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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs VNC Connect comparison

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Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 3, 2026

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

Microsoft Intune
Sponsored
Ranking in Remote Access
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
377
Ranking in other categories
Configuration Management (1st), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (1st), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (1st), Microsoft Security Suite (1st)
Microsoft Remote Desktop Se...
Ranking in Remote Access
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
91
Ranking in other categories
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) (2nd)
VNC Connect
Ranking in Remote Access
17th
Average Rating
7.4
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
3
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2026, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 5.4%, down from 10.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is 6.6%, down from 10.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VNC Connect is 3.1%, down from 3.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Remote Access Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune5.4%
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services6.6%
VNC Connect3.1%
Other84.9%
Remote Access
 

Featured Reviews

HA
Senior Business Development Executive at Digitaltrack
Centralized device management has automated onboarding and improves remote security compliance
One thing I feel Microsoft Intune could improve is troubleshooting visibility. In many cases, when a policy or application deployment fails, the error messages are a bit generic. So, admins still spend time checking logs manually or testing on devices one by one. Compared to the simplicity of deployment, troubleshooting sometimes feels less mature. I also think reporting and real-time monitoring could be stronger. The dashboard gives useful information, but in large environments, many teams still depend on additional tools or scripts for deeper reporting and analytics. If I had to focus on one area first, I would probably choose troubleshooting and reporting. Deployment through Microsoft Intune is generally straightforward, but when something fails, identifying the exact root cause can still take more time than expected. Error messages are sometimes too generic, and admins often have to dig through logs, sync status, or multiple portals to understand what actually happened. I think user experience and policy management could also improve further. Microsoft Intune has become much better over the years, but sometimes the admin portal still feels fragmented because certain configurations open in different sections or redirect to older interfaces. For new admins, especially, it can take time to understand where everything is located. Another thing is policy conflict handling. In larger organizations, multiple device policies, compliance rules, and configuration profiles can overlap. When conflicts happen, the visibility is not always very clear, so admins spend time figuring out which policy actually won or caused the issue.
reviewer2795433 - PeerSpot reviewer
Cloud Ops Lead at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Secure remote access has protected sensitive country data and supports strict compliance needs
I understand from the IT team managing Microsoft Remote Desktop Services that it is complex to set up the multiple roles, certificates, and networks required. Networking is quite complicated. Even though on the data center side it is quite simple, maintaining the farm of other connections that connect to that server is the complex piece. I understand there are more modern systems replicating what this solution does, which are easier to use, such as Azure Virtual Desktop within Microsoft Azure Cloud or Amazon WorkSpaces, which I have used before. Rather than having to manage all the complex networking, you could abstract it away a little further in the cloud for easier use. I also understand that this tool is in an end-of-life state now, with Microsoft actively pushing people towards Azure Virtual Desktop or Windows 365. I do not believe further features will be rolled out due to its end-of-life state, making it a legacy solution now.
Jose Miguel Moya - PeerSpot reviewer
SACTA Architect at MRInformatica
Easy to deploy, but scalability needs improvement
There are no specific challenges I faced while using the product. I haven't used the solution to support any AI-driven projects. In our company, we need to have remote access to our labs because if not, people have to move to the laboratory, and we will spend a lot of time working. I don't know the features of VNC Connect that improved our company's support capabilities. I rate the tool a six out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The ability to block and erase remote devices is valuable to us, especially when those devices are lost."
"My advice for those implementing Microsoft Intune is to proceed with it; there is no other software that can perform the job better, and Microsoft offers extensive experience with a mature ecosystem, so I recommend going for it."
"Microsoft Intune reduces the time of our engineers, cuts down costs for the deployment of our endpoints managed by Microsoft Intune, and helps to improve compliance and the security policies we wanted to apply on endpoints, which was not happening earlier."
"The most valuable feature of Intune is the user-friendly portal for end users."
"Microsoft Intune has improved endpoint visibility, simplified remote device management, and helped standardize security policies across both corporate and remote devices."
"It's easy to deploy a configuration or policy to a system, especially when you don't have Azure AD. Now we are talking to all these small and medium-sized customers who don't necessarily have an on-premise Windows Active Directory. If they have invested in Office 365 Premium, this functionality becomes available to them."
"This product works very well for companies already using the full Microsoft suite."
"I would say right now that Microsoft Intune is one of the best solutions."
"I like the way it can assess our system."
"The product saves time."
"For personal use, it is a great app."
"The solution is stable and reliable."
"Scalability-wise, it is very good, with auto-scaling so if there are more users required then Azure will help you to automatically manage it, and in addition it is HA, so I think that the overall scalability is pretty good."
"The product is stable."
"The solution is user-friendly and has a good user experience."
"The performance meets our requirements and the stability is good."
"The product’s ease of use and security are valuable."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is its ease of use."
"The most valuable features are that it is consistently low profile and consistently works without hiccups or headaches."
 

