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Norton 360 Standard Review (2025): Is it the right choice?

By Tibor Moes / Updated: January 2025

Norton 360 Standard Review 2025

Norton 360 Standard Review 2025

Norton 360 Standard is the best antivirus for a single device. It has perfect anti-malware protection, no impact on the speed of your PC, many security features, and an excellent price.

Buy it if you want complete protection for one device (3 in the US). You will get anti-malware, anti-phishing, a firewall, a password manager, and an unlimited VPN, which will protect your privacy online.

If you need to protect more devices, consider Norton 360 Deluxe. It also includes includes dark web monitoring and parental controls.

  • Malware protection: 100%. Norton detected and removed each of the 1,200 malware samples in our test.
  • Speed impact: 100%. Norton’s anti-malware engine is lightweight and did not slow down our test PC.
  • Features: 100%. Norton 360 Standard includes anti-malware, anti-phishing, firewall, VPN, password manager, and more.
  • Price: 90%. Norton 360 Standard has a fair price, but for a little bit more, you get Norton 360 Deluxe, which protects more devices.

Thanks to the 60-day return policy, you can try it risk-free.

Ranking  #1 of 28 🥇
Anti-malware
Anti-phishing
Firewall
Password Manager
Unlimited VPN
Operating systems Windows, macOS, iOS, Android
🔥 Discount Save 60% on Norton 🔥
Norton Antivirus - Dashboard

Full Review

Norton is ranked #1 of the 28 best antivirus of 2025.

Norton offers a wide array of security features beyond standard antivirus protection. Even on its most basic plan, Norton Antivirus Plus, users benefit from a robust anti-malware engine, firewall, anti-phishing tools, a password manager, 2 GB of cloud storage, and a 100% Virus Protection Promise, ensuring a refund if Norton cannot remove a virus.

Upgrading to Norton 360 Standard provides additional features, such as a VPN with unlimited data, dark web monitoring, and a password manager. For even more features, like parental controls and identity theft protection, one can look to Norton 360 Deluxe and Advanced.

All of Norton’s plans come with a 60-day money-back guarantee.

Norton Antivirus - Anti-Malware

Anti-malware

Norton’s malware scanner is among the best, using a combination of a vast malware directory, heuristic analysis, and machine learning to detect a wide range of threats.

During our tests, Norton detected 100% of nearly 1,200 malware samples, including viruses, trojans, worms, spyware, and zero-day threats. Its real-time protection was equally strong, blocking malware files before they could even download or execute, including encrypted and zipped files.

The full system scan completed in about 38 minutes, faster than the industry average, and Norton Insight further optimizes scan times by whitelisting trusted files. In addition to full scans, Norton offers quick, custom, and smart scans, all of which can be scheduled at convenient times.

A standout feature is Norton’s ability to detect full-screen apps, like games or movies, pausing notifications and scans to avoid interruptions. This makes Norton one of the top choices for gamers.

Overall, Norton’s malware detection and real-time protection are exceptional, offering comprehensive threat detection without slowing down the system.

Norton Antivirus - Anti-Phishing

Anti-phishing

Norton’s Safe Web browser extension offers robust anti-phishing protection, detecting nearly all phishing sites in our tests—surpassing even Chrome’s built-in defenses. Available for Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge, Safe Web also provides detailed reports on blocked sites and includes user reviews to help assess the danger level of suspicious pages.

One of its standout features is the ability to view a full report for each blocked site, offering transparency on why it was flagged. You can also search any website’s safety rating directly from the Safe Web dashboard. Norton’s Link Guard further enhances protection by scanning links on social media and webmail, alerting you to potentially harmful content.

Norton’s Safe Search, however, is less impressive. While it provides color-coded safety ratings for websites in search results, it often mislabels safe sites as untested and had some issues working correctly on desktop browsers. Despite this, it integrates well with platforms like Facebook and Twitter to prevent phishing through shared links.

Overall, Safe Web delivers excellent anti-phishing protection, though Safe Search’s accuracy and functionality could use improvement.

Norton Antivirus - Firewall

Firewall

Norton’s Smart Firewall offers a significant upgrade over the default firewalls in Windows and macOS, providing advanced protection features like ARP and DNS spoofing prevention, SSL man-in-the-middle attack detection, and port access monitoring. During our testing, it blocked every network intrusion, outperforming even the Windows firewall in some cases.

A key feature is its ability to put network ports into Stealth mode, making them invisible to potential hackers. The firewall also allows users to set access rules for individual programs, and monitor traffic for Windows’ built-in services, though the default settings are sufficient for most users.

