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Azure Virtual Desktop vs VMware Fusion Pro comparison

 

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

Azure Virtual Desktop
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VMware Fusion Pro
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
3rd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Azure Virtual Desktop is 7.7%, up from 7.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Fusion Pro is 6.5%, down from 21.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
VMware Fusion Pro6.5%
Azure Virtual Desktop7.7%
Other85.8%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

RC
Senior Advisor at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Enhanced collaboration and security with seamless remote access has transformed work efficiency
We can integrate anything with Azure Virtual Desktop from an application perspective. The App-V has evolved into MSIX. To deliver an application to Azure Virtual Desktop, MSIX can be used by expanding it as a virtual hard disk and attaching it to the virtual machine. When this is done, users who need the application will have immediate access through Active Directory group assignment. One challenge with Virtual Desktop infrastructure is application delivery. From an infrastructure perspective, it's beneficial as we can have a fallback point - if one machine is down, we can have a disaster recovery site for redirection. The delivery of applications is a tedious process. Microsoft is working on building new products for efficient application installation. This feature might be included in upcoming releases. Currently, it's burdensome for IT administrators to create applications compatible with Virtual Desktop infrastructure, unlike traditional machines where direct installation is possible.
Bruce Lundberg - PeerSpot reviewer
Linux HPC Systems Administrator at a manufacturing company with 5,001-10,000 employees
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

"Azure pricing is quite cheap due to licensing benefits with Microsoft."
"Absolutely, this solution is probably the leader in its field."
"The cost-effectiveness of Azure Virtual Machines is one of the most valuable features."
"The biggest advantages are the price and flexibility."
"Azure Virtual Desktop enables anyone connecting to Microsoft to use MFA (multi-factor authentication), totally secured to connect and has end-to-end encryption through tunnel encryption."
"The auto-scaling option allows provisioning additional virtual desktops based on user demand, making it scalable and flexible."
"The scalability is probably the most valuable feature since I can quickly add or remove machines or increase or decrease the size depending on resources to manage the cost better."
"The ability to spin up virtual machines quickly and speedily in Azure has been really valuable."
"Veeam Backup and Replication is the common product for backing up virtual machines."
"The most value that it provides is that it is versatile."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"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 most important feature of VMware Fusion is that it helps me rapidly launch a new OS."
"My advice right now would be to download it for free and use that instead of a VirtualBox or some of the other free stuff because it is more flexible than other solutions."
"For me, VMware Fusion Pro has been invaluable, allowing me to meet all my needs with a single system."
"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."
 

Cons

"The costs are a bit difficult to predict upfront."
"My overall rating of Azure Virtual Desktop is five out of ten. While the stability and cost-effectiveness are commendable, there is room for improvement in technical support."
"Access from Entra ID should be implemented to provide only tenant access to users connecting to the Azure Virtual Desktop environment, eliminating the need for on-premises requirements."
"The delivery of applications is a tedious process."
"One of the issues I had was the ability to add an internet proxy. I would like to see built-in proxy and internet filtering."
"The initial setup of Azure Virtual Desktop overall is complex. The complexities I've noticed are with application optimizations, and it can get complex by meeting customers' security requirements."
"The costs are a bit difficult to predict upfront. When I am trying to sell it to a customer as a consultant, it is hard to give them a fixed price."
"I see areas for improvement in Azure Virtual Desktop, specifically regarding cost, as it is a little bit expensive."
"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."
"Its installation process could be simpler."
"One of the problems with VMware Fusion Pro is limited redundancy; it is related to the infrastructure and the nature of the on-premises because on-premises you cannot have enough reliability since you have to fund all the resources on your own."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable. It runs on desktops and laptops, indicating limitations in scalability."
"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."
"The backups for the VMs themselves can also be improved. I pretty much have to rely on Windows backups and not something on VMware."
"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."
"The way they handle snapshotting can be improved. One time, I moved a machine from one to another, and I tried to pull it up on the second machine, but it didn't work. This was because I had not cleaned up the snapshot before I deleted it and moved it across. So, when I tried to pull it up, it wouldn't let me bring it up. The backups for the VMs themselves can also be improved. I pretty much have to rely on Windows backups and not something on VMware. That's where it needs improvement. I am able to upload from my Fusion into the ESXi easily. I'm able to spin something up on Fusion and push it into the big arena, but the reverse is not as easy, that is, trying to pull something down from that. I would love to have a functionality where I could pull something from the VMware infrastructure into Fusion, but I'm not sure if I can take something from ESXi and pull it into Fusion."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"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."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
24%
Outsourcing Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Comms Service Provider
17%
University
12%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise6
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise4
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Azure Virtual Desktop?
The usual amount customers pay for this tool varies. I have seen large deployments catering to 500 or 700 users. Enterprises do use it, and they pay quite a bit for this.
What needs improvement with Azure Virtual Desktop?
I see areas for improvement in Azure Virtual Desktop, specifically regarding cost, as it is a little bit expensive. However, when you account for replacing dedicated hardware and the maintenance it...
What is your primary use case for Azure Virtual Desktop?
We use RDP with Azure and have some virtual desktops. A major use case for Azure Virtual Desktop is that we give access to external consultants so they can access our information and interact with ...
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?
In future updates of VMware Fusion Pro, I think there should be another community to input features. It is an infrastructure tool that may need embedding some AI to help or catching up with the new...
What is your primary use case for VMware Fusion?
My specialty is about IBM AS/400 applications, so I got to be in contact with several packages, including LX, which is why I had this research on your website.I'm mostly interested in ERP packages;...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
NetApp
Find out what your peers are saying about Azure Virtual Desktop vs. VMware Fusion Pro and other solutions. Updated: June 2026.
902,988 professionals have used our research since 2012.