Parallels Access vs ScreenConnect comparison

Parallels and ConnectWise are both solutions in the Remote Access category. Parallels is ranked #18 with an average rating of 9.0, while ConnectWise is ranked #22. Parallels holds a 1.8% mindshare in VUS, compared to ConnectWise’s 2.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Parallels users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 93% of ConnectWise users who would recommend it.

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 28, 2025

Parallels Access and ScreenConnect are competing in the remote access software market. ScreenConnect has an advantage regarding feature richness and perceived long-term value, whereas Parallels Access is favored for cost-effectiveness and support options.

Features: Parallels Access allows users easy navigation from various devices, supports smooth mobile and desktop connectivity, and provides reliable remote control over computers. ScreenConnect offers expanded functionalities such as unattended access, robust system control, and seamless remote access across all devices, proving suitable for complex IT setups.

Room for Improvement: Parallels Access could enhance its feature set to better support larger organizations, improve its deployment features, and add more advanced remote access functionalities. ScreenConnect may need to work on its interface user-friendliness, address connectivity issues during network changes, and simplify remote access commands to ensure ease of use for less technical users.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: ScreenConnect provides a seamless deployment process with detailed customer service, making it easy for enterprises to integrate. Parallels Access, despite its straightforward installation and dependable support, lacks the finer deployment features that might appeal more to larger organizations with more complex IT environments.

Pricing and ROI: Parallels Access offers competitive pricing, catering to budget-conscious customers seeking effective functionalities. In contrast, ScreenConnect, though more expensive, offers a significant return on investment due to its extensive feature set, making it a worthwhile long-term investment for businesses with demanding remote access needs.

To learn more, read our detailed Parallels Access vs. ScreenConnect Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Parallels Access vs. ScreenConnect

March 2026

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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

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Remote Access category, the mindshare of Microsoft Intune is 8.9%, down from 9.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Parallels Access is 1.8%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of ScreenConnect is 2.9%, up from 1.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Remote Access Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Microsoft Intune	8.9%
Parallels Access	1.8%
ScreenConnect	2.9%
Other	86.4%

Remote Access

Featured Reviews

AkashKamble

Sr MacOS specialist engineer at Cyber24

Enables management of multiple operating systems with a single license

The best feature is that it's a Microsoft product, so if anything goes wrong, we get quick support for anything required. Remote system functionality allows us to sit anywhere and take control of any device via remote management. We can enhance security for clients' laptops with built-in Microsoft Defender, which is available with the Microsoft Intune license. We use it for reporting purposes through endpoint analytics. When pushing scripting, there are two types available: remediation script and reservation script. Through endpoint analytics, you can push defender policies to clients. It helps with reporting, inventory updates, and monitoring tenant status health.

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Jason Parkinson

CEO at a non-profit with 1-10 employees

Allows users to access and operate their computers remotely

When you want to transfer a file from your iPad or remote device to the computer, the copy-and-paste feature doesn't always work. I'd have to turn on the Bluetooth a lot of times and transfer it that way on both devices, which was troublesome. However, it would sometimes randomly work. I could go on my iPad, find whatever I wanted to do, click copy, then go over to the computer through Parallels Access, click paste, and it would randomly work. I had to call Parallels many times. They would log in and try something, which would temporarily work, but then it wouldn't. When it worked, it made integration between the two things great. That was a very helpful feature that didn't get polished.

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Todd Blake

Senior IT Specialist at COMMUNITY HEALTH CONNECTIONS INC

Simple to set up, reasonable pricing, and useful remote control capabilities

I'm on the latest version of the solution. I just updated it yesterday. While we have the solution on-premises at this time, we'll likely move to the cloud later this year. They have a trial version that you can try. They have a free version that you can try as well. I use it myself to support my family. I would try the free version or the trial version depending on your business. They can set you up and you can get to see all the features. I would also advocate going to the cloud version. Don't bother with the on-prem. It's just easier to jump to the cloud. I'd rate the solution nine out of ten.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The solution is easy to use, simple to understand for those new to using it, and combined with the other Microsoft products it makes for an overall good package."

"Microsoft Intune has helped us by improving our security posture, leading to fewer security problems, and helping us understand where we have issues."