For advanced users, Norton provides extensive customization options and monitors 136 lesser-known protocols that could be exploited by malware, alerting users if any pose a threat.

Overall, Norton’s Smart Firewall is highly effective and customizable, offering excellent network protection and intrusion detection.

Norton Antivirus - Password Manager

Password manager

Norton’s password manager is a strong offering, especially for a tool bundled with antivirus software. It provides essential features like 256-bit AES encryption, unlimited password storage, synchronization across all devices, and browser extensions for major browsers.

Its key features include auto-save, auto-fill, a password generator, and vault auditing, which checks for weak, repeated, or outdated passwords—features that are often missing in other antivirus-integrated managers.

Setup is straightforward, with options to import passwords from other managers like LastPass or 1Password. Norton also includes a mobile login feature, allowing users to access their vault via biometrics on iOS and Android devices, and two-factor authentication (2FA) for enhanced security, though it applies only to your Norton account and not directly to the vault.

However, Norton’s account recovery options are limited. If you lose your master password, recovery is only possible via biometrics (if previously set up) or a recovery key—otherwise, your vault is lost. This lack of flexibility may be inconvenient compared to standalone managers like LastPass, which offer emergency access options.

Despite some limitations, Norton’s password manager stands out for its ease of use, robust security features, and integration with multiple platforms, making it one of the best among antivirus providers.

Norton Antivirus - VPN

VPN

Norton’s Secure VPN stands out as one of the best antivirus-bundled VPNs in 2025, thanks to its unlimited browsing data, even on its lowest-tier plans. Unlike other antivirus VPNs that restrict data on cheaper plans, Norton offers unlimited access across all tiers.

Key security features include 256-bit AES encryption, a kill switch (on Windows and Android), a no-logs policy, Wi-Fi security, split tunneling, and an ad blocker. It also uses its proprietary Mimic protocol, which obfuscates VPN traffic to bypass detection in restrictive environments, offering potentially faster speeds and better streaming access. However, while it works with popular streaming services like Netflix, Max, and BBC iPlayer, it doesn’t unblock Disney+.

Norton’s VPN operates 2,000+ servers in 29 countries, covering 6 continents. While not as expansive as standalone VPNs like NordVPN or Surfshark, its coverage is sufficient for most users.

However, speed tests showed that Norton’s VPN isn’t the fastest, especially when compared to competitors like TotalAV or Bitdefender. Local connections performed well for HD streaming and general browsing, but long-distance connections (e.g., from the US to the Netherlands) resulted in noticeable latency and slower web page load times.

Torrenting is supported but limited to specific P2P servers, primarily in the Netherlands. This may lead to slower speeds for users outside Europe, and the VPN shuts down when P2P programs are opened within Norton 360, requiring the standalone VPN app for torrenting.

Norton bundles its VPN with the Standard, Deluxe, and LifeLock plans, supporting 1, 5, and 10 devices, respectively. While not as feature-rich or fast as standalone VPNs, Norton’s VPN is a solid choice for users looking for a secure, no-logs VPN with unlimited data as part of their antivirus package.

Other security features

Private Browser

Norton’s Private Browser is a free Chromium-based browser for Windows and Mac that includes several privacy and security features. It integrates tools such as Privacy Guard (to block ads and trackers), Web Shield (to block malicious sites), and Extension Guard (to warn against risky browser extensions).

Additionally, it includes Norton Password Manager, a Privacy Cleaner for clearing browsing data, and a Video Downloader (excluding YouTube). However, its ad-blocking is not foolproof, and some features are standard in other browsers like Chrome. Overall, it’s a decent option for users seeking a simple, secure browsing experience, but it offers little that tech-savvy users can’t achieve with browser extensions.

Data Protector

Norton’s Data Protector is a highly effective tool for preventing ransomware from encrypting your files. During testing, it blocked ransomware attacks, even after whitelisting them in the system. The tool allows users to easily add files and folders for extra protection. Its strong detection rates and easy customization make it an excellent anti-ransomware feature.

Parental Controls

Norton’s Parental Controls are among the best available, offering extensive monitoring across unlimited devices. Parents can block inappropriate content, manage screen time, monitor YouTube activity, track locations, and receive detailed activity reports.

The School Time feature is particularly useful for managing access to educational content during school hours. However, it lacks support for Mac and Chromebooks, and tech-savvy kids might bypass some controls on Windows. Overall, Norton’s parental controls are highly comprehensive and user-friendly, making them an excellent choice for families.

