The most visible antivirus apps in United Kingdom, October 2026

October 2026 · 15 questions asked from United Kingdom in English · ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode · 60 answers read

Most cited source

quora.com

7citations

From Google AI Overviews

Where engines disagree most

Microsoft Defender

1/4engines put it in their top three

Top three on ChatGPT, not on Google AI Mode, Gemini and Google AI Overviews

Brands

Search is not measured for this board yet, so it ranks on AI answers.

Rank Brand Rank change Heralded Score All AI Score trend Mentioned Recommended By engine Mentioned by Change
1 Bitdefender RO New entry 47 , range 38–61 47#1
47
  • : score 47 · #1
42% 26% None First reading
2 Norton US New entry 39 , range 32–49 39#2
39
  • : score 39 · #2
36% 14% None First reading
3 Microsoft Defender US New entry 37 , range 32–43 37#3
37
  • : score 37 · #3
27% 16% None First reading
4 Malwarebytes US New entry 35 , range 21–44 35#4
35
  • : score 35 · #4
25% 12% None First reading
5 Avast CZ New entry 26 , range 7–38 26#5
26
  • : score 26 · #5
16% 8% None First reading
6 McAfee US New entry 23 , range 7–37 23#6
23
  • : score 23 · #6
18% 4% None First reading
7 Kaspersky RU New entry 8 , range 4–33 8#7
8
  • : score 8 · #7
12% 1% None First reading
8 Surfshark NL New entry 5 , range 2–29 5#8
5
  • : score 5 · #8
8% 0% None First reading
9 AVG CZ New entry 5 , range 1–30 5#9
5
  • : score 5 · #9
6% 2% None First reading
– Acronis SG Unranked Too few answers Not measured
–
  • : Unranked
1% 0% None First reading

“=” marks brands whose score ranges overlap, so the test cannot separate them. Every brand named in at least three answers is ranked. AI gives each brand’s score and rank from the engines’ answers; Search is not measured for this board yet. By engine has one dot per engine (ChatGPT, Google AI Overviews, Gemini and Google AI Mode), darker the more often it names the brand.

Most cited sources

Rank Source Type Cited in Engines Pages cited Brands its pages mention
1 quora.com Community 6.7% 1 of 4 7 Not read
2 reddit.com Community 8.3% 3 of 4 5 Not read
3 fool.com Community 1.7% 1 of 4 1 Not read
4 medium.com Community 1.7% 1 of 4 1 Not read
5 sooperarticles.com Community 1.7% 1 of 4 1 Not read
6 stackexchange.com Community 1.7% 1 of 4 1 Not read

Questions asked

QuestionLanguageMost recommended
What antivirus app should I use to protect my Windows laptop from malware? English Bitdefender and Microsoft Defender, tied
Which antivirus app can protect my family’s phones and computers? English Bitdefender, McAfee and Norton, tied
What should I use to protect my Mac from viruses and ransomware? English Bitdefender
Which antivirus app can protect my Android phone from malicious apps? English Bitdefender
How can I stop malware infecting my laptop? English Malwarebytes, Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Defender, tied
How can I protect my family from phishing links and unsafe downloads? English Microsoft Defender
How can I remove a virus and stop it coming back? English Microsoft Defender
How can I tell if spyware is tracking my phone? English No brand recommended
Is my device’s built-in security enough, or should I install an antivirus app? English Malwarebytes and Microsoft Defender, tied
Should I use one security app across my phone and computer, or separate apps? English Microsoft Defender

Each engine's top three

Method

Each leaderboard ranks brands on two sides. AI is how ChatGPT, Gemini, Google AI Overviews and Google AI Mode answer the board's buyer questions. Search is Google's top 10 results for the keywords behind those questions. All combines the two, where Search is measured.

For the AI side, each month Heralded asks every engine the same buyer questions, twice each, and reads every answer. An answer counts 0 for a brand it leaves out, 50 for a brand it names and 100 for a brand it recommends, and the Heralded Score is built from those. A brand named in at least three answers gets a score and a place.

How the leaderboards are measured