"This product works very well for companies already using the full Microsoft suite."

"Microsoft Intune policies, remote wipe, and using corporate and private profiles are valuable features, but MFA is the most valuable feature as it ensures that the end user is authentic."

"The most useful features in Microsoft Intune are the policy enforcement and conditional access. These features make our operations easier from a company perspective."

"The dashboards, the security, and the customization capabilities work very well for us."

"The ability to switch between Affinity and non-Affinity enrollment is great."

"The many policies available in Microsoft Intune for managing our devices are valuable."

More Microsoft Intune pros

"We don't have problems with stability. Everything is good."

"Parallels Access gives me full access and control of the computer, and I can do anything I want remotely."

"It's got a very easy-to-use interface."

"It's great that the total deployment can happen completely remotely."

"Parallels Access has flexible licensing policies, which is beneficial for customers who have intermittent usage or users who are on and off the system."

"The flexibility to manage bandwidth and organize connections, and the price, make ConnectWise a really good choice."

"Setup was very straightforward. All I had to do was write a GPO on my domain controller and it automatically installed the agent that I downloaded from the software. I literally had to do nothing."

"It's very low maintenance."

"The initial setup is fairly straightforward."

"We researched prior to evaluating any remote access solutions and decided that Screenconnect was our first choice; we initiated a trial and have not looked back at any other solutions."

"In terms of pricing, this has been the most affordable, reliable and convenient remote assistance software/service that I have come across."

"The ConnectWise ScreenConnect tool is very good for remote access."

"Offers more security than TeamViewer, Google Remote Desktop, and Zoom. It's a stable, feature-rich solution that's easy to set up and easy to scale."

More ScreenConnect pros

Cons

"We faced issues with macOS support. The product should have better inventory and asset management."

"From an end-user perspective of Microsoft Intune, I haven't experienced any challenges since installation. However, some customers have reported experiencing slowness when using lower versions of the Android system."

"Intune should improve its software inventory to provide better metering of which software is used throughout the company. This is especially needed for reporting third-party software solutions."

"I would like to see better integration with Microsoft. There are a few things I can still do with Jamf that I am unable to do with Intune yet."

"Packages on different identity provider platforms that are not supported present challenges for package installation."

"The security aspect could be more effective. We are using other applications to manage network devices and groups, so if Microsoft Intune could improve in this area, especially on a network level, it would be a real advantage."

"The solution could improve its flexibility."

"We face multiple scenarios where IT decision-makers request specific policy implementations, however, due to product limitations, we cannot fulfill these requests."

More Microsoft Intune cons

"One challenge we do notice is that the application is limited to Windows servers only. If a customer has a Linux server, things get complicated. They should open it up a bit to be more compatible with different types of servers."

"They could improve the reporting."

"When you want to transfer a file from your iPad or remote device to the computer, the copy-and-paste feature doesn't always work."

"There is room for improvement in the pricing policy. The price point is pretty aggressive."

"The solution may not scale well for enterprises."

"The ability to autolock Windows desktop on remote computers after a remote session disconnects would be ideal."

"They could provide a toolbox for the plan I'm on."

"There is an issue which is pretty rare, but I find it at least when connecting from my mobile device. I am forced to refresh the screen by changing the screen quality to get screen updates. This only happens sometimes."

"Speed is a major factor in Automate, and the control panel is horribly slow."

"My immediate supervisor said it was lacking in documentation and had too many words to describe how to use the product when crafting instructions to send to our third party consultant who was going to connect to our system behind our firewall."

"Mobile interface."

"On a Linux machine, there are different limitations that are not there on a Windows Server. Much more limitations exist on Linux deployments."

"If it had Chrome capability, that would be great; being able to use it on a Chrome device. Right now, I can't use it on my Chrome device."

More ScreenConnect cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Microsoft offers some licensing where it's included at no extra cost when customers are already using the licenses. In such a case, it's a really good value. If you have to buy the licensing for it, it's probably on par with other solutions. It isn't substantially more or less expensive. The great thing is that it is included in some of Microsoft's licensed packages. So, some customers don't have to spend additional money for it. Typically, most providers that support Intune do charge a management fee of some sort or some fee. Certainly, we're no exception."

