Who this is for: VMWare's Fusion 12 is nearly as good as Parallels 17. If you're familiar with other VMWare products, including Workstation Pro for Windows, Fusion is probably the path for you, although check out both products if you can.įusion 12 is available for download (opens in new tab) from the VMWare website. The VMWare Fusion interface doesn't look nearly as nice as the one offered by Parallels, but it's close. All versions come with a 14-day free trial. A professional version is also available for IT environments.

It also supports Touch Bar on a MacPro Pro.įusion 12 is available for $149 for a full version and $79 for an update.

Beginning with Fusion 11, support was added for Apple's Metal graphics system. With Fusion's unity mode, you can run Windows-based applications on your computer as if they were Mac apps. In this case, you can use Fusion with Windows 11 (or another operating system) through a window on your Mac desktop or in full-screen mode. Like Parallels, Fusion lets you create a virtual machine through software that can run separately from your macOS installation. Created by Dell Computer's VMWare, the latest version of Fusion (12) has been designed to take advantage of the latest macOS tools. Parallel's closest virtualization competitor, Fusion, is another great choice for consumers. Grab a copy if you're looking for a solution that just works. Who this is for: Parallel offers a no-nonsense approach to virtualization. New versions of Parallels typically arrive when Apple releases a new version of macOS, usually in the fall. Once a new version gets released, you can download it from the Parallels website.

The professional version does include free upgrades. The former doesn't include free updates to future versions of Parallels Desktop but also has no expiration date. The home version is $80 or $50 for an upgrade, while the professional version is $100 per year. Parallels Desktop 17 is the company's flagship consumer product and is available through a free trial (opens in new tab), regardless of the version you choose. It also works with macOS Big Sur 11.1 or newer, macOS Catalina 10.15.7 or newer, macOS Mojave 10.14.6 or newer, and macOS High Sierra 10.13.6 or newer. Beyond this, Parallels Desktop 17 is also fully compatible and optimized for macOS Monterey.

Running osx in virtualbox