The Best Virtualization Software for 2023

Here are the best virtualization software options for Macs, followed by more information and tips about running virtual machines.

We reviewed the three full-featured virtualization apps for the Mac, two commercial, one open-source. All three let you run a Windows app in a window of its own on the Mac desktop so that the Windows app looks almost like a native Mac app. All three also let you run Windows so that the full Windows desktop appears in either a window on your Mac or full-screen. They differ in the level of integration they make possible between your Mac and the emulated guest system running Windows, Linux, or an older version of macOS, but all three let you drag files between Windows and your Mac, and exchange data through the clipboard.

Keep in mind that most of these options are only available on Intel-based Macs. If you have an Apple Silicon Mac, the only emulated systems you can use are the recent ARM-based versions of Windows and Linux. This may change in the future, but at the moment that’s only a hope.

Virtualization software also lets you run apps that aren’t supported by your current OS. For example, if you have a 32-bit Mac app, you need to install a virtual copy of macOS Mojave or an earlier version in order to run your old software on a modern Mac. Virtualization software also lets you run Linux or obsolete OSes on a modern machine. If you’re looking specifically to run old video games, virtualization software can help with that as well. We have full tutorials on how to run old games on a modern PC and how to play retro video games .

Virtualization software lets you run apps written for an operating system that isn’t already running on your computer. Say you just bought a Mac and you want to run an app written for Windows because there is no Mac version of the app, or because the Mac version isn’t as powerful or convenient as the Windows version. Microsoft Office , for example, is more powerful and flexible in its Windows version than its Mac version. The same applies to the best OCR app on the market, ABBYY FineReader. The best icon editor on the market, Axialis IconWorkshop, exists only in a Windows version. Virtualization software lets you use your powerful Windows apps while working in the ease and elegance of a Mac.

Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks

Parallels Desktop

Best for Apple Silicon Devices

4.5 Outstanding

Why We Picked It

Parallels Desktop is the best and fastest emulation software if you want to run Windows, Linux, and even older versions of macOS on Intel-based Macs. And if you need to run Windows on an Apple Silicon machine, it’s your only practical option.

Who It’s For

Parallels Desktop is a good fit for anyone who wants to run Windows apps on an Apple Silicon Mac because it’s the only emulator that runs the ARM version of Windows reliably. It’s also for anyone with an Intel Mac who wants the fastest Intel-compatible emulation of Windows, older macOS versions, and Linux.

PROS

• Runs ARM-based Windows on an M1 Mac
• Faster than rivals in testing
• Smooth graphics performance for gaming and supports DirectX 11
• Installs macOS from recovery partition on Intel-based Macs
• Kiosk-like rollback mode

CONS

• Not as stable as VMware Fusion
• Potentially confusing integrations between Windows guest and Mac host

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$79.99 Parallels

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Parallels Desktop Review

VMware Fusion

Best for Corporate Users and IT Professionals

4.0 Excellent

Why We Picked It

VMware Fusion offers deep customization options and integrations for running Windows and most other Intel-based OSes on an Intel-based Mac. It’s best for corporate and enterprise-level systems thanks to its advanced management systems and because its virtual machines can run on Macs, Windows, and Linux machines.

Who It’s For

VMware Fusion is a good choice for those who need to run virtual machines on Windows, Macs, and Linux systems, as well as for any IT manager who requires advanced network-wide management of virtual machines. It’s also the best choice for advanced users who need to run obsolete or uncommon Intel-based OSes like OpenStep or BSD.

PROS

• Virtualizes almost any Intel-compatible OS, as well as macOS
• Virtual machines run on Mac, Windows, and Linux hosts
• Offers a feature-limited free version for personal use

CONS

• Slower than Parallels Desktop
• No support yet for ARM-based guests or hosts (including Apple Silicon Macs)
• Lacks Parallel Desktop’s kiosk-style rollback feature

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$149.00 VMware

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VMware Fusion Review

Oracle VM VirtualBox for Mac

Best for Hobbyists

3.0 Average

Why We Picked It

VirtualBox is free, and, unlike the free version of VMware Player, it lets you create virtual machines, not just run existing ones. Like VMware Fusion, it supports older operating systems, though it’s slower and clumsier than either VMware Fusion or Parallels Desktop and doesn’t offer the same smooth level of integration. Still, you can’t beat the price.

Who It’s For

VirtualBox is the virtualization software to choose for those who can’t or won’t pay for it. The product is best suited to hobbyists who don’t need fast performance and don’t want to run games. It’s not for those using Apple Silicon-based Macs, as it doesn’t run on them.