Cons

"The only issues I have had with Microsoft Intune were with applications where if they are not an MSI file, I cannot really upload it as an application."
"There are a few security features that are not available in Microsoft Intune, when compared to other products."
"I've dealt with Microsoft way too many times, and needless to say, I'm not too fond of Microsoft support most of the time."
"It would be nice to have a location tracker for the mobile device management tool. I'm not sure if it exists but hasn't been configured or if it's missing, but we've been unable to utilize the location features."
"There needs to be more support for Mac operating systems."
"It would be helpful if there was proactive remediation."
"I rate Microsoft customer service six out of 10. While some technicians go above and beyond, there is inconsistency, and connecting with the most helpful representatives is occasionally challenging."
"Not all technicians are knowledgeable of the Microsoft solution, so they have to work on that as well."
"For Microsoft, maybe bandwidth optimization is one of the areas that need improvement."
"There is a limitation on the number of concurrent users. The limitation is 20, and you have to spin up more than one server, which is not needed at this stage because of customers."
"We face frequent disconnections."
"The DB card needs improvement. I have a lot of experience with other competitors and Citrix is better than VMware and Microsoft. Citrix has more extensive features."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services can be improved by addressing the single session limitations and also clarifying the licensing, which can be confusing."
"Regarding the interface, I would rate it a nine mainly because it still looks like an old application, and if it could be modernized, that would be appreciated."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services could be improved by providing a way to make it configurable without using VPN from the actual service itself."
"Having a secondary app to log in to a remote VN is not ideal, but the app itself is very good."
"We occasionally have issues with the graphic software of the interface."
"Ease of access is a bit of a challenge."
"Improvements are required in the area of scalability since it is an aspect of the tool where there are shortcomings."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate Intune an eight out of ten for affordability. It's bundled with the 365 licensing, which is competitive overall."
"The cost is handled through our Office 365 license, so I have yet to be able to compare it directly with other tools in its class."
"Microsoft Intune is not cost-effective as a standalone product."
"There is a license needed to use the solution and we are on an annual license."
"It's a bit expensive from a licensing perspective, especially as we look to have organizations with tenants across the globe."
"Pricing depends on the features. Microsoft offers special packages if there are more than 10,000 users, and you may be able to get a reduced rate."
"Microsoft licenses are costly."
"If you ask the accountant or the finance department, they'll tell you that it is way too expensive, but when I look at the cost and compare it with the value you actually get, it's more than fair."
"The solution has a pretty comparable pricing."
"The cost is fair."
"The solution is overly expensive."
"The price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is reasonable. The solution can come for free for some clients with certain agreements."
"The cost of the solution is low."
"Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is less expensive than some other solutions on the market."
"I rate the price of Microsoft Remote Desktop Services a three out of five."
"The solution is expensive. My company pays toward the monthly licensing costs of the solution...The additional cost, apart from the solution's licensing cost, is related to the technical support a user wants."
"I use the tool's free version."
"The tool is not cheap."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
8%
Outsourcing Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Construction Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
17%
Healthcare Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
University
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business192
Midsize Enterprise62
Large Enterprise186
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business45
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise36
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

How does Microsoft Intune compare with VMware Workspace One?
Microsoft Intune is a great tool for managing a mobile device fleet while keeping access control. The solution makes ...
What are the pros and cons of Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune is a great configuration management tool and has a lot of good things going for it. Here are some of...
How does Google Cloud Identity compare with Microsoft Intune?
Microsoft Intune offers not only an easy-to-deploy data protection and productivity management solution, but also ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
The experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing is that the pricing is based on licensing costs and the setup ...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
Microsoft Remote Desktop Services can be improved in several areas. Currently, it requires a license cost, it has per...
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services?
Our main use case for Microsoft Remote Desktop Services is to allow multiple users to remotely access our Windows mac...
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Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager
Remote Desktop Services
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway
Bank Alfalah Ltd.
Telesat Canada, St. Anthony's School, Pratt and Whitney, City of Sacramento
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs. VNC Connect and other solutions. Updated: August 2026.
909,647 professionals have used our research since 2012.