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ConnectWise ScreenConnect vs Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

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

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Remote Access
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
240
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
ConnectWise ScreenConnect
Ranking in Remote Access
15th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Meetings (10th)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Remote Access
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.6%, down from 12.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ConnectWise ScreenConnect is 1.5%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 11.4%, down from 14.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
Everything has worked better since we started using it
Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.
Todd Blake - PeerSpot reviewer
Simple to set up, reasonable pricing, and useful remote control capabilities
I'm on the latest version of the solution. I just updated it yesterday. While we have the solution on-premises at this time, we'll likely move to the cloud later this year. They have a trial version that you can try. They have a free version that you can try as well. I use it myself to support my family. I would try the free version or the trial version depending on your business. They can set you up and you can get to see all the features. I would also advocate going to the cloud version. Don't bother with the on-prem. It's just easier to jump to the cloud. I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.
Terje Romen - PeerSpot reviewer
Accessing the same desktop experience from anywhere but user template creation needs improvement
Mostly we are quite happy with it. However, some of us want a more powerful desktop. When not present, we use a remote tool called Splashtop, which is a good solution for some users. We have about ten licenses for those who need a powerful workstation at the office. We have not used many different tools. We are never in contact with Microsoft. These are quite basic configurations, to be honest. It's not complicated. AI is coming to or is already in some applications we are using. Not system-wise, however, it might be good. I'd rate the solution seven out of ten. It's quite good, yet certainly not perfect.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Intune makes our organization more secure and flexible."
"Dynamic groups allow us to set conditions for automatic membership, eliminating the need for user intervention or manual review and ensuring a seamless workflow."
"Being able to manage the devices remotely is most valuable. We can push security requirements through Microsoft Intune."
"Implementing Microsoft Intune has provided a more streamlined and consistent method for device management across our multiple domains, effectively consolidating our administrative efforts."
"I rate Intune 10 out of 10."
"The most valuable feature for us is the security, including risk analysis and patch management."
"Intune can wipe devices. For example, if a disgruntled employee wants to leak the data on their company phone, Intune can terminate their access and wipe the entire device with a click."
"Everything has worked better since we started using Intune."
"Offers more security than TeamViewer, Google Remote Desktop, and Zoom. It's a stable, feature-rich solution that's easy to set up and easy to scale."
"It's very low maintenance."
"Valuable features include the responsiveness, ability to tune up and tune down the connection, and video."
"Remote connect via webpage. I use it to support employees when I am not in the office or when they are at a remote location."
"The product's two-factor authentication means we are not worried like before about the state of our security."
"Due to the fact that we can help our clients virtually, the solution has allowed us to reduce our travel costs by about 90%."
"You can bring up a command prompt remotely and execute commands without having to disturb the user."
"The remote management piece is the most valuable aspect of the solution for us due to the fact that we can support our clients after hours."
"The most valuable feature is performance."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is scalable."
"The solution is really fast."
"The solution now includes a multi-screen feature which is great."
"The solution is now stable."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is managing the remote desktop end user or remote server."
"The solution is stable."
"It's simple and easy to use."
 

