Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Parallels Desktop vs Workspace ONE UEM comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 5, 2024

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

Parallels Desktop
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
7th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Workspace ONE UEM
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
102
Ranking in other categories
Remote Access (10th), Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) (5th), Identity and Access Management as a Service (IDaaS) (IAMaaS) (16th), Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Parallels Desktop is 5.9%, down from 15.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Workspace ONE UEM is 2.5%, down from 2.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Parallels Desktop5.9%
Workspace ONE UEM2.5%
Other91.6%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

MH
Payments Architect at Self Employed
A great platform to develop interoperable code on
The decision to transition away from Intel chips to their silicon. They are processing, and there are many examples. Instead of not having a product to use for a while, they have just released it now. However, if you're seeking a product that is industry-ready regularly or has plans to make it so, considering the upcoming changes, I recommend trying out Parallels Desktop in beta. When you're only dealing with Windows, we do much in the Windows version, but it is not improving the Windows operating system. If you're hosting a Windows platform or another version of the machine, the code will have limitations. Windows is not a walled garden, with no significant volatility or instability. Windows is quite versatile. I never encountered intrusive ads or unused features, which is quite good. Overall, I rate the solution an eight out of ten.
Vishal Bhatia - PeerSpot reviewer
Trainer/Consultant at Koenig Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Effective product tracking and monitoring enhances daily operations despite needing documentation improvement
The documentation part of Workspace ONE UEM can be confusing. The documentation is not comprehensive compared to other VMware solutions or Microsoft documentation. Most people struggle to connect the dots when looking at the documentation. Even the training material and PowerPoint slide decks that trainers use are sometimes too confusing or overwhelming, with too much content but not enough clarity. The support side has recently become weaker compared to what it used to be with VMware. This is another area that needs improvement. Since working with Workspace ONE UEM from when it was AirWatch, it has improved significantly over the last five years. However, there are still some gray areas and scope for improvement, especially in documentation and workflow between different aspects of the solution.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I like how, with Parallels, you can either boot into Mac or Windows to get better control over the resources of the laptops since you're sharing the resources in dual mode."
"Parallels Desktop integrates seamlessly with macOS. It works better than VMware on Apple operating systems."
"The feature with the highest rating for me is its employee management. I can also praise how versatile it is in terms of operating systems. It has good support for multiple operating systems and can easily manage them all. Not just that, but it can also support any kind of tool that can be run on all these operating systems."
"The most valuable feature of VMware Workspace ONE is the support for multiple devices. Not only iOS, and Android, but all kinds of platforms, including VR device management. Additionally, it has a tunneling feature, which no other solution provides. Other solutions have to integrate with other tools to have this functionality, whereas VMware Workspace ONE has its own application gateway tunnel."
"The most valuable feature of VMware Workspace ONE is it provides the ability to find out the location of devices and manage end-point solutions when they are deployed, and keep them secure."
"We can impose cybersecurity requirements."
"A very easy to use solution."
"The solution is good for providing dedicated resources for dedicated users."
"It's all about centralizing your data and making sure that your data is centralized and secure."
"Workspace ONE UEM's best features are that you can track and monitor all the products, with a wide range of supported devices like Android, Apple, and Windows, and it offers easy application and email management along with effective compliance and health attestation capabilities."
 

Cons

"The biggest challenge is compatibility between VMware and Parallels because the two systems are incompatible. It can be challenging if you are switching between Windows and Mac. I recommend sticking with one product because there isn't good compatibility between the different products."
"There may have been some issues with device drivers on my Mac. Similarly, there are some issues with transferring data from Parallels to the Mac."
"One of the things that I want them to improve on, if possible, is the management of Mac devices, MacBook Pro, for example. They do it, but they have scope for improvement, in my opinion. It's not that it's that bad, it just a small need."
"The technical support could be improved."
"They need a more flexible pricing model."
"vIDM could be improved with the multi-tenant capabilities that VMware tends to offer—features like customization branding and the integration of the app catalog based on the branding. Since the integration has been at top-level OGs, you were not able to then do rebranding if you were required to use specific user groups to highlight specific applications. At the time, I was personally opening feature requests for these things. I haven't worked with the latest release, so I don't know if these features were already deployed or not."
"They do have a good integration, but there is a long way to go as far as integration is concerned. They need to integrate with the cloud solutions a little bit more. We are looking for Azure integration."
"The initial setup is a bit complex."
"From an improvement perspective, there is a need for discounts to be offered by the solution since it is something that any organization can expect from the product."
"The product's initial setup phase was quite complex."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"We pay approximately $6.50 per user for the standard version. If you are paying for an enterprise license that includes VDI then it will cost approximately $25 per user on a monthly basis."
"A person should pay towards the licensing costs of VMware Identity Manager on a yearly or monthly basis, but government and public sector units cannot for a perpetual licensing model."
"The pricing currently is higher than the competition."
"We are paying about $145,000 a year on a three-year subscription with no ability to scale up or scale down within that class model."
"There is a licensing fee for the users, and we pay a low amount for our support costs."
"VMware Workspace ONE is not cheap; it's quite expensive. However, in the end, they gave us a reasonable price."
"It's an expensive tool."
"The license is paid annually."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) solutions are best for your needs.
883,044 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Comms Service Provider
14%
Computer Software Company
12%
University
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business41
Midsize Enterprise21
Large Enterprise58
 

Questions from the Community

Ask a question
Earn 20 points
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 it easy to control security and manage the usage of mobile apps when you have a ...
How does VMware Workspace One compare with VMware Horizon 7?
VMware Workspace One has a powerful set of helpful features. The solution offers very good documentation, the initial setup is easy, and the product is very stable and reliable. I think the fact th...
What do you like most about VMware Workspace ONE?
The platform provides a stable environment for operations and quickly creates new environments. Additionally, it offers efficient flexibility.
 

Also Known As

No data available
VMware Workspace ONE, VMware AirWatch, Workspace ONE Assist, VMware Identity Manager, Workspace ONE Access, VMware Horizon Air
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Lytro, University of Washington, Slalom, Veeva Systems, Oklahoma Christian University
Australian Sports Commission, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, Lomond School, Merck, United Bank, Medical College of Wisconsin, Latymer Upper School, 2gether NHS Foundation Trust, Dowling Aaron Inc., Trillium Lakelands District School Board, Harrogate Grammar School, Duke University Football, Delta Air Lines, Adventist Health System, Giochi Preziosi, Cramlington Learning Village, Intermountain Healthcare, Safexpress, TAG Aviation
Find out what your peers are saying about Parallels Desktop vs. Workspace ONE UEM and other solutions. Updated: February 2026.
883,044 professionals have used our research since 2012.