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

Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs VMware Workstation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 12, 2025

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
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (2nd)
VMware Workstation
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 6.5%, down from 14.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Workstation is 17.0%, up from 13.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Shambhu Narayan  Singh - PeerSpot reviewer
An easy-to-manage solution that has really good customer support compared to other market players
VMware Workstation makes it easy to manage all the resources that we are handling. VMware Workstation has reduced our infrastructure cost. If someone wants machines, I can create them easily using the solution. VMware Workstation is easier to manage than other workstations like Oracle Workstation. VMware Workstation is an easy-to-manage solution, and its support is really good compared to other market players. Overall, I rate VMware Workstation an eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is the ability to remote into a system that is not on-premises."
"The installation is straightforward."
"We use it to connect to the legacy system."
"The product's initial setup phase was easy."
"The most valuable feature is that it gives me full accessibility to my servers."
"The solution works well as a remote desktop."
"The most valuable feature is the remote application access."
"The solution performs well and is easy to use."
"VMware Workstation’s most valuable feature is virtualization technology."
"The product works well."
"VMware Workstation allows multiple operating systems in the same physical machine."
"VMware Workstation allows you to run a virtual machine."
"Technical support is very good."
"VMware Workstation’s most valuable features are backup and data transfer from one server to another."
"VMware Workstation is easy to manage and understand."
"The initial setup is simple and takes only five minutes to complete."
 

Cons

"There could be some improvement in the integration of the solution."
"There have been some network issues in the solution. So, when we used to connect it, the solution suddenly got disconnected. So the network part needs to be improved."
"The solution is unsuitable for direct external internet connections. You must set up a VPN and password handling to use it."
"We find the services are not as transparent as we would like for our integration with Citrix."
"In a future release, they could improve by providing more advanced technology and better buffering for if the connection is degraded or lost."
"We would like configuration to be automatic and the price to be close to zero, however, that's not realistic."
"Sometimes difficult to set up without the requirement for login credentials each time."
"The product is not very scalable."
"The GUI interface could be improved."
"The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
"The network configuration was not as easy as it could be and could take less time."
"VMware Workstation could improve the export and import of virtual machines."
"I need to buy a newer version of the tool to support Windows Server."
"They could add more integration between them, and compatibility with the standard virtualization format."
"The price of VMware Workstation could improve."
"Its networking features need improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The pricing is moderate."
"The tool's pricing is high in the Slovenian market. I rate it a nine out of ten."
"It will probably cost about $500 USD to get the resources set up in the cloud."
"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable. The solution can come for free for some clients with certain agreements."
"The cost is fair."
"The solution is expensive. My company pays toward the monthly licensing costs of the solution...The additional cost, apart from the solution's licensing cost, is related to the technical support a user wants."
"The solution has a pretty comparable pricing."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is less expensive than some other solutions on the market."
"The pricing is a bit steep in my opinion for testing and there are other options."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive tool. I rate the product's price a three on a scale of one to ten, where one is a high price, and ten is a low or good price."
"The product is expensive."
"The solution is moderately priced. I rate the pricing a six out of ten."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive solution in Asian countries."
"The price of the solution per workstation is approximately 200 Francs annually. We pay a total of 800 francs. Everything is included in the price such as the support."
"It has the best licensing modules."
"Licensing costs are paid on a yearly basis."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) solutions are best for your needs.
844,944 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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. Everyone wants to join some kind of cloud service today. We have decided to keep our ER...
Which VMware solution would you go with - Workstation or vSphere?
VM Workstation’s setup is so easy, you can use it almost instantly, it works well with Windows and Linux. We like VM Workstation primarily to test environments to determine how well a solution will...
What do you like most about VMware Workstation?
The product is stable, very easy to deploy, easy to use, easy to configure, and easy to set up.
What needs improvement with VMware Workstation?
The product's integration capabilities are an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required.
 

Also Known As

Remote Desktop Services
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Akademiska Hus
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VMware Workstation and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
844,944 professionals have used our research since 2012.