Amazon WorkSpaces vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) comparison

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Citrix are both solutions in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category. Amazon Web Services (AWS) is ranked #8 with an average rating of 8.2, while Citrix is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.0. Amazon Web Services (AWS) holds a 0.7% mindshare in VD, compared to Citrix’s 8.7% mindshare. Additionally, 93% of Amazon Web Services (AWS) users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 92% of Citrix users who would recommend it.

Amazon WorkSpaces

Read 16 Amazon WorkSpaces reviews

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448 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...

Read 124 Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) reviews

9,361 Views
5,835 Comparison Views

92% willing to recommend

Amazon WorkSpaces

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

Citrix DaaS and Amazon WorkSpaces compete in the desktop virtualization space. Citrix DaaS appears to have the upper hand due to its richer feature set and advanced performance protocols.

Features: Citrix DaaS offers quick provisioning, WAN optimization, and secure access to virtual desktops on various devices. It enhances performance through ICA and HDX protocols, offering superior results on low-bandwidth connections. Amazon WorkSpaces provides reliable cloud-based desktop deployment with seamless integration and ease of use, emphasizing security.

Room for Improvement: Citrix DaaS struggles with setup complexity and a confusing licensing model, along with integration challenges with third-party applications. Amazon WorkSpaces could improve in video conferencing capabilities and VPN stability, with both needing pricing structure enhancements.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Citrix DaaS supports on-premises, hybrid, and public cloud setups, offering flexibility but posing deployment challenges. Technical support satisfaction varies. Amazon WorkSpaces, with its focus on public cloud simplicity, is noted for responsive customer service despite occasional support speed issues.

Pricing and ROI: Citrix DaaS is costly due to features like XenApp and XenDesktop but offers potential long-term savings via reduced hardware costs and stronger security. Amazon WorkSpaces provides more budget-friendly pricing, though perceived as expensive, with ROI dependent on cloud service savings and operational continuity.

To learn more, read our detailed Amazon WorkSpaces vs. Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) Report (Updated: November 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Amazon WorkSpaces vs. Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

November 2024

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Categories and Ranking

Amazon WorkSpaces

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

8th

Ranking in Desktop as a Service (DaaS)

2nd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

3rd

Ranking in Desktop as a Service (DaaS)

1st

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

124

Ranking in other categories

Application Virtualization (1st), Remote Access (5th)

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Amazon WorkSpaces is 0.7%, down from 1.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 8.7%, down from 14.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

Featured Reviews

Bhaskar Rao

Network manager admin at Yamaha

Management console is very easy to use, readily available infrastructure and easy to scale

It's very stable. There is a big difference between traditional physical servers and cloud servers. With physical servers, we need to plan for purchasing, procurement, capacity, storage, get quotations, and then procure them. That took some time. Maybe it would take more than one month or maybe two months to procure and then install. With AWS, it is readily available. Just pay and immediately create the VPC, network, and everything. It is very easy. Within two or three hours, we can implement any server or launch any application. Within five minutes, we can just spin up and publish our servers on the Internet.

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DavidWood1

Senior Infrastructure Engineer at a retailer with 10,001+ employees

Flexible Deployment, reliable performance, and fast transmission speeds

Provisioning Server is a fantastic option for image management in Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops. It offers excellent performance and reliability. On the other hand, while Machine Creation Services can be scaled easily, they can significantly increase storage consumption. For instance, creating a Windows 10 image in MCS typically requires at least 80 GB of storage, in addition to any separate disks needed. To store changes made by users in Machine Creation Services, the differencing disk must be equal in size to the base disk, leading to significant storage consumption. On the other hand, Provisioning Server uses image versioning, creating a new image version every time it's modified. As a result, virtual machines streamed from the server revert to their original state after a reboot, which is similar to their state during the first boot. Using the provisioning server, I start by configuring a virtual machine with either a 2016 or 2019 server operating system. I install the necessary Citrix client provisioning server target device software, followed by installing the required applications. After that, I capture the entire configuration to a file share. The image is then streamed from the file share to the hypervisor, which can handle multiple machines. In some large-scale deployments, we have used a single image to provision thousands of servers. Once the image is captured and stored on the file share, it is set to read-only mode, and any changes made to it are not accepted until it is put in read-write mode. When a virtual machine is rebooted, it returns to its previous state before the changes were made. This feature can be beneficial in situations like a virus outbreak, where a simple reboot of the virtual machines can remove any malicious code or changes. A provisioning server offers a faster recovery time from a bad change and is generally faster than machine creation services. With the provisioning server, changes are not accepted until the read-write mode is enabled, and if a virus outbreak occurs, rebooting the machines restores them to the previous state. On the other hand, machine creation services' speed is dependent on the storage's speed, and recovery time from a bad change can take longer, especially with a large number of devices. If a bad change is made with machine creation services, the replication process can take a while to revert, whereas, with a provisioning server, all machines can be rebooted quickly. Within thirty minutes, I can restore my system to its previous state using the provisioning server.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"They maintain it and manage it very well."

