VMware Workstation vs VMware vSphere comparison

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43,659 views|35,882 comparisons
95% willing to recommend
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8,287 views|5,704 comparisons
95% willing to recommend
Comparison Buyer's Guide
Executive Summary
Updated on May 15, 2022

We performed a comparison between VMware vSphere and VMware Workstation based on our users’ reviews in five categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.

  • Ease of Deployment: Users report that the initial setup and deployment of both solutions is straightforward and fast.

  • Features: Users of both products are happy with their ease of use, virtualization capabilities, stability, and scalability. VMware VSphere users say it is flexible and has fast data recovery. A few VMware VSphere users say that the solution should improve its security and monitoring features. VMware Workstation users report that it is reliable and high performing but its interface could be improved.
  • Pricing: Most VMware VSphere users feel it is an expensive product, whereas
    VMware Workstation users say that it is a low-cost solution
  • Service and Support: Most users of both solutions report being satisfied with the level of the support they receive.

  • ROI: Users are satisfied with the ROI of both products.

Comparison Results: VMware Workstation has a slight edge in this comparison due to it being the less expensive solution.

To learn more, read our detailed Server Virtualization Software Report (Updated: April 2024).
770,616 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"being able to manage a lot of servers in one pane of glass makes things a lot simpler. Basically, a lot of things just happen in one area. You can roll things over, move things around more dynamically, without having to hit multiple systems.""One of the most valuable features that vSphere has is its HA and DRS protection, where it can simply make sure that all the machines are always where they need to be and how they need to be taken care of. We have a lot of servers and services for emergency services for police, fire, and the like. We have the ability to use DRS as Anti-Affinity Rules to make sure that those redundant server pairs always stay away from each other. But then, if anything would happen to one of them, we have HA to be able to come up and bring it right up and going again.""Its stability and manageability are valuable.""I find that the Virtual Center Management, iSCSI support, and VMotion hot migration are very beneficial.""I use customization to prevent any network and DNS collisions to the router.""Its DR facility is good. Within a moment, data can be retrieve from another physical location over the Internet. The speed to recover data is good.""The installation process is very straightforward.""Most valuable features of vSphere 6.7, for us, at the management level would be: VCHA is a nice redundancy feature that they added in v6.7. I like the quality of life improvements with the VMFS-6 for using auto UNMAP on the data stores. And we really appreciate the improvements to the Clarity UI where we can manage Update Manager (VUM) and our vSAN stack within the modern interface."

More VMware vSphere Pros →

"The performance is good.""The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease to create a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop.""VMware Workstation allows you to run a virtual machine.""VMware Workstation is great for migrating and patching operating systems.""The most valuable features of VMware Workstation are the speed of access and quality of upgrade. Those are the more important and pertinent aspects as far as we were concerned. Functionality and features were relevant for the customers. What a customer chose, we had to make sure that it operated.""Great at solving connection problems.""It's stable.""Technical support is very good."

More VMware Workstation Pros →

Cons
"The cost could always be lower.""The price is a big issue for us because the market is very competitive in our country, so we can't really push our VMware vSphere products because the customers will prefer to use something cheaper.""The license fee could be more affordable.""Technical support is not that great. It is too slow.""Two improvements that I would like to see are higher resolution console modes for guests and easier switching between consoles.""The licensing costs for the solution are quite high.""The documentation could be improved. It does not help me to show the client the value of going with VMware vSphere rather than an open source or cheaper solution.""It needs to integrate better between multiple modules."

More VMware vSphere Cons →

"The GUI interface could be improved.""I would like to see more detailed reporting capabilities, particularly around snapshot activity. It would be helpful to have a summary of changes made prior to deploying an application, allowing us to provide comprehensive reports to our management on a regular basis.""Its price could be better.""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.""It would be helpful if VMware Workstation included an in-built monitoring tool for monitoring things.""It would be better if software updates occur automatically.""The solution freezes sometimes.""The price of VMware Workstation is an area of concern where improvements are needed."

