Malwarebytes vs HitmanPro: Best Secondary Scanner?

No antivirus catches everything. Even the best security suites occasionally miss threats, especially zero-day malware and fileless attacks. This is where secondary scanners come in. Malwarebytes and HitmanPro are the two most popular options for users who want a backup layer of scanning on top of their primary antivirus. This comparison explains how each works and when to choose one over the other.

What Is a Secondary Scanner?

A secondary scanner runs alongside your primary antivirus to catch threats the primary might miss. The concept relies on the fact that no single detection engine achieves 100% detection. By running a second engine from a different vendor, you increase your overall detection rate significantly.

Malwarebytes and HitmanPro are both designed to coexist with other antivirus products without causing conflicts. Traditional wisdom says never run two antivirus programs at once, but these two products are specifically engineered to avoid the resource conflicts and false positives that running two full suites would cause.

Malwarebytes Premium Overview

Malwarebytes has evolved from a pure on-demand scanner into a full real-time protection suite. The Premium tier offers scheduled scanning, real-time threat blocking, web protection, and exploit mitigation. It uses a combination of signature-based detection, behavioral analysis, and heuristic monitoring.

The real-time engine is designed to run alongside Windows Defender or any other primary antivirus without conflict. Malwarebytes specifically avoids registering as a primary antivirus in Windows Security Center, which means Windows does not disable your main suite when Malwarebytes is installed.

HitmanPro Overview

HitmanPro, developed by SurfRight (now owned by Sophos), takes a different approach. It uses cloud-based scanning that aggregates detection engines from multiple vendors, including Bitdefender and Kaspersky signatures. When you run a HitmanPro scan, it sends file hashes and suspicious samples to the cloud for analysis by multiple engines simultaneously.

HitmanPro is primarily an on-demand tool. You run it when you suspect an infection or as a periodic check. It does not provide continuous real-time protection in its base form. HitmanPro.Alert, the premium version, adds real-time behavioral protection and exploit mitigation, but the core scanning remains cloud-based.

Cloud vs Local Detection

HitmanPro's cloud-based approach has a significant advantage: it benefits from the combined detection databases of multiple top-tier engines without installing multiple products. The drawback is that it requires an internet connection to scan effectively, and the scan time depends on upload speeds for suspicious files.

Malwarebytes stores its detection database locally, which means scans work offline and are not dependent on internet speed. For environments with poor connectivity or strict bandwidth limits, Malwarebytes is more practical.

Detection Capability Comparison

Malwarebytes excels at detecting potentially unwanted programs (PUPs), adware, and browser hijackers. Its detection of these nuisance-level threats is arguably the best in the industry. If your computer is riddled with pop-ups, browser redirects, and unwanted toolbars, Malwarebytes will find and remove them when other products miss them.

HitmanPro is stronger against deep system threats, including rootkits and bootkits. Its cloud multi-engine approach means that if any one contributing vendor has a signature for a threat, HitmanPro will detect it. This makes it particularly effective against novel threats that might slip past a single engine.

Pricing and Licensing

Malwarebytes Premium costs $44.99 per year and covers one device. A multi-device plan covering 5 devices costs $59.99 per year. There is a free version that provides on-demand scanning but no real-time protection. The free version is useful for periodic manual scans but does not provide ongoing defense.

HitmanPro costs $24.95 per year for a single PC, making it one of the most affordable security tools available. A 3-PC license costs $34.95 per year. HitmanPro also offers a free version that allows on-demand scanning with a 30-day trial of real-time features. After 30 days, the free version reverts to on-demand scanning only.

When to Use Each

Choose Malwarebytes When:

• You want real-time protection that runs alongside your primary antivirus
• You frequently encounter adware, PUPs, and browser hijackers
• You need a scanner that works without internet access
• You want scheduled automatic scanning
• You need to protect multiple devices including Android and macOS

Choose HitmanPro When:

• You want a lightweight, on-demand scanner for periodic use
• You suspect a deep infection and want multi-engine verification
• You are concerned about rootkits or bootkits
• You want the fastest possible scan time
• Budget is a primary concern ($24.95 vs $44.99)

Using Both Together

Some security-conscious users run both Malwarebytes Premium (for real-time supplemental protection) and HitmanPro (for periodic on-demand multi-engine scans). This combination provides the broadest possible detection coverage. Malwarebytes catches adware and PUPs in real-time, while HitmanPro's cloud multi-engine approach catches threats that local engines might miss during periodic deep scans.

This approach costs $69.94 per year, which is less than many single premium suites. Combined with a free primary antivirus like Windows Defender, it provides enterprise-grade detection coverage at a fraction of the cost.

Pros and Cons

Verdict

For most users, Malwarebytes Premium is the better secondary scanner because it provides continuous real-time protection that fills gaps in your primary antivirus. Its PUP and adware detection is unmatched, and the ability to work offline makes it more versatile.

HitmanPro remains the best choice for users who want a periodic verification scanner with multi-engine coverage. Its speed and rootkit detection make it ideal for targeted investigations when you suspect something slipped past your primary defenses. At $24.95 per year, it is also the most budget-friendly option.