AVG Antivirus Free for Mac vs Stronghold: Side-by-Side Comparison (2026)
Features, pricing, ratings, and pros & cons — compared head-to-head.
AVG Antivirus Free for Mac is a commercial endpoint protection platform tool by AVG. Stronghold is a free endpoint protection platform tool. Compare features, ratings, integrations, and community reviews side by side to find the best endpoint protection platform fit for your security stack.
CST VerdictBased on our analysis of NIST CSF 2.0 coverage, core features, company size fit, deployment model, here is our conclusion:
Startups and small teams running macOS need a no-cost first layer that actually works without IT overhead, and AVG Antivirus Free for Mac delivers that through real-time scanning and automatic updates that require zero configuration. The tool covers PR.PS Platform Security fundamentals by protecting Mac firmware and OS integrity against ransomware and malicious downloads without the licensing complexity of paid endpoints. Skip this if your organization runs a heterogeneous Windows and Linux fleet; AVG's Mac focus means you'll manage antivirus separately from your Windows strategy rather than consolidating under one vendor.
Mac-first security teams who need fast baseline hardening without the overhead of enterprise MDM will find Stronghold valuable; it automates configuration drift detection and remediation across macOS fleets through infrastructure-as-code principles rather than agent bloat. The tool is free and open-source with 1,173 GitHub stars, meaning you get transparency into how it handles sensitive system settings and community-driven updates. Skip this if you need cross-platform endpoint detection and response or Windows coverage; Stronghold is deliberately macOS-only and prioritizes prevention over threat hunting.