More VMware Workstation Cons →

Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "My advice when it comes to pricing is that pricing is a bummer, especially when it comes to SnS coverage."
  • "Purchase only the cheaper solution with support. I don’t recommend high-end licenses."
  • "Pricing needs to be competitive since Microsoft Hyper-V has come a long way; they are both around the same price range."
  • "VMware is consistently expensive and their pricing arrogance is what will drive us and other customers away."
  • "Start with the lowest and upgrade if, and only if, absolutely necessary."
  • "Compared with other vendors’ products, the pricing of the license is slightly lower. The annual S&S price is very affordable."
  • "The product is worth what you pay for it. I definitely feel like I"m getting good value."
  • "​The only issue with vSphere might be with the cost of the tools and the software.​"
  • More VMware vSphere Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "The pricing is a bit steep in my opinion for testing and there are other options."
  • "Licensing costs are paid on a yearly basis."
  • "The licensing costs are cheap. I pay approximately $100 per year."
  • "The cost differs depending on the customer's requirement."
  • "VMware Workstation has a high price than competitors in the market."
  • "With a VDI solution, there is always extra cost running a VDI solution but it's not for cost purposes anymore. In the beginning, it was to save money on hardware but at the moment it's other aspects that are more important why you should use a VDI solution."
  • "Licensing fees are paid on an annual basis."
  • "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."
  • More VMware Workstation Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Comparison Review
    Answers from the Community
    Netanya Carmi
    Steffen Hornung - PeerSpot reviewerSteffen Hornung
    Real User

    This question is like what do you prefer?


    Wordpad or Word?


    Both are useful, just for different things. So one would probably end up using both.


    Would you it-central-stationeers stop with this nonsense already?

    StevePham - PeerSpot reviewerStevePham
    Real User

    if it is for business or enterprise-class virtualization, vSphere solution is the way to go. 


    Workstation is used for lab.

    Syed Abid Hussain - PeerSpot reviewerSyed Abid Hussain
    Real User

    Both are VMWare products.


    simply v-sphere is a hypervisor Tier-1 technology stack


    VMWare workstation is a desktop release installed on windows or Linux OS


    if your requirement is limited need few VMs for testing purpose you can go for Workstation.


    but if you need production VMs you need a separate independent hardware server for v-sphere esxi hypervisor. 

    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:DEEPEN DHULLA did explain well IOMMU. IOMMU has to be activated at the bios level. It exists on Intel and AMD platforms. It is used a lot inside virtualization platforms like VMware VSphere. It… more »
    Top Answer:We use VMware and KVM. We find that KVM is a lot simpler to use and it provides the virtualization we need for Linux and Windows. For us, VMware does not offer any advantage. Moreover, KVM is free.
    Top Answer:We found the reduced power consumption with Nutanix Acropolis AOS a very attractive feature. We also like the interface that allows you to talk directly to your VM from the present software. We found… more »
    Top Answer: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… more »
    Top Answer:The initial setup is simple and takes only five minutes to complete.
    Top Answer:The solution’s performance is low. Also, support should be enhanced after Huiwei's acquisition. They are migrating all their clients to the new company. It takes too much time to load all the plug-ins… more »
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    19
    Average Words per Review
    426
    Rating
    8.4
    Views
    8,287
    Comparisons
    5,704
    Reviews
    28
    Average Words per Review
    346
    Rating
    8.6
    Comparisons
    Learn More
    Overview

    VMware vSphere is a powerful and complete server virtualization platform that allows its users to create and manage virtual data centers and machines. VMware vSphere is designed to help IT departments set up and run applications using the most cost-effective computer resources. By using vSphere, organizations save the time and energy necessary for purchasing infrastructure and software and reduce ongoing maintenance and operational burdens on IT teams.

    Infrastructure administrators and network operators can access and manage the vSphere server by using a web-based cross-platform client application or via the vSphere client tool provided with vSphere. 

    VMware vSphere provides visibility into VMs and enables its users to carry out operations to manage VMs. This includes tasks such as:

    • Powering VMs on and off
    • Launching the VM console
    • Shutting down guest operating systems
    • Settings configurations
    • Taking system snapshots

    VMware vSphere Benefits

    Some of the benefits of using VMware vSphere include: 

    • Reduced costs: Since VMware applications are run on a server, it is not necessary to spend large amounts of your organization’s money on hardware, software, and infrastructure.
    • Increased productivity and customer satisfaction: VMware is able to operate multiple complex processes simultaneously. With all your applications being managed and run on the cloud, downtime, failures, and application errors are rare. VMware easily scales up and down to meet your computing needs. The high availability that VMware provides allows your IT staff to focus on other issues and keeps your customers satisfied with the service they receive.
    • Unlimited access to your VMs: VMware’s user-friendly cloud-based interface allows any employee to work from any location at any time.
    • Enhanced security: VMware’s security tools deliver full visibility into your entire system. This keeps your applications and data more secure, in any type of environment. VMware provides multiple protective tools including antiviruses and anti-malware, as well as backup and recovery services.

