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Windows 10 vs Windows Server comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 7, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

ROI

Sentiment score
3.6
Windows 10 offers improved efficiency, security, and performance over Windows 7, making it a valuable and worthwhile investment.
Sentiment score
7.1
Windows Server enhances efficiency and stability, offering cost-effective solutions and significant time and resource savings for organizations.
We're very competitive commercially and technically because of it.
We've seen value in Windows Server because the systems work smoothly without any problems.
Windows Server offers excellent value for money, particularly when compared to alternatives.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.2
Many Windows 10 users prefer online forums for support, finding Microsoft helpful, but often solve issues independently.
Sentiment score
6.6
Windows Server support is praised for responsiveness and knowledge, but some users report slow responses; satisfaction ranges from 7-9/10.
We have informed Microsoft, but the issue is still there, and it has been more than three to four months.
The customer service and support from Microsoft are quite responsive and generally good.
Our in-house team can also solve most issues.
If you go through a partner who sells or supports Windows, the support could be around seven out of ten, because Windows relies on these partners for assistance.
Microsoft's technical support for Windows Server has been lacking, with rare responses even with premium support.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.7
Windows 10 is scalable and flexible, easily accommodating increased usage and integrating well with other Microsoft products like Azure.
Sentiment score
8.1
Windows Server offers scalable solutions for businesses, flexibly expanding to handle varied user numbers and resource upgrades.
For scalability, I would rate it a nine or ten because performance-wise, Windows 10 has never given me those issues.
I've worked in companies with 20,000 to 100,000 users, and it scales beautifully without issues.
I rate its scalability a ten out of ten.
It's definitely scalable.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
6.7
Windows 10 offers stability and reliability, though updates can be disruptive, with mixed reviews on performance and adaptability.
Sentiment score
7.9
Windows Server is praised for stability and reliability, though stability can vary based on configurations and updates.
The challenges were related to third-party agents and their supportability.
I would rate the stability of the product an eight.
We have experienced no blue screens or crashes and often achieved an uptime of 2,000 to 3,000 days without any issues whatsoever.
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten.
The tool is stable.
 

Room For Improvement

Windows 10 requires better stability and performance, with improvements in updates, interface, security, resource usage, and app compatibility.
Windows Server users experience security, cost, and usability challenges, demanding better support, integration, updates, and resource efficiency.
Microsoft can improve their Teams product because everybody uses Teams, and it's very clunky and unfriendly in terms of scrolling back, downloading files, and moving back and forth within the different teams.
Investment in Windows 10 may not be ideal as the world is changing with advancing technology in the AI age.
The transitions within Teams are not smooth, and call quality in meetings is not great.
The solution should improve its stability.
From a security perspective, sometimes, malware attacks and hackers take advantage of the tool's vulnerabilities.
Deploying antivirus and firewall software on the server is advisable, but having an external firewall adds an extra layer of security.
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise users find Windows 10 licensing complex yet necessary, favoring bundled solutions for cost-effectiveness and appreciating its functionality.
Enterprise users consider Windows Server pricing complex and costly, preferring pricing improvements, especially due to its complex licensing model.
For those buying a Windows license, it might be better to buy a Windows 11 license.
Windows is considered overpriced, especially given the normal software functionalities.
Windows 10 is cost-effective when compared to other competitors available such as Mac and Linux.
It is quite expensive.
Previously, a Windows Server with two processors cost around two 154 euros annually, but now it is estimated to be around 3,000 to 4,000 euros for the same configuration.
On a scale of one to ten, with ten being the most expensive, I rate it ten out of ten.
 

Valuable Features

Windows 10 offers user-friendly features, security, seamless Office integration, and compatibility, enhancing productivity and overall user experience.
Windows Server is essential for businesses due to its user-friendly interface, scalability, robust performance, and seamless Microsoft integration.
When using mapping software such as QGIS or ArcGIS, the system remains stable, especially when handling heavy files.
The configuration management tools, such as SACM, are effective.
Windows 11 brings some AI features for Microsoft Copilot, which probably weren't as integrated into the previous version.
Windows Server is a stable and scalable solution.
The most valuable features of the solution stem from the fact that every Microsoft product is scalable, flexible, secure, and available on a certain budget.
The IP directory is the most valuable feature.
 

Categories and Ranking

Windows 10
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.3
Number of Reviews
277
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Windows Server
Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
192
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of Windows 10 is 2.7%, down from 4.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Windows Server is 9.2%, up from 8.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Operating Systems (OS) for Business
 

