Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs VMware Fusion Pro comparison

Microsoft and Broadcom are both solutions in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category. Microsoft is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.4, while Broadcom is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.8. Microsoft holds a 6.1% mindshare in VD, compared to Broadcom’s 8.6% mindshare. Additionally, 88% of Microsoft users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Broadcom users who would recommend it.

Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...

Read 91 Microsoft Remote Desktop Services reviews

8,638 Views
4,060 Comparison Views

88% willing to recommend

VMware Fusion Pro

Read 9 VMware Fusion Pro reviews

8,227 Views
8,227 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...

VMware Fusion Pro

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services and VMware Fusion Pro are solutions competing in the remote access and virtualization space. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services offers superior centralized management and remote accessibility, while VMware Fusion Pro stands out for its versatility in virtual machine operations.

Features: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services supports independent and secure remote sessions with centralized management and easy software access. It performs well even with low bandwidth and integrates seamlessly with Windows. VMware Fusion Pro is known for smooth virtual machine operations on Macs, along with powerful snapshot and cloning capabilities, ensuring efficiency and seamless integration.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services may experience network lag and dependency on VPNs, with challenges in automating application installations across RDS farms. VMware Fusion Pro needs enhancement in resource optimization and cloud-related features, alongside improving its command line interface and API interactions.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services offers flexible deployment options both on-premises and in the cloud, though it relies on strong network quality. Users report variability in support experiences. VMware Fusion Pro focuses mainly on-premises deployment with high reliability, leading to fewer support inquiries.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services employs a CAL licensing model, with potentially higher costs for user CALs but no charge for personal Windows use. The ROI varies. VMware Fusion Pro requires purchase but its pricing reflects the value provided by its features. Compared to Microsoft, VMware offers more predictable costs alongside its feature set.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Fusion Pro Report (Updated: April 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Fusion Pro

April 2026

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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 Remote Desktop Se...

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

5th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Remote Access (3rd)

VMware Fusion Pro

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

3rd

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

5.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 6.1%, up from 6.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Fusion Pro is 8.6%, down from 25.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
VMware Fusion Pro	8.6%
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services	6.1%
Other	85.3%

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

Featured Reviews

reviewer2795433

Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees

Secure remote access has protected sensitive country data and supports strict compliance needs

I understand from the IT team managing Microsoft Remote Desktop Services that it is complex to set up the multiple roles, certificates, and networks required. Networking is quite complicated. Even though on the data center side it is quite simple, maintaining the farm of other connections that connect to that server is the complex piece. I understand there are more modern systems replicating what this solution does, which are easier to use, such as Azure Virtual Desktop within Microsoft Azure Cloud or Amazon WorkSpaces, which I have used before. Rather than having to manage all the complex networking, you could abstract it away a little further in the cloud for easier use. I also understand that this tool is in an end-of-life state now, with Microsoft actively pushing people towards Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365. I do not believe further features will be rolled out due to its end-of-life state, making it a legacy solution now.

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Bruce Lundberg

Linux HPC Systems Administrator at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees

Create custom virtual environments quickly with minor macOS integration issues

The primary advantage of VMware Fusion Pro is its simplicity in creating custom virtual machines. It allows quick construction and provides connectivity to full VMware server systems, enabling remote management. It facilitates downloading images from main VMware servers for local testing. The ability to construct a virtual environment on my laptop meets my needs, even ones I wasn't aware of.

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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

"The installation of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services was easy."

"The solution is rock solid; it’s stable and reliable, there are no bugs or glitches, and it doesn’t crash or freeze."

"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is stable and reliable."

"The most valuable feature is the ease of use."

"The most valuable part of RDS is that it allows you to work from any location and check the server through a VPN connection."

"The simplicity of the product has been most valuable to me."

"It's stable, fast, compatible, and quite reliable."

"Everything is really good and it works well."

More Microsoft Remote Desktop Services pros

"It is a highly stable solution."

"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."

"My advice right now would be to download it for free and use that instead of a VirtualBox or some of the other free stuff because it is more flexible than other solutions."