"The infrastructure is readily available, with minimal latency, which each user can benefit from."

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"Amazon WorkSpaces is very fast."

"The best feature is that it operates very quickly. It depends on the regional location. If we choose a nearby location, nearby servers, it will be best for users to use."

"It has good speed and connects well with computers."

"The best thing about Amazon WorkSpaces is the security it provides."

"The experience is seamless and there is no delay. The performance is very good. Initial startup times is a little bit of wait time, but it is bearable."

More Amazon WorkSpaces pros

"Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops is a stable solution."

"This is a very stable solution which you can feel confident using."

"The basic virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) feature is most valuable. We were lucky to have it in place when the pandemic hit. It is used very heavily now."

"The product is stable."

"The most valuable feature is the seamless application edition with the low-level network bandwidth because we have between 10 and 15 sites in France with a low level of communication needs. We need to deploy our main application, the ERP system, and we needed an efficient solution to provide a solution to the remote sites, with very small links between the data center and the remote site."

"Citrix Workspace allows you to work in a remote environment and gives you data security."

"Centralization and security are the most valuable features of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops."

"Getting access to the applications for which we otherwise have to be on-site is probably the biggest advantage"

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pros

Cons

"The product needs to improve its pricing. It should also improve corporate identity management and single sign-on."

"Amazon WorkSpaces needs to improve on releasing the most number of patches immediately as quickly as possible. And they need to enable more USB options to connect a mobile phone to that particular workspace."

"Configuration was a bit complicated at first but manageable."

"The initial setup was somewhat difficult."

"The solution lacks a shadow mode option, and it needs to have it."

"There is always scope of improvement in the stability."

"An area that could be improved is it could work better on VPN."

"The agent sometimes has connectivity issues, but otherwise, it's good."

More Amazon WorkSpaces cons

"The user profiles could use some improvement."

"I have to re-enter my user password when I am not using the tool for some time around ten minutes. I want to also improve the need to download other Citrix apps."

"The visibility the solution provides across SaaS, hybrid, and multi-cloud environments, for user and application traffic, is also limited if you do not enable all the services and is based on which services you are utilising. Citrix provides end-to-end visibility based on their services you are utilising."

"Tech support can be slow if you do not receive help from the US representatives."

"Templating the deployment process could use improvement. When you start, there are a large number of details that are quite client-specific, although they do share common themes. To get somebody up and running in a day is very difficult to do. They should streamline by use case."

"The application is now very complex. We started with Citrix on PCs. Now, to access the same application, we need to have a StoreFront Server, the Delivery Controller, and Citrix License Server. It's now very complex."

"If anything could be improved, it might be some of the Director functionality, and some of the dashboard customization, or the overall Director customization."

"I would like to see simplification in the management of the on-prem infrastructure component of Citrix DaaS, particularly in the studio tool used to manage the DaaS infrastructure."

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Price-wise Amazon Workspaces is cheaper than most services available."

"I think that the price can be lower. We have cases where the customer needs to have lower costs. So since we don't have options, like, shadow mode, they need to decrease pricing or have other models for reduced pricing."

"They have hourly and monthly pricing, and because our use case is, more of a sporadic use, so I go for hourly pricing. Again, the details of the pricing is handled by the procurement. From an end user perspective, pay as you use hourly is suitable"

"It is very expensive."

"The solution is not very cheap and it is not too pricey."

"There are several different options available, but it can range anywhere from $85 to $150 a month per machine."

"The bundle works out to be approximately $20.00 per month."

"The tool's pricing depends on company turnover and the organization's relationship with Amazon. I rate it a six out of ten."

More Amazon WorkSpaces pricing and cost advice

"The licenses are affordable, but the support is a bit expensive, though worth the value."

"It is quite expensive, but so are the competitors on the market."

"The price of Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops is approximately $300 for the new version called Dash and the license is approximately $900 annually."

"We recouped 60 to 70 percent of the hardware costs."

"We're paying for a standard license and, in my view, the price is too high. I would be satisfied with it if it were reduced by about 20-30%. Right now, I would rate the pricing a five out of ten."

