Parallels Desktop is a leading Mac‑based hypervisor that lets you run Windows, Linux, and other operating systems side‑by‑side with macOS. The list below provides 20 alternative solutions for desktop virtualization and VDI that work on macOS—ranging from free open‑source hypervisors to enterprise‑grade cloud platforms and remote‑desktop clients.
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Full‑featured macOS hypervisor with support for Windows, Linux, and macOS guests, offering Unity mode, snapshots, and DirectX 11 graphics.
A free, limited‑feature version of Fusion for personal use, providing basic VM creation, snapshots, and drag‑and‑drop integration.
Open‑source, cross‑platform hypervisor that runs on macOS, supporting a wide range of guest OSes with extensible features via extensions packs.
Native macOS virtualization app built on QEMU, offering a simple UI for running ARM and x86 operating systems with hardware acceleration on Apple Silicon.
Powerful open‑source emulator and virtualizer that can be used directly on macOS for low‑level VM control, especially useful for custom or headless setups.
Container‑based virtualization platform that runs Linux containers on macOS using a lightweight HyperKit VM, ideal for developers and CI/CD pipelines.
Developer‑focused tool that automates VM provisioning on macOS, leveraging VirtualBox, HyperKit, or Docker as providers.
Apple‑supported dual‑boot solution that lets you install Windows natively on Intel‑based Macs, providing full hardware performance (not a hypervisor).
Commercial Wine‑based compatibility layer that runs many Windows applications on macOS without a full Windows VM.
Official macOS client for connecting to Windows desktops and Azure Virtual Desktop sessions, enabling VDI access from a Mac.
Cloud‑based VDI service that streams Windows 10/11 multi‑session desktops to macOS via the Remote Desktop client.
Fully managed, secure Desktop‑as‑a‑Service (DaaS) that delivers Windows or Linux desktops to macOS through the native client.
Enterprise‑grade VDI platform that provides high‑performance Windows and Linux desktops to macOS via the Citrix Workspace app.
Cloud‑hosted VDI solution that delivers virtual Windows desktops to macOS devices through the Horizon Client.
Browser‑based DaaS platform that streams Windows or Linux desktops to any macOS device without a client install.
Runs VMware vSphere workloads on Google Cloud, allowing macOS users to connect via VMware Horizon or Remote Desktop clients.
Free macOS client for connecting to Horizon‑based VDI and published applications hosted on VMware infrastructure.
Enterprise solution from Parallels that publishes Windows applications and full desktops to macOS via a web portal or client.
Linux‑based hypervisor that can be hosted on a server and accessed from macOS using SPICE or RDP clients for VDI scenarios.
Open‑source hypervisor that can host Windows/Linux VMs and be accessed from macOS using Citrix Workspace or standard RDP.