Polycom RealPresence Desktop vs Webex comparison

Poly and Cisco are both solutions in the Virtual Meetings category. Poly is ranked #17 with an average rating of 7.0, while Cisco is ranked #2 with an average rating of 7.9. Poly holds a 1.5% mindshare in VM, compared to Cisco’s 6.4% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Poly users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 87% of Cisco users who would recommend it.

Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Read 1 Polycom RealPresence Desktop review

481 Views
481 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Webex

Read 128 Webex reviews

3,354 Views
3,253 Comparison Views

87% willing to recommend

Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Webex

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Polycom RealPresence Desktop and Webex based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Zoom Video Communications, Cisco, TeamViewer and others in Virtual Meetings.

To learn more, read our detailed Virtual Meetings Report (Updated: March 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Meetings

March 2026

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Helped 885,789 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

Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Ranking in Virtual Meetings

17th

Average Rating

7.0

Reviews Sentiment

8.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Webex

Ranking in Virtual Meetings

2nd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

5.3

Number of Reviews

128

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2026, in the Virtual Meetings category, the mindshare of Polycom RealPresence Desktop is 1.5%, down from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Webex is 6.4%, down from 17.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Virtual Meetings Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
Webex	6.4%
Polycom RealPresence Desktop	1.5%
Other	92.1%

Virtual Meetings

Featured Reviews

Norm Hubert

Network Technical Advisor at a government with 10,001+ employees

Regular use enables effective communication with room for improvement in interoperability

The most valuable part of the desktop is the ability to make voice and video calls. Without getting too technical or divulging too much due to the environment we are in, it allows us to further our reach, from a traditional video conferencing room. Scalability was easy. It was based on calls, not licenses.

Read full review

Akhil Viswam

Senior Consultant at a consultancy with 10,001+ employees

Collaborating in hybrid incident calls has become faster while the meeting interface still needs fixes

The best features are the ability to schedule meetings and launch ad hoc meetings. Additionally, we can create breakout rooms within the meeting itself, which is another excellent feature. Whenever we have production issues, many teams join a single Webex call. Sometimes we need to group together as separate smaller groups and work in parallel to identify the production issues. In those cases, we create Webex breakout rooms and each member joins the corresponding breakout session to progress on their task. Webex helps significantly in the hybrid environment. When we are working from home, it is very easy for us to meet with other team members and the management to get in touch and progress. Webex improves communication because even if we are working from home, we can connect with people and talk to them on a video call. It has improved the incident resolution time by getting into a call in Webex rooms and remediating the issues together as soon as possible. Audio and video quality is excellent for Webex. It has saved considerable time in terms of incident remediation. Whenever we have issues, we jump on a call and work together in parallel. This approach saves time and improves efficiency.

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 ROI was phenomenal."

"It allows us to further our reach, from a traditional video conferencing room."

"Easy to use virtual meeting solution. Installation was straightforward without the need for a technical team."

"Overall the quality of the solution is very good."

"The solution takes care of most of your communication needs."

"The product's most valuable feature is its ability to integrate with multiple products."

"I have found a lot of virtual meeting solutions seem the same. Some might work a little bit better, it is difficult to pinpoint a particular functionality that's widely different, they all have screen sharing and video in-voice."

"Webex is a thin client and we like the interface. It is easy to use."

"In the time that we've been using Webex, we haven't seen any jerking or lag in the remote sessions, and the performance is smooth compared to other third-party applications."

"Its features are easy to navigate, easy to share, and easy to conduct meetings, and we are comfortable using it."

More Webex pros

Cons

"There is probably room for improvement in interoperability."

"There probably needs to be an improvement in interoperability."

"The collaborative features could improve in Webex. There should not be the typical one on one connection that we have had in the past."

"My biggest issue with the solution involves its price, which I find to be prohibitive for small governments and modest-sized schools."

"There is some difficulty in Webex, particularly when a third party needs access and that third party is not part of the domain of the company, it could be difficult."

"I would like to see the addition of new features that will add value to the product."

