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Azure Virtual Desktop vs VMware Workstation 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)
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VMware Workstation
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Makarand-Shrikhande - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables flexible remote application access with auto-scaling and hybrid work support
The use cases include providing application access to users through Azure Virtual Desktop using MSIX App Attach or remote app, enabling remote users like BPO or contact center resources to connect and work on applications, and allowing vendors to access specific applications securely without a…
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

"Azure Virtual Desktop enables anyone connecting to Microsoft to use MFA (multi-factor authentication), totally secured to connect and has end-to-end encryption through tunnel encryption."
"Absolutely, this solution is probably the leader in its field."
"The auto-scaling option allows provisioning additional virtual desktops based on user demand, making it scalable and flexible."
"Azure pricing is quite cheap due to licensing benefits with Microsoft."
"The scalability is probably the most valuable feature since I can quickly add or remove machines or increase or decrease the size depending on resources to manage the cost better."
"The biggest advantages are the price and flexibility."
"Scalability is very straightforward with Azure Virtual Desktop."
"I've always found Azure Virtual Desktop to work for me without issues."
"VMware Player helps you to virtualize and install Ubuntu or any other operating system, even on a Windows laptop."
"Having ten people working off a single piece of hardware reduces costs."
"VMware Workstation has tons of third-party support, the largest partner ecosystem. VMware works with a ton of different vendors. They have plugins for almost everything. Other hypervisors lack the flexibility that VMware Workstation offers."
"VMware Workstation allows you to run a virtual machine."
"The technical support is good."
"I appreciate the ease of backup and snapshot creation. The ability to revert to previous versions without losing data is very useful for our team."
"It's really easy to build testing environments with VMware Player."
"VMware is incredible and is designed for simple use. They help with efficiency."
 

Cons

"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."
"Azure could improve its uptime and the scaling aspect, as it lacks intelligent scaling."
"The main issue is the response time, which needs improvement to be faster."
"The primary area for improvement is around the scalability of Azure, specifically on the desktop side."
"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."
"The costs are a bit difficult to predict upfront."
"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."
"I would like to see built-in proxy and internet filtering."
"The network configuration was not as easy as it could be and could take less time."
"The solution freezes sometimes."
"I would like to see more detailed reporting capabilities, particularly around snapshot activity. It would be helpful to have a summary of changes made prior to deploying an application, allowing us to provide comprehensive reports to our management on a regular basis."
"There could be more integration with different tools."
"It would be great if VMware Workstation had more networking options and compatibility, that would be great. I would like to deploy virtual switches and play around with networking a bit more. Otherwise, I have to deploy ESXi Virtual Edition and emulate it, which is painful and clunky."
"Its networking features need improvement."
"VMware Workstation’s scalability could be improved."
"For some virtual machine configurations, you have to go to the text editor and make the configuration changes, which could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"With all its support and ease of use, VMware Player's pricing is fair."
"I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten, with ten being expensive."
"The tool is not the cheapest."
"VMware Workstation has a high price than competitors in the market."
"VMware Workstation's costs are lifetime."
"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 solution is moderately priced. I rate the pricing a six out of ten."
"The pricing is reasonable."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
51%
Outsourcing Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
5%
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Virtual Desktop?
Azure Virtual Desktop offers a competitive pricing model, as it provides unique services compared to offerings from GCP or AWS. However, Citrix provides similar services.
What needs improvement with Azure Virtual Desktop?
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 transitio...
What is your primary use case for Azure Virtual Desktop?
I use Azure Virtual Desktop primarily to access desktops without using the public network. It allows me to access my workplace desktops privately and perform regular activities. It also provides a ...
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.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Akademiska Hus
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Virtual Desktop vs. VMware Workstation and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,168 professionals have used our research since 2012.