My company uses VMware Workstation to create a test lab and to access our customers' VPN connections so that we can isolate working with customers from your own computer, making it more secure.
Senior IT Engineer at Guard Automation AS
A tool that offers excellent scalability options and requires an easy initial setup phase
Pros and Cons
- "The product's initial setup phase was simple."
- "The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that VMware Workstation is a proven technology in the market. One experiences less hassle when handling VMware Workstation, especially when compared with tools like Hyper-V and Oracle VM. With VMware's extension, working with USB devices and other products is much easier.
What needs improvement?
The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed.
The utilization is an area of concern in VMware Workstation. The utilization is an area where improvements are needed so that the CPU runs at 100 percent from the host. In some cases, if you copy a virtual machine, the tool offers very little resource for the virtual machine. The resource management of the product needs to improve.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware Workstation for nine years. I use VMware Workstation Pro. I am a system integrator and user of the product.
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What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of the solution is excellent. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a nine out of ten.
My company has around 50 users of the tool.
How was the initial setup?
The product's initial setup phase was simple.
The solution is deployed on an on-premises model.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
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.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Against VMware Workstation, my company evaluated options like Microsoft Hyper-V and VirtualBox. My company chose VMware Workstation because of its good USB connections and other peripheral device connections.
What other advice do I have?
I rate the overall tool an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

VMware Administrator at DSR
A highly stable solution that has the ability to snapshot with or without memory
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of VMware Player is the ability to snapshot with or without memory."
- "When you go to work on a server, it opens up the whole window, and that causes an error inside VMware Player."
What is our primary use case?
We use VMware Player mostly to connect the server hosting the client. I use the solution more like a manager.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of VMware Player is the ability to snapshot with or without memory.
What needs improvement?
When you go to work on a server, it opens up the whole window, and that causes an error inside VMware Player. You'll see it on your web front, and you'll be unable to change the resolution. You can't manage any of them without clicking on them.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have worked with VMware Player for about three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
VMware Player is a pretty stable solution. I haven't had any problems connecting the solution to a much older client appliance. It didn't have any issues with what it was supposed to do.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VMware Player's scalability works fine. You could potentially add as many users as you want on it, and I haven't had any issues adding multiple clients.
How are customer service and support?
VMware Player's technical support is good. Overall, the technical support team gets back to you pretty quickly.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Positive
How was the initial setup?
VMware Player's initial setup is straightforward. Once you install the solution, you can build your own local cluster or connect an external one.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
VMware products are usually pricey. With all its support and ease of use, VMware Player's pricing is fair.
What other advice do I have?
Overall, I rate VMware Player a nine out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Buyer's Guide
VMware Workstation
December 2024

Learn what your peers think about VMware Workstation. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: December 2024.
847,772 professionals have used our research since 2012.
CEO at iSolute Ltd
A stable tool that is very easy to use, has a user-friendly GUI, and is easy to deploy
Pros and Cons
- "The tool’s GUI is very user-friendly."
- "The solution freezes sometimes."
What is our primary use case?
We provide the solution to our customers. It is used mainly for testing purposes and installing different products on different operating systems.
What is most valuable?
The product is very easy to use. The tool’s GUI is very user-friendly.
What needs improvement?
The solution freezes sometimes. The performance must be improved. The tool should provide more dashboards.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for more than 15 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the tool’s stability a nine out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have a few customers. We need only one administrator to deploy and maintain the tool.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is very easy. If we’re experienced, most products are easy to install. We just have to download and install the product. The time taken for deployment depends on the resources. Generally, the deployment takes three or four minutes.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The tool is not the cheapest. It costs $200. We have to pay for support additionally. I rate the pricing a three out of ten. There are other solutions that are free. The solution’s price is good because it provides support, updates, and upgrades. Most of the free products are very slow with updating and fixing issues.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend the solution to others. My advice depends on people’s use cases. The product is suitable for testing applications with different operating systems and for learning different operating systems. Overall, I rate the product a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner
System Engineer at ZESA Holdings
Cost-effective product with valuable features for data backup
Pros and Cons
- "VMware Workstation’s most valuable features are backup and data transfer from one server to another."
