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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Parallels Desktop comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 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 Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
91
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (3rd)
Parallels Desktop
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
7th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 6.1%, up from 6.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Parallels Desktop is 4.8%, down from 14.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services6.1%
Parallels Desktop4.8%
Other89.1%
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.
MH
Payments Architect at Self Employed
A great platform to develop interoperable code on
The decision to transition away from Intel chips to their silicon. They are processing, and there are many examples. Instead of not having a product to use for a while, they have just released it now. However, if you're seeking a product that is industry-ready regularly or has plans to make it so, considering the upcoming changes, I recommend trying out Parallels Desktop in beta. When you're only dealing with Windows, we do much in the Windows version, but it is not improving the Windows operating system. If you're hosting a Windows platform or another version of the machine, the code will have limitations. Windows is not a walled garden, with no significant volatility or instability. Windows is quite versatile. I never encountered intrusive ads or unused features, which is quite good. Overall, I rate the solution 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

"The solution is user-friendly and has a good user experience."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services positively impacts my organization because it makes the job and work easier for all."
"The solution is stable."
"The most valuable feature of this solution at the moment is the HTML5 web client; you get a browser experience, not just the terminal sort of client, and the integration with Azure multi-factor application."
"The solution is easy to deploy and there are many features available that you can turn on or off depending on your budget."
"The installation is straightforward."
"The availability is very good; it's easy to use, and new users especially find it very simple as you just connect and go."
"It allows employees to log on to corporate resources remotely."
"I like how, with Parallels, you can either boot into Mac or Windows to get better control over the resources of the laptops since you're sharing the resources in dual mode."
"Parallels Desktop integrates seamlessly with macOS. It works better than VMware on Apple operating systems."
"Parallels Desktop integrates seamlessly with macOS and works better than VMware on Apple operating systems."
 

Cons

"Having a secondary app to log in to a remote VN is not ideal, but the app itself is very good."
"Sometimes, the updates break the system."
"The biggest reason we don't use the solution for our company's clients is the solution's prices."
"We'd like them to continue to improve on security."
"I would like to see a web-based interface, instead of client installation to refresh the UI through HTML."
"The only issue I experienced was with the initialization of the session, which affected the stability of the solution."
"The only problems that you're going to have with the remote desktop are going to be firewall ports, security, and NLA, which is a net network level access control, or TLS transfer layer security or some other SSL-type of security."
"The performance depends on connectivity."
"The biggest challenge is compatibility between VMware and Parallels because the two systems are incompatible. It can be challenging if you are switching between Windows and Mac. I recommend sticking with one product because there isn't good compatibility between the different products."
"There may have been some issues with device drivers on my Mac. Similarly, there are some issues with transferring data from Parallels to the Mac."
"The biggest challenge is compatibility between VMware and Parallels because the two systems are incompatible."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."
"There is a licensing cost."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services comes free as part of Microsoft Windows."
"The pricing could always be improved."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is less expensive than some other solutions on the market."
"The solution is expensive. Since things are made to be a bit easier in the solution, the solution's cost is a bit on the higher side."
"The cost of the solution is low."
"I rate the price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services a three out of five."
Information not available
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Government
7%
Comms Service Provider
15%
Computer Software Company
11%
University
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business45
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise36
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services has been easy. I don't think there was any cost, as this was built into our experience with Windows and A...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could be improved by providing a way to make it configurable without using VPN from the actual service itself.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
My main use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is remoting into computers that I don't have physical access to in order to assist or perform configurations, or remoting into our servers to ...
Ask a question
Earn 20 points
 

Also Known As

Remote Desktop Services
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Lytro, University of Washington, Slalom, Veeva Systems, Oklahoma Christian University
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. Parallels Desktop and other solutions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.