Remote Desktop

Contents

1. 01WelcomeWhat these tools do, how many we grade and what to know before choosing
2. 02Our top threeThe three we'd look at first, and who each one suits
3. 03What they costWhat paid plans start at, the best buy at each budget and the free plans
4. 04The gradesThe highest graded, and how the whole category does on each subject
5. 05Keep or make?Which are worth paying for, and which you could make yourself
6. 06Every toolAll of them, best graded first, with what each costs
7. 07Quick answersThe questions people ask when choosing, each answered in a line or two
8. 08About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from each tool’s own pages, their app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on the Remote Desktop page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 18, 2026.

Control another computer from yours to fix a problem, or reach your own files from anywhere.

Before you choose, here are 7 things to know about remote desktop apps, worked out from every one we grade.

1. 1

   We grade 16 remote desktop apps

   13 of them are free or have a free plan, and 3 more let you try before paying. Everything in this guide comes from their own pages and our grades.

2. 2

   Paid plans start at $10 a month in the middle

   From $1.84 (RemotePC) to $51.67 (TeamViewer), going by what each one's paid plans start at.

3. 3

   Best value: Splashtop, RemotePC and Chrome Remote Desktop

   Nothing on our chart scores higher than these without costing more.

4. 4

   13 of 16 have iPhone and Android apps

   11 run in a web browser and 15 have a Windows app. Check the one you need before you fall for anything.

5. 5

   The middle GPA is 2.6

   4 score 3.0 or higher. The highest is Chrome Remote Desktop, at 3.2.

6. 6

   Best free option: Chrome Remote Desktop

   Chrome Remote Desktop has the highest GPA of the free ones, 3.2. Google's free remote access to your own computers from a browser.

7. 7

   16 worth keeping, 0 you could make

   By our keep-or-make rules, 16 do something you couldn't reasonably build yourself, 0 are simple enough to make with an AI app builder, and 0 are a close call.

Part 02 · Top three

Our top three

The three we'd look at first, and who each one suits

The three remote desktop apps we'd look at first. First place suits the most people; second and third are the best picks for the people it leaves out. Each has an Insider's Guide of its own.

1. 1st

   

   3.2GPA

   Chrome Remote Desktop

   Free

   For: Most people reaching their own computers

   Chrome Remote Desktop reaches your own Windows, Mac and Linux computers from a Chrome browser or the iPhone, iPad and Android apps: set up access once on each computer, then pick it from a list and enter its PIN. To help someone, they send you a one-time code and choose whether to share. All of it is free, and Google lists no paid plans. Know the limits: there is no business version or support team, sharing must be confirmed every 30 minutes, phones and tablets can connect but cannot be reached, and a work or school administrator may block it.

   The Chrome Remote Desktop Insider’s Guide

2. 2nd

   

   3.0GPA

   Zoho Assist

   Free plan · from $10/mo

   For: Small help desks and IT teams supporting others

   Zoho Assist is built for helping other people: a technician joins a customer's computer from an invitation or reaches office machines unattended, and sessions can start from Zendesk, ServiceNow, Freshservice or Jira tickets. The free plan covers 1 technician, 5 unattended computers and one session at a time, with no limit on session length. Remote Support Standard is $10 per technician a month, billed annually. It is second because it is a help desk tool: unattended computers are a separate plan at $10 per 25, file transfer needs paying, and supporting phones starts on Professional at $15. Its iPhone and iPad app averages 4.7 from about 900 ratings.

   The Zoho Assist Insider’s Guide

3. 3rd

   

   3.0GPA

   RustDesk

   Free plan · from $11.88/mo

   For: People who want open source or their own server

   RustDesk is an open-source remote desktop app for Windows, Mac, Linux and Android, with a web client and an iPhone app. It connects with no setup through RustDesk's public relay servers, or you can run the free open-source server yourself so connection data stays on your own machines. Server Pro, also self-hosted, adds a web console, audit log and two-factor sign-in for 1 user and 20 devices at $11.88 a month, billed annually. It is third because anything beyond the free client means running a server with Docker, the free version has community support only, and an iPhone or iPad cannot be controlled or share its screen.

   The RustDesk Insider’s Guide

Going by our grades, Splashtop, RemotePC and Chrome Remote Desktop give the most for the money among remote desktop apps: no tool on this chart scores higher without costing more.

Paid plans start at a middle price of $10 a month across the 11 that charge, from $1.84 (RemotePC) to $51.67 (TeamViewer). 1 more costs nothing at all.

3 of the 12 score above the category's average while starting at or below its middle price. 4 cost more than the middle price and score below the average.

Every tool gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. Here are the 12 highest graded remote desktop apps, then how the whole category does on each subject.

Tool	Value	Free	Features	Ease	Platforms	GPA
Chrome Remote Desktop	A	A	C	B	B	3.2
Jump Desktop	A	B	C	B	A	3.2
RustDesk	A	A	C	C	B	3.0
Zoho Assist	C	B	B	B	A	3.0
Getscreen.me	B	B	C	B	B	2.8
Splashtop	C	C	B	A	B	2.8
Parsec	C	B	C	B	B	2.6
RemotePC	C	C	B	B	B	2.6
TeamViewer	D	B	C	B	A	2.6
AnyDesk	C	C	C	B	B	2.4
CrankWheel	C	C	C	B	B	2.4
RealVNC Connect	C	C	C	B	B	2.4

Some software does something you couldn’t reasonably build yourself. Some is simple enough that an AI app builder could make the core of it in an afternoon. Here’s where remote desktop apps land, by the same rules for every tool.

• 16

  Keep it

  It does something you could not reasonably make for yourself, or it costs nothing.

• 0

  Your call

  You could make the core of it, and you would give something up.

• 0

  You could make this

  What it does is the kind of thing an AI app builder makes well, and it charges every month.

Every remote desktop app we grade, with its GPA and what it costs. Each one has a page of its own on toolgpa.com, with its Insider’s Guide.

1. 1Chrome Remote DesktopFree3.2
2. 2Jump DesktopFree plan · from $14.99 one-time3.2
3. 3RustDeskFree plan · from $11.88/mo3.0
4. 4Zoho AssistFree plan · from $10/mo3.0
5. 5Getscreen.meFree plan · from $4.17/mo2.8
6. 6SplashtopFree plan · from $23.99/yr2.8
7. 7ParsecFree plan · from $8.33/mo2.6
8. 8RemotePCFree trial · from $2.46/mo2.6
9. 9TeamViewerFree plan · from $619.99/yr2.6
10. 10AnyDeskFree plan2.4
11. 11CrankWheelFree plan · from $29/mo2.4
12. 12RealVNC ConnectFree plan2.4
13. 13LogMeIn ResolveFree plan · from $23/mo2.2
14. 14NoMachineFree trial · from $24.50/yr2.2
15. 15Remote UtilitiesFree plan2.2
16. 16ScreenConnectFree trial · from $30/mo2.2

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

ToolGPA is free to read. It may earn a commission from affiliate links and it works with sponsors, but anything paid for is labelled and no one can pay for a grade. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

• 2,281

  tools graded

• 73

  categories

• 426

  price changes on record

• 579

  apps priced in 12 countries