These antivirus programs are compatible with Windows 11 according to AV Comparatives

Martin Brinkmann
Sep 30, 2021
Updated • Oct 1, 2021
Windows 11 Help
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17

AV Comparatives, a site known for its security tests, released a list of antivirus programs that it found to be compatible with Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system.

Microsoft will release Windows 11 on October 5, 2021, officially. New devices with the new operating system preinstalled will become available on that day and Windows 10 devices that meet the system requirements will get upgrade offers in a staged rollout.

Windows 11 includes Windows Defender,  a security component that has been improved significantly in recent years. Several third-party antivirus companies have called the integration of Windows Defender anti-competitive in the past. Microsoft claimed in 2019 that Windows Defender has a usage share of over 50%.

Windows 10 users who run third-party antivirus solutions on their devices may wonder whether their products can be run on Windows 11 as well.

AV Comparatives tested popular antivirus programs on a preview build of the Windows 11 operating system. The organization installed each solution on a clean system. The testers updated the database of the solution manually and restarted the device to make sure the software installed correctly and registered itself in Windows Security.

Several other tests were run to find out if the antivirus solutions were working correctly on the device. AV Comparatives shared the following requirements:

  • Install successfully, without requiring specialist knowledge or workarounds
  • Activate real-time protection without user intervention
    Integrate with Windows Security
  • Successfully update malware signatures, either automatically or manually
  • Warn if real-time protection is disabled, and allow the user to reactivate it easily
  • Provide (at least) the same malware detection as on Windows 10
  • Take appropriate action when malware is encountered, ensuring that the system is protected
  • Have no obvious bugs or erroneous notifications
  • Uninstall cleanly and remove its entry in Windows Security

AV Comparatives published the full list of solutions that it found compatible on its site:

  • Avast Free Antivirus 21.7.2481
  • AVG Free Antivirus 21.8.3202
  • Avira Antivirus Pro 1.1.54.2291
  • Bitdefender Internet Security 25.0.26.89
  • ESET Internet Security 14.2.24.0
  • G Data Total Security 25.5.11.316
  • K7 Total Security 16.0.0556
  • Kaspersky Internet Security 21.3.10.391
  • Microsoft Defender Antivirus, as in Build 22454.1000 of Windows 11
  • Malwarebytes Premium 4.4.6
  • McAfee Total Protection 16.0
  • Norton LifeLock Norton 360 22.21.8.62
  • Panda Free Antivirus 21.00.00
  • Total AV Total Security 5.15.69
  • Total Defense Essential Antivirus 13.0.0.545
  • Trend Micro Internet Security 17.0.1181
  • VIPRE Advanced Security 11.0.6.22

AV Comparatives notes that none of the vendors of the listed solutions state that their products support Windows 11 officially. The company suggests that users on Windows 11 devices that were not upgraded from Windows 10 install a trial version of the antivirus solution they are interested in to make sure it is working correctly on the device.

Closing Words

Considering that Windows 10 and Windows 11 are very similar in many regards, it is clear that most software programs that work on Windows 10 devices will also work on Windows 11 devices. Third-party antivirus solution had their fair share of issues on Windows 10, especially during feature upgrades.

Now You: do you use third-party antivirus programs on your devices? (via Techdows)

Summary
These antivirus programs are compatible with Windows 11 according to AV Comparatives
Article Name
These antivirus programs are compatible with Windows 11 according to AV Comparatives
Description
Wonder whether your preferred antivirus program for Windows is compatible with Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system? This list has the answer.
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Ghacks Technology News
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Comments

  1. John G. said on August 21, 2023 at 2:38 pm
    Reply

    There is not still W11 23H2 and these instructions are nonsense by now. :[

    1. James said on August 21, 2023 at 8:48 pm
      Reply

      It worked for me just fine. You’re probably not following the instructions clearly.

      1. Katrina Thompson said on August 30, 2023 at 3:25 am
        Reply

        Just tried the password option and the OOBE option and didnt work.

    2. Anonymous said on September 7, 2023 at 10:33 am
      Reply

      Worked perfectly. Thank OP.

    3. Anonymous said on September 15, 2023 at 11:26 am
      Reply

      Worked perfectly for me just now. Specifically, the regedit option.

  2. 45 RPM said on August 22, 2023 at 9:02 am
    Reply

    Is this cut and paste from a Microsoft PR paper, because it 1000% BS:

    “By listening to user insights, Microsoft has demonstrated its commitment to refining the Windows experience based on real-world needs.”

    Windows 11 is proof they don’t give a s*it.

    1. elong45 said on August 23, 2023 at 12:25 am
      Reply

      Worked for me just now

    2. Robert N said on August 28, 2023 at 10:55 pm
      Reply

      I agree! Windows 11 was a downgrade to me and I kept all 8 computers in our family on Windows 10 as a result. They didn’t listen to any customers. The taskbar was THE main reason I stayed away from Windows 11. With 6 monitors, it is impossible to navigate so many browser tabs, without the feature. I will try the new version in the virtual box to see if it is worth it yet.

