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Horizon 8 vs VMware Workstation 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

Horizon 8
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
113
Ranking in other categories
User Virtualization (1st)
VMware Workstation
Ranking in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
1st
Average Rating
8.8
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) category, the mindshare of Horizon 8 is 7.6%, down from 15.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Workstation is 17.0%, up from 13.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI)
 

Featured Reviews

Tim  Abboud - PeerSpot reviewer
User-friendly, reasonably priced, and simple to install
It can be challenging to assess the stability of Horizon because it relies heavily on the underlying infrastructure, including vCenter, network, and storage performance. It is important to pay attention to these factors when evaluating the stability of the system. We rely on vCenter, network, and storage performance, and any weakness in these areas will affect the performance of Horizon. When discussing this with customers, I always emphasize the importance of these factors. If the foundation is solid, Horizon should not experience any performance issues. If the fundamentals are weak, we will encounter issues with Horizon on a regular basis. However, the product itself, VMware Horizon, is highly stable. While the Horizon product itself is very stable, it is important to be well-informed about any potential side effects from using other related products.
Shambhu Narayan  Singh - PeerSpot reviewer
An easy-to-manage solution that has really good customer support compared to other market players
VMware Workstation makes it easy to manage all the resources that we are handling. VMware Workstation has reduced our infrastructure cost. If someone wants machines, I can create them easily using the solution. VMware Workstation is easier to manage than other workstations like Oracle Workstation. VMware Workstation is an easy-to-manage solution, and its support is really good compared to other market players. Overall, I rate VMware Workstation an eight out of ten.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Users can log in from anywhere and from a variety of devices."
"VMware Horizon View is a stable solution."
"Its most valuable feature is the rapid and versatile access from clients operating on various Windows, Linux, and MacOS systems."
"Users can log in from anywhere and from a variety of devices."
"I appreciate how simple and straightforward the operation of VMware Horizon View is."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the clone variant. We have been using the linked clone for the past five years, but I am willing to support and take on the function of the instant cloud."
"The solution has good performance and functionality. However, if the network connection was poor we noticed a decrease in performance."
"From my standpoint, the desktop is the most valuable feature."
"Great at solving connection problems."
"It is much more mature compared to Nutanix or SimpliVity when it's cross-platform based."
"The product works well."
"Having ten people working off a single piece of hardware reduces costs."
"VMware Workstation’s most valuable feature is virtualization technology."
"The features are good."
"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."
"Technical support is very good."
 

Cons

"VMware Horizon could be improved with more integration. It is also very costly for Enterprise Plus, which is a drawback. The renewal costs for the license are very, very high."
"In the next release, I would like to have more support when optimizing the master templates for PDI. There are tools that are available to be used but they are not supported at the moment and are more, "use at your own risk.""
"VMware Horizon View needs to improve orchestration and integrate additional images. I would also like to see its statistics."
"We have limited capabilities since we are not using a multi-instance solution, just single instances."
"The solution isn't quite mature yet. It needs more time to mature and to get more market recognition."
"The system integration also needs some improvement."
"They need to make troubleshooting, diagnostics, and error reporting a little better."
"Sometimes we had to force values so the end-user could continue working, which caused some information to get lost."
"Performance could be improved, it's somewhat clunky."
"The product's integration capabilities are an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"Its networking features need improvement."
"The solution freezes sometimes."
"VMware Workstation uses more resources like CPU and disk space, especially the CPU, which is a shortcoming that needs improvement."
"Lacks the ability to clone onto another system rather than starting from scratch."
"The support can be improved."
"VMware Player should provide a cloud version with no limitations to hardware resources."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Pricing for Horizon is relatively high, earning a rating of one out of ten."
"The price of the solution is affordable. However, there are extra fees for support."
"We pay a monthly licensing fee for VMware Horizon."
"We are happy with the price."
"The pricing can be relatively competitive, but sometimes you have to go back to VMware and ask for additional discounts. You can make it competitive If you're prepared to put in the work. The list prices and standard discounts may not be competitive, but if you push hard enough, you can get the price to where you need it to be."
"VMware Horizon is priced high."
"VMware Horizon is expensive and I would rate it an eight out of ten."
"Its cost is fair. You can go for a free trial, but for initializing a project, you need to purchase a license. There are different types of licenses."
"The pricing is reasonable."
"The price of the solution per workstation is approximately 200 Francs annually. We pay a total of 800 francs. Everything is included in the price such as the support."
"The tool is not the cheapest."
"The pricing is a bit steep in my opinion for testing and there are other options."
"I would rate the pricing an eight out of ten, with ten being expensive."
"VMware Workstation is an expensive solution in Asian countries."
"The solution is moderately priced. I rate the pricing a six out of ten."
"The solution’s pricing is moderate."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Government
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Computer Software Company
16%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

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 Horizon 7?
VMware offers a friendly environment, and it's easy to provide the user with the package. It is a bundled solution that is readily deployable. The advantage lies in its simplicity, it requires mini...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Horizon 7?
We paid a lot of money for software that is not really fully operational out of the box. We had to have patches from VMware to get it into production. Hence, we lost a lot of time implementing the ...
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.
 

Also Known As

VMware Horizon, VMware Horizon View, Mware Dynamic Environment Manager
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

LCMC Health
Akademiska Hus
Find out what your peers are saying about Horizon 8 vs. VMware Workstation and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.