Privacy Monitor

The Privacy Monitor helps users remove their personally identifiable information (PII) from data brokers, who collect and sell data. Norton scans around 19 data brokers and compiles a list of those holding your data.

You can manually request data removal or opt for Norton’s paid Privacy Monitor Assistant to handle the process for you. Although similar to McAfee’s Personal Data Cleanup, Norton’s tool is simple and effective, making it easy to manage data privacy.

Device Optimization

Norton offers basic device optimization tools, including disk defragmentation, file cleanup, and a startup manager to control which programs run at boot. The Graphs feature provides a visual timeline of system activity, which is helpful for tracking the program’s background tasks.

However, the file cleanup tool is limited, as it doesn’t remove browser cookies, duplicate files, or unused programs like Avira or TotalAV. The more advanced Utilities Ultimate package adds real-time cleaning of junk files and registry files, with better customization options, making it a stronger system optimization solution.

Utilities Ultimate

Norton’s Utilities Ultimate offers powerful system optimization tools to enhance PC performance. Key features include:

  • Processes: Manage and turn off background applications for improved performance.
  • System Junk: Clean broken registry items, shortcuts, and junk files to boost speed.
  • Uninstall Simulator/Uninstaller: Test the effects of uninstalling programs or remove them easily.
  • Disks: Automatically optimize your hard drives for better efficiency.
  • Data Recovery: Retrieve accidentally deleted files before they’re permanently erased.
  • Data Shredder: Permanently delete files, preventing recovery.
  • Undo Center: Roll back any changes made by Utilities Ultimate.
  • Statistics: Track all activities and improvements performed by the tool.
  • NetBooster: Optimize internet settings for faster downloads, video streaming, and gaming.
  • RAM Reclaimer: Free up additional RAM to enhance device speed.

Utilities Ultimate is an excellent addition for users seeking peak system performance, though it is a paid upgrade. Competitors like Avira and Avast include similar features in premium plans.

Dark Web Monitoring

Norton’s Dark Web Monitoring scans forums, breach databases, and credit reports to notify you if your personal information is exposed on the dark web. Available in over 30 countries, it monitors a wide range of personally identifiable information (PII), including bank accounts, credit cards, addresses, and more.

Norton’s use of live human agents to infiltrate dark web forums provides a more effective approach compared to competitors like Kaspersky. If a breach is found, Norton’s team offers guidance on how to secure your data.

Identity Theft Protection by LifeLock

Norton’s LifeLock identity protection services are among the best available, offering:

  • Credit report monitoring from TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax.
  • Live identity recovery assistance and legal aid.
  • Credit freezing, and monitoring for court records, 401k accounts, social security numbers, and IDs.

LifeLock plans offer up to $1 million in insurance coverage for damages related to identity theft and legal fees. While its protections are only available in select countries (primarily the US), LifeLock remains a top choice for identity theft protection. Adding family members can be costly, but the coverage is comprehensive.

Driver Updater

Norton’s Driver Updater scans for outdated drivers and updates them with a single click. It boasts a database of over 50 million malware-free drivers, and in tests, it scanned 100+ drivers in under a minute. The tool also provides a driver backup and restore option in case updates cause issues, though compatibility issues were rare in testing.

Software Updater

Norton’s Software Updater makes it easy to update programs with a single click. It efficiently processes updates without draining system resources and provides clear explanations when updates fail (e.g., due to open programs). Norton allows users to exclude programs from updates and offers automatic updating for convenience.

Cloud Backup

Norton’s Cloud Backup is a functional backup tool for PC users, offering up to 500 GB of storage depending on the plan. It allows users to schedule backups, select specific files for backup, and choose between cloud or local disk storage. While not groundbreaking, it’s a solid solution for safeguarding important data and exceeds the offerings of competitors like Kaspersky, which provides just 2 GB via Dropbox.

Additional Features

  • PC SafeCam: Protects your webcam from unauthorized remote access (Windows only).
  • Spam Filter: Automatically filters spam emails and lets you block or whitelist specific senders.
  • AntiTrack (add-on): Blocks trackers and hides your digital fingerprint for private browsing.
  • Safe Email (add-on): Monitors up to 5 email addresses for phishing, scams, and malware (available for an additional fee).

 

Plans and pricing

In the table below are the core products with their features and prices.

The prices shown are from the USA. However, most brands have different prices (and currencies) in other regions. So visit the brand’s website to see the price in our country.

