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Aura vs. LifeLock: What You Need To Know Before You Choose

By Jason Fragoso

Jason Fragoso

SVP of Growth at Aura

Jason Fragoso is SVP of Growth at Aura. As a father of two he cares deeply about creating a safer internet for all families.

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Reviewed by Jory MacKay

Jory MacKay

Aura Cybersecurity Editor

Jory MacKay is a writer and award-winning editor with over a decade of experience for online and print publications. He has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Victoria and a passion for helping people identify and avoid fraud.

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June 20, 2025

Both Aura and LifeLock provide similar features to protect your identity — but there are important distinctions between them that you need to know about.

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Illustration of a hand holding cards displaying the Aura and LifeLock logos

What Is the Difference Between Aura and LifeLock?

Aura and LifeLock offer some of the most robust identity theft protection packages — combining identity and credit monitoring with 24/7 support, and a minimum of $1 million in identity theft insurance.

While both services list similar features, there are fundamental differences between their levels of service, data privacy policies, plan options, and pricing.

Above all, the main difference between Aura and LifeLock is that:

  • Aura offers a more “all-in-one” approach to identity theft protection. Every Aura plan includes key features, such as three-bureau credit monitoring, digital security tools — including a VPN, antivirus, and a password manager — and at least $1 million in identity theft insurance.
  • LifeLock offers tiered plans — with its more affordable plans providing limited protection. Critical features, including three-bureau credit monitoring and financial account monitoring, are only available on the highest-priced “Ultimate Plus” plan. Digital security tools also require upgrading to the LifeLock with Norton 360 add-on.

Aura and LifeLock also differ in the extent of their monitoring, data protection policies, histories, and family safety options. LifeLock customers also have to deal with price increases after their first year of service that range anywhere from ~20 – 50+%.

Before you decide which service is worth it for you, it’s important to understand exactly what you’re getting.

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Aura vs. LifeLock: Feature and Pricing Comparison

Aura’s pricing structure means that you get the same high level of protection and monitoring features on all plans (with additional features on family plans). LifeLock plans, on the other hand, are tiered with lower-priced options offering limited protection.

For similar protection to Aura’s Individual plan, you need to sign up for LifeLock Ultimate Plus with Norton 360 for $25/month (renews at ~$30.41/month after your first year of service).

Here’s a look at how Aura and LifeLock compare on pricing and features:

Aura LifeLock
Best price Starts at $9/month for a fully-featured individual plan. Starts at $7.50/month for the basic “Standard” plan — renews at ~$10.40/month after your first year.
Identity monitoring Rated best overall by Tom's Guide. Rated 5th overall by Tom’s Guide.
Three-bureau credit monitoring Included on all plans — with the industry’s fastest fraud alerts3. Available only on Ultimate Plus plans.
Data security Does not sell your personal data. No history of data security incidents. May share your personal data with third parties. Recent data security incidents, including a 2023 data leak.
Online and device safety Included with all plans — antivirus, virtual private network (VPN), password manager, anti-track and ad blocker, email aliases, and Safe Browsing tools. Only available with Norton 360 (for an additional cost).
Family plans and parental controls Covers up to five adults, unlimited children, and unlimited devices. Parental controls include content filters, screen time limits, Safe Gaming alerts, and online balance tools. Covers up to two adults and five children on the higher-tiered family plan. Parental controls are only available with Norton 360 add-on.
Identity theft insurance Expense reimbursement is $1,000,000 per single/family membership. Reimbursement and expense compensation varies according to plan.

Note: LifeLock offers a barebones Identity Advisor plan that starts at $3.33/month. However, this plan only includes Dark Web and data breach notifications and identity restoration help.

Aura Overview: Pros and Cons, Features, and Pricing

Founded in 2014, Aura has quickly become an industry leader in identity theft protection, thanks to its easy-to-use all-in-one platform, transparent pricing, and powerful online, family, and privacy protection features.

As of June 2025, Aura is rated the #1 identity theft protection provider by Forbes, CNET, TechRadar, NerdWallet, USNews.com, and more.

Along with three-bureau credit monitoring (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) and the industry's fastest fraud alerts on all plans, Aura’s standout features include unusual transaction monitoring on bank accounts, advanced cybersecurity tools, online privacy protection, and family plans offering award-winning parental controls.  

When it comes to warning you of suspicious activity and potential fraud, Aura is also faster than LifeLock. 

A 2025 mystery shopper study conducted by ath Power Consulting found that, on average, Aura provided fraud alerts in three minutes, while Norton LifeLock took over 9.2 hours3.

