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VMware Fusion Pro vs VMware Workstation comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 27, 2025

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

VMware Fusion Pro
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
2nd
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.8
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
VMware Workstation
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
5.7
Number of Reviews
57
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of VMware Fusion Pro is 18.6%, down from 19.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Workstation is 14.5%, down from 15.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
VMware Workstation14.5%
VMware Fusion Pro18.6%
Other66.9%
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

Bruce Lundberg - PeerSpot reviewer
Create custom virtual environments quickly with minor macOS integration issues
The primary advantage of VMware Fusion Pro is its simplicity in creating custom virtual machines. It allows quick construction and provides connectivity to full VMware server systems, enabling remote management. It facilitates downloading images from main VMware servers for local testing. The ability to construct a virtual environment on my laptop meets my needs, even ones I wasn't aware of.
Gary Comorau - PeerSpot reviewer
Creating and destroying test machines has simplified our operations and reduced manual recovery time
The Snapshot feature has helped with workflows by allowing us to more easily reconstruct something if we lose it or need it. We've been making Snapshots on a consistent basis, mainly of servers. The VX Rail has worked effectively because we can create machines as we need them. It's helpful for resetting and has helped with our operations because I had set up failover servers on Vertex, but we don't have to do that anymore since VMware will just create a new machine immediately if we have a problem. We're doing our domain servers on there, and we've been very happy with that. We appreciate that we can create machines simply to test things out and then destroy them. I use it for a test machine for checking emails, so if the email has a virus in it, we can just destroy the machine and create a new one. We're slowly moving into the VMware environment, although the pricing with Broadcom has been a disaster.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"For me, VMware Fusion Pro has been invaluable, allowing me to meet all my needs with a single system."
"It is a highly stable solution."
"The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"The whole point of it is to run Windows VMs on a Mac. This is the most valuable feature. There is snapshotting, but we don't really use that. The Pro version allows me to actually attach to the Windows ESXi infrastructure at the backend, and I'm able to create a session that I can attach to the VMware hooks at the backend, so one is running a VM, and the whole operating system is running on the actual Mac. The other one is literally a frontend to the VMs that are running in the infrastructure at the backend. These are the two main features I use."
"The most value that it provides is that it is versatile."
"VMware Fusion Pro offers simplicity of use and stability."
"The most important feature of VMware Fusion is that it helps me rapidly launch a new OS."
"I have found this product excellent for test/dev environments. This is 90% of what I use this product for."
"VMware Workstation’s most valuable features are backup and data transfer from one server to another."
"The most valuable feature of the solution stems from the fact that it is an easy-to-use product."
"The tool’s GUI is very user-friendly."
"VMware Workstation allows you to run a virtual machine."
"Instead of relying on dual-boot operating systems, I can utilize open-source tools within my infrastructure. This approach allows me to create an in-house cloud platform suitable for testing. VMware Workstation enables me to perform tasks across various operating systems using a single device. It has helped me save time."
"We are able to simultaneously run multiple operating systems in a single machine and have virtually no performance hit."
"VMware Workstation is easy to manage and understand."
 

Cons

"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations. This is a minor inconvenience."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable. It runs on desktops and laptops, indicating limitations in scalability."
"Fusion is not meant to be scalable as it runs on desktops and laptops."
"Additionally, enhancing the API interactions could improve the ability to manage VS and deploy various kinds of guests."
"Its installation process could be simpler."
"The only issue I've experienced with VMware Fusion Pro is that it doesn't register correctly with the main macOS system, causing repeated notifications about background installations."
"VMware Fusion's licensing cost needs improvement."
"I would like to see newer and updated cloud functions."
"The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed."
"Its price could be better."
"The dashboard can be improved."
"The solution freezes sometimes."
"I need to buy a newer version of the tool to support Windows Server."
"The network configuration was not as easy as it could be and could take less time."
"It could have more platforms and CPUs."
"VMware Workstation has some network limitations which could improve, it is not as flexible as VMware NSX. Additionally, it could support operating systems better. I only run some Linux versions and Windows at the moment but it would be nice to be able to take whatever operating system you want and run it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The cost varies depending on the season and whether it is scaled up or scaled down, but I would guess that it's approximately $1,000 per month."
"I rate the product's pricing a seven or eight. It is highly-priced."
"Starting with version 12, it is now free on a Mac for personal use. Fusion Pro has a cost."
"The solution is moderately priced. I rate the pricing a six out of ten."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive solution in Asian countries."
"The tool is not the cheapest."
"The solution’s pricing is moderate."
"With all its support and ease of use, VMware Player's pricing is fair."
"It has the best licensing modules."
"The product has a moderate price."
"You need to pay for a license, but I don't think it costs that much. I think it's a one-time payment."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
14%
University
10%
Educational Organization
8%
Computer Software Company
15%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business2
Midsize Enterprise6
Large Enterprise4
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business32
Midsize Enterprise15
Large Enterprise17
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about VMware Fusion?
The product is easy to use and has a simple user interface.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Fusion?
The pricing of VMware Fusion Pro is reasonable. The licensing covers all minor version updates, while major updates require payment every three years. Buying it once can sustain you for years witho...
What needs improvement with VMware Fusion?
In future updates of VMware Fusion Pro, I think there should be another community to input features. It is an infrastructure tool that may need embedding some AI to help or catching up with the new...
Which VMware solution would you go with - Workstation or vSphere?
VM Workstation’s setup is so easy, you can use it almost instantly, it works well with Windows and Linux. We like VM Workstation primarily to test environments to determine how well a solution will...
What do you like most about VMware Workstation?
The product is stable, very easy to deploy, easy to use, easy to configure, and easy to set up.
What needs improvement with VMware Workstation?
The product's integration capabilities are an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required.
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

NetApp
Akademiska Hus
Find out what your peers are saying about VMware Fusion Pro vs. VMware Workstation and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
867,676 professionals have used our research since 2012.