    VMware vSphere Features

    Below is a list of some of VMware vSphere’s key features:

    • Transferable virtual machine images: Export and import virtual machine images from your local environment. This gives users the ability to set up and configure their systems locally and only upload them to the server once everything is working properly. VM images can be moved back and forth between vendors, ensuring that your company is never tied up to a specific cloud vendor.
    • User-friendly interface: Using VMware’s intuitive console, you can easily create, manage, share, and deploy virtual machines.
    • API integration: VMware’s APIs support integration with third-party applications for data protection, multipathing, and disk array solutions.
    • Distributed power management: Automate efficiency by continuously optimizing server power consumption within each cluster.

    Reviews from Real Users

    VMware vSphere stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. A few major ones are its virtualization abilities, its flexibility and availability, and its user-friendly interface.

    Felix D., an Automation project administrator, DCS, I&E at Centennial Cayman Corp, writes, “The connectivity is fantastic, and many functions can run together in one server. If you need to scale, we can continue to add components or modules. It's a beautiful virtual solution that has many advantages over physical hardware, where you have to use devices and wiring to connect all your projects.”

    VMware Workstation is part of a suite of robust Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) tools or Desktop Hypervisors that allows users to run Kubernetes clusters, containers, and Virtual Machines (VMs). Users have the option to choose between VMware Workstation Pro or VMware Workstation Player to ensure that they get the most out of their VMware Workstation experience.

    Workstation Player is best used as a command line or single graphical operation. It works very well for running different operating systems using a secure cloistered sandbox on a general consumer PC. Workstation Player is an industry favorite for use in an educational environment to better expand the knowledge concerning computer systems and global information technology. Workstation Pro is created for astute IT developers and professionals. The solution provides an intuitive next-generation interface and gives users the ability to seamlessly run several virtual machines at the same time. Users can easily create clones, configure virtual networks, connect to vSphere, and more, using a crisp, visually enhanced dashboard that provides full transparency to show multiple VMs and more.

    VMware Workstation solutions rely on components in next-generation 64-bit x86 CPUs to develop robust, secure VMs that are able to utilize many different operating systems and all of their applications. VMware Workstation’s modern technology intuitively links the physical hardware devices to the virtual machine's virtual resources enabling each VM to have its own I/O devices, memory, disks, and CPU in addition to the equivalent of a standard x86 actual machine. It easily installs onto the host operating system and is able to offer comprehensive hardware support by utilizing the device support from the original host.

    VMware Workstation Benefits

    VMware Workstation has many desirable benefits. Some of those benefits include:


    • Improved overall IT processes.
    • Better, more efficient deployment outcomes.
    • Enhanced application performance.
    • Better server availability.
    • Less physical hardware and additional devices needed.
    • Cost-effective.
    • Decreased outages or downtime.
    • Faster provisioning of applications and resources.
    • Reduced power consumption.
    • Reduced Environmental Impact.



    Reviews from Real Users

    Walter G., Owner at Secacon Gygli Engineering LLC says, “The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease of creating a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop.” 

    Toni L., CEO at Virtual Consultants Sverige AB says, “The most valuable features of VMware Workstation are the DirectX support; you can run Microsoft Hyper-V in virtual environments, which is good for me to test different installations. Additionally, you can set up different VLANs, and overall it is a complete solution.” 


    “Having a user-friendly interfaceis important for me. I'm not a coder, even though I do a little bit of programming. Also, I don't use the command-line interface when I can avoid it. When I do have to use it, I look up what I'm supposed to type and then type it.” A PeerSpot user who is a Chief Technical Officer at a construction company.

    are Workstation is part of a suite of robust Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) tools or Desktop Hypervisors that allows users to run Kubernetes clusters, containers, and Virtual Machines (VMs). Users have the option to choose between VMware Workstation Pro or VMware Workstation Player to ensure they get the most out of their VMware Workstation experience.

