AnyDesk vs. Parallels Desktop

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
AnyDesk
Score 8.0 out of 10
N/A
AnyDesk Software in Stuttgart offers their eponymous remote desktop software, designed to provide resilient remote access even with poor network access.
$14.90
per year
Parallels Desktop
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Parallels Desktop is a virtual user session solution built to run Windows on Macintosh computers without rebooting. It is designed for OS X Yosemite with one-click tuning.
$49.99
per license
Pricing
AnyDeskParallels Desktop
Editions & Modules
Solo
$14.90
per month billed annually
Standard
$29.90
per month billed annually
Advanced
$79.90
per month billed annually
Enterprise
Custom
per year billed annually
Parallels Desktop 16
$49.99
per license
Parallels Desktop Pro Edition
$49.99
per license/per year
Parallels Desktop
$79.99
per license
Parallels Desktop Pro Edition
$99
per license/per year
Parallels Desktop Business Edition
$99.99
per license/per year
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
AnyDeskParallels Desktop
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsAnyDesk is free for personal use and offers a limited set of features and support. Professional users need a license. Only the initiator of a session needs a license, participants are free.
More Pricing Information
Features
AnyDeskParallels Desktop
Remote Administration
Comparison of Remote Administration features of Product A and Product B
AnyDesk
7.6
28 Ratings
8% below category average
Parallels Desktop
8.2
26 Ratings
1% below category average
Screen sharing8.326 Ratings9.09 Ratings
File transfer7.028 Ratings9.823 Ratings
Instant message6.924 Ratings7.65 Ratings
Secure remote access with Smart Card authentication9.218 Ratings6.44 Ratings
Access to sleeping/powered-off computers7.622 Ratings8.710 Ratings
Over-the-Internet remote session7.626 Ratings8.99 Ratings
Initiate remote control from mobile7.525 Ratings7.13 Ratings
Remote management of servers & workstations7.523 Ratings7.15 Ratings
Remote Active Directory® management6.420 Ratings8.65 Ratings
Centralized management dashboard7.423 Ratings8.511 Ratings
Session record9.824 Ratings8.67 Ratings
Annotations6.921 Ratings6.56 Ratings
Monitoring and Alerts6.922 Ratings8.98 Ratings
Multi-platform remote control7.726 Ratings9.59 Ratings
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AnyDeskParallels Desktop
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Score 9.0 out of 10
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Score 9.0 out of 10
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User Ratings
AnyDeskParallels Desktop
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(28 ratings)
9.4
(30 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
Usability
9.5
(2 ratings)
10.0
(3 ratings)
Support Rating
9.3
(12 ratings)
9.0
(6 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(2 ratings)
User Testimonials
AnyDeskParallels Desktop
Likelihood to Recommend
AnyDesk Software
If at this point in the pandemic, remote access to a desktop is necessary for you, then AnyDesk is likely a solid solution. However, as the pandemic winds down, remote access is expected to become less and less critical, and thus, the problem that AnyDesk solves is likely (or perhaps, hopefully) going away. Given the bad reputation for using this program by scammers, many customers do not want to connect through it, so over time, I switched to an alternative to Anydesk - the service Getscreen. me, which connects directly from the browser.
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Alludo
I often get asked, why not the "free" stuff (VirtualBox), and/or why not VMWare. VirtualBox, etc. are not as performant for interactive usage. I think they are fine for small applications, perhaps some enterprise app usage, but for developers, it's not good enough. VMWare has become too enterprisey and lacks some of the user-friendly stuff that Parallels focuses on. Ultimately, for developer types running OSes for deep tasks, Parallels is unrivaled.
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Pros
AnyDesk Software
  • It has an inbuilt Wake-on-LAN feature, which allows starting the remote computer with just a click.
  • We can create an easy-to-remember custom alias for different systems, it makes it easy to access the systems without any ID or long numbers to remember.
  • It allows auto adapt resolution, it displays the remote system according to the host systems resolution.
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Alludo
  • File Transfer - You can easily transfer files between Parallels virtualized desktops and the host desktop either through Copy and Paste functionality, or Drag and Drop. You can also configure shared folders.
