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Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs Microsoft App-V comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

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

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citri...
Ranking in Application Virtualization
2nd
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
126
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (4th), Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (3rd), Desktop as a Service (DaaS) (1st)
Microsoft App-V
Ranking in Application Virtualization
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Application Virtualization category, the mindshare of Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) is 27.9%, up from 24.4% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft App-V is 22.6%, down from 24.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Application Virtualization
 

Featured Reviews

Grant Waddell - PeerSpot reviewer
User-friendly and easily accessible, but cost could be made cheaper
We use Citrix Workspace on Citrix Cloud. We have all of our servers on the AWS public cloud. There are a number of tools that we can implement that would save us costs. However, we've stuck to Citrix for convenience. If the prices keep increasing, we will have to consider other solutions. Users need to understand the tool's limitations correctly and what they require from a usability perspective. They should also understand the configuration of security policies. In some cases, people are unable to download or upload files onto their PCs, which is necessary for them to do their work. Users should understand the limitations of the product or the configuration options. Overall, I rate the solution a seven out of ten.
SN
Legacy software is maintained effectively, offering cost savings and integration flexibility
I believe there is no room for improvement in Microsoft App-V since it is officially at the end of life. Microsoft does not negotiate extensions for their end-of-life solutions. It has been a great tool over the years, but the company has managed to write most applications to bring them up to date, many written from scratch or as web-based applications. It's highly likely that we will decommission the Microsoft App-V solutions next year, keeping backups for a period until the new applications stabilize. I'm confident that once they transition to newer versions, they will phase out Microsoft App-V just like they do with operating systems. When Microsoft decides to close a version, such as Windows 10-22H2 or 21-H2, it happens. Paying for extended support is costly and, in the end, not worth it. Organizations must think of alternatives, possibly leaning towards MSIX, although MSIX doesn't support very old software used on Windows XP or 2000, which raises doubts about what can truly be improved. It's clear they won't introduce anything new; they will only provide security patches as they approach the end-of-life timeline.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"ICA/HDX optimization policies."
"First of all, the manageability of the applications for publishing is valuable. Second, it is about being able to run the applications on all main platforms. Third, its licensing is valuable. You can either switch to the cloud and keep on-prem. You can work with this hybrid scenario."
"Before we adopted a VDI storage solution, our customers' personal information was leaked. This happened a lot. But since we adopted a VDI solution, these kinds of issues have happened rarely."
"It allows us to mute users who adhere to a policy of not allowing direct VPN access for security reasons. It is easy to use."
"I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. Although it works well on the apps side, the desktop aspect still has room for improvement in scalability. Managing multiple OSs centrally doesn't reduce many problems, and the product remains almost on par with its competitors like VMware Vue."
"Stable product with straightforward setup."
"I use Citrix DaaS to connect to devices."
"I can access it from anywhere."
"From my experience with Microsoft App-V, the feature I liked the most is the streaming."
"It is very easy to use from an administration point of view."
"I would recommend Microsoft App-V for its simplicity and efficiency."
"We can deploy applications incredibly fast."
"Microsoft App-V is a simple, very good working product that just works."
"The most interesting and powerful feature for us is the fact that we can upgrade any kind of app instantly."
"It is easy to scale. You can quickly deploy additional instances. Rollbacks are easy because there is an automatic backup every hour. Deploying the application is straightforward and efficient."
"I appreciate the process of being able to change or review my answers."
 