Aura is available on iOS and Android devices as well as desktops and most major browsers. 

Aura pros:
  • Generous insurance coverage. $1 million per adult on all plans (up to $5 million total for family plans).
  • Included digital security. All plans include a VPN, antivirus, password manager, Safe Browsing tools, and more. An optional AI-powered spam call and text blocker is the only add-on.
  • Better credit monitoring and tools. Three-bureau credit monitoring is included on all plans, along with one-click Experian CreditLock.
  • Faster alerts. Credit alerts are up to 185x faster than Norton LifeLock. Also includes near real-time credit, bank account, data breach, and identity threat alerts.
  • Robust family plans. Family identity theft protection for up to five adults and unlimited children on an unlimited number of devices. Plan members can live in different households.
Aura cons:
  • Higher base pricing. Individual plans can cost more than LifeLock's basic plans but include more features.
  • No personalized packages. All plans include the same feature set (other than family plans which include additional family-oriented features).
  • Some features vary by device. For example, Safe Gaming is only available for Windows PCs.
  • Basic password manager. Aura’s included password manager is comparable to LifeLock’s, but has fewer features than stand-alone tools.
  • Doesn’t supply FICO® scores. Includes monthly VantageScore® credit scores, not FICO.

Aura also owns Identity Guard — another top-rated identity theft protection provider that has been trusted by over 38 million Americans for more than 25 years.

Try Aura for yourself — free for 14 days. Sign up for a free Aura trial and get full access to all features — including data broker opt-out, credit lock, Dark Web monitoring, and more.

Aura plans and pricing

Aura offers three different identity theft protection plans (based on how many people you want to protect) — Individual, Couple, or Family. Aura also offers a Kids plan that provides parental controls, online balance, and safety tools for children.

Here’s a breakdown of Aura’s plans and pricing (as of June 2025, using this special discount link):

Aura Individual Plan Aura Couple Plan Aura Family Plan
Starts at $9.99/month when paid annually ($119.88/year). Starts at $17.99/month when paid annually ($215.88/year). Starts at $24.99/month when paid annually ($299.88/year).
Protects one person and up to 10 devices. Protects two people and up to 20 devices. Protects up to five adults and unlimited children (and unlimited devices).
Up to $1 million in identity theft insurance coverage. Up to $2 million in identity theft insurance coverage. Up to $5 million in identity theft insurance coverage.

What’s included in Aura’s 14-day free trial?

Every Aura plan comes with a fully-featured 14-day free trial — giving you access to everything you would enjoy as a full-time member. Annual plans also come with a 60-day money-back guarantee to ensure that Aura is right for you.

In just the two weeks of your free trial, you can use Aura to:

  • Scan the Dark Web for your leaked personal data, including passwords and credit card numbers
  • Remove malware and suspicious mobile apps by using the included antivirus software
  • Clean up your online privacy and remove your personal information from Google search results and up to 95 data brokers (companies that scrape and sell your sensitive information to marketers, government agencies, and potential scammers)
  • Instantly lock your Experian credit file to protect against scams and fraud
  • Encrypt your data and network connection when using public Wi-Fi or traveling
  • Access your monthly credit scores and reports from all three bureaus
  • Check public records, criminal convictions, and sex offender lists for your Social Security number (SSN), full name, and other information that could indicate that your identity has been stolen
  • Access 24/7 support from Aura’s team of U.S.-based customer support specialists

In just two weeks, you can vastly increase your digital security, improve your privacy, and make sure that you’re not a vulnerable target for identity thieves. Sign up for your free 14-day trial of Aura today. →

LifeLock Overview: Pros and Cons, Features, and Pricing

LifeLock was founded in 2005, making it one of the oldest identity theft protection services on the market. Symantec, the creator of Norton Antivirus, acquired LifeLock in 2017 and changed its name to NortonLifeLock in 2019, and then Gen Digital Inc. in 2022.

Unlike Aura, LifeLock advertises tiered plan options, with a lower-priced basic plan offering very limited features. As the reviewers at Security.org write:

“Once LifeLock’s one-year promotional period expires, prices go up. For example, LifeLock’s most expensive individual plan goes from $239.88 in the first year to $339.99.”

LifeLock’s Standard plan includes identity monitoring, one-bureau credit monitoring, and up to $1,050,000 in identity theft insurance. The caveat is that up to $1 million in coverage is offered for lawyers and experts collectively — and only up to $25,000 each is offered for reimbursement and expense compensation.