"It is reasonable for the features it has."

"I rate Intune five out of 10 for pricing. It's expensive."

"It's monthly for us, but it's built into the license cost that we pay our IT each month. It's maybe 129 Kroner per head, which translates to £10. There are some additional costs. Our IT had to set up and configure their own server, so there is an extra cost for that, but I'm not sure what that costs."

"It's bundled with Business Premium and an E3 license, which is beneficial. If you have to pay extra, it's pricey, but with the bundled package, it's acceptable. They recently increased the Business Premium pricing, which we don't appreciate. The price increase and yearly commitment are causing some problems for us."

"Microsoft Intune is included in the E5 license at no additional cost."

"I recently got to know that the AD P1 license is compulsory to use Intune Autopilot, which was surprising for me. Earlier, this was not the case. It is the wrong thing to do. We now need to purchase AD P1 licenses for us and for our customers. I would rate it a seven out of ten for pricing."

"No one can compete with Microsoft when it comes to price, and the features it is offering."

More Microsoft Intune pricing and cost advice

"The licensing costs are about $100 per user."

"Make sure you have enough licensing for all the techs that you have."

"For the price we pay, we definitely feel it's worth it, but there are some contenders in the market that are coming out now, whose products are as good; they are offering more features and the price is actually less than ConnectWise. All things considered, the biggest thing is the lack of patching in ConnectWise. If they could integrate that into the product, that would be a game changer, if offered at the same price point."

"We pay $3,000 USD for the service, yearly upfront."

"The cloud version is relatively inexpensive, but the on-premise version is expensive if you do not need three technicians, only one or two for concurrent sessions."

"We pay $85 per month for each user for a ConnectWise package with multiple solutions."

"ConnectWise Control is not an overly expensive tool. Its pricing is reasonable."

"Pricing is fair for Control and the licensing is simple."

"Their licensing model is good, their pricing model is good, their service is good; bandwidth is excellent. They're consistent."

More ScreenConnect pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Manufacturing Company

10%

Computer Software Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

University

13%

Comms Service Provider

10%

Healthcare Company

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

11%

Marketing Services Firm

10%

Performing Arts

Computer Software Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	124
Midsize Enterprise	53
Large Enterprise	168

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	15
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	7

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 ...

See all answers

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...

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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 ...

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What do you like most about Parallels Access?

Parallels Access gives me full access and control of the computer, and I can do anything I want remotely.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Parallels Access?

When you want to transfer a file from your iPad or remote device to the computer, the copy-and-paste feature doesn't ...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Parallels Access?

Parallels Access is an amazing product and a total game changer. The solution allows me to access and operate my comp...

See all answers

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Compared 9% of the time

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Compared 6% of the time

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Intune

March 2026

Download Microsoft Intune product report

Buyer's Guide

Remote Access

March 2026

Download Parallels Access product report

Buyer's Guide

ScreenConnect

February 2026

Download ScreenConnect product report

Also Known As

Intune, MS Intune, Microsoft Endpoint Manager

No data available

ConnectWise Control

Overview

Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based service designed for device management, security, and compliance. It supports automation and facilitates endpoint management for Windows, iOS, and Android devices, ensuring data protection and efficient policy enforcement.

Microsoft Intune offers seamless integration with tools like Windows Autopilot to automate device setup and deployment. Integrated with Azure Active Directory, it enhances policy management while providing robust reporting and analytics tools for compliance tracking. Despite its intuitive interface aimed at simplifying navigation and device security management, there are challenges such as compatibility issues with Linux and Mac, limited policy support for Android, and demands for better third-party integration. It's widely used for both corporate-owned devices and BYOD scenarios in dynamic IT environments.

What are the key features of Microsoft Intune?

Windows Autopilot: Automates device setup for rapid deployment.
Azure Active Directory Integration: Enhances user policy management.
Reporting and Analytics: Improves compliance visibility.
Mobile Application Management: Ensures app security without compromising personal data.
Cloud-Based Management: Allows management from any location.

What benefits and ROI can users expect?

