Which is the best anti-virus

This is something that we are often asked and it can be a difficult question to answer.

Many people like to stick with the big boys like McAfee and Symantec as they have a proven track record.  Other decide on price but few actually compare the field. 

One reason for this is that it is really hard to find an independant test which compares all of the options and delivers this in a usable.

I have recent found http://www.av-comparatives.org who produce independant tests and award based on performance.

The 2012 test results are very interesting with top awards - 3 stars - going to some of the smaller players:

-BitDefender
-G Data
-Kaspersky
-Qihoo
-F-Secure

And some of the bigger hitters getting just 1 star:

-McAfee
-Sophos
-Trend Micro

Take a look at the following link for more info:
http://www.av-comparatives.org/images/docs/avc_prot_2012a_en.pdf