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Pros & Cons summary

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Prominent pros & cons

PROS

VMware Workstation excels in providing virtualization technology, allowing for simultaneous operation of multiple operating systems with no performance hit.
Its ease of setup and deployment is highly praised, requiring only a few minutes for initial configuration.
The snapshot and backup capabilities are invaluable, offering the ability to revert to previous versions without data loss.
Technical support is noted as being excellent, enhancing user experience with timely assistance.
It is recognized for its robust feature set, supporting third-party integrations and offering flexibility that surpasses other hypervisors.

CONS

VMware Workstation has issues with virtual network adapters and networking capabilities, which can lead to stability problems when used for development purposes.
There is a disparity in feature sets between the Windows-based client and the Linux-based client, with the Windows client being more advanced.
Scalability is limited, and VMware Workstation could benefit from improved compatibility with various platforms and CPUs.
Automatic software updates would enhance the overall experience, as the current process for upgrading can be cumbersome and resource-intensive.
Support for macOS virtualization is absent and would be a valuable addition to VMware Workstation features.
 

VMware Workstation Pros review quotes

PatrickCiPaaS - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Technical Product Marketing Manager at SnapLogic
Jul 17, 2012
By using a VMware player, I've significantly improved my desktop processing productivity.
it_user1227 - PeerSpot reviewer
Tech Support Staff at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Jul 20, 2012
VMware player is a very good alternative for those who want a stable and free virtualization platform that can be easily run in various Operating System platforms like Windows, Linux, Macintosh etc.
MP
Senior Site Infrastructure Engineer at Kurungsiku
Aug 7, 2012
Simple free virtualization solution that you can depend on.
Learn what your peers think about VMware Workstation. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: February 2026.
884,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
it_user5931 - PeerSpot reviewer
Developer at a university with 51-200 employees
Apr 20, 2013
VMware workstation is expensive but with its excellent features and performance for a desktop, the cost is nothing.
it_user215970 - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Lead with 51-200 employees
Sep 16, 2015
It has given us the flexibility to recreate live server scenarios including the supporting networks and AD domain controllers; these are then used to test upgrades or migrations with no impact on the live servers or network.
it_user265281 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Manager / Senior Network Engineer at Warnock, Tanner & Associates
May 15, 2018
I have found this product excellent for test/dev environments. This is 90% of what I use this product for.
reviewer1478514 - PeerSpot reviewer
Database Administrator at a government with 1-10 employees
Mar 26, 2021
I haven't faced any inconveniences working with this solution. It is very easy to use.
DS
Consultant at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Jun 20, 2021
Great at solving connection problems.
reviewer941238 - PeerSpot reviewer
Engineering Applications Analyst at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Oct 21, 2021
Because the setup is so easy, this is a solution that can be used at a moment's notice.
DT
Senior Micro Solutions Engineer at Mobexpert
Nov 13, 2021
Technical support is very good.
 

VMware Workstation Cons review quotes

PatrickCiPaaS - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Technical Product Marketing Manager at SnapLogic
Jul 17, 2012
The initial setup is quite easy, but can be daunting to someone unfamiliar with desktop computing environments.
it_user1227 - PeerSpot reviewer
Tech Support Staff at a tech company with 51-200 employees
Jul 20, 2012
VMware Player has a very high memory footprint and requires a lot of memory for running multiple operating systems under a single host system.
MP
Senior Site Infrastructure Engineer at Kurungsiku
Aug 7, 2012
Compared to Virtualbox, VMware Player is slightly heavier on resource usage than Virtualbox.
Learn what your peers think about VMware Workstation. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: February 2026.
884,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.
it_user5931 - PeerSpot reviewer
Developer at a university with 51-200 employees
Apr 20, 2013
VMware Workstations is for desktop use only and is pricey.
it_user215970 - PeerSpot reviewer
Technical Lead with 51-200 employees
Sep 16, 2015
In v6, it was a 32bit environment with a maximum memory of 4Gb RAM. Therefore, this required a high level of swap out of RAM to disk in order to provide sufficient memory space to run VMs, this occasionally caused system crashes.
it_user265281 - PeerSpot reviewer
Network Manager / Senior Network Engineer at Warnock, Tanner & Associates
May 15, 2018
I have had issues with the virtual network adapters in the past that has taken some time to troubleshoot.
reviewer1478514 - PeerSpot reviewer
Database Administrator at a government with 1-10 employees
Mar 26, 2021
The price should be reduced.
DS
Consultant at a tech services company with 501-1,000 employees
Jun 20, 2021
Performance could be improved, it's somewhat clunky.
reviewer941238 - PeerSpot reviewer
Engineering Applications Analyst at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
Oct 21, 2021
Lacks the ability to clone onto another system rather than starting from scratch.
DT
Senior Micro Solutions Engineer at Mobexpert
Nov 13, 2021
I would want to see features included that make deployment easier.