  • Switch Between Virtual and Host Desktop - You can configure swipe gestures on a MacBook Pro to be able to switch between the virtualized and host desktop. You can also launch apps from the OS X Taskbar.
  • Performance - Apps in Parallels run quite smoothly on my 2015 MacBook Pro, as of 2020. Considering they are running on a 5-year-old computer, I give Parallels top marks for performance.
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Cons
AnyDesk Software
  • The auto-update feature on AnyDesk sometimes offers a technical glitch. It does not work properly on few occasions. I really think it may has a room for improvement.
  • When it comes to Mac AnyDesk may seem a little complex at early times.
  • Video recording captures a low quality frame. I think this should be changed because sometimes video recording is the most essential thing.
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Alludo
  • The ability to do snapshots, backups, and other types of branching for VMs is a little confusing and takes a bit to get used to
  • The Parallels tools frequently pop up windows advertising functionality, while this is helpful at times it can also happen when you are doing a presentation or typing in a password.
  • Careful using the VMs on a shared cloud drive such as Dropbox or OneDrive, there are hundreds and sometimes thousands of files which are updated when running a VM and this can clog up your Dropbox or OneDrive sync for minutes to hours even on a 2gb connection.
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Likelihood to Renew
AnyDesk Software
No answers on this topic
Alludo
Users are familiar with the application which will keep us going for a little while. However since we are seeing a decline for a need for the software, I wouldn't be surprised to find that this answer changes dramatically in the near future. We would probably keep it to some extent, but we would probably reduce our licensing count.
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Usability
AnyDesk Software
AnyDesk is a complete solution for remote access and control. AnyDesk provides better navigation and UI when compared with other similar software. AnyDesk helped me a lot at times when I've been working from home. The only disadvantage I found is when the network connection is weak. It needs to be managed properly.
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Alludo
It has a good integration, including the connection of peripherals. Taking files back and forth works well and I can attach my Home drive as a network drive in Windows. There is even integration with iCloud and other macOS services. There are also a few different display modes which are useful and fleixible (coherence, windowed, full-screen with multiple screens)
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Support Rating
AnyDesk Software
I didn't have any technical problems and I didn't suffer from bugs or errors. Customer service has improved a lot and I no longer need to leave the office to go to the user's computer. With AnyDesk I install and remove programs, printers, scanners, settings in general. Screen sharing is excellent and without delays. Overall, I recommend and approve AnyDesk.
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Alludo
So, this rating is a little skewed toward older behavior from Parallels, as I haven't had to contact them recently. However, in an older version of Parallels, an "update" included pop-ups urging users to upgrade to the latest version, implying that their current version wouldn't work for the latest MacOS. I found it very frustrating to be getting ads for a new version of the software in a version I had already paid for. I contacted support about this and got a generic, uncaring response. It was pretty disappointing.
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Implementation Rating
AnyDesk Software
No answers on this topic
Alludo
The only advice I can provide is think about who is using the product and build the image based on the true needs of the user.
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Alternatives Considered
AnyDesk Software
The free version of TeamViewer is unstable; the remote connection is frequently lost. Anydesk's remote connection is much more reliable and consistent. Even so, I prefer AnyDesk over other software because it's a lot easier to install and runs very well. Aside from that, its simplicity gives it an edge over other software.
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Alludo
Main two features that made the balance decission go to the Parallels Desktop were the possibility to pause the Windows partition easily (allowing to consume less resources in Mac and save battery) and the other one is the user interface feature called "Coherence" with allows you to show the Windows application windows as if they were native to the macOS, allowing for a better user experience.
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Return on Investment
AnyDesk Software
  • Reduce time and efforts spare for sorting out issues.
  • Increase the overall revenue as able to share and present our products to customers easily and in detail.
  • Control our expenses as we can handle any issue that arises remotely.
  • Improve overall customer services as we act quickly and promptly with any issues.
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Alludo
  • Avoid extra costs: majority of users have a Mac, so if they needed to dod something that is Windows related, it will require to users have an extra computer to do that tasks, and this have a lot of costs
  • Developers have more concerns how websites behaves on Windows only browsers, which increased the satisfaction of users
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ScreenShots