TotalAV VPN vs Surfshark: Which VPN Ought to You Select?

TotalAV and Surfshark each supply inexpensive pricing plans that mix VPN instruments with antivirus software program, main many potential consumers to weigh the professionals and cons of TotalAV VPN and Surfshark. That can assist you select the most effective VPN for your enterprise or private use, I’ve reviewed each Surfshark and TotalAV VPN and in contrast them under.

• TotalAV VPN: Finest for a easy VPN bundled with antivirus safety and a password supervisor.
• Surfshark: Finest for a highly-rated VPN that provides quick speeds and an express no-logs coverage.

TotalAV VPN vs Surfshark: Comparability desk

TotalAV VPN vs Surfshark: Pricing

Each TotalAV and Surfshark supply three tiers of pricing plans, however there are some key variations between them. Most significantly, TotalAV solely provides a VPN on its two costliest plans, whereas antivirus safety is accessible on all three. Surfshark’s plans supply the inverse: antivirus safety is simply accessible on its two costliest plans, whereas the VPN is accessible on all three.

SEE: The whole lot You Must Know in regards to the Malvertising Cybersecurity Menace (TechRepublic Premium)

TotalAV VPN pricing

TotalAV provides three yearly subscription plans. The primary tier, TotalAV VPN, doesn’t embrace a VPN, solely antivirus safety, so it’s not comparability to Surfshark. The 2 costlier tiers do embrace a VPN along with different options. Month-to-month, quarterly, and biannual subscriptions are additionally accessible, however you have to contact TotalAV for pricing info. The pricing for every yearly subscription is as follows:

• TotalAV Antivirus Professional: $29 for the primary yr and as much as 4 gadgets.
• TotalAV Web Safety: $39 for the primary yr and as much as 6 gadgets.
• TotalAV Whole Safety: $49 for the primary yr and as much as 8 gadgets.

TotalAV does supply a free trial via the Google Play Retailer, which means that solely Android customers can benefit from it. This implies iPhone customers gained’t get the advantage of a free trial. To enroll in the trial, you have to first obtain the app to your machine via the Google Play Retailer. After making an account, you have to choose a premium paid plan, after which select the choice for the seven-day free trial.

TotalAV additionally provides a 30-day money-back assure for the annual subscription and a 14-day money-back assure for the month-to-month, quarterly, or biannual subscriptions. Nevertheless, some customers report issue with getting a refund if they modify their minds. See the part “Surfshark vs TotalAV VPN on Reddit” under for first-hand consumer accounts.

For extra basic details about VPN pricing, see our article that explains how a lot a VPN prices on common.

Surfshark pricing

Surfshark provides three ranges of plans for people. Surfshark Starter contains the VPN plus advert and cookie pop-up blockers however not antivirus safety, so it’s not an actual comparability to TotalAV. Surfshark One provides real-time breach alerts and antivirus safety, whereas Surfshark One+ contains knowledge elimination. The pricing for every particular person subscription is as follows:

• 24 months:
  • Surfshark Starter: $1.99 per thirty days + 4 further months.
  • Surfshark One: $2.49 per thirty days + 4 further months.
  • Surfshark One+: $3.99 per thirty days + 4 further months.
• 12 months:
  • Surfshark Starter: $2.99 per thirty days + 4 further months.
  • Surfshark One: $3.39 per thirty days + 4 further months.
  • Surfshark One+: $5.99 per thirty days + 4 further months.
• Month-to-month:
  • Surfshark Starter: $15.45 per thirty days.
  • Surfshark One: $17.95 per thirty days.
  • Surfshark One+: $20.65 per thirty days.

Surfshark provides each a seven-day free trial and a 30-day money-back assure, however some strings are connected to each of them. The seven-day free trial could be accessed through each the App Retailer and the Google Play Retailer, and follows steps just like the free trial sign-up for TotalAV.

Surfshark additionally provides a 30-day money-back assure. Nevertheless, the phrases of service state that subscriptions made through iTunes/App Retailer/Amazon, with a pay as you go card/reward card, or an nameless Devoted IP possibility will not be eligible for the 30-day money-back assure.

For extra info, take a look at the full Surfshark overview and the information that explains how you can use Surfshark.