"Webex's Bluetooth functionality could be better. For example, I use Webex on my Android mobile phone and connect with Bluetooth. It connects, but I cannot speak through the Bluetooth microphone and earphones with Webex. It's always disabled. I don't know why."

"The accessibility of the share screen option provided by the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."

"The solution could improve by having cross-platform compatibility. For example, if you wanted to have a call with someone with Microsoft Teams you could do it with Webex. Not everyone wants to use the same virtual meeting application."

"The solution could improve by adding a survey or form feature to show for the users to be able to vote or answer any questions."

More Webex cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available

"The solution is low-cost for a hybrid model."

"The price of the license depends a lot on the type of service required and whether it is for the entire company or only for a few users."

"The price of the license for the solution could be less expensive."

"The tool is expensive."

"Licensing is subscription-based and the cost varies depending on how many minutes are included in the plan."

"Features matter more than the price for us. As long as we get all the features we want and it fits our budget, then the price doesn't matter. I can't speak for other companies. We have tried other applications, and we run into some problems that we don't see in Webex."

"There is an annual license required for this solution."

"I believe the license to be monthly."

More Webex pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

No data available

Marketing Services Firm

13%

Construction Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	40
Midsize Enterprise	25
Large Enterprise	62

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Polycom RealPresence Desktop?

The solution is built right into Clarity.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Polycom RealPresence Desktop?

There is probably room for improvement in interoperability.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Polycom RealPresence Desktop?

We use the desktop. It was used in the same case. We use it with our partners.

See all answers

What do you like most about Webex?

Webex improved our overall team collaboration.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Webex?

From when I last implemented it, I found the price to be expensive. The licensing model doesn't work because if I want to implement it for an organization, I need to pay a per-user license, which m...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Webex?

Webex can be simplified in terms of user interface, where many features should be displayed in a compact view, with similar features grouped together and a minimalistic design helping users underst...

See all answers

Comparisons

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Compared 50% of the time

Huawei Video Conferencing Platform vs Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Compared 19% of the time

TrueConf Server vs Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Compared 18% of the time

Cisco TelePresence vs Polycom RealPresence Desktop

Compared 13% of the time

More Polycom RealPresence Desktop Competitors

Zoom Workplace Business vs Webex

Compared 9% of the time

GoToMeeting vs Webex

Compared 6% of the time

TeamViewer vs Webex

Compared 6% of the time

GoToWebinar vs Webex

Compared 6% of the time

Cisco Meeting Server vs Webex

Compared 6% of the time

More Webex Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Virtual Meetings

March 2026

Download Polycom RealPresence Desktop product report

Buyer's Guide

Webex

March 2026

Download Webex product report

Also Known As

RealPresence Desktop

Cisco Spark

Overview

Polycom RealPresence Desktop is a powerful, enterprise-grade video chat app for PC & Mac. The video conferencing software extends communications beyond the typical conference room setting to mobile professionals. RealPresence Desktop combines quality HD video, industry-leading interoperability, and security that is both cost effective and highly scalable.

When powered by Polycom's infrastructure, customers can extend desktop collaboration value with app management, interoperability, scalability, resiliency, and multi-point calling.

Poly

Webex is designed to help companies improve communication and increase productivity with unlimited HD video meetings in shared meeting spaces.

Companies can use Webex, a Cisco product, to collaborate with peers, share documents and other information, create high-impact webinars and online events, and present dynamic online courses. It can be tailored to your exact company needs and can be fully integrated with mobile apps for iPhone, iPad, Android, and BlackBerry.

Cisco

Sample Customers

John Laing, China Daily, Lincoln Fire and Rescue, NATO Communications and Information Agency, NHS Home Dialysis, Silver Chain, South Carolina Department of Mental Health, nimed

Seagate Technology, Kohn Pedersen Fox, World Vision International, Glen Raven, University of Notre Dame, CEV Multimedia, The Food Group, LUMEDX, California Baptist University, and Georgetown University Law Center.

Find out what your peers are saying about Zoom Video Communications, Cisco, TeamViewer and others in Virtual Meetings. Updated: March 2026.

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