Norton Antivirus Plus
Norton 360 Standard
Norton 360 Deluxe
Norton 360 for Gamers
Norton 360 Advanced
Norton 360 Premium
Norton 360 with LifeLock Select (US-only)
Norton 360 with LifeLock Advantage (US-only)
Norton 360 with LifeLock Ultimate Plus (US-only)
Operating software
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
Windows, Mac, Android, iOS
First-year price (USA)
$19.99 / year
$39.99 / year
$49.99 / year
$44.99 / year
$59.99 / year
$59.99 / year
$99.99 / year
$191.88 / year
$299.88 / year
Devices
1
1 (3 in the USA)
5
3
10
10
10
10
Unlimited
Cloud backup
2 GB
2 GB
50 GB
50 GB
200 GB
100 GB
250 GB
250 GB
500 GB
Anti-malware
Anti-phishing
Firewall
Password manager
VPN
-
Dark web monitoring
-
Only in the USA
Privacy monitor
-
-
Parental controls
-
-
Identity theft protection
-
-
-
-
In some countries
-

Plan description

Norton offers a wide range of plans, each catering to specific needs. For basic antivirus protection, Norton AntiVirus Plus at $19.99 / year is a good pick but limited to one device and lacks features like VPN and parental controls.

Norton 360 Standard, priced at $39.99 / year, is a step-up, offering VPN, webcam protection, and dark web monitoring for one device. U.S. users get coverage for three devices.

Norton 360 Deluxe is our top recommendation for its blend of features and value. At $49.99 / year, it covers up to five devices, includes parental controls, and a substantial 50 GB of cloud storage. However, Norton’s plans aren’t flexible in adding more devices.

For gamers, Norton 360 for Gamers comes at $44.99 / year for three devices. Its game booster feature optimizes your gaming experience effectively.

In select countries, Norton 360 Premium and Advanced offer up to 10 devices with 100 GB and 200 GB cloud storage respectively, priced at $59.99 / year. These are solid options for large households.

Norton also provides LifeLock plans for U.S. users, starting at $99.99 / year. These plans add identity theft protection features, including credit monitoring and legal assistance. The LifeLock Advantage and Ultimate Plus tiers offer enhanced protections but can get expensive, going up to $299.88 / year.

In summary, Norton’s plans offer strong security features but lack flexibility in adding extra devices. Prices range from affordable to expensive, depending on the level of protection you desire.

Test score comparison

We conduct in-house anti-malware tests and review the results from AV-Test, a German lab renowned for its objective evaluations. Below is the average of the last 10 AV-Test results for Windows. Their scoring criteria are:

  • Protection (1-6): Effectiveness in blocking malware.
  • Performance (1-6): Impact on system speed.
  • Usability (1-6): Frequency of errors like false alarms.

We calculate a final score using this formula:

Final Score = 60% Protection + 20% Performance + 20% Usability.

While these results influence our choice of the best antivirus for Windows 11, other factors like privacy and identity protection also play a key role. For a similar analysis for Android or macOS, visit our other comparisons:

Note: Brands not listed in the table either do not participate in AV-Test trials or are tested too infrequently, such as Surfshark Antivirus.

Source: AV-Test (Last updated: December 2024).

Final Score
Protection
Performance
Usability
6.0
6.0
6.0
6.0
6.0
6.0
5.9
6.0
6.0
6.0
5.9
6.0
6.0
6.0
5.9
6.0
6.0
6.0
5.9
6.0
5.9
6.0
5.9
5.9
5.9
6.0
5.9
5.9
5.9
6.0
5.8
6.0
5.9
6.0
5.5
6.0
5.9
5.8
5.8
6.0
5.8
5.8
5.7
6.0
5.8
5.7
6.0
5.8
5.6
6.0
6.0
4.0
5.6
5.4
5.8
6.0

Price comparison

We’ve compared the prices of the top antivirus products for Windows. To make it a fair comparison, we looked at what it would cost us, to protect a  single Windows PC with the most essential features:

  • Anti-malware
  • Anti-phishing (web protection)
  • Firewall
  • Password manager
  • Unlimited VPN (no data limit)

A few notes:

  • Some brands are missing features, lowering their value for money.
  • Prices are second-year prices in the USA, without first-year discounts.
  • Prices are rounded up for readability (e.g., $99.99 becomes $100).

Brands have different prices outside the USA. See those on their website.

Total price
Missing features
$ 50
No firewall, password manager, and VPN
$ 76
No firewall and password manager
$ 80
No firewall and password manager
$ 90
No firewall
$ 130
No password manager
$ 180
No firewall

User reviews

We’ve compared the user reviews of all antivirus brands. We’ve used the scores and review count of TrustPilot, a leading user review platform. 