PROS

• Free and open-source
• Creates emulated machines for almost any Intel-based system
• Keeps its emulated systems isolated from the host Mac system

CONS

• Many features require expert-level skills
• No built-in printer support
• No easy support for macOS guest systems
• Less powerful graphics than the competition

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Oracle VM VirtualBox for Mac Review

Buying Guide: The Best Virtualization Software for 2023

Virtualization Isn’t Just for Macs

Of course virtualization isn’t only for macOS. If you need to use Windows apps that don’t work under any modern Windows versions, virtualization apps let you run an older version of Windows inside your current one. Or you can run Linux and other open-source operating systems or ancient systems like MS-DOS, OS/2, or NeXTSTEP in a window on your modern Mac or Windows system. Windows 10 Pro and Windows 11 Pro (as well as the Enterprise and Education editions) include Hyper-V for just such needs.

How Does Virtualization Work?

Modern virtualization apps try to break down the barrier between the host operating system and the guest operating system, but in different ways. All three of the apps in this roundup install tools that let you drag and drop files between the Mac and Windows (or Linux), and all three let you copy data into the clipboard of one system and paste it into the other. These guest-system tools are available for Windows, Linux, Mac and some other emulated systems, but each virtualization app supports a different set of guest systems, with VMware offering the widest range of support.

Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion let you print to any printer connected to your Mac; VirtualBox lets you print to networked printers, but not to printers connected to your Mac with a USB cable. Parallels, by default, provides the deepest integration, though VMware can be customized to provide similar features. VirtualBox provides basic-level integration. One difference is that Parallels automatically enables printing from Windows apps to your Mac printers, while VMware makes you enable this feature manually. With VirtualBox, you may have to search the web to find the unintuitive networking option that lets you print to networked printers.

To run Windows or Windows apps under Parallels, VMware, VirtualBox, or Boot Camp(Opens in a new window) (more on Boot Camp in a moment), you need either a Windows activation key or a full Windows installer on a USB stick, DVD drive, or downloaded disk image. You can download a Windows installer directly from inside Parallels. Alternatively, you can migrate an existing Windows system from a network drive or Boot Camp partition. 

If you don’t want to provide a full copy of Windows, and you’re willing to get your hands dirty configuring software that may or may not work, you can try to run individual Windows apps by running the commercial CrossOver(Opens in a new window) app.

What About Boot Camp?

Before Parallels and VMware Fusion had enough speed to make them practical for everyday use, many Mac owners used Apple’s Boot Camp to run Windows on Mac hardware. There was even a time when some users claimed that the best Windows laptop was a MacBook Pro with Windows running under Boot Camp. Those days are long gone. Apple still officially supports Boot Camp, but it gets more awkward to use every year. A few years ago, when all Macs used the older HPFS file system, you could switch back from a Boot Camp-based Windows system to the operating system simply by clicking on an icon in a Mac-style Startup Disk applet accessible from the Windows taskbar.

Now that all current Macs use the new APFS file system, the Startup Disk applet no longer works, because Apple didn’t bother to update it to communicate with APFS drives. To switch back from Boot Camp-based Windows to the macOS, you have to hold down the Option key when restarting the Mac and then select your Mac drive as the startup disk. If your timing is wrong, you’ll end up back in Windows. Apple seems to have decided that Parallels Desktop and VMware Fusion make Boot Camp irrelevant, but many gamers will still want Boot Camp because Parallels and VMware support DirectX graphics only through DirectX 10, while Boot Camp supports DirectX 11 and 12 if the graphics hardware on your Mac natively supports those DirectX versions.

Take a Snapshot

One major advantage of running Windows or any other OS in a virtualization app is a snapshot feature that lets you preserve and restore the state of the virtualized system at any moment you make a snapshot. So if you’re worried about installing something that might be malware, take a snapshot of the Windows system, install the suspected malware, and test it. If it turns out to be malign, restore the snapshot, and all traces of the malware disappear. Parallels supplements this feature with an optional rollback feature that automatically restores an emulated system to its original state every time you start it up.

Which Virtualization Software Is Best?

Virtualization software isn’t perfect, and an emulated Windows system will almost always be slower than Windows running on a Windows PC. But these top apps give you the flexibility to run almost any app you like on a single machine and keep using the apps you like best even when you’ve abandoned the operating system that those apps were written for.