"You can buy an on-cloud or on-prem license. You can switch between on-cloud users and on-prem users. Its licensing is cheap. It is from $8 to $15 per user. It is not that expensive when you compare the cost of buying new hardware with the cost of the license. For example, at $15 per user, it costs around $180 for a year, which is cheaper than buying a $600 PC that at a certain stage, you will again have to change because its hardware is not supported. It may also get damaged or stolen. So, you can compare the cost of the actual hardware that you have to buy and the time spent in supporting the clients with the cost of its license."

"Citrix is a mid-range cost solution compared to some others out there."

"The tool is expensive."

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Government

11%

Financial Services Firm

Educational Organization

Computer Software Company

15%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon WorkSpaces?

Performance and scalability are valuable features.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon WorkSpaces?

The pricing is based on consumption. You pay for each process based on the transactions you make. The investment is almost the same as having your own on-premises solution, with the added costs of ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Amazon WorkSpaces?

There is always scope of improvement in the stability.

See all answers

What do you like most about Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

My focus has primarily been on publishing virtual applications.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?

I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. Although it works well on the apps side, the desktop aspect still has room for i...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 13% of the time

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Compared 9% of the time

Horizon Cloud Service vs Amazon WorkSpaces

Compared 7% of the time

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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

Compared 13% of the time

Horizon 8 vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

Compared 10% of the time

Amazon Appstream vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

Compared 9% of the time

Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

Compared 9% of the time

Nerdio vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

Compared 4% of the time

More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Amazon WorkSpaces

December 2024

Download Amazon WorkSpaces product report

Buyer's Guide

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

December 2024

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) report

Download Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) product report

Also Known As

WorkSpaces

Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops, XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace

Learn More

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

Citrix

Overview

Amazon WorkSpaces is a fully managed desktop-as-a-service (DaaS) solution provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS). It allows users to access a virtual desktop environment in the cloud from various devices, including laptops, tablets, and thin clients.

With Amazon WorkSpaces, users can have a complete desktop experience with their familiar applications and data, while the underlying infrastructure and management tasks are handled by AWS. The virtual desktops provided by Amazon WorkSpaces are persistent, meaning that user data and settings are retained even when disconnected from the virtual desktop.

Amazon WorkSpaces Features:

Desktop Experience: Provides a complete Windows or Linux desktop experience for users.
Device Flexibility: Accessible from various devices such as computers, tablets, and thin clients.
Managed Service: AWS manages infrastructure, updates, patches, and backups.
Flexible Scaling: Easily scale the number of virtual desktops based on needs.
Security and Compliance: Built-in security features and compliance capabilities.
Cost-Effective: Pay-as-you-go pricing model for optimized cost management.
Integration with AWS Services: Seamlessly integrates with other AWS services.
User Profile Management: Supports saving and applying user-specific settings.
Application Compatibility: Supports a wide range of applications.

Amazon WorkSpaces Benefits:

Flexible Accessibility: Users can access their virtual desktops from various devices, providing flexibility and mobility.
Simplified Management: AWS manages the underlying infrastructure, reducing the burden of desktop management for organizations.
Scalability: Easily scale the number of virtual desktops up or down based on business needs, accommodating workforce changes.
Enhanced Security: Built-in security features and compliance capabilities ensure data protection and regulatory compliance.
Cost Savings: Pay-as-you-go pricing eliminates upfront infrastructure costs, allowing organizations to optimize their desktop infrastructure expenses.
Integration with AWS Services: Seamlessly integrate with other AWS services for enhanced functionality and capabilities.
User-Friendly Experience: Offers a familiar desktop environment with customizable settings and application compatibility.

Reviews from Real Users

Sachin Narvekar, IT-IS LEAD at Tata Consultancy, writes that "Amazon WorkSpaces is a virtual desktop platform. So, instead of having your laptops, and desktops, you can have your data on the cloud.”, he also adds, "Security, streaming, faster performance, scalability, and the fact that it is very much cost-effective, are some of the solution's valuable features."

Ravi-Bhardwaj, Manager at Ravi RITS Enterprice, states that “The solution has improved the organization because now any user who doesn't have a corporate laptop can connect to the system, security is still high, and it uses very low bandwidth.”

Enable secure, flexible work with the leader in virtual apps and desktops

Deliver desktop as a service (DaaS) from any cloud or datacenter

Get started with Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) in minutes to provide a familiar, high-performance digital workspace experience to your users. We’ll manage the infrastructure and security. You focus on your business.

Sample Customers

GrubHub, Endemol Shine Nederland, CMC Property Services

Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval

Buyer's Guide

Amazon WorkSpaces vs. Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

November 2024

Free Report: Amazon WorkSpaces vs. Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)

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