How Does Antivirus Software Impact System Performance?

There is nothing quite as annoying as having your computer slow down. Whether you’re trying to open files or urgently meet a work deadline, it often ends up with you throwing your hands up in frustration.

If this has happened to you recently, it may actually be your antivirus software slowing things down. It has to run constantly in the background while you use your device and continuously scan files and apps for anything suspicious. Naturally, this would take up a fair amount of your system’s performance.

However, antivirus software is one of the best tools to use to protect your device and information so should you really go without it? Not at all. There are ways that you can minimise its impact on your speed and responsiveness without needing to compromise on your overall security.

 

Why Should You Use An Antivirus?

 

First things first, why do you even need an antivirus software? Think of it almost as your device’s personal security guard, always watching out for potential threats before they can do any damage to your device.

Some systems like Windows and macOS do have built-in protections but not quite to the extent that third-party antivirus providers can offer. This is because they have far more advanced tools to detect even the most sophisticated viruses, worms, spyware and ransomware.

But things like firewalls, real-time scanning and webcam blockers are intensive activities that require a significant amount of your device’s resources.

 

Where Can It Slow Down Your Computer?

 

Not every device will be affected in the same way. It will largely depend on things like the specs of your specific computer and which antivirus you’re using. But if you are finding that your device is lagging or just feeling sluggish, here is where your antivirus could be the culprit.

 

Starting Time

 

One of the biggest indicators that your antivirus is impacting your performance is when your device turns on. Usually, the antivirus will kick in as soon as you switch it on. So straight away, its already got to work scanning files or doing updates in the background.

This can make it that much longer to get started on your computer especially if your antivirus has to compete with other programmes. If you’re staring at a frozen screen for endless minutes, it could be your antivirus at fault.

 

 

Browsing On The Internet

 

You probably wouldn’t think that an antivirus could affect your Internet browsing but it can. If it has web protection features like URL scanning and traffic filtering, it needs to monitor what you look at online.

This kind of protection is absolutely valuable especially against phishing attacks or harmful websites but it does mean that your web page may take a bit longer to load fully.

 

Accessing Files

 

When you click on a file to open, it can pause for a bit. This is because the antivirus is scanning it in real-time before it opens to check that its code is not hiding anything dodgy.

While this is great from a safety perspective, it can cause delays if you are opening big files like videos or those that are stored on USBs and external drives.

 

Gaming Or Video Editing

 

Content creators or those who enjoy gaming may notice issues with their system’s performance even more so than others. This is because video editing and gaming are extremely resource-intensive and have to compete with the antivirus.

Gamers may experience longer loading times and disruptions when playing online especially if the antivirus is scanning the game’s files in real-time during installations or updates.

For video editors, it can affect rendering speeds and the responsiveness of live previews of videos which is particularly frustrating if they are working towards a deadline.

 

How To Minimise Antivirus Impact On Your System’s Performance

 

You don’t need to choose between speed or security. There are a few ways that you could improve your device’s performance while still using an antivirus.

Use one antivirus: If you run multiple programmes at once, it can slow things down even more or even cause conflict between the software. If you are using a good antivirus, you won’t need more than one.

Update it often: Antivirus programmes that are regularly updated tend to perform better as new versions are optimised to impact performance as little as possible.

Schedule scans: Depending on your antivirus, you can choose to set full system scans at night or during hours when you aren’t using your computer.

Exclude certain files: If you have games or editing software on your device that you know is safe to use, you can exclude them from being scanned.

 

Is Antivirus Worth The Slowdown?

 

It may be frustrating at times but yes, it is absolutely worth it. A little inconvenience here and there is nothing compared to the headache of dealing with stolen data or a corrupted device.

It also doesn’t mean that you have to tolerate slow performance. By choosing the right antivirus software and tweaking some settings here and there, you can get around slow speeds with peace of mind that your device is secure.