---
title: "Antivirus plus brands in New Zealand: Which are searched most?"
description: "Compare the antivirus plus brands people buy. Share of Search among McAfee, Bitdefender and Norton, the antivirus plus brands Brandwave compares in New Zealand, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time."
canonical: "https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-antivirus-plus-brands"
publisher: "Brandwave"
---

# Antivirus plus brands in New Zealand: Which are searched most?

Compare the antivirus plus brands people buy. Share of Search among McAfee, Bitdefender and Norton, the antivirus plus brands Brandwave compares in New Zealand, using the same methodology, market, and reporting period. Branded searches tell you how often people look for a brand by name or related terms. Comparing these searches across competitors helps you see how popular each brand is over time.

## Key facts

- **Competitive set**: Antivirus plus brands
- **Market**: New Zealand
- **Brands compared**: 3
- **Month measured**: Sep 2026
- **Highest Share of Search**: McAfee, 60.3%

## Which brand is most popular in search among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand?

- In September 2026, McAfee was the most searched among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand, with an estimated 3.6K branded searches, 60.3% of all searches for the three we track.
- Bitdefender is in 2nd place, 30.6 percentage points behind at 29.7%.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, McAfee’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand increased from 50.3% to 60.3%.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Bitdefender’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand decreased from 35.7% to 29.7%.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Norton’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand decreased from 14% to 10%.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, McAfee’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand peaked at 60.3% in September 2026 and was lowest at 41.3% in July 2026.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Bitdefender’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand peaked at 43.6% in July 2026 and was lowest at 28.9% in December 2025.
- Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Norton’s share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand peaked at 15.8% in January 2026 and was lowest at 10% in September 2026.

## Top antivirus plus brands in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In Brandwave's three ChatGPT questions and one Google AI Overview, Norton appeared every time. Bitdefender was recommended most often, coming first in all three answers that gave a list. Norton was second, and McAfee was third.

Brands get a higher AI rank if they are mentioned earlier in the answers that list options.

| Brand | AI rank | ChatGPT answers that named it | Google AI Overviews that named it | All answers that named it |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Bitdefender | 1st | 3 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 3 of 4 |
| Norton | 2nd | 3 of 3 | 1 of 1 | 4 of 4 |
| McAfee | 3rd | 1 of 3 | 0 of 1 | 1 of 4 |

## Every AI answer about antivirus plus brands

- Asked ChatGPT "Which antivirus plus brand should I use in New Zealand?": 1. Bitdefender, 2. Norton
- Asked ChatGPT "What are the best antivirus plus brands in New Zealand?": 1. Bitdefender, 2. Norton, 3. McAfee
- Asked ChatGPT "What's the best antivirus plus brand in New Zealand for extra device protection?": 1. Bitdefender, 2. Norton
- Searched Google, AI Overview "internet security nz": 1. Norton

Brands are listed in the order each answer named them. The answers were collected in New Zealand on October 20, 2026.

## Compare search popularity between leading brands

- [McAfee vs Bitdefender: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/bitdefender-vs-mcafee): 60.3% against 29.7% Share of Search.
- [McAfee vs Norton: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/mcafee-vs-norton): 60.3% against 10% Share of Search.
- [Bitdefender vs Norton: compare search popularity](/demand/nz/compare/bitdefender-vs-norton): 29.7% against 10% Share of Search.

## How did search popularity change for New Zealand antivirus plus brands in September 2026?

- In September 2026, McAfee gained share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand, from 46.2% to 60.3%.
- In September 2026, Bitdefender lost share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand, from 39.5% to 29.7%.
- In September 2026, Norton lost share of searches among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand, from 14.3% to 10%.

