Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

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

Citrix and Omnissa are both solutions in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category. Citrix is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.2, while Omnissa is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.3. Citrix holds a 8.9% mindshare in VD, compared to Omnissa’s 8.8% mindshare. Additionally, 92% of Citrix users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 88% of Omnissa users who would recommend it.
Horizon 8
Read 113 Horizon 8 reviews
  • 7,829 Views
  • 5,712 Comparison Views
88% willing to recommend
 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report
Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

Citrix DaaS and Horizon 8 are competing products in the virtual desktop infrastructure category. Citrix DaaS often has the upper hand due to its broader feature set and comprehensive management capabilities across diverse environments.

Features: Citrix DaaS offers comprehensive management features, flexibility across environments, and secure access from multiple devices. It is well-regarded for WAN optimization, user profiling, and efficient workload provisioning. Horizon 8 excels in seamless application management with embedded features, user-friendly setup, and tight integration with VMware environments.

Room for Improvement: Citrix DaaS struggles with complex Active Directory configurations and high costs due to licensing issues, along with occasional performance lags. Horizon 8 requires significant investment in training and can be costly, especially with licensing. Enhancements are needed for simplifying cross-platform usage and security improvements.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Citrix DaaS offers a mix of on-premises and cloud-based deployments, providing flexibility but sometimes leading to complexity. Its customer service is generally positive with some variability. Horizon 8 focuses on integration within VMware environments, receiving praise for technical support but needing more accessible resources.

Pricing and ROI: Citrix DaaS is viewed as expensive due to its complex licensing but promises long-term savings through reduced hardware costs. It targets extensive setups with a gradual ROI. Horizon 8 offers competitive but sometimes expensive pricing, contingent on scale of use, benefiting larger organizations more with its efficiencies and features.

DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE REPORT
To learn more, read our detailed Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8 Report (Updated: January 2025).
Buyer's Guide
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8
January 2025
Download the complete report
Helped 839,255 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
3rd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
125
Ranking in other categories
Application Virtualization (1st), Remote Access (5th), Desktop as a Service (DaaS) (1st)
Horizon 8
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
113
Ranking in other categories
User Virtualization (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 8.9%, down from 14.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Horizon 8 is 8.8%, down from 16.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

DavidWood1 - PeerSpot reviewer
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.
Read full review
Tim Abboud - PeerSpot reviewer
User-friendly, reasonably priced, and simple to install
It can be challenging to assess the stability of Horizon because it relies heavily on the underlying infrastructure, including vCenter, network, and storage performance. It is important to pay attention to these factors when evaluating the stability of the system. We rely on vCenter, network, and storage performance, and any weakness in these areas will affect the performance of Horizon. When discussing this with customers, I always emphasize the importance of these factors. If the foundation is solid, Horizon should not experience any performance issues. If the fundamentals are weak, we will encounter issues with Horizon on a regular basis. However, the product itself, VMware Horizon, is highly stable. While the Horizon product itself is very stable, it is important to be well-informed about any potential side effects from using other related products.
Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The service dash and Workspace Environment Manager service are good features."
"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 improvement in scalability. Managing multiple OSs centrally doesn't reduce many problems, and the product remains almost on par with its competitors like VMware Vue."
"The tool helps me to connect with some apps of our company and resolve the tickets."
"It provides all of the features required for the protection of data. For example, we don't want to allow any copy/paste of data to an outside environment, and we are able to restrict the VDI to not allow any data transfer from the VDI to the local laptop's hard drives. That is one of the greatest advantages the solution provides."
"The solution provides everything in one integrated platform. When it comes to monitoring their solution, it is really easy. We have all the information in one place so we can have the right information at the right moment. We can be proactive when it comes to dealing with performance, maintenance, and security issues."
"It has very good performance in delivering 3D applications over WAN."
"The ease of access and the confidentiality and security that it provides is what we like best."
"Before we adopted a VDI storage solution, our customers' personal information was leaked. This happened a lot. But since we adopted a VDI solution, these kinds of issues have happened rarely."
More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pros
"The solution's most valuable feature is low bandwidth consumption. It helps to improve user experience."
"It is easy to scale. I would rate the scalability a ten out of ten."
"VMware Horizon View is a stable solution."
"The app virtualizing is a great feature."
"sdfgdfg"
"The most valuable features are that it is easy to use and easy to manage."
"The initial setup is very simple."
"One of the most interesting features in the enterprise version is the ability to do some support. There is a feature for remote control and debugging, which is something we didn't have before having Horizon 7 and the enterprise version."
More Horizon 8 pros
 

