You may look at Panda Dome Antivirus software and think, “Can a product named after a cuddly mammal really keep me protected?” According to independent research and our own testing, the answer is yes. Panda has a variety of plans and price points (as well as a free antivirus version) to fit any budget and the features offer a lot for a reasonable price.  

With big names like Bitdefender and free options like Windows Defender, you may be tempted to skip Panda’s free antivirus or paid plans. But overall, we were pretty happy with our Panda experience and even received a few pleasant surprises along the way.

Panda Dome Antivirus overview

Who is Panda Dome Antivirus best for?

• Recommended for individuals or families researching the right protection plan

One of Panda Dome Antivirus’s advantages is the option to pay monthly with no commitments. Your first month is even free! Because of these flexible payment options, various features, and multiple types of plans, this is the perfect product for people looking to find the right protection for themselves or their families. Panda lets you try out different plans to see if this antivirus product works for you.

One caveat is that Panda isn’t the best for macOS users. While the Windows product is fairly robust and offers a lot, the Mac product doesn’t come with a lot of the same features. Mac users looking for a similar product should check out MacKeeper, which is an antivirus and performance optimization tool.

Panda Dome Antivirus pros and cons

Panda Dome Antivirus features

Panda Dome Antivirus offers the essentials for security suites, like scans and antivirus protection, and it includes bonus features like Wi-Fi protection, external device scanning and a virtual private network (VPN). It’s great to be able to scan external devices like your USB sticks and external hard drives for malware before they can infect your device.

We were a little surprised that the free product didn’t offer ransomware protection. Ransomware and viruses aren’t the same, even though they’re frequently grouped together. Panda has antivirus protection, but you’ll need to opt for a paid plan if you also want ransomware protection.

Malware and antivirus scan

With Panda, you get both manual and automatic scans. Custom scans can be scheduled from the Antivirus icon on the dashboard. Panda’s real-time protection means it’s scanning files and apps as they’re running on your device, so you can feel confident that a new threat can be caught quickly in any critical areas.

When you check your antivirus dashboard, you’ll be able to see your last scan, scheduled scans, any files in quarantine, and any problems found, like spyware and potentially unwanted programs (PUPs). It’s all easy to understand and well organized.

Phishing protection

Panda’s Safe Browsing features help protect against phishing pages by blocking them. A pop-up will let you know that the site you’re trying to visit isn’t safe and give you the option to navigate away.

Panda has built-in blockers that will immediately block a fraudulent or malicious site without you having to do anything. It also shows you the URLs allowed by users so you can see where these attempts are originating. You have the option to configure this in the Safe Browsing section.

Firewall

The Firewall feature allows you to choose where you’re working from so it can be more diligent in protecting your computer. If you set the option to Public place, then this feature can add a layer of security along with your VPN.

And the firewall doesn’t just monitor access when you’re connecting and disconnecting from networks, it also monitors activity while you’re using your device. If a foreign device tries to access your computer while you’re online, Panda’s firewall will block the interaction. You can use Panda’s preconfigured permissions or customize permissions to work for you. Using the firewall can give you more peace of mind that hackers and malware are being blocked from your computer.

Real-time protection

Real-time protection means that the cybersecurity product you’re using is scanning files and apps as they’re running on your computer. Panda’s real-time protection appears on the main screen of the dashboard as it shows you the total number of files scanned to date. The paid plans protect against all forms of malware, including spyware, ransomware, and adware. As we were testing the product, we could continue to scan files and processes on our laptop without issue.

Ransomware protection

While all of Panda’s plans offer antivirus capabilities, if you are an Advanced, Complete, or Premium customer, you can enjoy additional ransomware protection. Panda’s antivirus is great for protecting against older bugs like trojans and computer viruses while ransomware protection is more advanced for protecting against modern threats like spyware and adware. Panda’s ransomware dashboard breaks down what was blocked, allows you to customize protection, and even educates you on ransomware.

Bonus features

Panda’s dashboard has some other cool features that may be beneficial to you. The Rescue Kit allows you to make a backup of your hard drive and use Panda’s Cloud Cleaner to look for advanced threats that may be tucked away on your computer.

The password generator is helpful if you need to create a strong password quickly. And as we mentioned earlier, Panda comes with a VPN, which will keep your data encrypted and your browsing private. However, these features may not be available on all plans or they may be limited depending on your plan.

Here’s a list of Panda’s other bonus features:

• Parental controls: Monitor and limit your kids’ online activities
• Dark web monitoring: Scans the dark web for your information
• Device optimization tools: Helps your device run smoother and more efficiently
• Password manager: Stores all your passwords in one convenient, safe place
• Private browsing: Part of the VPN, this allows you to browse anonymously to avoid trackers
• Virtual keyboard: Use this keyboard while typing confidential data to protect against hackers

Panda Dome Antivirus test results

There are two independent third-party sites that review the best antivirus and antimalware products. AV-TEST and AV-Comparatives both run security products through heavy testing to see the effectiveness of each product. While AV-TEST’s tests were older, we did find very recent results on AV-Comparatives.