    Workstation Player is best used as a command line or single graphical operation. It works very well for running different operating systems using a secure cloistered sandbox on a general consumer PC. Workstation Player is an industry favorite for use in an educational environment to better expand the knowledge concerning computer systems and global information technology. Workstation Pro is created for astute IT developers and professionals. The solution provides an intuitive next generation interface and gives users the ability to run seamlessly several virtual machines at the same time. Users can easily create clones, configure virtual networks, connect to vSphere, and more using a crisp, visually enhanced dashboard that provides full transparency to show multiple VMs and more.

    VMware Workstation solutions rely on components in next-generation 64-bit x86 CPUs to develop robust, secure VMs that are able to utilize many different operating systems and all of their applications. Vmware Workstation’s modern technology intuitively links the physical hardware devices to the virtual machine's virtual resources enabling each VM to have its own I/O devices, memory, disks, and CPU in addition to the equivalent to a standard x86 actual machine.VMware easily installs onto the host operating system and is able to offer comprehensive hardware support by utilizing the device support from the original host.

    VMware Workstation Benefits

    Vmware Workstation has many desirable benefits. Some of those benefits include:


    • Improved overall IT processes.
    • Better, more efficient deployment outcomes.
    • Enhanced application performance.
    • Better server availability.
    • Less physical hardware and additional devices needed.
    • Cost-effective.
    • Decreased outages or downtime.
    • Faster provisioning of applications and resources.
    • Reduced power consumption.
    • Reduced Environmental Impact.



    Reviews from Real Users

    “The most valuable feature of the VMware Workstation is the ease of creating a development environment. When you have different ongoing developments, you often need to create a lot of different development environments. With this workstation solution, you can have a development environment for all the things you develop.” Walter G., Owner at Secacon Gygli Engineering LLC

    “The most valuable features of VMware Workstation are the DirectX support; you can run Microsoft Hyper-V in virtual environments, which is good for me to test different installations. Additionally, you can set up different VLANs, and overall it is a complete solution.” Toni L., CEO at Virtual Consultants Sverige AB

    A Chief Technical Officer at a construction company says,“Having a user-friendly interfaceis important for me. I'm not a coder, even though I do a little bit of programming. Also, I don't use the command-line interface when I can avoid it. When I do have to use it, I look up what I'm supposed to type and then type it.” 

    Sample Customers
    Abu Dhabi Ports Company, ACS, AIA New Zealand, Consona, Corporate Express, CS Energy, and Digiweb.
    Akademiska Hus
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm13%
    Energy/Utilities Company10%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    Computer Software Company6%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Educational Organization26%
    Computer Software Company12%
    Financial Services Firm7%
    Government6%
    REVIEWERS
    Computer Software Company23%
    Manufacturing Company19%
    Construction Company8%
    University8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company15%
    Comms Service Provider9%
    Government9%
    Manufacturing Company8%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business30%
    Midsize Enterprise25%
    Large Enterprise45%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise34%
    Large Enterprise46%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business47%
    Midsize Enterprise22%
    Large Enterprise31%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business27%
    Midsize Enterprise16%
    Large Enterprise57%
    Buyer's Guide
    Server Virtualization Software
    April 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Proxmox, VMware, Microsoft and others in Server Virtualization Software. Updated: April 2024.
    770,616 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    VMware vSphere is ranked 2nd in Server Virtualization Software with 446 reviews while VMware Workstation is ranked 2nd in Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) with 42 reviews. VMware vSphere is rated 8.8, while VMware Workstation is rated 8.8. The top reviewer of VMware vSphere writes "Offers good performance and is useful for banking systems". On the other hand, the top reviewer of VMware Workstation writes "An easy-to-manage solution that has really good customer support compared to other market players". VMware vSphere is most compared with Hyper-V, Proxmox VE, Oracle VM, KVM and Nutanix AHV Virtualization, whereas VMware Workstation is most compared with Hyper-V, KVM, Proxmox VE, Oracle VM VirtualBox and VMware Player.

    We monitor all Server Virtualization Software reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.