However, not all virus removal tools are standalone. Some are included in antivirus applications. Either way, the perform the same task—scan a system for malicious files and then remove those files. We reviewed dozens of both stand alone virus removal tools and virus removal tools that are part of antivirus applications. These are the best free antivirus removal tools we found. Unless it happens to be a persistent (aka recurring) virus infection. Then, you’ll need to subscribe to the Bitdefender Virus & Spyware Removal service, which is pricey at around $100 for each session required. Don’t let that scare you away, though. Bitdefender offers tons of free removal tools, and in most cases, the Bitdefender software (including the free version) will remove any virus or malware that’s found. The tool runs quickly and quarantines and removes any malicious software found on the system, and even allows for some control over what objects on your computer are scanned. The only downfall we could find is an old accusation that Kaspersky has ties to the Russian government; an accusation that still casts shadows over the trustworthiness of the company’s software. Still, if you have a virus that needs removed, this stand-alone Kaspersky tool can probably remove it. Of course, you don’t have to be using Microsoft Windows Defender to use the MSRT, but if you are a Windows Defender user, this is a nice (and free) additional tool that will help if you find that something nefarious slips past your defenses. It is a concern that false positives might be caught by Norton Power Eraser, but it’s also not all that unusual. Just use caution when agreeing to Norton’s recommendations to remove programs. When in doubt, do some research to find out if the application that is flagged is indeed a threat. If it’s not, you can try leaving it on your system. You can always come back and remove it later. However, this is a full antivirus application, so you’ll need to install it on your device. Once installed, though, you can set the scanner for manual or automated scans, and once detected, malware of all types can be removed using the built-in virus removal tools. The nice thing about Sophos Home Free is that it works very well on Mac computers. And since it was based on enterprise antivirus applications, it’s mostly effective at find and removing viruses and other malware. That said, it’s not uncommon for Sophos Home Free to alert on false positives, and it has occasionally missed legitimate threats it should have caught. Despite that, Sophos is a mostly-good antivirus application that happens to also have a virus removal tool you can use if something is flagged by the antivirus application.