Cons

"The lag when using Skype or Screen Sharing with multiple users needs to improve, as it makes it difficult for us to continue when we have to restart the system."
"The initial setup is complex."
"I've recently tried to use Citrix on Ubuntu, and I don't know if this is an Ubuntu issue or a vendor issue, but you can't use Citrix right now on Ubuntu 20.04."
"Their customer support can be improved a lot as it lacks a lot of knowledgeable help."
"They can simplify the process of printers. Printers were quite a difficult issue. It took us a long time to iron this issue out. We have the most simple use case where people connect from home to either a virtual machine or their physical desktop. We tried more complex solutions like Machine Creation Services, and they were more overhead than they were worth for us. I found them difficult to work with and confusing, and they were not worth the work for us."
"The product is currently not working well in hosting conferencing software like Zoom, Team, and Salon."
"The only thing we have found to be detrimental is when we have tried to find training. I realize that we're looking at it at the worst time possible, with a pandemic going on, but it seems that most of the training offered is learn-by-yourself online."
"It is slow. When everybody is logged in, it does have a tendency to slow down. You can tell the connectivity slows down a little bit, but it's still a good product."
"Regarding improvements in Microsoft App-V, I would appreciate seeing the successor, MSIX, work better, as nothing is going to be implemented anymore since it is end of life by the end of the year."
"Microsoft App-V is more suited for legacy software usage, and trying to make it work in that context usually feels tricky and unreliable."
"There is definitely room for improvement with Microsoft App-V, especially in terms of enhancing troubleshooting resources and user guidance."
"The reporting features could be improved."
"The downside is that Microsoft bought this product and they are going to discontinue it in 2026. This is worrisome for us."
"If it were possible to integrate App-V with a cybersecurity solution then we could implement a documentation registry, which would be useful."
"The process was streamlined but didn't make our work simple. We encountered an issue with the person responsible for designing the website."
"Microsoft App-V has been slow, and users experience delays when launching applications, which presents significant challenges."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The Citrix licensing scheme is really straightforward and simple. It doesn't have hidden costs. You get what you pay for. It is easy to understand what is on the product, so it's simple to get a clear idea of how much it costs. Licensing is not an issue."
"The pricing is a little bit high, but it's good value for the product's stability and efficiency."
"It is quite expensive, but so are the competitors on the market."
"Based not only on the cost of Citrix, but additional costs like firewalls, IPS, and other solutions, the total cost of switching users from using normal laptops with VPNs to connection via Citrix were so huge that the CEO of our company decided to postpone the deployment process."
"The solution is affordable."
"In the past, the prices of the product were great. With the acquisition of Citrix by your company, the prices have drastically increased. For my company, it has become a bit of a problem to sell products from Citrix."
"Where Citrix really needs to improve is in their support and in the way that they manage their licenses. Everything else comes second because if I'm not in a position where I can get proper support or manage my own licenses in an easy way, then it is pointless. Today, I am at a point where I may not be able to use Citrix anymore because they want to take away some of the licenses that I bought, pretending they are not valid anymore. That is frankly unacceptable. If they don't solve this, everything comes second because I cannot use my product."
"We don't have a lot to compare it to, but we certainly think whatever we pay is worthwhile at this point in time. It's very reasonable."
"The pricing of this product is competitive."
"Clients do not pay licensing fees."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
20%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
7%
Financial Services Firm
17%
Government
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
Healthcare Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
My focus has primarily been on publishing virtual applications.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops?
I have found that Citrix DaaS is still a complex product, especially on the desktop side, which affects scalability. Although it works well on the apps side, the desktop aspect still has room for i...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft App-V?
Regarding pricing, I believe flexibility would help retain customers. Costs could be more adaptable to meet varying budgets.
What needs improvement with Microsoft App-V?
There is definitely room for improvement with Microsoft App-V, especially in terms of enhancing troubleshooting resources and user guidance.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft App-V?
I have been using Microsoft App-V for quite some time, and I can describe my use cases, which include various applications that enhance productivity.
 

Also Known As

XenDesktop, XenApp (Citrix Virtual Apps), Citrix Workspace
App-V, MS App-V
 

Interactive Demo

Demo not available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Exelon, Aeronamic, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Alameda County Medical Center, Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Aloysius Stichting, Amarchand Mangaldas, AmBev, Amnet Technology Solutions, Arval
The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), GDDKiA, P&V, Etisalat Lanka, Hellenic Petroleum
Find out what your peers are saying about Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs. Microsoft App-V and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,957 professionals have used our research since 2012.