With Kaspersky exiting the US market, Bitdefender is the clear alternative. It matches Kaspersky's detection rates but runs lighter on your system.
Check Bitdefender PriceHistorically, Kaspersky and Bitdefender were the two "Kings" of performance. They both ran silently and didn't slow down gaming.
However, Bitdefender's 2025 "Photon Engine" has taken a slight lead. In our gaming tests (Cyberpunk 2077), Bitdefender had 0% FPS drop, whereas Kaspersky had a negligible 1% drop.
This is where the battle ends. Kaspersky is headquartered in Moscow, Russia. Due to geopolitical tensions, Western governments have advised against using it.
Bitdefender is headquartered in Romania (European Union) and is subject to strict EU privacy laws (GDPR). They have no geopolitical baggage and are trusted by over 500 million users globally.
If you are in Europe, Kaspersky is still a technically excellent product. But for the rest of the world (especially the US), Bitdefender is the safer, faster, and more future-proof choice.