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ConnectWise ScreenConnect vs Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 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

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Remote Access
1st
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
265
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (2nd), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
ConnectWise ScreenConnect
Ranking in Remote Access
17th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.8
Number of Reviews
37
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Meetings (10th)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Remote Access
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
79
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (5th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 9.4%, down from 11.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ConnectWise ScreenConnect is 1.5%, down from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 10.5%, down from 14.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

Joseph Merusi - PeerSpot reviewer
Everything has worked better since we started using it
Sometimes the syncing is inconsistent. I'm confident that the devices are checking in every eight hours, but sometimes the devices aren't picking up the settings as quickly as I would expect. Some features haven't been updated in a while, and Microsoft doesn't seem interested in developing them. Unless you talk to an engineer, you don't know whether there will be an update. There are communication issues, so you might start working with a feature without knowing if it will be deprecated six months from now. Some reporting areas still need development. For example, I noticed that the reporting for driver updates is still confusing.
Todd Blake - PeerSpot reviewer
Simple to set up, reasonable pricing, and useful remote control capabilities
I'm on the latest version of the solution. I just updated it yesterday. While we have the solution on-premises at this time, we'll likely move to the cloud later this year. They have a trial version that you can try. They have a free version that you can try as well. I use it myself to support my family. I would try the free version or the trial version depending on your business. They can set you up and you can get to see all the features. I would also advocate going to the cloud version. Don't bother with the on-prem. It's just easier to jump to the cloud. I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.
Terje Romen - PeerSpot reviewer
Accessing the same desktop experience from anywhere but user template creation needs improvement
Mostly we are quite happy with it. However, some of us want a more powerful desktop. When not present, we use a remote tool called Splashtop, which is a good solution for some users. We have about ten licenses for those who need a powerful workstation at the office. We have not used many different tools. We are never in contact with Microsoft. These are quite basic configurations, to be honest. It's not complicated. AI is coming to or is already in some applications we are using. Not system-wise, however, it might be good. I'd rate the solution seven out of ten. It's quite good, yet certainly not perfect.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It is a helpful tool to manage BYOD policies."
"I like the tool's integration with Apple. Anyone who creates an ID in Intune will get an Apple ID."
"The policy and compliance monitoring of devices and the software deployment are most valuable."
"Microsoft integrated BitLocker and Active Directory into Intune, simplifying management."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Intune is that it is more of a one-stop shop, providing an easier experience."
"The mobile application management, MAM, is the most useful aspect of the solution."
"We can manage and standardize security across your environment, identify problems, receive alerts, and so on. That's its purpose, and that's also why it's so good."
"Intune's most valuable feature is its centralized management capability."
"The product is really easy to deploy."
"I do love the monitoring page. If you are using ConnectWise Control, which is the on-prem version, when you are logged into the admin panel, there is a status page that checks network connectivity, the status of the license, and so on."
"it gives me the ability to remotely connect to machines that I manage without user intervention."
"It is super easy to use and relatively inexpensive."
"The remote management piece is the most valuable aspect of the solution for us due to the fact that we can support our clients after hours."
"Due to the fact that we can help our clients virtually, the solution has allowed us to reduce our travel costs by about 90%."
"I've noted an ROI while using the solution."
"Session groups and triggers are the most valuable features, because they make a greater degree of organization possible. Greater degree of organization is valuable to my organization, because we have many sessions to handle."
"The solution is stable and reliable."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is highly stable."
"I like the way it can assess our system."
"We use cloud remote support because we need to assist our customers. It allows them to connect from the web. I"
"The solution is easy to use."
"The most valuable feature is the remote application access."
"The solution now includes a multi-screen feature which is great."
"In terms of the valuable features, I like the profile, the new version is really good."
 

