Eset Premium review: 2024 improvements aren’t enough

By Alan Truly Published December 6, 2024

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Eset is known as a light, efficient antivirus solution that has minimal impact on performance. Speed is important, but to be the best, antivirus software must also vigorously safeguard your computer from cybersecurity threats.

I reviewed Eset Premium to find out if it offers robust malware protection, an easy-to-use interface, and responsive customer service. I also checked out the subscription options to find out if there’s enough value for the money.

Eset offers flexible pricing with options to add more devices and extend the subscription term to enjoy a lower price.

The $50-per-year Essential plan is the least expensive, providing real-time malware protection, a network firewall, and PC cleanup tools. A $60 Premium subscription includes a password manager, ransomware protection, and file encryption. Both tiers cover one device, and more can be added for $5 each.

The top tier is the $130 Ultimate plan, starting with protection for five devices plus $5 for each additional computer or phone. It includes an unlimited VPN, image metadata removal, and dark web monitoring.

If you’re looking for a bargain, we have a guide to the best deals on antivirus software. High-quality security doesn’t have to be expensive.

You can try Eset Essential or Premium free for 30 days, but Ultimate requires a paid subscription. Eset offers some basic malware scanner and removal tools, but there are better free antivirus apps.

I began Eset setup on the website welcome page, which showed my active subscription. I selected the Protect device to start the download to my Windows PC.

The installer offered some customization options. I enabled Eset LiveGrid and customer experience, which uses anonymous data from my computer to help strengthen protection and improve usability for all Eset customers. I left the unwanted application detection off, since I prefer to manage that myself.

A quick tour briefly highlighted a few features, while an initial scan run to identify any malware on my computer. Despite my choice to skip unwanted app detection, a popup window suggested that I might want to “clean” an app I’d intentionally downloaded. I chose to ignore the warning.

Eset’s Premium app gives an overview of my security status. A green checkmark indicates real-time protection is active. The left sidebar has tabs for malware scans, software updates, tools, settings, account details, and support.

Premium comes with a password manager, ransomware protection, data encryption, network inspection, and browser protection. The app has a confusing number of options. I left the default settings for most.

By the time setup was complete, the computer scan finished and alerted me to several more apps that I recognized and wanted to keep.

According to independent security lab AV-Comparatives, Eset Premium performed well in 2024 but failed to offer good security in previous years. Out of a possible three stars, Eset earned a single star in real-time malware protection tests conducted from July to October 2023.

I usually refer to AV-Test when checking the track record of antivirus software. While the 2024 results show excellent malware prevention, there are big gaps in evaluations from December 2021 to February 2024.

For the best protection, an antivirus solution like Norton 360 boasts a near-perfect protection record that spans several years.

I spot-checked browser protection by visiting Wicar’s malware test website. Eset Premium successfully identified and blocked all 13 threats, in each case opening a new tab to alert me to the danger. For perspective, it’s worth noting the free antivirus Microsoft Defender blocks Wicar threats also.

I also tested the password manager, which asked me to create a master password, different from my Eset login, to unlock the vault. It’s quite basic, automatically filling logins on websites where I have an account. The best password managers are much more advanced with login sharing, folders to organize accounts, and secure storage for files and photos.

Eset Premium’s help tab offers 24/7 technical support via an AI. In my tests, it was very responsive and could help with simple questions. However, the chatbot was easily stumped, reporting it doesn’t have the requested information and supplying tangential links that didn’t help.

If you expect quick responses from a real support agent, I found Bitdefender’s customer service to be among the best. It’s also a low-cost antivirus with a great track record.

The AI was able to provide the live chat hours, 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. PT. I tried again during normal hours, and the chatbot said no agents were available. However, it provided a link to a contact page that had a button for live chat.

If you use Eset, don’t trust the AI to connect you to a human. Go to Eset’s contact page. A live agent came on quickly and was able to answer my questions. Overall, support is good, despite the AI glitch.

Eset’s privacy policy says your data is only used to provide the services you pay for. It’s only shared with third-party companies that assist with customer support, billing, and other services related to your subscription.

While the company’s internal security seems robust, BleepingComputer reported Eset’s exclusive partner Comsecure was breached. Hackers were able to target Eset customers in a brief (10 minutes) but malicious phishing campaign.

Eset is fast and offers good protection in 2024, but it has a checkered track record. While leading antivirus software blocks threats year after year with few lapses, independent security labs found Eset allowed some malware in several tests between 2021 to 2023.

If you’re looking for protection without impacting performance, there are some better options that make the cut for the best antivirus software for gaming PCs.