- "There could be more integration with different tools."
What is our primary use case?
We use VMware Workstation for basic server management.
How has it helped my organization?
The product offers a cost-effective solution.
What is most valuable?
VMware Workstation’s most valuable features are backup and data transfer from one server to another.
What needs improvement?
They could work on the pricing model for the end users. It could be more affordable. There could be more integration with different tools.
For how long have I used the solution?
We have been using VMware Workstation for a year. At present, we are using the version 17.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I rate the product’s stability a nine out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
We have four VMware Workstation users in our organization. We use it 24/7. I rate its scalability a three out of ten. There is room for improvement. It does impact the workflow in terms of backup and restore.
How are customer service and support?
The technical support team takes time to respond.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is straightforward. I rate the process an eight out of ten. The deployment involves setting up a server with the help of a system administrator.
What about the implementation team?
We implement the product with our in-house team. It requires four executives for deployment and maintenance.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The product has a moderate price. There are no additional costs. I rate its pricing a six out of ten.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
We evaluated Microsoft Hyper-V. It is an expensive product. So, we decided to go with VMware Workstation.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend VMware Workstation and rate it an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Owner at Secacon Gygli Engineering LLC
Easy environment creation, stable, and simple setup
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease to create a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop."
- "VMware Workstation could improve the export and import of virtual machines."
What is our primary use case?
We are using VMware Workstation for development purposes.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease to create a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop.
What needs improvement?
VMware Workstation could improve the export and import of virtual machines.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware Workstation for approximately 20 years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
VMware Workstation is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
VMware Workstation can be rolled out in any workstation. However, you don't scale it, you only install it on the workstations where you need it.
We have four or five people using this solution. We are a small company and when we first purchased the solution we had ten people using it at that time.
How are customer service and support?
The support from VMware Workstation is reasonable.
I rate the support of VMware Workstation a three out of five.
How would you rate customer service and support?
Neutral
How was the initial setup?
The setup of the VMware Workstation was simple.
What about the implementation team?
We did the implementation of the solution in-house.
What was our ROI?
We have received a high ROI from using this solution.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
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.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
Back when we choose this solution 20 years ago there were not many virtualization tools available. There were Parallels and a few others.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others.
I rate VMware Workstation a ten out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
QA Lead at Paytm
Easy to learn and enables users to create different configurations on a single VM
Pros and Cons
- "We can undo some changes using the snapshot feature."
- "The product is outdated."
What is our primary use case?
We have prepared VMs for testing purposes. We have set up different configurations on different VMs to meet the configuration testing target.
What is most valuable?
We can undo some changes using the snapshot feature. We can also use the feature to create different configurations on a single VM. We can create separate snapshots of different configurations. We use the snapshot functionality to enhance our workflow. We can take a snapshot if we install an application and do patch testing. Once we complete the patch test, we need a fresh configuration again. The tool allows us to revert to the base snapshot. The product is easy to learn.
What needs improvement?
Currently, everybody is moving towards the cloud. I don’t think anyone will use VMware anymore. The product is outdated. If the tool moves to the cloud, I will use it.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using the solution for around three years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The tool’s stability is good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Around 15 people are using the product in our organization.
How was the initial setup?
The solution is deployed on the cloud. The installation was easy.
What other advice do I have?
Our choice of products depends on our clients’ requirements. VMware is a good option if we need a set of configurations on a single machine. The tool performs well. Overall, I rate the product an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
Founder and CEO at Cyology Labs
Has an easy deployment process and a valuable snapshot feature
Pros and Cons
- "The platform’s most valuable feature is snapshot."
- "They could include official support for macOS virtualization within VMware Workstation."
What is our primary use case?
We use VMware Workstation for cybersecurity features while testing virtual machines in our environment.
What is most valuable?
The platform’s most valuable feature is snapshot.