Surfshark vs TotalAV VPN: Function comparability

VPN

Winner: Surfshark

Surfshark is extensively thought to be one of many higher VPNs in the marketplace in the present day, supporting limitless simultaneous gadgets whereas offering inexpensive pricing plans. It additionally provides greater than 3,200 servers throughout 100 international locations, making it attainable to rapidly hook up with servers all over the world. It has a strict no-logs coverage and provides a number of safety protocols: WireGuard, OpenVPN, and IKEv2 VPN. Throughout my testing, I discovered utilizing Surfshark’s VPN to be simple and quick, on par with NordVPN and different prime VPNs that I’ve examined.

In the meantime, TotalAV’s VPN is a little bit of an afterthought in comparison with its antivirus software program, and it reveals. TotalAV solely has servers in 30 international locations, so solely a 3rd of the areas that Surfshark covers. Moreover, TotalAV solely has 50 servers whole in comparison with Surfshark’s 3,200 servers, which is a large distinction. This smaller server community can result in longer load instances, which is a standard criticism. I’d be remiss if I didn’t additionally level out once more that TotalAV additionally caps the variety of gadgets.

TotalAV does supply a VPN kill swap (a normal function offered by Surfshark and different prime VPNs), nevertheless it calls it a “circuit breaker” for some cause, a alternative I discovered a bit odd. TotalAV depends on commonplace safety protocols (IKEv2 and OpenVPN) however doesn’t have an express no-logs coverage like Surfshark, which I used to be disenchanted to see. TotalAV doesn’t supply cut up tunneling or a devoted IP deal with possibility, whereas Surfshark does.

Since TotalAV’s VPN helps fewer international locations, servers, and gadgets than Surfshark, the latter is a transparent winner on this class. In case you are in search of a VPN that’s value the associated fee (versus antivirus software program), then I strongly advocate Surfshark over TotalAV.

Antivirus safety

Winner: TotalAV

Whereas TotalAV makes the VPN really feel like an afterthought, the other is true on the subject of antivirus software program. TotalAV began with antivirus safety and created a VPN at a later date, whereas Surfshark solely not too long ago launched antivirus options after their VPN rose to reputation. That being stated, Surfshark has began introducing new antivirus options that carry it extra according to devoted AV software program, reminiscent of webcam safety.

TotalAV provides commonplace antivirus options, together with zero-day cloud scanning, phishing rip-off and ransomware safety, advert blockers, a PC cleaner, a browser supervisor and cleaner, and safety for iOS and Android gadgets. It will get first rate scores from impartial testing organizations reminiscent of AV-test and AV-Comparatives, however not excellent rankings.

Surfshark gives an advert blocker and cookie pop-up blocker with all plans, however you’ll must improve to a minimum of Surfshark One to get 24/7 antivirus safety (the database is up to date each three hours with new threats). This plan contains antivirus, anti-spyware, and malware safety. Just like TotalAV, Surfshark’s antivirus has gotten good-but-not-perfect scores from impartial testing organizations.

In contrast to the VPN instrument, Surfshark’s antivirus plan is capped at 5 gadgets at a time, in comparison with 6-8 gadgets for TotalAV. Surfshark antivirus safety extends to Home windows, macOS, or Android gadgets — however not iOS gadgets, which TotalAV does shield. Surfshark additionally lacks a tool cleaner, which many PC customers respect.

If you happen to’re solely evaluating TotalAV and Surfshark’s antivirus choices, then I’d give TotalAV a slight edge resulting from its larger machine limits, iOS machine safety, and disk cleaner instrument. Nevertheless, for those who’re in search of actually sturdy antivirus safety, then I really advocate going with another that provides much more options and better testing scores.

In my view, each TotalAV and Surfshark supply light-weight antivirus options that will suffice for some customers. However I like to recommend that companies contemplate going the additional mile to guard their delicate info with further security measures like firewalls and behavior-based detection. Take a look at our picks for the greatest malware elimination software program for some strategies.

Ease of use

Winner: Surfshark

Surfshark’s VPN interface is well-designed and straightforward to make use of. The primary panel reveals the standing of the server you’re at present linked to and an inventory of obtainable servers to select from. I used to be in a position to filter the servers to indicate which of them supply Static IP or MultiHop, and I might favourite my prime servers to freeze them on the prime of the checklist. For entry to extra superior options, such because the kill swap, all I needed to do was head to the settings web page and toggle choices on and off.

