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Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) vs VMware Fusion Pro comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 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

Parallels Remote Applicatio...
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
13th
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Application Virtualization (4th)
VMware Fusion Pro
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
3rd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
9
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 Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) is 3.6%, up from 2.1% 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
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Fusion Pro8.6%
Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)3.6%
Other87.8%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

JohanSkibdahl - PeerSpot reviewer
CEO at Etcetera Networks
Secure access across devices with cost-effective seamless integration
One valuable feature is the ability to securely use a wide range of devices to access the company's infrastructure. The inclusion of all necessary components, such as load balancer and gateways, in a monthly fee is also beneficial. In terms of Parallels Desktop, the coherence mode that allows Mac and Windows applications to run seamlessly side by side is highly regarded.
Bruce Lundberg - PeerSpot reviewer
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.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It has allowed us to centralize the software location so we don't have to update the software client on 70 computers."
"It has been much easier to manage and has provided us with faster performance than Citrix."
"Stability and reliability."
"Very fast, easy to setup and manage."
"Allows us to publish applications accessible by current-generation HTML5 browser or OS-specific client (Windows, Android, iOS), and it supports popular single sign-on and multi-factor authentication protocols."
"One valuable feature is the ability to securely use a wide range of devices to access the company's infrastructure."
"The most valuable feature is the HTML 5 Client, which makes it convenient to work from outside the office."
"The management capability from the RAS portal provides greater control than using pure MS inbuilt into RDS capabilities."
"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."
"It is a highly stable solution."
"The primary advantage of VMware Fusion Pro is its simplicity in creating custom virtual machines."
"For me, VMware Fusion Pro has been invaluable, allowing me to meet all my needs with a single system."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."
"Veeam Backup and Replication is the common product for backing up virtual machines."
 

Cons

"The main issue we have with all of our users is printing. Randomly, a printer will disconnect or someone won't connect to it and I will have to reset the print service and then nobody can print."
"All areas of the product could be improved especially for the IT department, facilitating the deployment of applications and their maintenance."
"The main thing that I would improve is their presence here in Mexico. They don't have strong local support here in Mexico."
"We have had significant, ongoing issues with printing. It would be great to have a best practice for dealing with printing that we can offer to our customers."
"Improvement is needed in performance monitoring of the client's endpoint, and automatic re-connection of the client in the event of circuit disruptions (this works well generally but can present challenges)."
"Sometimes you need to understand how to use load balancing and the gateway in order to scale, which means the team may need some additional technical knowledge."
"A potential improvement could be reducing the dependency on Microsoft solutions for Parallels RAS."
"HALB is not stable in our environment."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable. It runs on desktops and laptops, indicating limitations in scalability."
"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."
"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."
"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable as it runs on desktops and laptops."
"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 backups for the VMs themselves can also be improved. I pretty much have to rely on Windows backups and not something on VMware."
"Additionally, enhancing the API interactions could improve the ability to manage VS and deploy various kinds of guests."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I recommend testing Parallels and comparing it to your needs. Compare the prices against what you are able to do with the product and its alternatives. Parallels is not a cheap product."
"I don't like the subscription model because it feels like I have to pay every month. If Parallels could go back to the professional license, it would be much better."
"I think the new pricing is a little bit high. If the price was lower, we could use it for many more customers. If there was one improvement to be made to this product, it would be a small-business version, at a much lower price point."
"Pricing is a little steep."
"Just compare it to Citrix and you will see the value in it."
"It is not that high. It is in the medium range. Of course, it could be lower, but the price is not the issue."
"Parallels is a cost effective alternative to Citrix."
"We currently use Parallels side-by-side with an Azure cloud-hosted solution. This may be from a lack of product knowledge on my part, but we still need to work out the most effective way to shut down servers outside of hours, thereby reduce hosting costs. I am not entirely convinced Parallels does this well yet."
"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
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
University
7%
Comms Service Provider
16%
University
12%
Computer Software Company
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business15
Midsize Enterprise2
Large Enterprise10
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?
The pricing for Parallels RAS is straightforward with a monthly fee for a minimum of 15 licenses. For Parallels Desktop, it is a yearly cost of a couple of hundred euros. No additional fees for mai...
What needs improvement with Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?
A potential improvement could be reducing the dependency on Microsoft solutions for Parallels RAS. As for Parallels Desktop, there is nothing specific that needs improvement.
What is your primary use case for Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?
The primary use case of Parallels is to offer it to customers as a hosted service. I help them to migrate from other solutions like VMware to Parallels RAS. I recommend it to companies that prefer ...
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...
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...
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;...
 

Also Known As

Parallels RAS
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Arsari Group _ PT Netmarks Indonesia, Izhevsk Elektromekhanicheskiy Zavod (IEMZ) _ Kupol, Abilene Diagnostic Clinic, Fylde Borough Council, YARSTROYREZE LLC, VSK Insurance House, Melenkovsky District of Vladimirskaya Oblast, Sofrigam SA, Antenna International, KingsGate Community Church, Norwegian American Hospital, Island Hotels Group, Medway Council, Medway Council, Voices of September 11th, MacDonald Training Center, Kansas Childrenês Service League, Scope,Next Generation Clubs, WTC Communications, Opera Australia, HSE Integrated, Danier, Bridgwater College, Kern County Mental Health, Tony Tiendas, Spears Manufacturing, Managed Insurance Services Inc., Intuitive Medical Software, M.J. Soffe, Mazda Motors, Israel Military Industries (IMI), Telfair, Upic Solutions, Teleflora, Fisher & Company
NetApp
Find out what your peers are saying about Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) vs. VMware Fusion Pro and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
892,776 professionals have used our research since 2012.