## Share of Search ranking

| Rank | Brand | Share of Search | Estimated monthly branded searches | Change vs prior month | Owned by |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | McAfee | 60.3% | 3.6K | +53.2% | McAfee |
| 2 | Bitdefender | 29.7% | 1.8K | -11.6% | Bitdefender |
| 3 | Norton | 10% | 590 | -18.1% | Norton |

## Historical estimated branded-search demand

| Month | Brand | Estimated monthly branded searches | Share of Search | Rank |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Oct 2025 | McAfee | 3.2K | 50.3% | 1 |
| Oct 2025 | Bitdefender | 2.2K | 35.7% | 2 |
| Oct 2025 | Norton | 880 | 14% | 3 |
| Nov 2025 | McAfee | 3.1K | 52% | 1 |
| Nov 2025 | Bitdefender | 2.2K | 36% | 2 |
| Nov 2025 | Norton | 720 | 12% | 3 |
| Dec 2025 | McAfee | 3.4K | 56.5% | 1 |
| Dec 2025 | Bitdefender | 1.7K | 28.9% | 2 |
| Dec 2025 | Norton | 880 | 14.6% | 3 |
| Jan 2026 | McAfee | 3.2K | 50.7% | 1 |
| Jan 2026 | Bitdefender | 2.1K | 33.4% | 2 |
| Jan 2026 | Norton | 1K | 15.8% | 3 |
| Feb 2026 | McAfee | 3.4K | 55% | 1 |
| Feb 2026 | Bitdefender | 1.9K | 31% | 2 |
| Feb 2026 | Norton | 880 | 14.1% | 3 |
| Mar 2026 | McAfee | 3.3K | 50.6% | 1 |
| Mar 2026 | Bitdefender | 2.5K | 38.2% | 2 |
| Mar 2026 | Norton | 720 | 11.2% | 3 |
| Apr 2026 | McAfee | 2.8K | 50.2% | 1 |
| Apr 2026 | Bitdefender | 2K | 36.9% | 2 |
| Apr 2026 | Norton | 720 | 12.9% | 3 |
| May 2026 | McAfee | 3.2K | 51.9% | 1 |
| May 2026 | Bitdefender | 2.3K | 36.5% | 2 |
| May 2026 | Norton | 720 | 11.7% | 3 |
| Jun 2026 | McAfee | 2.9K | 50.1% | 1 |
| Jun 2026 | Bitdefender | 2.2K | 37.4% | 2 |
| Jun 2026 | Norton | 720 | 12.5% | 3 |
| Jul 2026 | Bitdefender | 2.1K | 43.6% | 1 |
| Jul 2026 | McAfee | 2K | 41.3% | 2 |
| Jul 2026 | Norton | 720 | 15.2% | 3 |
| Aug 2026 | McAfee | 2.3K | 46.2% | 1 |
| Aug 2026 | Bitdefender | 2K | 39.5% | 2 |
| Aug 2026 | Norton | 720 | 14.3% | 3 |
| Sep 2026 | McAfee | 3.6K | 60.3% | 1 |
| Sep 2026 | Bitdefender | 1.8K | 29.7% | 2 |
| Sep 2026 | Norton | 590 | 10% | 3 |

## What is being compared

- **Bitdefender**: Measured on the search terms “bitdefender”, “bitdefender av”, “bitdefender cen” and “bitdefender total sec”, summed into one figure.
- **McAfee**: Measured on the search terms “jonathan mcafee”, “mcafee”, “mcafee av”, “mcafee protection”, “mcafee total protection” and “mcafee web protection”, summed into one figure.
- **Norton**: Measured on the search term “norton antivirus”.

- [Bitdefender](/demand/nz/brands/bitdefender)
- [McAfee](/demand/nz/brands/mcafee)
- [Norton](/demand/nz/brands/norton)

## Methodology

- [How is the Brand Demand Index measured?](/demand/methodology): Where the figures come from, what they compare, and how they may be reused.

## Frequently asked questions

### Which brand is most popular in search among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand?

In September 2026, McAfee was the most searched among antivirus plus brands in New Zealand, with an estimated 3.6K branded searches, 60.3% of all searches for the three we track.

## Cite this page

Brandwave. "Antivirus plus brands in New Zealand: Which are searched most?". https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-antivirus-plus-brands

This page is also available as HTML at https://gobrandwave.com/demand/nz/categories/nz-antivirus-plus-brands. Brandwave publishes an index of its Markdown pages at https://gobrandwave.com/llms.txt.