Time Efficiency: Automation reduces time in policy enforcement and configuration updates.
Enhanced Security: Ensures data protection across corporate-owned and BYOD devices.
Improved Compliance: Advanced reporting tools enhance compliance visibility.
Flexible Management: Cloud-based nature supports management from any location.

In industries such as finance and healthcare, Microsoft Intune is implemented to ensure data protection and compliance with regulatory standards. Manufacturing sectors utilize Intune for managing a distributed workforce across global locations, while educational institutions employ it to secure and manage devices in learning environments supporting both students and faculty.

Microsoft

Parallels Access enables high-performance remote connectivity, letting users access their applications and files from any location.

Parallels Access offers a seamless remote access experience with its ease of operation and reliable connectivity. It supports application publishing and device control through a user-friendly interface, making it suitable for businesses of all sizes and individual users with specific needs. However, improvements are needed in reporting, server compatibility, and file transfer features, particularly for Mac and Unix users. Interaction with technical support can help but often provides temporary solutions.

What are the key features of Parallels Access?

Remote Deployment: Quick and easy to set up for remote access.
Application Publishing: Facilitates smooth application access from remote locations.
User Control: Offers comprehensive control over device access.
Scalability: Adapts from small to large-scale business needs.
Security: Provides a secure environment for data handling.

What benefits do users find in Parallels Access?

Ease of Use: Simple setup and maintenance save time.
Flexibility: Supports varied deployments efficiently.
Accessibility: Enhances device control, especially via mobile devices.
Collaboration: Easy to integrate into centralized management systems.

Parallels Access is widely used across industries such as CAD, ERP, and academia, allowing centralized management and virtual desktop infrastructure implementation. It supports system integrators and channel partners in improving customer service. Educational institutes find it valuable for CAD applications, whereas users operating devices via iPads find it especially transformative.

Parallels

ScreenConnect offers seamless connections to desktops, mobiles, and other devices with top-tier security features. Empowering businesses through customizable branding, it facilitates real-time problem-solving and adapts to specific access needs with granular control.

ScreenConnect stands out by providing robust remote access solutions, enhanced with security like AES-256 encryption and two-factor authentication. Users appreciate the customization options, enabling them to white-label software to reflect their brand. The Support Premium edition includes ScreenConnect View, a live streaming feature assisting with real-time hardware troubleshooting through mobile cameras. It integrates smoothly with existing systems, offering unattended access, automatic reconnection, and session recording. However, there's room for improvement in user configuration options, file transfer capabilities, and security recognition. Overall, it supports a wide range of devices and browsers, ensuring session continuity even through reboots, making the setup process straightforward.

What are the key features of ScreenConnect?

Remote Access: Facilitates easy access across devices and browsers with strong performance.
Security: Includes AES-256 encryption and two-factor authentication for secure interactions.
Customization: Allows extensive branding options to align with company identity.
ScreenConnect View: Enables live streaming for real-time troubleshooting via users' device cameras.
Session Management: Offers unattended access and session recording for quality control.
Configurability: Provides granular permissions to tailor access according to team requirements.

What benefits and ROI can users expect from ScreenConnect reviews?

Ease of Use: Users find it intuitive for support and troubleshooting.
Cost-Effective: Competitive pricing enhances ROI.
Integration: Easy incorporation with existing security protocols and management tools.
Remote Management: Provides effective remote access reducing on-site support needs.
Efficiency: Increases productivity with robust performance and seamless functionality.

Businesses apply ScreenConnect for remote support, assisting with IT tasks and troubleshooting, often using unattended access functionalities. It's popular among teams of various sizes, aiding companies in managed services and client interactions. The tool's effectiveness makes it suitable for on-site-like remote assistance, though improvements in dual monitor management and domain integration are desired. User feedback highlights the necessity for enhanced onboarding, more intuitive configuration, and advanced reporting features, making it a versatile choice for remote support across industries.

ConnectWise

Sample Customers

Mitchells and Buzzers, Callaway

Gilt Groupe K.K.

Jon Rosen Systems

Buyer's Guide

Parallels Access vs. ScreenConnect

March 2026

Free Report: Parallels Access vs. ScreenConnect

Find out what your peers are saying about Parallels Access vs. ScreenConnect and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.

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