What needs improvement?
They could include official support for macOS virtualization within VMware Workstation.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I rate the platform’s scalability a ten out of ten.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have worked with multiple virtual machine technologies. In terms of performance, VMware Workstation can be resource-intensive, particularly when compared to alternatives like Hyper-V or VirtualBox.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup is easy. However, it could be a learning curve for new users and require training. I rate the process a ten out of ten.
What other advice do I have?
The platform saves much time as it snapshots the testing process for reuse across different environments. It proves crucial in a development workflow by allowing the creation of a base image. It takes snapshots at different development stages or scenarios, and teams can effortlessly switch back to specific points for testing. The snapshot functionality can isolate and manipulate guests independently, impacting only the host system.
It has sped up the project management process. We don’t have to go back and reinstall it from the beginning.
The cloning feature in VMware Workstation benefits operations such as penetration testing and ethical hacking. We can clone a box and ship it to the customer for easy deployment.
I rate it a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.
System Administrator at MMCY Tech
A tool useful for testing purposes in the production environment that needs to reduce its usage of resources like CPU
Pros and Cons
- "The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is an easy-to-use product."
- "VMware Workstation uses more resources like CPU and disk space, especially the CPU, which is a shortcoming that needs improvement."
What is our primary use case?
I have worked in education and production in one of my previous companies with VMware Workstation. In my current company, I use VMware Workstation for personal use. I have used the solution since my company has a personal server, which is not an extra production server.
How has it helped my organization?
VMware Workstation is something that I have used on my laptop, while at times I have used the solution for testing process purposes, with Linux, Windows, and servers. I have used VMware Workstation for testing purposes in the production environment.
What is most valuable?
The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is an easy-to-use product. VMware Workstation is useful for safety purposes. With VMware Workstation, you can easily select CPU hardware or hard disk and install them to the solution. In general, the product allows easy installation with any hardware specifications. If you select a 3 GB or 15 GB hard disk, you can select it.
What needs improvement?
VMware Workstation uses more resources like CPU and disk space, especially the CPU, which is a shortcoming that needs improvement.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using VMware Workstation for six months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of the solution depends on the solution's license. If you opt for a license purchased from VMware Workstation, then it remains very stable. The unlicensed version of the solution is not very suitable or stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Based on what I have seen, I rate the solution's scalability a seven out of ten.
I didn't use the licensed software version of VMware Workstation, because of which I can't comment on its efficiency.
Though I am unsure, I feel that six to seven users use the solution for their personal use in my company.
Currently, I don't plan to use the version offered by VMware Workstation.
How are customer service and support?
I did not directly contact VMware Workstation's support person since I could get all the answers to my questions through VMware's blogs.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
I have moved from VMware Workstation to Oracle VM VirtualBox since I got to use it for free, while VMware Workstation wasn't a free option.
How was the initial setup?
I rate the initial setup a six and a half out of ten. The initial setup of the solution is not complicated, but it may not be stable or as good as it should be if you use the tool without VMware Workstation's license or licensed software.
The solution is deployed by enabling virtualization on my laptop.
The time taken for the deployment depends on the size of your operations. The installation of VMware Workstation only takes around 20 to 30 minutes.
For deployment steps, download the free version of VMware Workstation for all the licenses, and then by clicking the next options available after clicking the EXE file, we can install the solution. You get around 60 days to use the free version of the solution, after which you need to pay for VMware Workstation.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I use the free version of VMware Workstation.
What other advice do I have?
I have stopped the use of ESXi in VMware Workstation.
It is important to note that VMware Workstation may not be a good solution for my company since it is not a perfect solution.
I don't personally recommend VMware Workstation to those planning to use it since it is a type 2 hypervisor. It is always better to use a type 1 hypervisor, but if someone prefers to use a type 2 hypervisor, then it is always best to choose the paid or licensed version of the solution.
I rate the overall solution a seven out of ten.
Disclosure: I am a real user, and this review is based on my own experience and opinions.

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