"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."

"The most important feature of VMware Fusion is that it helps me rapidly launch a new OS."

"Veeam Backup and Replication is the common product for backing up virtual machines."

"The whole point of it is to run Windows VMs on a Mac. This is the most valuable feature. There is snapshotting, but we don't really use that. The Pro version allows me to actually attach to the Windows ESXi infrastructure at the backend, and I'm able to create a session that I can attach to the VMware hooks at the backend, so one is running a VM, and the whole operating system is running on the actual Mac. The other one is literally a frontend to the VMs that are running in the infrastructure at the backend. These are the two main features I use."

"For me, VMware Fusion Pro has been invaluable, allowing me to meet all my needs with a single system."

More VMware Fusion Pro pros

Cons

"The solution should have better security."

"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could improve by allowing the sharing of the office application. For example, the ability to replace a PC when something is wrong."

"In the next release, I would like to see better performance over slower networks, and integration with Linux, but this is something that we're going to get out of Microsoft in terms of a unified solution."

"I would say it's expensive as there similar products available for free."

"From the perspective of an IT professional, Microsoft Remote Desktop is very easy to use. However, it could be made easier to use for the end user, especially when it comes to activating it."

"We have used Citrix previously and it is more stable but it's a more expensive platform."

"The performance depends on connectivity."

"The initial setup of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could be a bit simpler, as it is kind of tricky sometimes and there is not much good documentation mentioning all use cases or errors, which would be great if provided."

More Microsoft Remote Desktop Services cons

"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."

"Fusion is not meant to be scalable. It runs on desktops and laptops, indicating limitations in scalability."

"Additionally, enhancing the API interactions could improve the ability to manage VS and deploy various kinds of guests."

"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations."

"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations. This is a minor inconvenience."

"Its installation process could be simpler."

"The backups for the VMs themselves can also be improved. I pretty much have to rely on Windows backups and not something on VMware."

"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."

More VMware Fusion Pro cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I am aware that for Azure we do have an extra license because we are leveraging on different tenants."

"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable. The solution can come for free for some clients with certain agreements."

"I would say it's expensive as there similar products available for free."

"I recall that you don't need to pay for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services because that's included in Windows."

"The cost is fair."

"We do not have to pay for the product."

"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable."

"The solution is overly expensive."

More Microsoft Remote Desktop Services pricing and cost advice

"The cost varies depending on the season and whether it is scaled up or scaled down, but I would guess that it's approximately $1,000 per month."

"I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced."

"Starting with version 12, it is now free on a Mac for personal use. Fusion Pro has a cost."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

11%

Computer Software Company

Comms Service Provider

Government

Comms Service Provider

16%

University

13%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	45
Midsize Enterprise	16
Large Enterprise	36

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	2
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	4

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?

The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that the pricing is based on licensing costs and the setup is complex.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services can be improved in several areas. Currently, it requires a license cost, it has performance limits on shared resources with bottlenecks, the setup is complex, and ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?

Our main use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is to allow multiple users to remotely access our Windows machine, desktop, or application over the internet and our network.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Fusion?

The pricing of VMware Fusion Pro is reasonable. The licensing covers all minor version updates, while major updates require payment every three years. Buying it once can sustain you for years witho...

See all answers

What needs improvement with VMware Fusion?

In future updates of VMware Fusion Pro, I think there should be another community to input features. It is an infrastructure tool that may need embedding some AI to help or catching up with the new...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for VMware Fusion?