Cons

"Enrollment into the Microsoft Intune service can still get easier, especially for legacy-managed systems, such as how we get it from a GPO or an SCCM configuration into Intune."
"We need the capabilities of the Cloud Management Gateway (CMG) to be enhanced through Intune instead of Azure."
"The security aspect could be more effective."
"The installation is very easy. However, to be able to configure it you will need special knowledge, such as training or self-studies to have a proper level of security. There are many settings one has to understand before being able to implement Microsoft Intune."
"Due to the abundance of features, there's a lot to organize, which makes managing and setting up the solution challenging. The setup is immense, and it would be good to see improvement in this area."
"The installation could be improved to be simplified."
"Microsoft Intune's app deployment presents challenges for non-MSI and non-store apps, particularly EXEs, requiring the use of a Win32 wrapper tool and adding overhead to the process."
"The reporting is subpar. That's the only issue we have with Intune. We use another solution for that purpose."
"They could provide a toolbox for the plan I'm on."
"Speed is a major factor in Automate, and the control panel is horribly slow."
"We have had issues. We have had circumstances, for reasons we don't know, where the service will stop running, and when the service stops running that computer no longer becomes reachable. We haven't really seen that so much on desktops, but we have seen that happen quite frequently on server operating systems, Server 2008, Server 2012. You can install the product and then a week down the road it will just stop."
"Support for PAC files on the guest's side and support for proxy on the host's side. Currently, there is no support for guest-side PAC files or for the host-side proxy (which uses authentication)."
"At the moment, there's absolutely no specific feature that we actually need additionally since all the features that we need are available."
"Something that I would like to see in the future is mobile video streaming. They do provide audio conferencing, but seeing the problem makes it easier to solve the problem. If they had video streaming, if a client had a physical problem with something and I couldn't get remote access, the client could use his mobile phone to show me the problem. In these cases, even if a client's systems were down, I could help, so long as I had a mobile phone environment."
"I was not thrilled with their support. I do not have a lot of time to deal with the attention which is needed to fix issues."
"What we need this product to do is to be able to control Windows Updates. LogMeIn Central allowed us remote access but also allowed to push and install Windows Updates, and third-party updates... When we made the switch to ConnectWise we lost the ability to do patching. That forced us, for our larger clients, to move to WSUS. We had to set up a VM on those larger clients to push Windows Updates and patches into the network."
"I would say it's expensive as there similar products available for free."
"We would like configuration to be automatic and the price to be close to zero, however, that's not realistic."
"I want to connect easily from an external network even when I'm not in my enterprise or company. It should be easy to connect or integrate Microsoft Teams, for example, with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services."
"There could be some improvement in the integration of the solution."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could improve by having graphical acceleration."
"We face frequent disconnections."
"We'd like them to continue to improve on security."
"There have been some network issues in the solution. So, when we used to connect it, the solution suddenly got disconnected. So the network part needs to be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The licensing costs we leave up to the customer and these vary from one to another."
"Even if they charge a premium, they aim to provide equal value."
"I recently got to know that the AD P1 license is compulsory to use Intune Autopilot, which was surprising for me. Earlier, this was not the case. It is the wrong thing to do. We now need to purchase AD P1 licenses for us and for our customers. I would rate it a seven out of ten for pricing."
"Microsoft Intune is expensive."
"I have no comment on pricing of the solution."
"Every customer used to purchase licenses based on their needs."
"Our Office 365 Business Premium license, including Office 365 and Intune Management, offers excellent value."
"Existing E5 license holders for M365, Intune, and Azure, receive a free license."
"Good price and works well."
"We pay an annual licensing fee."
"We pay $85 per month for each user for a ConnectWise package with multiple solutions."
"The cloud version is relatively inexpensive, but the on-premise version is expensive if you do not need three technicians, only one or two for concurrent sessions."
"I download the product for free with ConnectWise RMM's license."
"Pricing is fair for Control and the licensing is simple."
"It is priced fairly."
"It is priced well and it is still a great value. Although I have been reading a lot about Splashtop. They are getting pretty competitive on their pricing, including a fairly easy to use remote support for mobile applications, like iOS and Android."
"The cost of the solution is low."
"We do not have to pay for the product."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comes free as part of Microsoft Windows."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is less expensive than some other solutions on the market."
"There is a licensing cost."
"I think that Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is expensive compared to Login solution."
"The solution is expensive. My company pays toward the monthly licensing costs of the solution...The additional cost, apart from the solution's licensing cost, is related to the technical support a user wants."
"It's not an expensive product."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
19%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
21%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Healthcare Company
6%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for ConnectWise Control?
I download the product for free with ConnectWise RMM's license.
What needs improvement with ConnectWise Control?
All the features provided by the product in terms of screen connectors have been good. There can be some complexities...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
I've never had an issue with it. I've always thought the pricing for RDS was reasonable.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
We would like configuration to be automatic and the price to be close to zero, however, that's not realistic. Everyon...
 

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
ConnectWise Control, ScreenConnect
Remote Desktop Services
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Jon Rosen Systems
Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Find out what your peers are saying about ConnectWise ScreenConnect vs. Microsoft Remote Desktop Services and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
851,604 professionals have used our research since 2012.