Nerdio vs Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) comparison

Nerdio and Parallels are both solutions in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category. Nerdio is ranked #10 with an average rating of 9.5, while Parallels is ranked #13. Nerdio holds a 1.1% mindshare in VD, compared to Parallels’s 2.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Nerdio users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Parallels users who would recommend it.

Nerdio

Read 2 Nerdio reviews

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540 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Parallels Remote Applicatio...

Read 25 Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) reviews

1,729 Views
1,643 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Nerdio

Parallels Remote Applicatio...

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Nerdio and Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Nerdio vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) Report (Updated: December 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Nerdio vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

December 2025

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Helped 880,490 peers since 2012

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

Nerdio

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

10th

Average Rating

9.6

Reviews Sentiment

8.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Parallels Remote Applicatio...

Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

13th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Application Virtualization (4th)

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Nerdio is 1.1%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) is 2.9%, up from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Nerdio	1.1%
Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)	2.9%
Other	96.0%

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

Featured Reviews

Maarten Bruijnesteijn

IT Infrastucture Engineer at PPG

Automation capabilities enhance cost-saving and scaling efforts

The auto-heal functionality needs improvement. Currently, the feature is limited because it only allows one heal condition and doesn't support multiple triggers. The capability to use different conditions, like the presence of online users during a failed installation, is missing. The current state makes it less useful, but I have even submitted a feature request for a better solution.

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JohanSkibdahl

CEO at Etcetera Networks

Secure access across devices with cost-effective seamless integration

One valuable feature is the ability to securely use a wide range of devices to access the company's infrastructure. The inclusion of all necessary components, such as load balancer and gateways, in a monthly fee is also beneficial. In terms of Parallels Desktop, the coherence mode that allows Mac and Windows applications to run seamlessly side by side is highly regarded.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The customer service from Nerdio is excellent, and I even know the CEO personally and have a positive experience, rating it nine out of ten."

"The most valuable features of Nerdio are its automation capabilities, specifically the autoscale and auto-heal functionalities."

"The solution is one hundred percent stable and very much straightforward."

"Nerdio is completely an automation platform offering auto-scaling and flexibility."

"One valuable feature is the ability to securely use a wide range of devices to access the company's infrastructure."

"Parallels Desktop allows me to run both Mac and Windows operating systems on a single machine, eliminating the need for separate Windows hardware."

"The solution is powerful, and it has good speed and performance."

"You have the opportunity to virtualize applications in different locations. Everything is in one pane or one window, which is quite good."

"It is robust. We have some 75 users using it and it doesn't lag. It's very speedy."

"The most valuable feature is the ease with which you can publish applications to different groups of users, by integrating with Windows Active Directory."

"It permits us to control the applications that our users are able to get to, in a seamless manner. We're able to distribute applications to users' desktops, just like those applications are on each user's computer, but they're not."

"Ease of use in publishing apps and installing the agent. The Interface is fairly intuitive after some tinkering. Although I inherited the app only two-thirds deployed, I was able to complete the deployment and service it over the last year without referring to any documentation."

More Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) pros

Cons

"They should start providing the certifications on Nerdio for training and enhancements, mainly for the open community of IT."

"The auto-heal functionality needs improvement."

"The auto-heal functionality needs improvement. Currently, the feature is limited because it only allows one heal condition and doesn't support multiple triggers."

"The solution's application virtualization feature needs improvement."

"The main issue we have with all of our users is printing. Randomly, a printer will disconnect or someone won't connect to it and I will have to reset the print service and then nobody can print. That's the big headache we've had over the course of the five years."

"If the solution crashes, then all the customers connected through that agent, lose their session."

"A potential improvement could be reducing the dependency on Microsoft solutions for Parallels RAS."

"It would be great if there were more sophisticated GPO templates/options."

"Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) is an expensive solution, and its pricing could be improved."

"The product does not utilize SQL for reporting purposes. Also, it does not support some hypervisors similar to Citrix. These particular areas need improvement."

"It needs Windows scaling on Android/iOS devices. At present, the concept of delivering apps to Android and iOS devices is appealing, but the reality is the screen size on these devices is so small that, unless there is some scaling option, it is not really usable."

More Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"Pricing is a little steep."

"It is inexpensive compared to one of its competitors."

"I don't like the subscription model because it feels like I have to pay every month. If Parallels could go back to the professional license, it would be much better."

"Work with the vendor, as this is a fairly new product and they want use cases. Deals can be made."

"It justifies the price. In terms of licensing, initially when we got the product it was an unlimited licensing strategy. We knew would grow in the coming years. So initially, we took a plan which had no limit. After a year or so the strategy changed and we were being limited to 105 licenses, that was the minimum... If there was flexibility for increasing the number of licenses that would be great because you never know how much you are going to grow in the next year."

"It is very affordable."

"We currently use Parallels side-by-side with an Azure cloud-hosted solution. This may be from a lack of product knowledge on my part, but we still need to work out the most effective way to shut down servers outside of hours, thereby reduce hosting costs. I am not entirely convinced Parallels does this well yet."

"Parallels is a cost effective alternative to Citrix."

More Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

15%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Computer Software Company

10%

Outsourcing Company

Computer Software Company

14%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	14
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	10

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Nerdio?

It is competitively priced in the market.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Nerdio?

They should start providing the certifications on Nerdio for training and enhancements, mainly for the open community of IT. It should not be restricted to partners only, yet available to everyone.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Nerdio?

During the implementation and management stage, I use Nerdio Manager for enterprise for deploying and quickly rolling out virtual desktops to end users. Once I complete the production rollout, I st...

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?

The pricing for Parallels RAS is straightforward with a monthly fee for a minimum of 15 licenses. For Parallels Desktop, it is a yearly cost of a couple of hundred euros. No additional fees for mai...

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What needs improvement with Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?

A potential improvement could be reducing the dependency on Microsoft solutions for Parallels RAS. As for Parallels Desktop, there is nothing specific that needs improvement.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)?

The primary use case of Parallels is to offer it to customers as a hosted service. I help them to migrate from other solutions like VMware to Parallels RAS. I recommend it to companies that prefer ...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 7% of the time

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Microsoft Remote Desktop Services vs Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

Compared 18% of the time

Citrix DaaS (formerly Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops service) vs Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

Compared 15% of the time

Parallels Desktop vs Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

Compared 8% of the time

Amazon WorkSpaces vs Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

Compared 8% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)

December 2025

Download Nerdio product report

Buyer's Guide

Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

January 2026

Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) report

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Also Known As

No data available

Parallels RAS

Overview

Nerdio is the definitive solution for Microsoft Azure deployment, packaging, pricing, management, and optimization.

Nerdio for Azure empowers MSPs to build successful cloud practices in Azure, and we will do whatever it takes to help them succeed.

Nerdio

ApplicationServer delivers applications, data and virtual desktops from a central location, providing continuous availability, resource-based load-balancing and complete network transparency.

Parallels

Sample Customers

BeMo, Northstar Technologies

Arsari Group _ PT Netmarks Indonesia, Izhevsk Elektromekhanicheskiy Zavod (IEMZ) _ Kupol, Abilene Diagnostic Clinic, Fylde Borough Council, YARSTROYREZE LLC, VSK Insurance House, Melenkovsky District of Vladimirskaya Oblast, Sofrigam SA, Antenna International, KingsGate Community Church, Norwegian American Hospital, Island Hotels Group, Medway Council, Medway Council, Voices of September 11th, MacDonald Training Center, Kansas Childrenês Service League, Scope,Next Generation Clubs, WTC Communications, Opera Australia, HSE Integrated, Danier, Bridgwater College, Kern County Mental Health, Tony Tiendas, Spears Manufacturing, Managed Insurance Services Inc., Intuitive Medical Software, M.J. Soffe, Mazda Motors, Israel Military Industries (IMI), Telfair, Upic Solutions, Teleflora, Fisher & Company

Buyer's Guide

Nerdio vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

December 2025

Free Report: Nerdio vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS)

Find out what your peers are saying about Nerdio vs. Parallels Remote Application Server (RAS) and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.

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