protection covers texts and deepfake videos
- Deluxe covers five devices with parental controls
Cons
- Cloud Backup, Parental Control and SafeCam are not supported on macOS
- Windows on ARM versions do not include Parental Control
- Utilities such as Driver Updater are Windows-only in top plans
- Cloud Backup is only available on Windows, excluding S mode and ARM devices
- Not all monitoring features are available in every country