New laptop - do i need antivirus software?

[WhyDontYouListen]

As the title says, just bought a (cheap) laptop, it runs windows 10. It kept suggesting i subscribe to some antivirus software, which i ignored. I'm now wondering if i should have some on it. Do i need to? And is the free stuff good enough? Thank you

[cdtaylornats]

Do you ever connect to the internet - if so then yes

Win 10 comes with antivirus software.
Go to the search bar and type "defender"

[Mirtansa]

You can read reviews about antivirus software here and choose the appropriate option. I recommend choosing antiviruses with a rating at least 4 stars.

[Faithless12]

Yes. Kaspersky is pretty good.

[Sethis]

I'm a tech guy.

For the last 20 years I've used AVG (free) and a pop up blocker, and never had a single problem or virus.

Don't click obvious clickbait, don't download anything from a site you don't know has a good reputation, and don't open emails where you are even slightly unsure of the contents.

Job done.

[Badbilly]

As a previous poster has said windows 10 comes with its own built-in antivirus, Defender, and as long as you keep it updated (you can set it to update automatically) it is fine for normal everyday use, as long as you are sensible about clicking on dodgy links in suspect emails.

In addition to Defender I also use the free version of an anti malware software called “Malwarebytes”.
I have been using the above combination for years, and have had no known problems.
With all antivirus programs though you do have to ensure you set a few hours every month to do a “full scan” rather than the quicker scans that most AV software perform automatically. I do these manual scans before I go to bed and just let it run overnight maybe once a month.
There is , in my opinion, no need to pay for AV software, as the combination I have mentioned, and AVG, as another poster has referenced, are fine. Again, in my experience, I have used Kaspersky and Norton in the past but have found them invasive, clunky, bloated and bloody difficult to remove cleanly.

[Faithless12]

The inbuilt software of windows 10 is far superior to windows 7 but I would not trust it by itself nor would I trust AVG free. If you really want decent antimalware f secure is the best out there. However, you need to be aware of the websites you visit as malware is out in the wild for at least three months before it is found and it’s signature has been added to list in the software scanning for it.

[TheDogAteMySock]

Thank you all for your words of advice, I have some ideas now of what I need and where to look. Good to know the free stuff use probably good enough.