AV-Comparatives can be difficult to interpret, so the main points we outlined below are how well Panda Dome Antivirus protected against online threats (99.97%); did the product slow down the test computers (no, Panda was listed as “very fast”); and how many false positives did Panda stop (102 false positives, meaning nonharmful files or programs that Panda thought were suspicious.)

As far as false positives, 102 is relatively high. This means that Panda’s filters and protections are automatically filtering anything it doesn’t recognize. While this can be frustrating, it’s a proactive approach to antivirus and antimalware. If you find Panda is blocking something you need that you know is legitimate, you can configure your settings to allow that program to run. If you have issues, the customer support team will be able to assist you.

Panda Dome Antivirus AV-Comparatives test results

Our Panda Dome Antivirus experience

We tested Panda Dome Antivirus on our 2018 Acer machine running Windows 10. We didn’t test the Mac product as it lacks a lot of features that the Windows product offers.

We tested all of the scans, implemented some of the parental controls, and allowed the firewall to run. We also played with the virtual keyboard and turned on the VPN service. We purchased the Advanced Protection option, which gave us a generic VPN with a data limit of 150MB and an automatic server option only. The VPN didn’t work with Hulu when we tried.

Panda began immediately running real-time protection as soon as it was installed and continued to scan files. We ran a full scan of our system and Panda didn’t find any issues.

Then we went into the Rescue Kit and ran a Cloud Cleaning scan, which found some unknown files and suspicious policies. We were impressed by the Cloud Cleaning scan because our computer is pretty clean and used for testing mostly, so it was interesting to see things that were lurking in the background. We liked this deep clean option.

None of the features were difficult to install or activate. While Panda VPN wasn’t too impressive, we did like the Rescue Kit. All in all, we had a positive experience with Panda and would feel comfortable using this ourselves.

Panda Dome Antivirus compatibility

All antivirus programs are not equal. Different operating systems require different functionality. Panda Dome Antivirus isn’t available on every platform and doesn’t list any browser extensions you could install if you don’t have one of the compatible devices. It does, however, cover the bases for most home users.

You can install Panda on desktops, laptops, and mobile devices running:

• Windows
• Android
• macOS
• iOS

Panda Dome Antivirus customer support

The Support icon in Panda’s dashboard is listed along with all the other features. You can search the support forums, go over its FAQs, or contact technical support.

Panda support is available at all times and is accessible by calling the number listed on the site (1-917-341-2063) or by filling out an online form. You can navigate to the site from the dashboard of your Panda Dome product.

Panda Dome Antivirus cost

Panda takes a little different approach to pricing than its competitors. While most antivirus companies want you to pay for a year’s subscription, Panda offers monthly installment options. Depending on what you need, you’ll have access to a variety of features and you can adjust your plan month to month or decide to save by purchasing an annual subscription.

The prices are comparable if not a little lower than competitors like McAfee ($39.99–$219.99/yr), Avast ($34.68-$119.88/first yr), and Avira ($26.99–$129.99/first yr). It’s also nice that Panda lets you choose how many devices you’d like to protect for each plan. Some competitors will make you purchase a higher tier to include more devices, but Panda allows you to choose for each tier.

Overall, we feel like Panda’s options are a good value for the price. Even with the Essential Protection plan, you receive a decent amount of features. We were happy with our testing results and would feel comfortable using Panda ourselves.

Panda Dome Antivirus plans and prices

Panda Dome Antivirus FAQs

Bottom line: Is Panda Dome Antivirus good?

Yes, we feel confident that Panda Dome Antivirus is a good option to protect your Windows computer based on our antivirus review experience. We appreciated the extras like the VPN and private browsing as well as the free product offerings. The good scores from third-party auditors also gave us faith that we would be in good hands with Panda.

With a variety of features and solid test results, Panda proves it’s able to compete on the cybersecurity stage. It can even be argued that it outdoes some of its competitors with a free product and a lot of features as you move up in tiers. We just wish the Mac product was more robust but our best antivirus software list has options for macOS devices.

5.0

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On Panda Dome's website

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Panda Dome

• Lots of features for Windows
• 24/7 customer support
• Mac product is lacking

Author Details

Mary James

About the Author

Mary lives in Los Angeles and has been a cybersecurity writer for over five years. With a B.S. in Liberal Arts from Clarion University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Point Park University in Pittsburgh, her career in online security began in sales and content creation for a private cybersecurity firm.