TotalAV’s interface is a little more difficult, despite the fact that its VPN is extra restricted than Surfshark, since TotalAV provides many different options in addition to the VPN instrument. The names for the menus additionally differ relying on which model of TotalAV you’re utilizing, which might make it more durable to search out. Whole VPN ought to be the primary possibility listed beneath the “Internet Security” or “Privacy” part, which is positioned beneath the “Antivirus” or “Malware” part.

After you navigate to the VPN web page in TotalAV, the primary panel will present the standing of the server you’re linked to. Click on on the “Fastest” connection button to attach immediately, or discover a particular server by clicking “Select a Location” and looking within the popup window. You may as well star your prime servers to favourite them.

General, I discovered Surfshark’s interface to be just a bit bit simpler to make use of, and I prefer it provides way more documentation than TotalAV does. The VPN documentation in TotalAV’s information base is fairly sparse — solely 5 pages whole — so it’s not that useful for troubleshooting if certainly one of its very restricted options does go improper. In distinction, Surfshark provides greater than 200 assist articles for its VPN product.

TotalAV VPN professionals and cons

Professionals of TotalAV VPN

• Bundled along with primary antivirus software program.
• Easy consumer interface.
• Password supervisor included in the costliest plan.
• Antivirus safety accessible for each Android and iOS film gadgets.

Cons of TotalAV VPN

• VPN has fewer servers and international locations than Surfshark.
• Solely helps 6-8 gadgets relying on pricing plan.
• No VPN supplied with the most cost effective plan.
• Pricing info is simply public for the annual subscription.

Surfshark professionals and cons

Professionals of Surfshark

• Limitless gadgets supported on all plans.
• One of the inexpensive VPNs in the marketplace.
• VPN has far more servers and international locations than TotalAV.
• Light-weight antivirus software program for customers.

Cons of Surfshark

• No antivirus safety with the most cost effective plan.
• No machine cleaner included.
• Antivirus safety not accessible for iOS gadgets.

Surfshark vs TotalAV VPN on Reddit

Earlier within the article, I discussed that some customers, reminiscent of @DICE_PLS_ on Reddit, have struggled to get a refund from TotalAV, regardless of the money-back assure. “I requested a refund after experiencing a technical issue that I couldn’t resolve, but the agent ended the chat without issuing the refund I requested,” wrote @DICE_PLS_. They have been ultimately in a position to get a refund after a number of makes an attempt and advised that different customers avoid the platform. That is one thing to remember in case you are on the fence about TotalAV VPN.

As for the platforms general, TotalAV VPN will get combined Reddit critiques for its software program bundle. Many Reddit customers advocate utilizing the built-in Microsoft Defender for those who’re in search of primary safety for Home windows gadgets. Others advised selecting a extra well-regarded resolution, reminiscent of ESET or Bitdefender for those who’re looking for safer antivirus software program.

Many customers had comparable ideas on Surfshark’s antivirus software program, however the VPN instrument will get glorious critiques general. Reddit customers particularly respect Surfshark’s quick pace, inexpensive costs, and limitless gadgets coverage. “It’s cheaper, which is always awesome, and I love that I can connect as many devices as I want. The extra features are really handy, and it’s super easy to use,” wrote consumer @sasht in a remark.

Ought to your enterprise use TotalAV VPN or Surfshark?

Select TotalAV VPN if:

• It is advisable to safe iOS gadgets with antivirus safety.
• You’re in search of a primary VPN with out many bells and whistles.
• You desire a disk cleaner and system tune-up instruments.
• You’d like for a password supervisor to be included.

Select Surfshark if:

• You’re in search of a best-in-class VPN instrument with quick speeds.
• You want further VPN options like cut up tunneling and a devoted IP deal with.
• You want a VPN that may help limitless gadgets directly.
• You need to use a service with a transparent no-logs coverage.

Methodology

To check Surfshark vs. TotalAV VPN, I signed up without spending a dime trials, consulted product documentation, reviewed outcomes from impartial testing organizations, and sourced consumer suggestions from Reddit. I thought-about the variety of servers, international locations, and gadgets supported by every VPN, in addition to different options like a kill swap and cut up tunneling. I additionally in contrast their 24/7 antivirus safety and associated instruments, reminiscent of advert blockers and password managers. Lastly, I weighed extra elements reminiscent of pricing, interface design, and ease of use.