The Best Free Software of 2. Windows and mac. OS don't get the attention they used to in today's mobile world. But we have not fully abandoned the desktop. The real work (and a lot of the play) of computing requires a full personal computer system. To get the most out of that, you need software. Software can be expensive if you're not smart about it. Free programs have been a mainstay of the desktop experience for decades, and the offerings only get more powerful and fascinating each year.

Fast and simple way to download free software for Windows PC. Latest versions of hand-picked programs sorted into categories. Download Avira Free Antivirus and get the best free protection for your Windows computer – it’s free for life! Free Website Maker. Create awesome responsive websites. Easy and fast - No coding! Free for commercial use. GoPro Editing Software: Winners and Losers. Before we get into all the details, here are the programs that you should check out: GoPro Studio (Free) Best Free GoPro. Wondering how to make your computer run faster? Let Auslogics' PC experts show you the Best Software to increase PC speed safely and quickly!

Back-Up & Synchronization. Dropbox Windows Phone One of the most popular synchronization services ever: simply put files in your Dropbox folder on the desktop, they. Windows is swimming in a sea of free applications. Which ones can you trust and which ones are the best? If you're unsure or need to solve a specific task, consult. EaseUS Todo Backup Free. The best free backup software with over 6,000,000 home users. Free yet reliable - the most popular free backup software; Easy and fast.

As PCs compete with smartphones, it gets even better. Software developers can adopt an ad- based model, donation- ware to keep things afloat, or a shareware/freemium model that charges for extra features. Something to always watch for: crapware installers. To make ends meet, many creators of otherwise great free software, or the services that offer the programs for download, bundle in things you don't want. Worse, the installation routine obfuscates the steps, so you provide the unwanted program tacit permission to be installed. For more about how to spot and avoid this problem, see How to Clean Crapware From a New PC, and check out the Uninstaller section of this very free software collection. One tip that helps prevent the extra crapware onslaught: only download desktop software from the maker of the software directly.

It's not foolproof—after all, developers want to eat, too—but it helps. That's why one of the criteria for inclusion here is that the program has to be available directly from the maker. Other criteria: The software has to typically have a Windows- based download; we mark it if it has a version for other platforms, even mobile or cloud- based (see the Legend below). In some cases, we've included Web- app versions that are as good, or better, than some downloadable programs.

Want to Make Windows 7 Faster than before? Here are the Best Steps, Tweaks & Software's to Speed Up Windows 7 and get the maximum performance out of it. In our 2015 review of the top free antivirus programs we found several we could recommend with the best of these as good as any commercial product.

If it's on a tiered sales model, the free version cannot be trial- ware that doesn't work after a time. The program should have little or no advertising to support it. Some freemium software depends on showing ads to exist, however. Software for productivity is what this list is about; there's plenty of other places to find free games. So take a look at the list of 1. Tell us in the comments if we missed your absolute favorite piece of free software. LEGEND for compatibility: —Windows—mac.

OS—Linux—i. OS—Android—Amazon Fire. OS—Chrome. OS—Portable (runs on USB flash drives you can take with you)—Web app (runs in a web browser)Lesser used smartphones and devices are listed individually. For more free software, check out The 1. Best i. Phone Apps of 2.

The 1. 00 Best Android Apps of 2. Anti- Malware. Avast Free Antivirus 2.

Avast scours more than just your PC. It'll go out on the network and check your router for security holes. Its built- in phishing protection is better than ever; there's even a basic password manager this year.

Every third- party testing lab rates the free version of Avast very well (albeit not as good as a paid service gets). Read our review of Avast Free Antivirus 2. AVG Anti. Virus Free (2. When an antivirus tool like AVG gets a new look, it's worth noting. Better yet, AVG has built in new technology to make its free version all the more effective.

Labs tests show it really works. Read our review of AVG Anti. Virus Free (2. 01.

Panda Free Antivirus (2. It's not going to outpace the paid anti- malware tools for effectiveness, but the easy- to- use Panda is more than capable of keeping up with the freebies.

