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Pros & Cons summary

Buyer's Guide

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Prominent pros & cons

PROS

VMware ESXi provides high availability and is efficient, fast, and affordable, positively impacting cost optimization with around 30 to 40% savings and maintaining almost 99.99% uptime.
VMware ESXi is easy to install, supports third-party applications, and offers valuable features like disaster recovery and vMotion, enhancing server management capabilities.
VMware ESXi simplifies server management by enabling virtual machine creation based on resource availability, allowing for significant flexibility and scalability.
VMware ESXi stands out for its simplicity in setup, management, and monitoring, with seamless integration with networking and virtual network switches.
VMware ESXi's ability to consolidate multiple machines onto a single server allows for space and energy savings, enhancing overall efficiency and stability.

CONS

Pricing could be improved, especially after the Broadcom acquisition, which made it more expensive.
The licensing model has changed to a subscription-based approach, causing concern and is not cost-effective for smaller users.
Customer support is moderate; response times during emergencies need improvement.
The setup phase is complex and requires significant expertise, which is challenging for users.
Recovering the password if forgotten can be difficult, necessitating a simpler process.
 

VMware ESXi Pros review quotes

Gourab Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Apr 7, 2026
VMware ESXi has positively impacted our organization significantly in terms of operations and cost optimization, as we optimized our environment under a per-core license agreement, achieving around 30 to 40% cost-effectiveness and maintaining almost 99.99% uptime across our environment, where VMware ESXi is run on about 85% of our setup.
Ion Boni - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Partner at evercloud
Oct 3, 2025
We are using VMware ESXi for virtualization, with vCenter being the core product—these are building blocks for having efficiency and stability in daily operations, and we cannot operate without them.
Syed Ali Waqas - PeerSpot reviewer
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
Nov 12, 2024
The most valuable features are the integration with networking and virtual network switches.
Learn what your peers think about VMware ESXi. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Fozia Nurye - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Officer at Bank of Abyssinia
Mar 25, 2025
All the features of VMware ESXi are very beneficial, particularly for virtualizing our infrastructure.
Amar Sorro - PeerSpot reviewer
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
Dec 16, 2024
ESXi's integration with VMware vCenter offers centralized management.
Mir Gulzar Ahmed - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at Synergy Computers
Nov 20, 2024
ESXi stands out for its simplicity in setup, management, and monitoring.
EzraChibole - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Infrastructure Engineer at Safaricom
Aug 8, 2024
The ease of use would be the first feature I like, then reliability.
YM
IT Consultant at Ancura
Jul 2, 2024
In ESXi, they use technologies like memory compression, TPS, and ballooning for resource optimization.
MA
Senior cloud support engineer at RealPage
Jun 20, 2024
The migration and combination of vCenter, where I can manage everything at once, has helped me do my job.
NasrRafiq - PeerSpot reviewer
SAP B1 Support Consultant at Abacus Consulting
Nov 4, 2024
The most important features are having a lot of code and CPU threads to ensure the system doesn't lag, and the role of memory is important.
 

VMware ESXi Cons review quotes

Gourab Das - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Apr 7, 2026
Customer support from VMware ESXi is moderate; while they do respond, it often takes a while during emergency situations, which needs improvement.
Ion Boni - PeerSpot reviewer
Managing Partner at evercloud
Oct 3, 2025
Licensing has become a major issue. The new subscription-based licensing model is problematic.
Syed Ali Waqas - PeerSpot reviewer
Head IT at Burraq Cyber Security Solutions
Nov 12, 2024
We often face issues with ESXi that require us to change resources by shutting down the VMs.
Learn what your peers think about VMware ESXi. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: April 2026.
893,244 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Fozia Nurye - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Officer at Bank of Abyssinia
Mar 25, 2025
Pricing is a major issue with VMware ESXi as it is becoming more expensive.
Amar Sorro - PeerSpot reviewer
Team Lead Virtualization at Hybrid Tech
Dec 16, 2024
The cost of VMware ESXi is very high, especially after the acquisition by Broadcom, which led to price increases.
Mir Gulzar Ahmed - PeerSpot reviewer
IT Manager at Synergy Computers
Nov 20, 2024
The licensing model currently presents challenges.
EzraChibole - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Infrastructure Engineer at Safaricom
Aug 8, 2024
The price point could be improved.
YM
IT Consultant at Ancura
Jul 2, 2024
What I feel is that FT (Fault Tolerance) is not used much. So maybe more focus on that feature is needed.
MA
Senior cloud support engineer at RealPage
Jun 20, 2024
It would be really helpful if there were options to do things in one or two clicks rather than doing everything through more manual interaction.
NasrRafiq - PeerSpot reviewer
SAP B1 Support Consultant at Abacus Consulting
Nov 4, 2024
The software could be more user-friendly, allowing customers to easily find the resources and features they need.