If you want features from LifeLock that are standard with Aura — including three-bureau credit monitoring, financial account monitoring, and up to $1 million in insurance coverage for stolen funds and expenses — you’ll need to upgrade to LifeLock’s Ultimate Plus plan, at nearly triple the monthly price of the Standard plan.

LifeLock pros:
  • Household name. Backed by a long history and familiar brand name..
  • Optional bundle with Norton 360. For an extra price, you can include cybersecurity protection from Norton.
  • Extensive threat scanning. Risk management software claims to scan “trillions of data points” daily for leaks.
  • Wide-ranging monitoring and alerts. Plans include SSN and identity, Dark Web, new account creation, and identity verification monitoring.
  • Child identity theft protection. Family plans include child credit file detection and insurance coverage.
LifeLock cons:

For an additional fee, you can also add Norton 360 to your LifeLock subscription, which includes antivirus software, a VPN, parental controls, and Cloud file backups (Windows PC only). 

LifeLock plans and pricing

LifeLock’s plan structure is complicated. There are multiple tiers for different levels of protection, plus add-ons for families, digital security tools, and stand-alone features.

Here’s a breakdown of LifeLock’s plans and pricing (as of June 2025):

LifeLock Standard LifeLock Advantage LifeLock Ultimate Plus
Annual price $89.99/year (renews at $124.99/year) $179.88/year (renews at $239.99/year) $239.88/year (renews at $339.99/year)
Monthly price $11.99/month $22.99/month $34.99/month
With Norton 360 $99.99/year (renews at $159.99/year) or $14.99/month Not available $299.99/year (renews at $364.99/year) or $34.99/month
Family plans $221.87/year (renews at $359.99/year) or $35.99/month $359.88/year (renews at $579.99/year) or $57.99/month $467.88/year (renews at $799.99/year) or $79.99/month

📚 Related: How Much Does LifeLock Really Cost? Read Before You Buy

How to cancel your LifeLock subscription

If you’re a current LifeLock member and are ready to switch to Aura, here’s how to cancel your LifeLock subscription:

  • Log in to your LifeLock account at https://memberportal.lifelock.com/ and select “Request Support” and then “Cancel.” 
  • Alternatively, you can contact LifeLock support to request an account cancellation — especially if your account renewed automatically against your wishes.
  • If you paid for bundled services (LifeLock + Norton 360), make sure that you’ve canceled all of your services. 
  • For annual subscriptions, you’re eligible for a full refund within 60 days of starting your LifeLock membership or 60 days from your membership renewal, as per LifeLock’s refund policy
  • For monthly subscriptions, you’re eligible for a full refund within 14 days of purchasing your membership.
🛡 Try award-winning identity theft protection — for free. Once your cancellation is complete (or even before), it’s easy to start a free 14-day trial of Aura.

Aura vs. LifeLock: In-Depth Feature Comparison

Aura is a strong contender for the top spot in this showdown. But the details matter when it comes to picking a service to protect your identity and finances. 

Here’s how Aura and LifeLock compare on each specific feature set:

Identity monitoring and protection

Marketing sites for identity theft protection providers can be vague or purposefully hide details. For example, every service lists “identity monitoring” as a protection feature — but the specifics of that feature can vary wildly.

Some providers only monitor passwords or your email address on the Dark Web, while others provide more robust monitoring of personally identifiable information (PII) across data breaches, public records, and more.

Both Aura and LifeLock include similar levels of identity monitoring that track your PII and alert you if anything is found. Where they differ is in how much information they monitor and where they look for leaks.

Aura LifeLock
Where they look: The Dark Web, data broker sites, public records, bank and investment accounts, online sites and forums, social media monitoring, payday loans, criminal and court records. The Dark Web, data broker sites, public records, bank and investment accounts, online sites and forums, social media monitoring, payday loans, criminal and court records, file sharing networks.
What they look for: Watchlist includes:
  • Name, date of birth, SSN, and address
  • 10 email addresses
  • 5 phone numbers
  • Driver's license
  • 2 passport numbers
  • 3 health insurance IDs
  • 40 credit and debit card numbers
Watchlist includes:
  • Name, date of birth, and SSN
  • 5 email addresses
  • 5 physical addresses
  • 5 phone numbers
  • 5 insurance ID numbers
  • 10 credit and debit card numbers
  • 10 gamer tags
What the alerts provide: Information on what happened, next steps, and whom to contact for help. Some alerts ask for confirmation of the activity or transaction, while Dark Web alerts don't need any action.

Final verdict: Aura may provide more detailed alerts, while LifeLock monitors a slightly wider area.

Three-bureau credit monitoring

Changes to your credit files can be among the earliest warning signs of identity fraud. Aura provides three-bureau credit monitoring on all plans, while this critical service is only available on LifeLock’s more expensive Ultra Plus plan. 