It will even automatically check USB drives you insert and launch a . Just watch out during Panda installation as it tries to reset some of your defaults—the price you pay for ? Read The Best Free Antivirus Protection of 2. Audio. LMMSDon't have the cash for Pro Tools or even Garageband? This freebie works on all desktop OSes and could have you PC cranking out melodious multi- track recordings in no time. Audacity. Open- source Audacity can record and edit audio files on more tracks than you can imagine. It then outputs exactly what you need, even to MP3 if you use a plug- in.

It is perfect for noobs and pros alike, on any desktop OS. Back- Up & Synchronization. Dropbox Windows Phone. One of the most popular synchronization services ever: simply put files in your Dropbox folder on the desktop, they get uploaded to the cloud, and are instantly synchronized with any other PC on the account.

Files are also accessible via apps or the Web. If you delete a file by accident, you can use the site to get it back. You get 2. GB of free online storage, which you can bolster by sharing on social media and downloading the mobile apps. Read our review of Dropbox, plus Tips to Turbocharge Dropbox. Microsoft One. Drive Windows Phone, Xbox. Consider One. Drive the most flexible and all- encompassing sync and back- up tool going. It's the official cloud storage for users of Microsoft Office and Windows 1.

OS). One. Drive throws in 5. GB of free online storage; you earn extra by referring friends or backing up smartphone cameras. If you subscribe to Office 3. Home, that storage jumps up to 1. TB. Read our review of Microsoft One.

Drive, plus Tips to Help You Master Microsoft One. Drive. Box (Personal) Windows Phone, Black. Berry. With 1. 0GB of free online storage, Box's Personal service now is one of the more robust free offerings. Box also limits file sizes to 2. MB each. It does more than sync and have online access; it also offers tools for commenting on or editing documents (it won't replace an office suite like Google Drive, which you'll find below in Office Suites, though it could just as easily go in this category).

Read our review of Box (Personal). IDrive Windows Phone, NAS devices. You get 5. GB free from IDrive to back up files from all your devices.

That's not a lot, but if it's enough, you'll find this service more than up to your needs. It'll even back up your photos and videos from Facebook. Read our review of IDrive. Ease. US Todo Backup Free. Antibacterial Activity Of Vernonia Amygdalina And Diabetes. Backup wasn't always about sending stuff to the cloud. Ease. US Todo is more old- school, providing methods to clone your entire hard drive, back up just a partition of a hard drive to another drive, provide instant recovery, and even check backups for damaged files.

It'll also back up your Outlook emails. Browsers. Mozilla Firefox. A new design for a venerable old browser brought Firefox back to the top—it's now our Editors' Choice. That's because it's highly customizable, strong on security and privacy and performance, and supports a slew of new standards. It's even on i. Phone now. Read our review of Firefox, plus Hidden Firefox Functions for Browsing Like a Boss. Google Chrome. It's been a leading browser since its debut in 2.

Chrome still ranks high as a browser to keep in your arsenal. Especially if you're a devotee to Google products—and it's built right into the Chrome. OS on Chromebooks so much that it practically is the OS. However, it's probably not the browser you want if you're a privacy advocate. Read our review of Google Chrome, plus Hidden Chrome Features That Will Make Your Life Easier. Opera. The Opera browser has been keeping up with the big boys for years, and it does so now by incorporating features no other browser has, in particular a built- in VPN service to keep your browsing secure, as well as ad blockers, a turbo mode, and even a battery saver that lets your laptop run longer than other browsers accessing the same content. It also comes in multiple versions for mobile, including Opera Mini, which compresses pages before you even load them.

Read our review of Opera. Clean- Up / Maintenance Utilities. CCleaner. The first of a few Piriform programs on this list, CCleaner—the first C is for Crap!—is one of the best, and pretty much essential for keeping a system going. What it does is simple: it cleans up extraneous files to keep a system running better. Get it and run it, regularly. It'll even delete some apps you didn't think you could get rid of—like those provided in Windows 1. Read our review of CCleaner for Mac. How To Install Roof Antennas.

Defraggler. Another gem from Piriform.