If you’re experiencing issues with Bitdefender or wish to switch to a different antivirus program, uninstalling Bitdefender from your Windows computer is a must.
However, the process can be complicated because Bitdefender uninstalls additional software and extensions. To completely uninstall Bitdefender from Windows, you might also have to uninstall all the additional bloatware installed by Bitdefender. For example, when you install Bitdefender, it automatically installs additional software like Bitdefender VPN and extensions.
In this detailed how-to article, let me show you the steps to safely and completely remove Bitdefender from your PC.
Table of contents:
- Disable Bitdefender password protection
- Uninstall Bitdefender on Windows
- Use Bitdefender removal tool to uninstall Bitdefender
- Conclusion
The steps below work with Bitdefender, Antivirus Plus, Internet Security, and Total Security versions.
Disable Bitdefender Password Protection
Before uninstalling Bitdefender, you have to disable the password protection, if you enabled it. If you don’t know, password protection is a security feature in Bitdefender that minimizes or stops unauthorized changes. When password protection is enabled, you cannot modify or remove Bitdefender.
Follow the below steps to disable or remove Bitdefender password protection:
- Open the Bitdefender antivirus.
- Click on the ‘Settings‘ option.
- Turn off the ‘Password Protection‘ option.
- Type the password and click ‘Ok.’
- Password protection is disabled in Bitdefender.
First, press the Start key on your keyboard, search for ‘Bitdefender,’ and click on the result. It will open the Bitdefender antivirus application. You can also double-click on the Bitdefender icon on the taskbar (sometimes, you might have to click the up arrow icon to see it).
Once the Bitdefender application opens, click on the ‘Settings’ option on the left sidebar. Next, turn off the ‘Password protection’ option.
When prompted, type the password, select the “Don’t show this message again during this session” checkbox, and click the ‘Ok’ button.
With that, you’ve disabled password protection in Bitdefender. You can close the Bitdefender window.
Uninstall Bitdefender on Windows
You can uninstall Bitdefender on Windows like any other application. i.e., from the Settings app. It’s just that you have to be through and uninstall all the additional bits and pieces like the actual antivirus, VPN, install agent, and extensions.
Follow the below steps to uninstall Bitdefender:
- Use the Windows key + I shortcut to open Settings.
- Click on Apps on the sidebar.
- Go to the Installed Apps page.
- Find the Bitdefender Antivirus in the list.
- Click the Menu (…) icon next to it.
- Click the Uninstall button twice.
- Press ‘Uninstall‘ in the Bitdefender window.
- Select the ‘I want to uninstall Bitdefender‘ option.
- Uncheck the ‘Launch feedback survey‘ checkbox.
- Click the ‘Remove‘ button.
- Restart your computer.
- With that, you’ve uninstalled Bitdefender.
You can uninstall Bitdefender from Settings. To get started, open the Settings app with the Windows key + I keyboard shortcut. Next, click on the Apps option on the sidebar and then click on the Installed Apps option on the main page.
Now, find the Bitdefender antivirus in the apps list, click the menu icon (…), and then click on the Uninstall button.
The settings app will show a confirmation prompt, click the Uninstall button.
The above action will launch the Bitdefender uninstaller. Here, select the ‘I want to uninstall Bitdefender’ option, uncheck the ‘Launch feedback survey’ checkbox and click the ‘Remove’ button. If you don’t uncheck the checkbox, it will launch a survey web page.
The above action uninstalls the Bitdefender antivirus.
Once done, click the Restart Device button to reboot your computer. After that, follow the below steps.
Uninstall Bitdefender VPN
If you’ve enabled Bitdefender VPN, you have to uninstall it manually. Follow the below steps to uninstall Bitdefender VPN.
- Open the Settings app.
- Click on Apps on the sidebar.
- Go to the Install Apps page.
- Find the Bitdefender VPN application in the list.
- Click the Menu (…) icon next to it.
- Click the Uninstall button twice.
- Press ‘Uninstall‘ in the Bitdefender VPN window.
