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VMware Workstation vs Workspace ONE UEM 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

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
Workspace ONE UEM
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.8
Number of Reviews
100
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (4th), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (3rd), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (8th), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of VMware Workstation is 17.0%, up from 13.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Workspace ONE UEM is 2.6%, down from 6.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

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.
Joel Amate - PeerSpot reviewer
The solution is stable, scalable, and offers single sign-on
I give the solution a nine out of ten. I suggest if a person wants to start using Workspace ONE, they should make use of the cloud instance instead of the on-premise instance. There is an on-premise instance available, but the cloud instance is a better option now. I advise them to make use of the cloud instance. This is because management-wise, there is no need to manage a server. For example, we don't need to buy a server, and we don't need to buy network switches, which are required for the on-premise. At the same time, I can advise setting up all the functionalities or whatever functionalities are available for the trial version. We need to check if the Workspace ONE integration includes Azure AD or other identity providers. A lot of applications are using these providers for authentication, such as Ping, Okta, and others. If the Workspace ONE integration doesn't include these providers, the company might have to find a different solution. Security projects should also be considered. Specifically, if the solution can integrate with local security solutions to secure mobile devices.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Having ten people working off a single piece of hardware reduces costs."
"The features are good."
"The most valuable features of VMware Workstation are the speed of access and quality of upgrade. Those are the more important and pertinent aspects as far as we were concerned. Functionality and features were relevant for the customers. What a customer chose, we had to make sure that it operated."
"VMware is incredible and is designed for simple use. They help with efficiency."
"Because the setup is so easy, this is a solution that can be used at a moment's notice."
"It will not harm any of the computer settings to run a specific program. For example, if a program needs a specific security policy, we don't have to use the shared configuration. We have an individual copy of Windows installed on the virtual machine, so anybody can access that. It helps us a lot."
"The most valuable features of VMware Workstation are the DirectX support, you can run Microsoft Hyper-V in virtual environments which is good for me to test different installations. Additionally, you can set up different VLANs, and overall it is a complete solution."
"The initial setup is simple and takes only five minutes to complete."
"You can upgrade and migrate the existing group policies that we use for VMware Workspace ONE for the active directory. We can push the policies and group policies. We can migrate it and manage it from VMware Workspace ONE."
"The most valuable features in VMware Identity Manager for me are the control groups and rules."
"The bigger vendors like VMware, Insight, and MobileIron can assign engineers to customers. You can work with them to develop the right competency to use the product."
"One of the features that I enjoyed most was the integration with Azure AD because I could use VMware Identity Manager to standardize the User Principal Name coming from Active Directory. You have Azure AD Connect to do that. In between, if you have vIDM handling it, you can easily get the synchronization of users into your VM and standardize the User Principal Name. If you require quality assurance for handling it, you can actually count on the vIDM to do so. That was one of the main things I enjoyed about the product."
"It helps the end users to work on the road without needing to set up all kinds of VPN connections"
"I found the initial setup to be easy."
"The platform makes the mobile device management process straightforward to handle."
"VMware Workspace ONE has been stable so far."
 

Cons

"Installing VMware Workstation isn't so easy. It's highly complex compared to Windows. I rate it four out of 10 for ease of installation. Setting up a remote desktop only takes a minute or so, but the Workstation itself takes some time."
"The product’s virtual machine data backup feature needs upgrading."
"The solution should provide a guide on its installation."
"When you go to work on a server, it opens up the whole window, and that causes an error inside VMware Player."
"My experience with Workstation is limited, so I don't know all the functionalities of this tool. Maybe Workstation could add some more compatibility with other vendors."
"VMware Player isn't downgradable, so if you have a later set of VMs, you need to upgrade it or figure out a workaround."
"I have had issues with the virtual network adapters in the past that has taken some time to troubleshoot."
"The GUI interface could be improved."
"There are other solutions that might be better for certain use cases. This is not an all-purpose solution."
"This product makes use of SAML across the board, which has seven known security flaws. It would be good if the company created a way to protect against SAML flaws. One way would be to integrate a firewall server or an endpoint out in the cloud with which you could establish trust. If you knew nothing about SAML and you did some Google searches about what SAML is, what are the flaws, and what are the known vulnerabilities, eventually, you'll find that there are seven flaws. There are two methods that you can use to solve those seven problems. They essentially involve putting a firewall or putting rules, such as access controls, so that anybody in the world can't just come in, authenticate, and either be a good guy or be someone trying to knock on my door and get into my house. If I could eliminate that, it would be awesome."
"The solution's pre-stage enrollment could be improved."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
"They do have a good integration, but there is a long way to go as far as integration is concerned. They need to integrate with the cloud solutions a little bit more. We are looking for Azure integration."
"From an improvement perspective, there is a need for discounts to be offered by the solution since it is something that any organization can expect from the product."
"The application itself individuals are getting annoyed with it. They are looking to integrate with ABB applications regardless of whether it is Android or iOS based. We are wanting to shift from this application because of the integration issues we are facing."
"We'd like more useful support."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"You need to pay for a license, but I don't think it costs that much. I think it's a one-time payment."
"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."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive solution in Asian countries."
"The solution’s pricing is moderate."
"VMware Workstation's costs are lifetime."
"It is an expensive solution."
"With a VDI solution, there is always extra cost running a VDI solution but it's not for cost purposes anymore. In the beginning, it was to save money on hardware but at the moment it's other aspects that are more important why you should use a VDI solution."
"The cost differs depending on the customer's requirement."
"VMware Workspace ONE has a yearly license. You have to buy the license for one year at a time."
"All licenses from VMware are only yearly. They start with a yearly license and look for a three-year commitment and yearly PO."
"For the moment, we have a multi-year contract, meaning that we cannot go with a different solution at this time even if the price should prove more favorable."
"I think that the price is reasonable."
"AirWatch would benefit from reducing the license pricing per user per month. Microsoft bundles everything, and then that bundling makes the product free for the customers."
"If you have a host of custom requirements (including licensing), make sure to set aside enough time for the initial setup because it can take up to a few weeks depending on how complex your environment is."
"The cost is a little bit high."
"The price of VMware Workspace ONE is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
16%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Government
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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.
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 it easy to control security and manage the usage of mobile apps when you have a ...
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...
What do you like most about VMware Workspace ONE?
The platform provides a stable environment for operations and quickly creates new environments. Additionally, it offers efficient flexibility.
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware Workspace ONE, VMware AirWatch, Workspace ONE Assist, VMware Identity Manager, Workspace ONE Access, VMware Horizon Air
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Akademiska Hus
Australian Sports Commission, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, Lomond School, Merck, United Bank, Medical College of Wisconsin, Latymer Upper School, 2gether NHS Foundation Trust, Dowling Aaron Inc., Trillium Lakelands District School Board, Harrogate Grammar School, Duke University Football, Delta Air Lines, Adventist Health System, Giochi Preziosi, Cramlington Learning Village, Intermountain Healthcare, Safexpress, TAG Aviation
Find out what your peers are saying about VMware Workstation vs. Workspace ONE UEM and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,040 professionals have used our research since 2012.