We consider scores above 4.0 very good. Lower scores indicate that the brand might have a poor product or customer service. McAfee’s scores, for instance, are worrying.

Source: TrustPilot. Last Update: December 2024.

Review score
Review count
4.8
8,400
4.6
116,500
4.4
33,000
4.3
1,600
4.3
21,000
4.2
21,800
4.1
8,600
4.1
29,000
3.9
13,300
3.8
4,100
3.8
9,000
3.6
8,800
1.2
2,600

Company Profile

Norton is part of the Gen Digital family (NASDAQ: GEN), a global leader in Cyber Safety with a mission to make the digital world safer and more private for everyone.

Gen is a collection of renowned cybersecurity brands that serve over 500 million users in 150 countries. Its portfolio includes Norton, Avast, LifeLock, Avira, and AVG.

Operating from dual headquarters in Tempe, Arizona, and Prague, Czech Republic, Gen brings together cutting-edge AI technology and data analytics to tackle today’s most pressing cybersecurity challenges. 

By consolidating these brands, Gen combines expertise and innovation to address both current and future cybersecurity threats.

How we test antivirus software

At SoftwareLab, we provide thorough and unbiased antivirus reviews to help you make informed cybersecurity decisions. Our comprehensive testing covers all critical aspects of antivirus performance. We assess each product in six key categories, weighted by importance:

For even more details, visit our blog posts on how we test antivirus software.

Anti-Malware Protection (30%)

We evaluate how well the antivirus detects and removes various malware types like viruses, trojans, ransomware, and spyware.

In-House Testing: Using 1,200 diverse malware samples, we conduct real-time attack simulations to assess detection and neutralization of known and emerging threats through signature-based and heuristic analysis.

Independent Lab Results: We incorporate findings from respected institutes like AV-Test, SE Labs, and AV-Comparatives to validate our results.

Security and Privacy Features (30%)

We assess additional tools that enhance cybersecurity:

Web Protection: Testing the software’s ability to block phishing sites and web-based threats by accessing known malicious websites.

Firewall: Evaluating effectiveness using intrusion simulations and the ShieldsUP! test to secure network ports and monitor traffic.

Password Manager: Assessing capabilities to generate, store, and auto-fill complex passwords, plus features like two-factor authentication and biometric login.

VPN: Evaluating security protocols, encryption, speed, server locations, data limits, and support for streaming and peer-to-peer sharing while hiding IP addresses.

Parental Controls: Testing screen time management, content filtering, location tracking, and resistance to bypass attempts to protect children.

Identity Theft Protection: Assessing monitoring of personal info and responsiveness to potential identity theft alerts.

Secure Cloud Storage: Evaluating capacity, security, usability, and features like file encryption and secure sharing.

Anti-Ransomware: Simulating attacks to test detection and blocking of unauthorized encryption via behavioral detection and exploit prevention.

Dark Web Monitoring: Checking effectiveness in scanning the dark web for personal info and providing timely alerts.

System Performance Impact (10%)

We measure how the antivirus affects device performance during everyday tasks:

Resource Usage: Monitoring CPU and memory during scans and real-time protection.

Performance Tests: Evaluating impact on launching apps, downloading files, browsing websites, and copying data, aligned with AV-Test criteria.

False Positives (10%)

Accuracy is crucial to avoid interruptions:

False Positive Detection: Assessing how often legitimate applications or files are incorrectly flagged.

Usability Tests: Referencing AV-Test evaluations to gauge false positive frequency for effectiveness and user-friendliness.

Price and Value (10%)

We analyze overall value by comparing features to cost:

Cost Analysis: Considering subscription prices, device coverage, and multi-year plans.

Feature Evaluation: Assessing if included features justify the price compared to competitors.

Ownership and Reputation (10%)

Trust is essential in cybersecurity providers:

Company Background: Researching history, industry track record, mergers, or acquisitions.

Privacy Policies: Examining data handling, privacy commitment, and compliance with regulations.

Ethical Conduct: Investigating past unethical behavior, data breaches, or controversies.

Author: Tibor Moes

Author: Tibor Moes

Founder & Chief Editor at SoftwareLab

Tibor has tested 28 antivirus programs and 25 VPN services, and holds a Cybersecurity Graduate Certificate from Stanford University.

He uses Norton to protect his devices, NordVPN for his privacy, and Proton for his passwords and email.

You can find him on LinkedIn or contact him here.