VMware Fusion 11 Pro macOS

Includes free for personal, educational and commercial use. The latest version of VMware Fusion Pro also now automatically downloads and installs Windows 11 for you, just like Parallels does.Previously, VMware Fusion products couldn’t automatically download and install Windows 11 because it didn’t have a licensing agreement with Microsoft for Windows ARM but that now seems to have been resolved.On top of this, VMWare Fusion Pro has also now been fully updated to work on all the Apple Silicon Macs and on macOS Sequoia although it was a long way behind Parallels in doing this.The biggest attraction of VMware Fusion Pro is that it’s completely free to use (including commercial use) whereas Parallels only offers a free-trial.Previously only VMware Player was free for personal use but Broadcom discontinued it and made the Pro version free for all usage types. This means that even system admins can deploy it across corporate networks for free. However, there’s no guarantee that it will remain free forever.You should also be aware that there’s no official support for VMware Fusion Pro anymore either. If you run into problems, you’ll have to rely on VMware community support for help .Pricing: Free for personal, educational and commercial use. Pros:Free for personal, educational and commercial useSupports Windows ARM on Apple Silicon MacsAutomatically downloads and installs Windows 11Works as well as Parallels in many areasCons:No official support if things go wrongIntegration between macOS and Windows not as close as ParallelsNot updated as quickly as ParallelsPerformance running Windows 11One of the big selling points of Parallels is that its always been very easy to setup and recent updates have made it even easier.The latest version requires two simple steps.Source: MacHow2Install Windows on your Mac by clicking on “Get Windows 11”.Parallels will then download Windows 11 ARM on your Mac.Unless you have

Less than 4GB of RAM, your Mac is more than equipped to handle running two operating systems at the same time although we strongly recommend using at least 8GB of RAM.Parallels recommends 16GB of RAM for best results especially if you’re going to play games, use graphic design software or other high-end CAD applications.However, the Standard edition of Parallels only allows you to allocate up to 8GB of RAM so you need a Pro or Business subscription to allocate up to 128GB of RAM.In our review of Parallels, we didn’t notice any significant lag in performance while using Windows in Parallels but as with most virtual machines, games play at lower frame rates.VMware Fusion Pro has finally caught up with Parallels regarding installation of Windows 11 and now does it automatically.Source: MacHow2VMware has also improved integration with Windows and macOS meaning its now easy to drag and drop files between the two operating systems.Just like with Parallels, VMware Fusion Pro only supports the ARM version of Windows and not the more common Intel version.Gaming in Parallels vs VMware Fusion ProFor most Windows only games, we recommend Parallels as the best virtual machine to play Windows only games on a Mac and support for gaming has come a long way on it in recent releases.However the latest version of VMware Fusion Pro also has improved Metal-accelerated DirectX 11 3D graphics support for better performance when playing Windows games on a Mac, making it a fairly equal competitor.However, there are a few things to be aware of before using both Parallels or VMware Fusion Pro for gaming.For best performance, you need a Mac that’s got at least 16GB of RAM. Games will still work in both Parallels and VMware with 8GB of RAM but performance can be slow and laggy depending on

Last updated:February 18, 2025If you’re new to Macs then you might have heard about Virtual Machines also known as virtualization machines, virtual environments, hypervisors or simply VMs.In this article, we’ll take a closer look at two of the most popular virtual machines for Mac Parallels vs VMware Fusion Pro to see how they compare head-to-head.There are various virtual machines for Mac on the market today but by far the most popular and widely used are Parallels and VMware Fusion Pro.Note that VMware Fusion Pro is now the only product offered by VMware, replacing the former VMware Fusion Player product. Here we take a closer look at how these two virtual giants compare.FeatureParallels DesktopVMware Fusion ProPerformanceGenerally offers superior performance, especially for graphics-intensive applications and gaming.Performance is solid for general use but may lag behind in graphics-intensive tasks.CompatibilityProvides excellent integration with macOS features, including support for the latest versions of macOS and Apple Silicon chips.Supports macOS and Apple Silicon, but some features are less polished compared to Parallels.Ease of UseKnown for its user-friendly interface and seamless setup process, making it accessible for users of all levels. Offers a lot of advanced features, steeper learning curve for new users.CostRequires a paid license, with options for standard and pro editions.Now free version for personal, educational and commercial use. Feature UpdatesRegularly updates with new features and improvements, maintaining compatibility with the latest macOS releases.Updates are less frequent, potentially leading to delays in supporting new macOS features. Gaming PerformanceBetter suited for gaming due to enhanced graphics support and performance optimization for macOS. May not perform as well as Parallels for heavy duty gaming.SupportOfficial premium support available.No official support available. Only community forums. Table of ContentsParallelsVMware Fusion ProPerformance running Windows 11Gaming in Parallels vs VMware Fusion ProPricingSystem RequirementsConclusionWhat About Boot Camp?Alternatives to Virtual MachinesParallelsSource: MacHow2Parallels is easily

VMware Fusion is a popular virtualization software that lets users create and run virtual machines on Mac computers. The company behind the software recently announced a major update coming to VMWare Fusion, which will enable full 3D acceleration for Windows 11 virtual machines on Apple Silicon Macs.VMWare Fusion gets full 3D acceleration on Apple Silicon MacsAs announced in a blog post, VMware Fusion Tech Preview 2023 – the latest beta version of the software – marks a giant leap forward for virtualization on macOS. The update enables full hardware-based 3D acceleration for Windows 11 on ARM platforms. This means users can run graphics-intensive apps and games based on the DirectX 11 API.“Now, not only can you take full advantage of your Mac’s computing power for productivity tasks, but you can also immerse yourself in a breathtaking gaming or multimedia experience,” VMWare explains.Full 3D acceleration works not only for apps and games built for ARM, but also for emulated 32-bit and 64-bit software. The news comes as a big surprise to gamers, but even those who don’t use VMWare Fusion to play games will benefit from the overall performance enhancements. But there are other improvements coming with VMWare Fusion 2023 as well.The new version of VMWare Fusion also includes VMware Tools for Windows 11 virtual machines running on Apple Silicon Macs. These tools enable things like drag-and-drop and clipboard sharing between macOS and Windows. In addition, the update has enhanced security and enhanced initial compatibility with macOS Sonoma.VMware Fusion 2023 is now available as beta software, and you can download it from VMWare’s website. There’s no word on when the official release will be made available.Read alsoCrossOver announces DirectX 12 support coming to macOS this summerHere’s why Apple’s latest effort to bring games to macOS is a big dealmacOS Sonoma lets developers port Windows games to the Mac; here’s how it works Add 9to5Mac to your Google News feed. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.