Best Identity Theft Protection Services of 2027

What separates the best identity theft protection services?

Seven services, one test identity each, six seeded events. The scores come from what got caught, how fast, and what happens after a breach.

Aura leads at 8.8 for $144. It caught all six seeded events, with a credit inquiry alert in 14 minutes, and carries $1 million in stolen-funds coverage on every plan. Its family plan covers five adults and unlimited kids. The app is busy, and the bundled antivirus and VPN are adequate rather than best-in-class.

Norton LifeLock Ultimate Plus scores 7.9 at $239.99, renewing at about $349.99 a year. A restoration specialist took our test case end to end with limited power of attorney, and it caught 6 of 6 events. The standard plan monitors one bureau and reimburses $25,000.

Zander and IDShield both score 7.8. Zander starts at $75 and runs $105, with $1 million stolen-funds reimbursement and unlimited restoration by dedicated specialists, but caught 4 of 6 and monitors one bureau on Elite. IDShield costs $179.40, uses licensed private investigators with LegalShield lawyers, and caught 5 of 6 — its court record alert took four days.

Identity Guard (7.4, $239.99) caught 6 of 6 on Ultra with three-bureau monitoring; its Value tier at $89.99 covers dark web, SSN and bank monitoring with $1M expense insurance. Experian IdentityWorks (6.9, $299.88) logged the fastest credit inquiry alert in the test at 9 minutes. DeleteMe (5.3, $129) is different: it removed our seeded broker profile and 61 others in the first scan, but has no credit, dark-web or account monitoring, and no insurance or restoration.

What should I check before buying identity theft protection?

Scoring weights monitoring and alerts at 30, restoration and insurance at 25, value at 20, tools at 15, family and ease at 10. Match that to your risk.

• Bureau coverage: three-bureau monitoring on Aura, LifeLock Ultimate Plus, Identity Guard Ultra and Experian; one bureau on Zander Elite and LifeLock's standard plan.
• Restoration: unlimited specialists at Zander, licensed PIs at IDShield, a named specialist at LifeLock.
• Insurance: $1 million stolen-funds coverage at Aura, Zander and LifeLock's top plan; $25,000 on LifeLock's standard plan.
• Renewal price: LifeLock renews at about $349.99 a year; Zander starts at $75.
• What you actually need: DeleteMe handles data-broker removal only — no monitoring, no insurance.

Aura

Best for households wanting monitoring, insurance and security tools in one plan.

Norton LifeLock Ultimate Plus

Best for anyone who wants a restoration specialist to handle the case end to end.

Zander

Best for budget buyers who want $1 million in stolen-funds coverage and unlimited restoration.

IDShield

Best for people who want licensed investigators and legal backing on the fix-it side.

Identity Guard

Best for a cheap monitoring-only tier or three-bureau coverage on Ultra.

Experian IdentityWorks

Best for bureau-direct reports, FICO scores and a free tier.

DeleteMe

Best for removing yourself from data-broker sites, not for credit monitoring.

Aura suits households that want monitoring, $1 million in stolen-funds coverage and security tools in one plan. Zander suits budget buyers who want unlimited restoration and $1 million in coverage from $75, while IDShield suits anyone who wants licensed investigators and legal backing. If your only concern is data-broker listings, DeleteMe does that job and nothing else.