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Amazon WorkSpaces vs VMware Fusion Pro 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

Amazon WorkSpaces
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.4
Number of Reviews
16
Ranking in other categories
Desktop as a Service (DaaS) (2nd)
VMware Fusion Pro
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
4th
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.9
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Amazon WorkSpaces is 0.7%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Fusion Pro is 25.1%, up from 10.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

Bhaskar Rao - PeerSpot reviewer
Management console is very easy to use, readily available infrastructure and easy to scale
It's very stable. There is a big difference between traditional physical servers and cloud servers. With physical servers, we need to plan for purchasing, procurement, capacity, storage, get quotations, and then procure them. That took some time. Maybe it would take more than one month or maybe two months to procure and then install. With AWS, it is readily available. Just pay and immediately create the VPC, network, and everything. It is very easy. Within two or three hours, we can implement any server or launch any application. Within five minutes, we can just spin up and publish our servers on the Internet.
Bruce Lundberg - PeerSpot reviewer
Create custom virtual environments quickly with minor macOS integration issues
The primary advantage of VMware Fusion Pro is its simplicity in creating custom virtual machines. It allows quick construction and provides connectivity to full VMware server systems, enabling remote management. It facilitates downloading images from main VMware servers for local testing. The ability to construct a virtual environment on my laptop meets my needs, even ones I wasn't aware of.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."
"They maintain it and manage it very well."
"The most valuable feature is the mobility. I can use it anywhere."
"We can work remotely using the solution."
"The infrastructure is readily available, with minimal latency, which each user can benefit from."
"The most valuable features are easy provisioning, an active directory, and mobile access."
"Security, streaming, faster performance, scalability, and the fact that it is very much cost-effective, are some of the solution's valuable features."
"The tool has low latency and multimedia support. For instance, running Zoom calls on Amazon WorkSpaces seamlessly supports local microphones, speakers, and web cameras. This feature is transparent for applications, allowing me to use the Zoom application without requiring exceptional support for remote web cameras or microphones. Amazon WorkSpaces provides this functionality at the operating system level, enabling effortless video conferencing. To my knowledge, Microsoft Remote Desktop does not offer the same support."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."
"The most value that it provides is that it is versatile."
"The most important feature of VMware Fusion is that it helps me rapidly launch a new OS."
"It is a highly stable solution."
"For me, VMware Fusion Pro has been invaluable, allowing me to meet all my needs with a single system."
"The whole point of it is to run Windows VMs on a Mac. This is the most valuable feature. There is snapshotting, but we don't really use that. The Pro version allows me to actually attach to the Windows ESXi infrastructure at the backend, and I'm able to create a session that I can attach to the VMware hooks at the backend, so one is running a VM, and the whole operating system is running on the actual Mac. The other one is literally a frontend to the VMs that are running in the infrastructure at the backend. These are the two main features I use."
"The primary advantage of VMware Fusion Pro is its simplicity in creating custom virtual machines."
 

Cons

"An area that could be improved is it could work better on VPN."
"Amazon WorkSpaces needs to improve its pricing."
"The initial setup was somewhat difficult."
"Making it more self-service friendly would be the implement I'd be looking for. When we have to add new applications, we have to go through the IT to do that, and they need to do some configuration changes. I believe they have to reevaluate the computation and storage and the memory. So this is this is something that as an unrequired and should be changed. Also, the initial start time takes couple of minutes and it is easy for get distracted during the time. So if it can reduce the start time to a reasonable start of time to a reasonable time of five to ten seconds. That will be great."
"If they had a cheaper option for graphics pro, I think that it would be beneficial and I would use it."
"Configuration was a bit complicated at first but manageable."
"There is always scope of improvement in the stability."
"The product needs to improve its pricing. It should also improve corporate identity management and single sign-on."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable as it runs on desktops and laptops."
"Its installation process could be simpler."
"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."
"Additionally, enhancing the API interactions could improve the ability to manage VS and deploy various kinds of guests."
"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."
"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations. This is a minor inconvenience."
"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable. It runs on desktops and laptops, indicating limitations in scalability."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is very expensive."
"There are several different options available, but it can range anywhere from $85 to $150 a month per machine."
"On a scale of one to ten, where one is low and ten is a high price, I rate the pricing a two."
"The pricing is based on consumption. You pay for each process based on the transactions you make."
"I think that the price can be lower. We have cases where the customer needs to have lower costs. So since we don't have options, like, shadow mode, they need to decrease pricing or have other models for reduced pricing."
"The tool's pricing depends on company turnover and the organization's relationship with Amazon. I rate it a six out of ten."
"The solution is expensive."
"We need to spend some amount for the support. Without money, they won't respond."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced."
"Starting with version 12, it is now free on a Mac for personal use. Fusion Pro has a cost."
"The cost varies depending on the season and whether it is scaled up or scaled down, but I would guess that it's approximately $1,000 per month."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
17%
Government
15%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
6%
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
12%
University
10%
Educational Organization
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Amazon WorkSpaces?
Performance and scalability are valuable features.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Amazon WorkSpaces?
The pricing is based on consumption. You pay for each process based on the transactions you make. The investment is almost the same as having your own on-premises solution, with the added costs of ...
What needs improvement with Amazon WorkSpaces?
There is always scope of improvement in the stability.
What do you like most about VMware Fusion?
The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Fusion?
The pricing of VMware Fusion Pro is reasonable. The licensing covers all minor version updates, while major updates require payment every three years. Buying it once can sustain you for years witho...
What needs improvement with VMware Fusion?
The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations. This is a min...
 

Also Known As

WorkSpaces
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

GrubHub, Endemol Shine Nederland, CMC Property Services
NetApp
Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon WorkSpaces vs. VMware Fusion Pro and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.