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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Nerdio comparison

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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

Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
91
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (2nd)
Nerdio
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
8th
Average Rating
9.6
Reviews Sentiment
8.8
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of November 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 7.1%, up from 6.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Nerdio is 3.3%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services7.1%
Nerdio3.3%
Other89.6%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

reviewer2795433 - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Secure remote access has protected sensitive country data and supports strict compliance needs
I understand from the IT team managing Microsoft Remote Desktop Services that it is complex to set up the multiple roles, certificates, and networks required. Networking is quite complicated. Even though on the data center side it is quite simple, maintaining the farm of other connections that connect to that server is the complex piece. I understand there are more modern systems replicating what this solution does, which are easier to use, such as Azure Virtual Desktop within Microsoft Azure Cloud or Amazon WorkSpaces, which I have used before. Rather than having to manage all the complex networking, you could abstract it away a little further in the cloud for easier use. I also understand that this tool is in an end-of-life state now, with Microsoft actively pushing people towards Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365. I do not believe further features will be rolled out due to its end-of-life state, making it a legacy solution now.
MB
IT Infrastucture Engineer at PPG
Automation capabilities enhance cost-saving and scaling efforts
The auto-heal functionality needs improvement. Currently, the feature is limited because it only allows one heal condition and doesn't support multiple triggers. The capability to use different conditions, like the presence of online users during a failed installation, is missing. The current state makes it less useful, but I have even submitted a feature request for a better solution.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution has very smooth connectivity and is a very user friendly product."
"For personal use, it is a great app."
"The valuable features I mentioned assure a stable and highly available environment with maximum uptime for business users."
"The advice I would give to others looking into using Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is to use it out of the box as it is one of the best and most valuable tools on the market."
"This solution saves us time and money because running applications directly on the server means that we can use lower-priced, entry-level computers for the users."
"The initial setup is not that difficult. I have gone through the RDS initialization steps, which only seem easy."
"The solution offers good value for money."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is stable and reliable."
"The solution is one hundred percent stable and very much straightforward."
"The customer service from Nerdio is excellent, and I even know the CEO personally and have a positive experience, rating it nine out of ten."
"Nerdio is completely an automation platform offering auto-scaling and flexibility."
"The most valuable features of Nerdio are its automation capabilities, specifically the autoscale and auto-heal functionalities."
 

Cons

"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services needs to improve its security."
"Its look and feel could be updated. In Azure Remote Desktop Services (RDS), which is a VDI solution, we would like to see linked clones. It is a Hyper-V solution, and it doesn't support linked clones and uses a lot of storage. That's why we don't use it. VMware has a similar solution that supports linked clones for the master image."
"Remote Desktop Services doesn't scale well."
"The solution isn't as good as the Citrix option."
"The solution should have better security."
"Sometimes difficult to set up without the requirement for login credentials each time."
"Having a secondary app to log in to a remote VN is not ideal, but the app itself is very good."
"Microsoft Desktop Services is stable but it takes up a lot of resources in the CPU. It's a bit heavier than some solutions."
"The auto-heal functionality needs improvement. Currently, the feature is limited because it only allows one heal condition and doesn't support multiple triggers."
"The auto-heal functionality needs improvement."
"They should start providing the certifications on Nerdio for training and enhancements, mainly for the open community of IT."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost is fair."
"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable. The solution can come for free for some clients with certain agreements."
"The solution is overly expensive."
"I rate the price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services a three out of five."
"I recall that you don't need to pay for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services because that's included in Windows."
"Although not an expensive product, pricing is always something that can be improved."
"The tool's pricing is high in the Slovenian market. I rate it a nine out of ten."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is less expensive than some other solutions on the market."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
12%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Construction Company
7%
Outsourcing Company
18%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business45
Midsize Enterprise17
Large Enterprise36
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that the pricing is based on licensing costs and the setup is complex.
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services can be improved in several areas. Currently, it requires a license cost, it has performance limits on shared resources with bottlenecks, the setup is complex, and ...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
Our main use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is to allow multiple users to remotely access our Windows machine, desktop, or application over the internet and our network.
What needs improvement with Nerdio?
They should start providing the certifications on Nerdio for training and enhancements, mainly for the open community of IT. It should not be restricted to partners only, yet available to everyone.
What is your primary use case for Nerdio?
During the implementation and management stage, I use Nerdio Manager for enterprise for deploying and quickly rolling out virtual desktops to end users. Once I complete the production rollout, I st...
 

Also Known As

Remote Desktop Services
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd.
BeMo, Northstar Technologies
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. Nerdio and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
920,769 professionals have used our research since 2012.