My specialty is about IBM AS/400 applications, so I got to be in contact with several packages, including LX, which is why I had this research on your website.I'm mostly interested in ERP packages;...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 6% of the time

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Compared 5% of the time

VMware Workstation vs Microsoft Remote Desktop Services

Compared 5% of the time

Amazon WorkSpaces vs Microsoft Remote Desktop Services

Compared 2% of the time

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Compared 56% of the time

Parallels Desktop vs VMware Fusion Pro

Compared 22% of the time

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs VMware Fusion Pro

Compared 7% of the time

Workspace ONE UEM vs VMware Fusion Pro

Compared 4% of the time

Horizon 8 vs VMware Fusion Pro

Compared 4% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services

May 2026

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services report

Download Microsoft Remote Desktop Services product report

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

May 2026

Download VMware Fusion Pro product report

Also Known As

Remote Desktop Services

No data available

Overview

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services provides secure, seamless access to remote applications with cross-platform compatibility and centralized management, enhancing productivity and resource sharing in Windows environments.

The robust security features of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services enable efficient data handling and user support across devices. With a focus on remote application access, scalability, and ease of use, this solution integrates effortlessly with Windows environments. It offers centralized management, facilitating smooth IT operations. However, there is potential for improving interface intuitiveness and setup simplicity. Addressing keyboard compatibility with macOS, network connectivity challenges, and security vulnerabilities could enhance the user experience. Optimization for performance on slower networks and clearer license management would further benefit users.

What are the key features of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?

Robust Security: Ensures data remains secure on servers.
Seamless Remote Application Access: Provides smooth access to applications remotely.
Cross-Platform Compatibility: Supports multiple devices and operating systems.
Centralized Management: Simplifies IT resource management.
Ease of Use: Facilitates setup and offers excellent accessibility.

What benefits should users look for in reviews?

Increased Productivity: Enables efficient resource sharing and task management.
Enhanced Flexibility: Improves performance through remote access.
Scalability: Allows for easy management of growing resources.
Secure Access: Protects sensitive data and client applications.

In numerous industries, Microsoft Remote Desktop Services supports remote server management, virtual desktops, and application virtualization. Organizations use it for collaboration, secure data handling, and accessing critical resources across different locations. It aids in troubleshooting, ensuring secure connections to client applications and facilitating testing and support for multiple users in diverse environments.

Microsoft

VMware Fusion Pro allows Mac users to run Windows virtual machines, leveraging its interface with Windows ESXi infrastructure. The platform is user-friendly, enabling efficient OS launches and providing snapshot and cloning capabilities for a stable experience.

VMware Fusion Pro empowers Mac users with robust virtualization capabilities, including the ability to run Windows VMs and interface seamlessly with Windows ESXi infrastructure. The platform is noted for its rapid custom VM construction and remote management through full VMware server systems. Despite its advantages, users indicate areas for improvement, particularly in snapshotting, backup processes, and resource demands. Compatibility with operating systems and integration with macOS are additional concerns, with enhancements in security, cloud functionality, and API interface desired. Installation complexity and command-line interface improvements are also highlighted by users.

What are the key features of VMware Fusion Pro?

Windows VM Support: Runs Windows virtual machines on Mac efficiently.
ESXi Infrastructure: Interfaces with Windows ESXi for seamless operations.
Snapshot & Cloning: Allows creating backups and clones of virtual machines easily.
Custom VM Construction: Enables rapid development of custom VMs tailored to needs.
Network Simulations: Supports network setup simulations for testing and development.
Remote Management: Connects to full VMware server systems for comprehensive management.

What benefits or ROI can users expect from VMware Fusion Pro?

Cost-Efficiency: Reduces infrastructure costs through effective virtualization.
Stability: Offers a stable platform for running various operating systems.
Versatility: Accommodates different networking and testing configurations.
Resource Efficiency: Optimizes existing computing resources for performance improvements.
User Experience: Provides a user-friendly interface for easy navigation and management.

VMware Fusion Pro is widely implemented for running Windows on Mac, managing networking servers, and testing on Apple laptops. It is used by developers and system administrators for creating virtual environments, while users in industries such as networking and software development utilize it for building test machines, evaluating software, and managing ERP packages on IBM AS/400 systems. The solution is preferred for virtualization tasks in sectors requiring robust, reliable tools that support both Mac and Windows environments seamlessly, supporting script writing and general virtual machine management.

Broadcom

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd.

NetApp

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Fusion Pro

April 2026

Free Report: Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Fusion Pro

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