Cons

"I think Citrix's support is good, but sometimes it is a little slow."
"It is not easy to set up."
"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 solution's technical support is not so good."
"Citrix Workspace can improve by being more secure, but this would apply to any solution not only Citrix Workspace."
"The product advances really fast. For some customers, we need better backwards compatibility."
"We would like to be able to provide VDI, a full desktop, to each of our users."
"The only thing we have found to be detrimental is when we have tried to find training. I realize that we're looking at it at the worst time possible, with a pandemic going on, but it seems that most of the training offered is learn-by-yourself online."
More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) cons
"We have limited capabilities since we are not using a multi-instance solution, just single instances. The solution underutilizes its capabilities."
"The solution is very expensive."
"There should be a function where one can connect and work; whenever not required, one can deprovision it."
"My deployment is complex and I hope it will only take a month."
"VMware Horizon View can improve by making it easier to use for first-time users. You should learn the whole concept of VMware to be able to use it."
"They need to make troubleshooting, diagnostics, and error reporting a little better."
"Areas for improvement in VMware Horizon 7 would be the logging and the troubleshooting, e.g. they could be made clearer."
"In VMware Horizon View, app volume is an area of concern where improvements are required."
More Horizon 8 cons
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops is an expensive solution."
"It's costly in the market. But it is not expensive for the company. For the company, it's relatively inexpensive because the core of the work is compensated with the price."
"If one is a high price and ten is a low price, I rate the tool's price a three."
"The solution is affordable."
"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."
"The Citrix license model has changed. It costs around $240 per user for a single username, but a concurrent license costs double."
"The Citrix licensing scheme is really straightforward and simple. It doesn't have hidden costs. You get what you pay for. It is easy to understand what is on the product, so it's simple to get a clear idea of how much it costs. Licensing is not an issue."
"The product, XenServer, is free to use, and XenApp has a one month free license."
More Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) pricing and cost advice
"The pricing can be relatively competitive, but sometimes you have to go back to VMware and ask for additional discounts. You can make it competitive If you're prepared to put in the work. The list prices and standard discounts may not be competitive, but if you push hard enough, you can get the price to where you need it to be."
"This solution is expensive. A lot of companies in Mexico find that the price is too high."
"There is a monthly subscription for the use of this solution and it is expensive."
"The solution is more expensive in comparison to Citrix but when comparing the technicalities VMware Horizon, is worth the money."
"The pricing depends on the use cases. It depends on the company's needs and budget. For us, it was okay, not too expensive."
"The license is very costly, as well as the renewal cost."
"Licensing and hardware outsourcing is expensive, but can be cost-effective in the three to five-year range."
"The pricing could be improved."
More Horizon 8 pricing and cost advice
report
See which vendors are best for you
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) solutions are best for your needs.
See recommendations
839,255 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user8922 - PeerSpot reviewer
Aug 23, 2013
Comparison of VMware View 5.2 VS Citrix XenDesktop 5.6
Recently I attended the VMware Partner Exchange 2013 and there was a session called “Technical Battleground – View VS XenDesktop”. In this post I will try and cover the differences that VMware showcased during their session and I am going to add an additional column for my comments and thoughts on…
Read full review
 

Answers from the Community

DD
Oct 26, 2021
Oct 26, 2021
VMware Horizon View vs Citrix XenApp: which is the better product and why?
I think VMware Horizon View is a very solid product. I think it is the most mature product on the whole spectrum. All virtual desktop environments require tuning for performance. Depending on the size of the company you don't need 1/10 of the bells & whistles that the vendors include. For example, I have a small environment - 70 employees. I don't use instant clones, personas, their analys...
See 2 answers
EB
Jun 29, 2021
Hi @Abbasi Poonawala, @David Grudek​, @Payman Maher​, @Michal Sadlik ​, @Tonatiuh Torres Zamorano ​ , @JacquesBodenstein, and @Dan Withrow. Can you help @Dante Dano ​with your professional experience? Thank you.
Read full answer
DR
Oct 26, 2021
I think VMware Horizon View is a very solid product.  I think it is the most mature product on the whole spectrum. All virtual desktop environments require tuning for performance. Depending on the size of the company you don't need 1/10 of the bells & whistles that the vendors include. For example, I have a small environment - 70 employees. I don't use instant clones, personas, their analysis tools, ... Not only are they expensive (the tools) they overly complicate a complicated process. KISS.  I have honed down the environment to what is just needed. Most of the industry will tell you otherwise. And I do all this as a one-man IT department. 
Read full answer
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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
How does VMware Workspace One compare with VMware Horizon 7?
VMware Workspace One has a powerful set of helpful features. The solution offers very good documentation, the initial setup is easy, and the product is very stable and reliable. I think the fact th...
See all answers
What do you like most about VMware Horizon 7?
VMware offers a friendly environment, and it's easy to provide the user with the package. It is a bundled solution that is readily deployable. The advantage lies in its simplicity, it requires mini...
See all answers
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Horizon 7?
We paid a lot of money for software that is not really fully operational out of the box. We had to have patches from VMware to get it into production. Hence, we lost a lot of time implementing the ...
See all answers
 

