McAfee
30 days free · $149.99/mo after
Exit grade B: Online cancel works, but you click past a retention offer first.
On mcafee.com
We may earn a commission (via cj) - it doesn't change our verdict. How we get paid →
Then come back.
We'll track McAfee for you - reminders days before renewal, so deciding is always on your schedule.
Quick answer
The McAfee free trial runs 30 days, then bills $149.99/month for the McAfee+ Premium (Individual, unlimited devices) plan. No credit card is required to start. Cancelling is moderate - about 5 minutes. Our take: McAfee is one of the most decorated security suites you can buy, and the labs back it up.
Last verified: August 2, 2026
On mcafee.com
Our take
McAfee is one of the most decorated security suites you can buy, and the labs back it up. Independent testers hand it near-perfect protection scores period after period, and PCMag's hands-on testing clocked 100 percent malware blocking. A single Premium subscription covers unlimited devices across Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS. It also bundles a VPN, scam detection, identity monitoring, a password manager, and a data-broker cleanup tool - a genuinely broad package for the money. The one thing to plan for is the calendar. Like most antivirus brands, McAfee sells a discounted first year that renews at full list price twelve months later, and that renewal is the single most common surprise in customer reviews. Here's the good part though: McAfee gives you a 60-day window to get a full refund on an auto-renewal charge, which is more forgiving than most. Track the plan here and we'll send a heads-up before the renewal date. That way the second-year price is a decision you make on purpose, not something that just shows up on your statement.
McAfee+ Individual plans - first year vs renewal
| Premium | Advanced | Ultimate | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First-year price | About $49.99 | About $89.99 | About $199.99 |
| Renews at (per year) | $149.99 | $199.99 | About $279.99 |
| Devices | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Antivirus, VPN, Scam Detector, data cleanup | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Identity theft coverage and restoration | No | Yes | Yes, higher limit |
| Credit monitoring | No | Yes | Yes, 3-bureau |
| Free trial | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days |
Prices researched 2026-07-20 for the Individual plans (Family versions cost more and cover more people). First-year figures are promotional and renew at the higher list price shown; McAfee adjusts pricing over time, so confirm the renewal figure at checkout. Feature tiers are summarized and vary by region - verify at signup.
What you get
The McAfee McAfee+ Premium (Individual, unlimited devices) plan
Included · 6
Award-winning antivirus with near-perfect independent lab scores, protecting unlimited devices on Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and ChromeOS from one subscription
Secure VPN, Scam Detector for risky texts and links, and safe-browsing web protection built in
Identity monitoring that watches the dark web and known breaches for your email, accounts, and personal details
Personal Data Cleanup, which finds your info on data-broker sites and helps get removal requests sent
A password manager and a Social Privacy Manager that adjusts privacy settings across your accounts
A 30-day free trial of the full suite, plus a 60-day window to refund an auto-renewal charge if the renewal catches you off guard
Worth knowing
The intro price at renewal - the first-year discount does not carry over, and the plan renews at full list price (Premium Individual renews at $149.99 a year)
Identity theft coverage and restoration, plus multi-bureau credit monitoring - those live on the pricier Advanced and Ultimate tiers, not Premium
Some perks tied to keeping auto-renewal switched on, including the unlimited Secure VPN, so turning auto-renew off can quietly change what you get
A self-service refund button - refunds within either window are handled by McAfee support over chat or phone, not a one-click form
A price lock - McAfee adjusts list and renewal pricing over time, so confirm the current renewal figure at checkout
The honest data
By the numbers
- Trial length
- 30 days
- Price after
- $149.99 / mo
- Card required
- No
- Cancellation
- Medium
- Time to cancel
- ~5 min
Around the web
What others say about McAfee
Curated outside takes. We don't edit them, we just point at them.
At a glance
3 reviews from 3 sources
Topline: Mostly positive
2 positive1 critical
Our read across dimensions
- Product quality
- Value
- Cancellation
- Honest billing
- Customer support
Reviewer
PCMag
PCMag McAfee+ review - strong protection across an unlimited-device suite
“Hands-on testing recorded 100 percent malware blocking and top marks for phishing protection, with reviewers praising the breadth of the identity and privacy tools bundled in.”
