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Kali Linux vs Windows 10 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
8.5
Kali Linux provided cost-effective vulnerability testing, enhancing system security and efficiency, while integrating with DevOps and facilitating faster learning.
Sentiment score
1.4
Windows 10 enhances performance, security, and compatibility, reducing crashes and break-even in 1.5 years, despite mixed ROI perceptions.
Integrating Kali Linux with DevOps tools has resulted in reduced operational costs due to automated test cases, making it a worthwhile investment with significant returns by decreasing the attack surface area and the frequency of attack incidents.
If we had installed it on-premises or through other means, it would have incurred significant money and effort to create the VMs, deploy it on machines, and then delete and format it after use.
I have saved time by avoiding the lag I sometimes face on the TryHackMe in-built machine, and I have learned more efficiently.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
4.6
Kali Linux support relies on active community forums, offering reliable guidance and documentation, with limited traditional support.
Sentiment score
4.6
Users often use online forums and resources for Windows 10 support, experiencing mixed satisfaction with Microsoft's technical support.
Since most of the tools and other things are community-based, the documentation and other community support are very good.
We have informed Microsoft, but the issue is still there, and it has been more than three to four months.
The customer service and support from Microsoft are quite responsive and generally good.
The Office 365 support is good, it takes a while sometimes to point to the problem, but they're good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.0
Kali Linux offers strong scalability, efficiently supporting single to multiple users for both personal and professional environments.
Sentiment score
5.2
Windows 10 is widely seen as scalable for diverse organizations, supporting both personal and enterprise environments efficiently.
For scalability, I would rate it a nine or ten because performance-wise, Windows 10 has never given me those issues.
I can increase the licensing amount easily when there is company growth or when new people join.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Kali Linux is highly praised for its stability and reliability, particularly in virtualization, despite occasional system-specific issues.
Sentiment score
6.4
Windows 10 is stable and reliable with minimal issues, though updates may sometimes temporarily affect performance and stability.
The challenges were related to third-party agents and their supportability.
I would rate the stability of the product an eight.
 

Room For Improvement

Kali Linux needs better automation, AI integration, user interfaces, security, and community engagement for improved user experience and compatibility.
Windows 10 needs better update management, intuitive design, stronger security, improved performance, platform integration, flexible pricing, and support.
If real-time customized port scanning can be added, for example, instead of a default port such as 8080 or 443, if we can use a customized port such as 9876, that capability would be great.
Making Kali Linux more customizable would allow users to personalize it to their style.
It's still advertised as a Linux distro used only for security testing, and many of the tools run as root by default or with the highest privileges.
Microsoft can improve their Teams product because everybody uses Teams, and it's very clunky and unfriendly in terms of scrolling back, downloading files, and moving back and forth within the different teams.
Investment in Windows 10 may not be ideal as the world is changing with advancing technology in the AI age.
The transitions within Teams are not smooth, and call quality in meetings is not great.
 

Setup Cost

Kali Linux is free and open-source, offering cost-effective tools without licensing fees, except for potential setup costs.
Enterprise Windows 10 pricing varies widely, influenced by licensing models, with users seeking simpler, more transparent and affordable options.
Kali Linux is free software, an operating system that's available to download without any cost or licensing fees.
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Kali Linux has been positive, as it operates under an open-source model.
The pricing and the deployment, resource usage are all spot on and clearly defined, making it helpful and useful for me to deploy and calculate costs.
For those buying a Windows license, it might be better to buy a Windows 11 license.
Windows is considered overpriced, especially given the normal software functionalities.
Windows 10 is cost-effective when compared to other competitors available such as Mac and Linux.
 

Valuable Features

Kali Linux offers robust tools, security, scalability, and efficiency, enhancing penetration testing and reducing cybersecurity threats effectively.
Windows 10 features a user-friendly interface, robust security, high performance, and enhances productivity with intuitive multitasking and seamless integration.
Kali Linux has positively impacted my organization by improving efficiency in penetration testing; its open-source nature permits extensive customization and inclusion of numerous comprehensive pre-installed tools, contributing to a secure network environment with effective monitoring of network applications.
Kali Linux has the capability of real-time data scanning for vulnerability assessment for backend services.
The overall focus on security in Kali Linux is what I find most useful.
When using mapping software such as QGIS or ArcGIS, the system remains stable, especially when handling heavy files.
The configuration management tools, such as SACM, are effective.
Windows 11 brings some AI features for Microsoft Copilot, which probably weren't as integrated into the previous version.
 

Categories and Ranking

Kali Linux
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
11th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
17
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Windows 10
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
4.7
Number of Reviews
283
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Kali Linux is 3.0%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows 10 is 2.8%, down from 4.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Windows 102.8%
Kali Linux3.0%
Other94.2%
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Aditya Pillai - PeerSpot reviewer
Has helped me learn penetration testing through hands-on tasks and faster workflows
It would be helpful if Kali Linux could be involved in more systems or laptops. Windows is a standard for many laptops and comes pre-installed on many devices available in the market. If Kali Linux could do the same and increase their reach to better areas, it would be beneficial. They could improve Kali Linux's UI/UX. They have been following a standard UI/UX. They could add more options, similar to how CachyOS distro of Arch Linux has many different UI options to select from. Making Kali Linux more customizable would allow users to personalize it to their style. Many users utilize Kali Linux through virtual machines. Sometimes Kali Linux has issues detecting hardware such as inbuilt or external Wi-Fi adapters. Improving device detection would be beneficial.
Arjun Meda - PeerSpot reviewer
User appreciates ease of use but desires improvements in pricing and update process
I do not find Windows 10 compatible with my applications as I am not using any legacy applications. Regarding my experience with Windows 10, I was annoyed with updates that constantly make my PC restart. Additionally, the user interface could be more intuitive because it is sometimes too hard to find specific items.
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
14%
Computer Software Company
12%
University
12%
Educational Organization
11%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
8%
Financial Services Firm
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise8
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business126
Midsize Enterprise63
Large Enterprise119
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Kali Linux?
I use the tool with Nmap to perform network audits. We use it to find vulnerabilities in our network through attacks. It's for those who want to launch or create viruses or perform attacks on syste...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Kali Linux?
My experience with pricing, setup costs, and licensing for Kali Linux has been positive, as it operates under an open-source model with setup costs primarily related to hardware and virtual machine...
What needs improvement with Kali Linux?
There are areas for improvement in Kali Linux, particularly regarding its use of the Linux kernel, which requires external additional patching, and the fact that network services are disabled by de...
What needs improvement with Windows 10?
I do not find Windows 10 compatible with my applications as I am not using any legacy applications. Regarding my experience with Windows 10, I was annoyed with updates that constantly make my PC re...
What is your primary use case for Windows 10?
Regarding features such as Cortana voice activation, I am not using that; it is not AI, it is more similar to Siri in iPhones. Regarding the initial setup, it is not difficult to set up Windows 10 ...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

Find out what your peers are saying about Kali Linux vs. Windows 10 and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,655 professionals have used our research since 2012.