I was just asked recently what my recommendations are for best free anti-malware software. I checked my previous recommendations and was shocked that they were made 10 years ago. My how time flies but thankfully sometimes recommendations can stand the test of time.
PCMag just made a new set of recommendations (March 1 2016) for free Anti-virus protection software
I have had good experiences with AVG, Panda, and Checkpoint. My experience with Checkpoint is with their ZoneAlarm firewall which works well but has a lot of ads. Good to see that AVG and Panda are still top rated and in business after all these years.
Consumer Affairs also has a fairly detailed roundup of anti-virus product reviews which could be useful to consult if you want to include commercial software at various prices.