A professional review focused on protection and features; scores reflect PCMag's own test methodology and shift with each retest.
Read on pcmag.comReviewer
AV-TEST
AV-TEST home-Windows results - repeated perfect protection scores
“McAfee earned the maximum 6 out of 6 for protection, performance, and usability across most recent test periods through early 2026, detecting essentially all zero-day and reference malware.”
An independent lab result for the Windows product; certification is per test cycle, so check the latest period for the current score.
Read on av-test.org
Cancellation guide
How to cancel McAfee
Documented · ~5 min
- 01
Sign in at account.mcafee.com and open My Account.
- 02
Go to Manage Renewals (your subscriptions list) and find the plan you want to stop.
- 03
Choose Cancel, then Cancel auto-renewal, and confirm. Protection runs to the end of the paid term; this stops future billing but does not refund the current term.
- 04
If a renewal already charged you, request a refund within 60 days of that charge (or 30 days for a brand-new purchase) through McAfee support chat or phone.
- 05
Keep the confirmation email or screen as proof auto-renewal is off.
Full guide: how to cancel McAfee
McAfee free trial - frequently asked
- Is the McAfee free trial really free?
- Yes - the McAfee free trial is free for 30 days. No credit card is required to start.
- How much does McAfee cost after the trial?
- After the free trial, McAfee costs $149.99 per month for the McAfee+ Premium (Individual, unlimited devices) plan.
- How do I cancel McAfee?
- To cancel McAfee: 1. Sign in at account.mcafee.com and open My Account; 2. Go to Manage Renewals (your subscriptions list) and find the plan you want to stop; 3. Choose Cancel, then Cancel auto-renewal, and confirm. Protection runs to the end of the paid term; this stops future billing but does not refund the current term; 4. If a renewal already charged you, request a refund within 60 days of that charge (or 30 days for a brand-new purchase) through McAfee support chat or phone; 5. Keep the confirmation email or screen as proof auto-renewal is off. It takes about 5 minutes and is rated medium to cancel.
- Do I need a credit card for the McAfee trial?
- No - McAfee does not require a credit card to start the free trial.
More Privacy trials
Surfshark
Free
-
After
-
Kept
-
“The strongest budget VPN, and genuinely good, not just cheap: unlimited devices on every plan, a second Deloitte no-logs audit, and speeds TechRadar has ranked at the top. It is a VPN, so the watch-out is billing, not the product. The intro price needs 1 to 2 years up front, it auto-renews, and the renewal runs well above the intro. Two nice touches set it apart: unlimited devices, and a real 7-day app-store trial if you want to try before you pay. You can turn off auto-renew yourself in your account, so decide how long you want it and track your renewal here so the higher price never sneaks up.”
AVG
Free
30d
After
-
Kept
-
“AVG's free antivirus is genuinely fine, and that's the honest headline: for the basics, you don't need to pay a cent. The paid tiers (Internet Security, Ultimate) add a firewall, a VPN, and PC tune-up tools on a 30-day trial that auto-renews the day it ends. There's a real 30-day money-back guarantee when you buy direct, which is a decent safety net if you forget. The asterisk is trust. In 2024 the FTC ordered AVG's parent, Avast, to pay $16.5 million and banned it from selling browsing data, after finding it had sold users' web history to more than 100 companies while its products promised to block tracking. Antivirus sees everything you do online, so that history is the thing to weigh. Use the free tier, set a reminder before any paid trial renews, and read the note below before you hand it your traffic.”
LastPass
Free
30d
After
$3.00
Kept
-
“LastPass is one of the most recognizable password managers, and the trial is easy to sample: 30 days of Premium or Families with no credit card, so you can fill logins, generate strong passwords, and sync across your devices before deciding anything. Two things are worth knowing going in. First, the free tier limits you to a single device type, computers or mobile but not both, so if you want your passwords on a laptop and a phone you will land on Premium at about $3 a month on the annual plan. Second, that annual plan is prepaid and renews automatically a year later, and LastPass does not refund unused time, so the renewal date is the one to watch. There is also a security history here worth reading before you commit, and we lay it out plainly in the details below rather than bury it. If LastPass fits your setup, track it here and we send a heads-up before the annual renewal, so nothing surprises you.”