  3. Anonymous said on August 23, 2023 at 11:33 pm
    Reply

    Microsoft did a terrible job with this implementation.

    They simply need to employ the creator of StartAllBack to fix Windows. He is smarter and more talented than the entire campus of Microsoft employees.

    1. Anonymous said on September 4, 2023 at 11:36 pm
      Reply

      lol

  4. Joe Mama said on August 24, 2023 at 12:10 am
    Reply

    Thank you so much! I work in IT and this is extremely useful information!

  5. Anonymous said on August 27, 2023 at 9:34 pm
    Reply

    Thanks man. The second method worked great!

  6. Anonymous said on August 28, 2023 at 1:16 pm
    Reply

    I used the second method, and i got exactly what i expected.

  7. adrian said on September 1, 2023 at 12:52 am
    Reply

    Using the Bypass 2: Use a banned email address email worked fantastically as I had gone to far to use the bypass 1.
    I will be back when I next have a problem.
    Keep you the great work

  8. John G. said on September 4, 2023 at 6:15 pm
    Reply

    W11 File Explorer is the worst crap ever done. W11 is the biggest shame ever.

  9. MarineRecon said on September 4, 2023 at 9:14 pm
    Reply

    Just one more reason for me to go to Linux when Windows 10 ages out.

    1. TelV said on September 19, 2023 at 11:46 am
      Reply

      @ MarineRecon,

      Be careful which Linux distro you choose. Some of them don’t include the Wayland protocol which is a security issue i.e. apps can copy, paste and inject data without user interaction.

      It’s included in Fedora: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/fedora/latest/system-administrators-guide/Wayland/

  10. Dustyn said on September 4, 2023 at 9:28 pm
    Reply

    How about a DARK MODE for your website? That would be oh so nice.

    1. Tom Hawack said on September 5, 2023 at 12:55 am
      Reply

      Something like this : [https://img.justpaste.me/image/8617] maybe?
      Done with ‘Dark Reader Extension for ? Firefox’ [https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/darkreader/]

      This comment was written on [https://www.ghacks.net/windows-11-installation-has-failed-how-to-fix-this-upgrade-error/#comment-4573155}

    2. TelV said on September 19, 2023 at 11:49 am
      Reply

      Definitely NOT! Once you get older and your eyesight starts to fail you’ll positively loathe dark mode.

  11. Anonymous said on September 5, 2023 at 2:05 am
    Reply

    Microsoft completely ruined File Explorer by converting to XAML/WinUI/whatever new bloated modern garbage. Its worse than it ever was.

  12. Invoker said on September 5, 2023 at 3:32 pm
    Reply

    i tested it on win10 current edition. speeds up explorer like a charm

  13. LOEL LARZELERE said on September 13, 2023 at 8:07 am
    Reply

    SO what is the priority numbers to give preference to ethernet over wireless?

  14. christop_bader said on September 14, 2023 at 1:50 am
    Reply

    Worked very well happy to have Windows Photo Viewer back in action in Windows-11

  15. Anonymous said on September 16, 2023 at 4:29 am
    Reply

    Worked for me (registry option) thank god, I can use the search option to find things on my computer again. Thank you so much!

    1. TelV said on September 19, 2023 at 11:54 am
      Reply

      Install Everything Search and dispense with Microsoft’s crappy search tool. https://www.voidtools.com/

      Martin wrote an article on it: https://www.ghacks.net/2020/10/09/add-everything-search-to-the-windows-taskbar-for-even-faster-searches/

  16. said on September 17, 2023 at 6:39 pm
    Reply

    I presume the text “WindowsCopilot,,” is a typographical error (2023/09/17/how-to-disable-windows-copilot-in-windows/). The broken comment system unfortunately looks like it is populating itself via AI autopilot.

  17. Anonymous said on September 17, 2023 at 10:37 pm
    Reply

    Hopefully, this Windows Copilot nonsense fails even more spectacularly than Cortana. Who requested this? We want all of the UX features removed back in 11, not this copilot nonsense.

  18. Anonymous said on September 17, 2023 at 10:51 pm
    Reply

    I really don’t mind all of these Windows enhancement but Microsoft get one thing very wrong. ‘Opt in’, is far better than seek information and work to disable.

  19. ilev said on September 18, 2023 at 7:13 am
    Reply

    Turn off Windows Copilot entirely is not good enough.

    How to uninstall Copilot entirely ?

    1. TelV said on September 19, 2023 at 11:57 am
      Reply

      @ ilev,

      Use Gpedit or the registry. Explained in this article: https://www.ghacks.net/2023/09/17/how-to-disable-windows-copilot-in-windows/

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