- With that, you’ve uninstalled Bitdefender VPN on Windows.
Open the Settings app with Windows key + I key binding. Next, go to the ‘Apps > Installed apps’ page. Here, find the Bitdefender VPN in the apps list, click the menu icon (…), and select the ‘Uninstall’ option.
Click the ‘Uninstall’ button again when prompted.
The above action will launch the VPN uninstaller. Click the ‘Uninstall’ button to continue.
As soon as you do that the uninstallation process starts. Once done, close the window and proceed to the next step.
Uninstall Bitdefender Agent
Once you uninstall the Bitdefender Antivirus and VPN software, you can now proceed to uninstall Bitdefender Agent.
Follow these steps to uninstall Bitdefender Agent:
- Open the Settings app.
- Click on Apps on the sidebar.
- Go to the Install Apps page.
- Find the Bitdefender agent application in the list.
- Click the Menu (…) icon next to it.
- Click the Uninstall button.
- Press the Uninstall button again when prompted.
- With that, you’ve uninstalled the Bitdefender agent on Windows.
Remove Bitdefender Extensions
After removing Bitdefender antivirus, VPN, and agent, you can finally proceed to remove all its extensions from your browser.
Follow the below steps to remove Bitdefender extensions in the Edge and Chrome browsers:
Open the Edge and Chrome browsers on Windows. Once opened, go to the extensions page by typing “edge://extensions/” and “chrome://extensions/” in the respective browser and pressing the Enter key on your keyboard.
Now, find the Bitdefender extensions and click the ‘Remove’ button to remove them. Do this to all the Bitdefender extensions in both Chrome and Edge browsers.
In Chrome:
In Edge:
If you have any other web browser on your computer, like Firefox, Brave, etc., open the extensions page in it and remove the Bitdefender extensions.
That is it. With that, you’ve uninstalled Bitdefender antivirus completely and without a trace.
Use Bitdefender Removal Tool to uninstall Bitdefender
You can also use Bitdefender uninstall tool that automatically uninstalls all Bitdefender software from your computer. This method is very useful when the regular uninstall procedure failed, the uninstaller stopped working, partial uninstallation, etc.
Here’s how to use Bitdefender removal tool to remove Bitdefender:
Before you can use the Bitdefender removal tool, you need to know the currently installed version and product type.
For that, right-click on the Bitdefender icon on the taskbar and select the ‘About’ option. You will see the current version and product type under ‘Product Information.’ For example, I’m using Bitdefender Internet Security. If the name doesn’t have a year designation, you are using the latest version. For older versions, you will see the year designation at the end of the name (ex: Bitdefender Total Security 2020).
Go to the below URL and click on the ‘Paid version’ or ‘Trial version’ button under the ‘Uninstall tools for Consumer Products’ section depending on your Bitdefender version.
https://www.bitdefender.com/uninstall/
Next, click on the ‘Uninstall tool’ button under the relevant product type. For example, I want to uninstall the latest version of Bitdefender Internet Security. So, I click the button under it.
After downloading, double-click on the exe file to open it. Click the ‘Uninstall’ button in the uninstaller window.
Once the uninstallation is done, click the ‘Restart’ button to restart your computer. After restarting, the Bitdefender antivirus is completely removed. The removal includes VPN, extensions, and any other Bitdefender software.
Useful link: How to uninstall any antivirus software on Windows.
Completely uninstalling Bitdefender — Conclusion
As you can see, you have two ways to remove Bitdefender from Windows. You can either manually uninstall each Bitdefender component or use the official uninstaller tool. Generally, I recommend manually uninstalling Bitdefender as it is pretty easy. However, if you want a no-nonsense method or the uninstaller failed for whatever reason, download the Bitdefender uninstaller tool and use it to uninstall Bitdefender. It automatically removes all the Bitdefender components with just a couple of clicks.
Whichever method you choose, it is pretty simple and straightforward.
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I hope this simple and easy Windows how-to guide helped you.
If you are stuck or need help, email me, and I will try to help as much as possible.