macOS vs. Microsoft Windows

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
macOS
Score 9.2 out of 10
N/A
macOS is the graphical operating system for Apple desktop devices.N/A
Microsoft Windows
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
Windows is an operating system with editions to support business workstations.N/A
Pricing
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Considered Both Products
macOS
Chose macOS
macOS is much more user-friendly and designed for the novice user. Linux, while providing excellent performance, is not a system that regular non-expert users feel comfortable with out of the box. Windows is more complicated to support because it must accommodate a wide …
Chose macOS
Just that simplicity of day to day activities and management.
It's basically zero hassle with the ability to scale and power up if needed.
Chose macOS
Way faster and better than Windows OS. Only instance Windows OS wins is cost.
Chose macOS
More reliable, better for power users, more feature rich
Chose macOS
macOS just makes sense to me. Each OS has its pros and cons.. macOS works for me. It's well designed, intuitive, and efficient. But it's not cheap... well, macOS is basically free, but you need the hardware to run it, and the hardware isn't cheap. Pick the right tool for the …
Microsoft Windows
Chose Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows and macOS are both useful operating systems. There are businesses who much prefer macOS and some that prefer Windows. Businesses that revolve around industries such as game design, art design, graphic design may opt to use macOS due to its optimization with …
Chose Microsoft Windows
We selected Microsoft Windows because of the user friendly nature of it and a big factor is that other user never used macOS or Ubuntu so the productivity will decrease a lot because you have to explain a whole new OS. I always only recommend macOS or Ubuntu if you are a …
Chose Microsoft Windows
Because of its compatibility with third-party software requirements.
Features
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Operating System
Comparison of Operating System features of Product A and Product B
macOS
9.5
4 Ratings
12% above category average
Microsoft Windows
-
Ratings
File Management9.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Software Application Management9.84 Ratings00 Ratings
System Update Frequency9.84 Ratings00 Ratings
Operating System Security9.54 Ratings00 Ratings
Best Alternatives
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Small Businesses
Ubuntu
Ubuntu
Score 8.7 out of 10
Ubuntu
Ubuntu
Score 8.7 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Enterprises
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
Score 9.1 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Likelihood to Recommend
9.0
(4 ratings)
9.0
(10 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
9.6
(3 ratings)
8.3
(7 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
macOSMicrosoft Windows
Likelihood to Recommend
Apple
Macs, macOS, and the appropriate Mac applications really shine in ease of use. Specifically, the system's media-handling features are excellent. The developer frameworks (libraries) are excellent and provide easy programmatic access to the operating system's features. macOS is very stable and is built on a solid foundation of a Unix kernel. The Swift programming language is very approachable, and macOS supports many scripting and programming languages, opening up a wide variety of coding libraries.
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Microsoft
I think for every business in the world Microsoft Windows is a good use as standard OS system. It’s easy to use and a lot of other company's use it which make it very appealing for user to learn more about Microsoft Windows. The Office 365 suite is really good as a free feature and used a lot by every user of Microsoft Windows. If you got a designer business I would recommend other brands that are specialized in that kind of work. I feel Windows will come short on that end.
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Pros
Apple
  • Unified hardware and software drivers
  • Power users can have full access if needed
  • Upgrade cycles are so easy with OS transfer
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Microsoft
  • It is very easy to use, can be picked up by a novice in minutes.
  • It is aesthetically pleasing, and appears clean and modern.
  • Most programs that people use in their day to day run on windows natively.
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Cons
Apple
  • upfront costs to getting the most benefit from macOS requires you to purchase a Macbook...this is expensive
  • it's windows snapping function just isn't as good as Windows OS
  • as good as the M chips are, gaming just isn't a big strong suit
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Microsoft
  • Forced updates occasionally have bad timing when ignored for too long
  • Microsoft Edge Web Browser is a bit clunky
  • The 3D desktop still needs some improvement
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Likelihood to Renew
Apple
Its simply the best operating system
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Usability
Apple
I'm sure I'm biased. I've been using a Mac for 30+ yrs. I am significantly more productive on a Mac than on any other platform. It comes down to some personal preference and familiarity, but I just think the interface is more intuitive and streamlined
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Microsoft
It's easy to use, very straightforward, and user-friendly. It has improved over the years, but you still need to be careful not to shut it down improperly because that may lead to corruption and Windows being unable to boot. There is plenty of software available that covers most needs.
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Reliability and Availability
Apple
macOS tends to be very reliable, and Apple distributes updates as needed to patch known vulnerabilities or issues. It is very seldom that a macOS-based system is unavailable, and if that happens, the cloud-based storage and identity management support make it very easy to slot in a loaner machine while the user's primary machine is repaired.
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Performance
Apple
The Apple Silicon hardware allows macOS to perform very well, with rapid response. Local processing for Apple Intelligence-related items is quite fast, and the response is impressively complete. Our experience with integrations to other enterprise systems is that the other system is usually the bottleneck in the process, rather than macOS.
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Apple
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
support remains spotty, researching online articles are a pain
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Implementation Rating
Apple
No answers on this topic
Microsoft
MDT helped deploy OS to users machines via PXE boot.
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Alternatives Considered
Apple
Just that simplicity of day to day activities and management. It's basically zero hassle with the ability to scale and power up if needed
Read full review
Microsoft
Microsoft Windows and macOS are both useful operating systems. There are businesses who much prefer macOS and some that prefer Windows. Businesses that revolve around industries such as game design, art design, graphic design may opt to use macOS due to its optimization with programs that revolve around these topics. Other businesses that are more focused towards Data or text processing may opt to use Windows due to its familiarity across the world and ease of access.
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Scalability
Apple
macOS is very easily deployed with central MDM/DDM management systems. There are several of these available to select, depending on the amount and type of deployment needed. We use Jamf Pro to support a "zero touch" deployment model, which makes it almost as easy to deploy 100 endpoints as 10 (other than delivery and unboxing).
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Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Apple
  • Apple supports their hardware longer than most manufacturers, which is good.
  • Apple's hardware is more expensive than similar equipment competition, which is bad but offset somewhat by its longevity.
  • Apple in an Apple world works great.
  • Apple in a Windows world has some work to do to get things talking.
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Microsoft
  • Positively effects our easy of use of other programs
  • Take it for granted because it is so transparent in use
  • Definitely worth the price.
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ScreenShots