Featured Reviews

Deboprio Dutta - PeerSpot reviewer
Improved security features with gaming enhancements while supporting various features
I understand that Windows 11 supports quite a bit of additional features for people who are, for example, into high-end gaming and the features that support that kind of utility. It's not personally much of a thing for me, however, I've heard about differences between the two operating system versions. To the best of my knowledge, I think Windows 11 brings some AI features for Microsoft Copilot, which probably weren't as integrated into the previous version. There are the occasional bugs and issues that pop up, yet none are significant enough for me to consider a major update. Overall, it's a smooth experience.
Jai Prakash Sharma - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient Management Achieved with Internal Resources and Reliable Technical Support
Maintenance of Windows Server varies by organization, but for us, it's not very difficult as we have in-house resources managing these tasks. However, it can become a bit tricky when we want to see a collated view of our security posture. Regarding AI integrations with Windows Server, Copilot adoption is progressing, though I have only experienced it on endpoints and not on the server side. We operate significant workloads on AI, but we consume those primarily on Linux rather than Windows Server. I don't have much experience regarding integration capabilities in Windows Server for AI workloads, so I may not be the right person to provide insights on that. Overall, I am quite happy with my experience using Windows Server. I don't have many constraints or concerns, so I would rate it eight out of ten.
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Answers from the Community

NC
Nov 21, 2021
Nov 21, 2021
Windows Server integrates well with all Microsoft and many other mainstream solutions. Building a Failover Cluster is comparatively much easier in Windows Server than with other solutions. We really like the ease of use, stability, and performance of this solution. You get a good active directory that offers consistently evolving features that scales easily. Windows Server supports more memory ...
See 2 answers
Shibu Babuchandran - PeerSpot reviewer
Oct 22, 2021
Hi @Netanya Carmi ​, Key Differences Between a Windows Server and a Windows Desktop Here are the key differences between a Windows server and a Windows desktop. 1. Windows Server Supports More Memory One of the main differences between a Windows server and desktop is the amount of memory each can support. A desktop running Windows 10 Enterprise has a 4 GB memory limit on an X86 and a 2TB limit on an X64. These numbers are greatly increased depending on the Windows server version. You can view the memory limitations for the Windows and Windows server releases on the Microsoft Developer site. 2. Windows Server Uses CPUs More Efficiently In general, a server OS is more efficient at using its hardware than a desktop OS, especially a CPU; therefore, if you install Alike on a server OS, you are taking full advantage of the hardware installed on your server, which also allows Alike to offer optimal performance. 3. More Network Connections Allowed on a Windows Server With a desktop version of Windows, network connections are limited to 10-20. A Windows server is not locked down to just 20 network connections; therefore, a Windows server can support well beyond 20 network connections based on your hardware’s capability. 4. The Server OS is Configured for Background Tasks By default, server editions of the Windows OS are configured to give priority to background tasks and services, whereas the desktop editions focus on foreground. While priority can be changed, the desktop edition’s management does not yield the same performance results.
Nov 21, 2021
Windows Server integrates well with all Microsoft and many other mainstream solutions. Building a Failover Cluster is comparatively much easier in Windows Server than with other solutions. We really like the ease of use, stability, and performance of this solution. You get a good active directory that offers consistently evolving features that scales easily. Windows Server supports more memory and uses CPUs more efficiently. Windows Server requires a lot of monthly maintenance with vulnerability management. From a security aspect, this should be improved. We would like to see a command-line version of Windows Server. Overall this solution can be very expensive. One popular feature of Windows 10 is its connectivity with mobile devices and ability to make cabless connections with external devices. Windows 10 has improved functionality and better integration between the networks and Windows 10 core system. The new subsystem for Linux is great. Windows 10 also offers a very good gaming option. which many of our team members thoroughly enjoy. It is a very stable solution with flexible scalability. Windows 10 gets a lot of updates and the automatic updates have caused some problems with our team, resulting in losing files or work. There are instances where updates have caused system crashes and failures. The process needs to be tweaked a bit. The enterprise version has many options, like games that are really intended for home use. The install process can be a bit complex and takes a lot of time to deploy. Windows 10 is a very expensive solution. Conclusion: These are both great solutions by an industry leader. Windows Server is a very robust and powerful on-premises hardware. We were looking to really step up our connections and Windows 10 can only handle about 10 or 20 connections, whereas Windows Server can handle an excess of 50,000 connections. We also needed more memory and more power. Windows10 Pro offers 2TB of RAM, while Windows Server can go to 24TB. Windows Server hardware can also handle more cores and processors; it has 64 sockets to Windows 10’s 2 sockets. Windows Server is the best solution for our organizational needs.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
University
9%
Computer Software Company
13%
Government
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Windows 10?
The only annoyance is the frequent updates that come almost every month or couple of months. A couple of updates could enhance the experience overall.
What is your primary use case for Windows 10?
I use Windows 10 ( /products/windows-10-reviews ) as my main operating system for daily business. It is part of a couple of different systems that I use, including Linux.
What needs improvement with Windows Server?
It's difficult to see improvements when using it daily. They improved compatibility with other platforms, such as Linux. One improvement I was thinking about some years ago was the ability to manag...
What is your primary use case for Windows Server?
I administer Windows Server. We have Windows 10 and are migrating to Windows 11 under my organization. The people who work with me are handling the migration right now. We have several servers, mos...
 

Comparisons

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Rakuten, Rackspace, Tyco
Find out what your peers are saying about Windows 10 vs. Windows Server and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
856,874 professionals have used our research since 2012.