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Azure Virtual Desktop vs Horizon 8 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Azure Virtual Desktop
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
6th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Horizon 8
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
4th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
117
Ranking in other categories
User Virtualization (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Azure Virtual Desktop is 7.5%, up from 5.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Horizon 8 is 6.8%, down from 7.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Horizon 86.8%
Azure Virtual Desktop7.5%
Other85.7%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

RC
Senior Advisor at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Enhanced collaboration and security with seamless remote access has transformed work efficiency
We can integrate anything with Azure Virtual Desktop from an application perspective. The App-V has evolved into MSIX. To deliver an application to Azure Virtual Desktop, MSIX can be used by expanding it as a virtual hard disk and attaching it to the virtual machine. When this is done, users who need the application will have immediate access through Active Directory group assignment. One challenge with Virtual Desktop infrastructure is application delivery. From an infrastructure perspective, it's beneficial as we can have a fallback point - if one machine is down, we can have a disaster recovery site for redirection. The delivery of applications is a tedious process. Microsoft is working on building new products for efficient application installation. This feature might be included in upcoming releases. Currently, it's burdensome for IT administrators to create applications compatible with Virtual Desktop infrastructure, unlike traditional machines where direct installation is possible.
SF
Architect at Softcat plc
Architects have improved desktop environments and now optimize operations for diverse clients
From my perspective, there is significant room for improvement in Horizon 8. Many customers are actively seeking alternatives to VMware due to recent licensing changes after Broadcom's acquisition, necessitating upgrades or bundles that they often do not require. Given that Omniser builds on VMware technologies, this creates a negative perception, pushing customers to consider different brands or solutions.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"This integration enhances productivity 100%, as it makes it much easier for us to give access to external third parties to work with us for collaboration."
"Azure pricing is quite cheap due to licensing benefits with Microsoft."
"Azure Virtual Desktop is stable and provides a 100% stable experience."
"The best feature is scalability, as it can be used from anywhere."
"The integration of Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams within Azure Virtual Desktop helps customers enhance collaboration because it works seamlessly."
"I rate the overall solution nine out of ten."
"Absolutely, this solution is probably the leader in its field."
"Scalability is very straightforward with Azure Virtual Desktop."
"The most valuable feature is that when we access the machine, it automatically builds on the back-end and provides to the user, then when the user logs off, the machine logs off automatically or is destroyed, which helps to reduce load on the server."
"The most valuable feature of VMware Horizon 7 is its ease of use."
"They share information, they communicate well, and they give you a comfort zone to make sure you’re ok with everything."
"It is stable and easily scalable."
"We use VMware Horizon to provide remote access for remote users."
"The ability to log in from anywhere is huge."
"The most valuable feature is that VMware Horizon is easy to setup."
"We had to deal with re-imaging hard drives and managing PCs, so having images and desktops to deploy wherever people are without the hardware was really helpful."
 

Cons

"The costs are a bit difficult to predict upfront. When I am trying to sell it to a customer as a consultant, it is hard to give them a fixed price."
"There are challenges when upgrading the OS from Windows 10 to Windows 11, such as facing a black screen during testing. It is essential for Microsoft to ensure better testing and smoother transitions when decommissioning previous versions."
"The costs are a bit difficult to predict upfront."
"The main issue is the response time, which needs improvement to be faster."
"I see areas for improvement in Azure Virtual Desktop, specifically regarding cost, as it is a little bit expensive."
"Access from Entra ID should be implemented to provide only tenant access to users connecting to the Azure Virtual Desktop environment, eliminating the need for on-premises requirements."
"It takes too long to get a return call."
"My overall rating of Azure Virtual Desktop is five out of ten. While the stability and cost-effectiveness are commendable, there is room for improvement in technical support."
"The initial setup was complex, and you need system experience to walk through it."
"Almost all VMware products are designed for the enterprise and it sometimes takes some wise wrangling to make it financially viable."
"User profiles are something that needs to be improved."
"VMware Horizon needs to integrate with Azure, Teams, and Zoom."
"I think that simplifying cross-platform use on different devices could be better. Different client versions sometimes don’t work quite as well."
"The multimedia playback is not very good and they could improve it by increasing the quality."
"VMware has purchased by Dell, they started to remove a lot of their support for non-Intel hardware and that's a bit of a problem. They dropped a lot of support for hardware that people commonly use and it just so happened that this hardware is not Intel. It makes it difficult to get assistance."
"VMware support is okay, but sometimes it's a little bit hit or miss trying to get somebody who knows what they're doing and talking about."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"I rate the solution's pricing a five out of ten."
"Licensing and hardware outsourcing is expensive, but can be cost-effective in the three to five-year range."
"It is an expensive product. We purchase its yearly license."
"VMware Horizon is expensive. It should provide a special price for more user licenses."
"The pricing could be improved."
"The solution is expensive."
"The pricing depends on the use cases. It depends on the company's needs and budget. For us, it was okay, not too expensive."
"I cannot provide a detailed comment on the pricing; however, I can say that it is quite expensive."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
25%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Construction Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business62
Midsize Enterprise23
Large Enterprise45
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Virtual Desktop?
The usual amount customers pay for this tool varies. I have seen large deployments catering to 500 or 700 users. Enterprises do use it, and they pay quite a bit for this.
What needs improvement with Azure Virtual Desktop?
I see areas for improvement in Azure Virtual Desktop, specifically regarding cost, as it is a little bit expensive. However, when you account for replacing dedicated hardware and the maintenance it...
What is your primary use case for Azure Virtual Desktop?
We use RDP with Azure and have some virtual desktops. A major use case for Azure Virtual Desktop is that we give access to external consultants so they can access our information and interact with ...
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 is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Horizon 7?
We paid a lot of money for software that is not really fully operational out of the box. We had to have patches from VMware to get it into production. Hence, we lost a lot of time implementing the ...
What needs improvement with VMware Horizon 7?
The solution should provide easy configuration.
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware Horizon, VMware Horizon View, Mware Dynamic Environment Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
LCMC Health
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Virtual Desktop vs. Horizon 8 and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.