Aura LifeLock
Credit monitoring Three-bureau credit monitoring is included on all plans. Only one-bureau credit monitoring is included on Standard plans.
Credit scores Monthly three-bureau credit scoresare included on all plans (VantageScore 3.0). No credit reports or scores are included on Standard plans. Annual three-bureau credit reports and scores are included on higher-tier plans.
Alerts Alerts from all bureaus — up to 185x faster than Norton LifeLock3. No alerts from unmonitored credit files on Standard plans.

Final verdict: Only LifeLock's most expensive plans can compete with Aura when it comes to credit monitoring.

Financial account monitoring and alerts

Financial account monitoring tracks activity in your linked bank accounts as well as your credit card, investment, and retirement savings accounts, and warns you if someone is trying to steal your money or use your identity to make transactions that don’t get reported to the credit bureaus — such as payday loans. 

Again, Aura includes financial account monitoring and alerts on all plans, while LifeLock reserves this service only for its higher-priced plans. 

Aura LifeLock
Account monitoring All plans include monitoring of:
  • Credit cards
  • Checking and savings accounts
  • Investment accounts and 401(k)
  • Changes to banking information (such as name changes or new accounts)
Not included on Standard plans.
High-risk transaction alerts Included on every plan. Not included on Standard plans.
Unusual transaction alerts Yes — powered by artificial intelligence (AI). No — only included on the Ultimate Plus plan.

Final verdict: Aura provides powerful financial account monitoring on all plans, whereas LifeLock provides limited monitoring on its Standard plans. 

Identity theft insurance

If your identity is stolen, getting your life back to normal can be expensive. Identity theft insurance provides the funds that you’ll need to pay for recovery as well as recoup what you’ve lost — including stolen funds, lawyer fees, child or elder care, and more. 

Both Aura and LifeLock offer at least $1 million in coverage — but differ in how those funds can be used.

Aura LifeLock
Insurance amount $1 million for every adult member (up to $5 million total on family plans). Over $1 million on Standard plans ($3 million for every adult on some plans).
Stolen funds reimbursement Up to $1 million. $25,000 on Standard plans (up to $1 million on some plans).

Final verdict: LifeLock and Aura offer similar insurance policies, but the limited stolen funds coverage on LifeLock’s Standard plan may be an issue for some.

Data protection policies (and history)

Identity theft protection providers ask you to provide sensitive information when signing up and filling in your identity monitoring watchlist. This can include your SSN, credit card details, account passwords, and other information that you don’t want being shared, sold, or stolen.

  • Aura has a transparent privacy policy and clearly states it will never sell your data. Aura also has no history of data breaches, leaks, or other data security incidents.
  • Gen Digital (LifeLock’s parent company) states in its privacy policy that, “We may provide or share (as defined by the CCPA) your personal data, including the data about your interests in our Services, to third parties for the purposes of serving you more relevant ads about our Services.” LifeLock has also suffered multiple data security incidents, including a 2023 incident that compromised the accounts of up to one million LifeLock users.

Final verdict: Aura’s privacy policy and clean data security history make it a better choice for those concerned with keeping their sensitive information safe.

Customer support and fraud resolution 

Aura and LifeLock both advertise 24/7/365 support, plus White Glove remediation services for victims of fraud. 

The main difference is that all of Aura’s support agents are based in the United States, and Aura’s expert fraud remediation team holds Certified Identity Protection Advisor (CIPA)® certification.

In contrast, many LifeLock customers have complained about hard-to-reach overseas agents and frequent misunderstandings. 

Here’s an example of what one LifeLock customer recently wrote on third-party review site Trustpilot:

"Interestingly, the only way I could speak with a human agent was by pretending to be a new customer interested in signing up. Once I explained I was an existing customer, I was once again directed to the same verification process and robot."

Compared to a similar review of Aura:

"I contacted Aura support and they put me through to Deijah in the White Glove support team. In less than an hour we had all my credit alert history verified, locked down, and extra steps in play with their team to monitor my action and activity for the next 90 days."

Final verdict: Customer service stands out as one of Aura's greatest strengths.

Digital security for proactive protection

With Aura, online security features come standard on all plans — including antivirus, VPN, and a password manager. With LifeLock, you have to pay extra for a Norton 360 subscription to get any protection against hackers.