Cons

"They should make it easier to order it, however, that's generally true for everything from Microsoft."
"There are a few security features that are not available in Microsoft Intune, when compared to other products."
"There are challenges with Intune, specifically in reporting. Many third-party companies offer single-pane-of-glass reporting that shows you what your update environment looks like, how your patch is doing, application status, etc., but Intune's reporting is not intuitive. You can connect to Azure, monitoring, and the workbooks, but it's not streamlined."
"Intune's server management could be better. If it could incorporate more features from System Center into Intune's Configuration Manager, it would be beneficial."
"No option to do end-to-en macOS management. Slow implementation of policies."
"The main disadvantage seen today is regarding Linux clients. We have a lot of development resources that have Linux on their clients, and we can't manage them on the same platform, as we do with other clients such as macOS and Windows. So, it should have support for Linux clients. It should also have better support for macOS."
"The pricing can be expensive if you are not combining it with other products."
"There is still a gap between SCCM and Intune, especially in the reporting, inventory, and software deployment areas."
"Reporting could definitely use improvement. With LogMeIn Rescue, I used to be able to, for instance, at the end of the month, pull off a report of every session. It was very simple... I could see the name that was typed in, the IP address to the computer that it was connected to, if it was running Windows... It just doesn't seem - there might be but I haven't found it - to be a way of pulling that information out of ConnectWise."
"We have had issues. We have had circumstances, for reasons we don't know, where the service will stop running, and when the service stops running that computer no longer becomes reachable. We haven't really seen that so much on desktops, but we have seen that happen quite frequently on server operating systems, Server 2008, Server 2012. You can install the product and then a week down the road it will just stop."
"Something that I would like to see in the future is mobile video streaming. They do provide audio conferencing, but seeing the problem makes it easier to solve the problem. If they had video streaming, if a client had a physical problem with something and I couldn't get remote access, the client could use his mobile phone to show me the problem. In these cases, even if a client's systems were down, I could help, so long as I had a mobile phone environment."
"At the moment, there's absolutely no specific feature that we actually need additionally since all the features that we need are available."
"Mobile interface."
"The recent redesign has made it slower and basically worthless."
"The solution is a little bit complicated when you want to implement it."
"There needs to be a way to run the agent without installing, like GoToAssist."
"I would say it's expensive as there similar products available for free."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could improve by having a better application for managing multiple sessions. There used to be one but they stopped supporting it."
"We are searching for a product with better remote access and remote sessions."
"Microsoft still has some really bad remote desktop appliance for Mac."
"Sometimes, the updates break the system."
"I would like to see a web-based interface, instead of client installation to refresh the UI through HTML."
"The reliability of the solution could improve."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is only available for the professional version of the Windows operating system. This restricts a lot of users. The feature should be available for all versions."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"There is a license needed for this solution and it is either included in one of the enterprise license agreements. Microsoft licensing is a mathematical institute, it could be quite complex. We tend to ask specialized organizations to research what the most profitable way it would be for us to use licenses in the organizations."
"I am satisfied with the pricing."
"While I can't provide insights from a business perspective, it's worth noting that the pricing may differ significantly, and the discount we received might not be reflective of standard business rates."
"Any bundle package, such as Security E3, covers multiple things, such as AAP, BitLocker, etc. If you go for them individually, they would be more expensive. Bundling makes the price more attractive and competitive."
"Even if they charge a premium, they aim to provide equal value."
"Microsoft Intune has a user-based subscription model. You can go for a monthly or a yearly payment."
"This cost is approximately $30 USD per user per month."
"If you're ever going to buy an Office 365 environment, then pricing is reasonable given all that it does, but if you're not, then you might find the pricing expensive."
"Make sure you have enough licensing for all the techs that you have."
"It is priced fairly."
"ConnectWise Control is not an overly expensive tool. Its pricing is reasonable."
"Good price and works well."
"We pay an annual licensing fee."
"We pay $85 per month for each user for a ConnectWise package with multiple solutions."
"Their licensing model is good, their pricing model is good, their service is good; bandwidth is excellent. They're consistent."
"Pricing is fair for Control and the licensing is simple."
"The solution is overly expensive."
"It's not an expensive solution."
"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable."
"The solution comes free with Microsoft Windows."
"The solution has a perpetual license and it is purchased upfront."
"I think that Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is expensive compared to Login solution."
"The solution has a pretty comparable pricing."
"I rate the price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services a three out of five."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
26%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
18%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ConnectWise Control?
I download the product for free with ConnectWise RMM's license.
What needs improvement with ConnectWise Control?
All the features provided by the product in terms of screen connectors have been good. There can be some complexities...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
I've never had an issue with it. I've always thought the pricing for RDS was reasonable.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
We would like configuration to be automatic and the price to be close to zero, however, that's not realistic. Everyon...
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
ConnectWise Control, ScreenConnect
Remote Desktop Services
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Jon Rosen Systems
Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Find out what your peers are saying about ConnectWise ScreenConnect vs. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
841,004 professionals have used our research since 2012.