Comparisons

Azure Virtual Desktop vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) Logo
Azure Virtual Desktop vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)
Compared 25% of the time
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) Logo
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services 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) Logo
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) Logo
Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)
Compared 7% of the time
BeyondTrust Privileged Remote Access vs Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) Logo
BeyondTrust Privileged Remote Access 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
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Horizon 8 Logo
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Horizon 8
Compared 37% of the time
Workspace ONE UEM vs Horizon 8 Logo
Workspace ONE UEM vs Horizon 8
Compared 15% of the time
VMware Workstation vs Horizon 8 Logo
VMware Workstation vs Horizon 8
Compared 11% of the time
Horizon Cloud Service vs Horizon 8 Logo
Horizon Cloud Service vs Horizon 8
Compared 4% of the time
Sangfor aDesk VDI vs Horizon 8 Logo
Sangfor aDesk VDI vs Horizon 8
Compared 3% of the time
More Horizon 8 Competitors
 

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service)
March 2025
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) reportDownload Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) product report
Buyer's Guide
Horizon 8
January 2025
Horizon 8 reportDownload Horizon 8 product report
 

Also Known As

XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace
VMware Horizon, VMware Horizon View, Mware Dynamic Environment Manager
 

Interactive Demo

Citrix
Demo not available
Omnissa
 

Overview

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.

Citrix

VMware Horizon is a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) solution designed to allow users to create secure and scalable virtual desktops and applications that work on any device, from any location. These virtualization capabilities help simplify and speed up application delivery and greatly reduce enterprise costs.

VMware Horizon’s centralized management console provides IT admins with comprehensive control over all of their virtual desktops and applications, making them simple to manage and secure. The solution enables using features such as identity and access management, multi-factor authentication, and encryption, to ensure ultimate data protection.

VMware Horizon benefits:


Some of key the benefits of using VMware Horizon include:


  • Increased security: VMware Horizon includes multiple security features such as identity and access management, multi-factor authentication, and encryption, to ensure a high level of security and data privacy.


  • Compliance: Meet regulatory and compliance requirements by providing users with secure and controlled access to data and applications.


  • Reduced costs: By using VMware Horizon, organizations can reduce the costs associated with managing and maintaining physical desktops and applications, as well as reduce the costs associated with providing secure remote access to these resources.


  • Easy management: VMware Horizon provides IT administrators with a user-friendly centralized management system, making it easier and faster to manage and secure their virtual desktops and applications.


  • Enhanced user experience: Users are able to access their virtual desktops and applications from any device, and from any location. Work from any location, without being tied to a specific device or area.


VMware Horizon features:


Some of the top features of VMware Horizon include:


  • Virtual desktops: Create secure and scalable virtual desktops, with a choice of operating systems and settings.


  • Virtual applications: Create virtual applications that can be run from any device or operating system.


  • Central management: Control and manage virtual desktops and applications from a single pane of glass.

  • Quick duplications: Clone virtual machines and applications instantly.


  • Scalability: VMware Horizon can scale on demand to meet the needs of any business large or small.


  • Reporting and analytics: Gain insight into user activity and behavior with detailed analytics and reporting.


  • Security features and ID management: Ensure the security and privacy of data with a wide variety of security features, including encryption, multi-factor authentication, single sign-on (SSO), and network security.


  • Seamless integration: VMware Horizon integrates easily with other VMware solutions, including VMware vSphere, VMware NSX, and VMware Workspace ONE.


Reviews from Real Users

VMware Horizon stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Several major ones are its high performance, flexibility, and powerful virtualization capabilities.

Natnael A., a consultant at IWM Network Solutions, writes, “The app virtualizing is a great feature. The system developers use it to deliver apps to targeted staff. It basically reduces the server infrastructure resource. The solution provides good functionality.”

Rob M., a systems administrator at Saint Tammany Parish Hospital, says, “The solution has provided flexibility by allowing an end user to remote in, log in, and get their VM. VDI session and have all the icons and applications they need to use and retain the same booking view regardless of location.”

Omnissa
 

Sample Customers

Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval
LCMC Health
Buyer's Guide
Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8
January 2025
Free Report: Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8 and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
DOWNLOAD NOW
839,255 professionals have used our research since 2012.
See our Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Horizon 8 report.
See our list of best Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) vendors.

We monitor all Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.