Aura LifeLock
VPN Military-grade VPN — to use on 10+ devices — is included with all plans. Only available with Norton 360 add-on.
Antivirus Professional antivirus software for Windows, Mac, and Android devices. Only available with Norton 360 add-on.
Password manager Built-in password manager is included with every plan. Only available with Norton 360 add-on.
Anti-track and ad-blocker Anti-track tools block distracting ads and intrusive site trackers. Only available with Norton 360 add-on.

Final verdict: When paired with the Norton add-on, LifeLock offers comparable digital security to Aura — but at a price.

Phishing protection

Phishing protection prevents scammers from stealing your information (and money) by blocking malicious websites, phone calls, and intrusive site trackers. 

Aura LifeLock
Safe Browsing Included in every plan: Ad and website blocker, site tracker. Anonymous browsing, ad-tracker blocker only available with Norton 360.
AI spam call and text blocker Available as an add-on with every plan (comes included with Aura’s family plans). Genie Scam Protection Pro AI assistant for suspicious websites and text messages.

Final verdict: LifeLock offers phishing protection with Norton 360, while Aura makes it a priority across all plans.  

Family safety and parental controls

Parental controls give parents peace of mind when their kids are online. These tools allow you to monitor your children's activity, control what they can access, and receive alerts about any concerning behavior. 

Both companies offer family plans that include some form of parental controls and child identity theft protection.

Aura LifeLock
Child identity theft protection Child SSN monitoring plus three-bureau credit freeze support. Child SSN monitoring plus child identity theft insurance.
Parental controls Content filtering and blocking, screen time limits, and online history. Content filtering, screen time limits, content monitoring, and device location history.
Cyberbullying alerts In-game chat monitoring, cyberbullying alerts, weekly gaming activity report. Not included.
Online balance Aura provides unique features designed in partnership with child psychologists to help you understand your child’s online behaviors and keep them healthy and happy. Not included.

Final verdict: While Aura offers more robust parental controls and child safety features, LifeLock includes identity theft insurance coverage for children. 

Online privacy 

Identity theft protection providers utilize various methods and tools to keep user data private, such as encrypting information with a VPN and helping users remove their personal information from data broker lists. 

Aura LifeLock
VPN Included on all plans. AES-128 encryption; doesn't log IP addresses, and anonymizes browsing data. Not included on Standard plans. Norton360 includes AES-256 encryption and no-logs for IP addresses and browsing history.
Data broker site removal Automatic data removal from up to 95 data brokers and people search sites. Not included on Standard plans.
Google search results removal Yes — Aura submits automatic removal requests to remove your sensitive information from Google search results. Not included.

Final verdict: Both providers include strong online privacy features, but Aura includes these with all plans, while LifeLock requires the Norton360 add-on to get these features. 

Pricing and plans

Identity theft protection isn't cheap — so you want to make sure you’re getting the best value for your money. While LifeLock advertises lower prices than Aura with the LifeLock Standard plan, it quickly becomes the more expensive option when you opt for comparable tools. 

You should also be aware of LifeLock’s renewal pricing model — which sees service costs increase drastically after your first year as a customer. 

Here’s how the total cost of LifeLock and Aura compare for plans offering similar services:

Plan Year 1 cost Year 2+ cost
LifeLock Ultimate Plus $239.88/year $339.99/year (a 42% increase)
Aura Individual $108/year $108/year (no price increases without notice)

Final verdict: LifeLock may seem like a more affordable option to begin with, but it quickly adds up when you try to get the same level of protection as provided by Aura. You can even save up to 68% on Aura when you sign up today.

Final Verdict: Which service is better overall?

Choosing an identity protection provider is a personal decision that only you can make. But there are a few key factors to consider as you decide between Aura and LifeLock.

The main difference between Aura and LifeLock is that Aura offers a comprehensive, all-in-one solution, whereas LifeLock requires upgrades and add-ons to reach the same level of coverage. 

Aura also offers enhanced features where it matters most — including more robust identity theft and credit monitoring, stronger data protection and online privacy features, and faster fraud alerts. 

Finally, you need a partner you can trust to protect your identity. LifeLock has been in trouble with the FTC in the past. Aura, however, has been consistently rated by third parties as one of the best identity theft protection services.

Decide if Aura is right for you — try it free for 14 days

Try Aura’s online safety features risk-free. If you don’t feel safer after signing up for Aura, we offer a 60-day money-back guarantee on all annual plans — no questions asked. See pricing.

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Editorial note: Our articles provide educational information for you to increase awareness about digital safety. Aura’s services may not provide the exact features we write about, nor may cover or protect against every type of crime, fraud, or threat discussed in our articles. Please review our Terms during enrollment or setup for more information. Remember that no one can prevent all identity theft or cybercrime.