AnyDesk vs Chrome Remote Desktop
We give AnyDesk a 2.4 GPA and Chrome Remote Desktop a 3.2, out of 4.0. Chrome Remote Desktop grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
AnyDesk
Remote desktop app, free for personal use, licensed for business
Free plan
Chrome Remote Desktop
Google's free remote access to your own computers from a browser
Free
How we grade them
| 2.4GPAAnyDeskFair | 3.2GPAChrome Remote DesktopVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CNo price could be read: AnyDesk's website answered our reader with a bot check, and its help centre sends buyers to the pricing page. With no figure to set against TeamViewer or Splashtop for the same job, it gets the C we give any missing price. Personal use is free; work use needs a licence. | A$0, with nothing to upgrade to: Google lists no paid plans, and reaching your own computers and one-time support sessions are both free. Of its rivals doing the same job, TeamViewer and AnyDesk are free for personal use only, and Splashtop's free app stays on your home Wi-Fi. |
| Free plan and trial | CFree for personal, non-commercial use, which covers reaching your own computers. But free sessions time out and have to be restarted, and any outgoing connection for work needs a paid licence. No trial is on record. | AFree outright. Everything it does costs nothing, with no limit on computers in the listing, and there's no paid tier to push you towards. |
| Features | CAttended and unattended access, remote printing, Wake-on-LAN, screen privacy, a management portal and an on-premises server with a REST API. The gaps it lists itself: Standard allows one outgoing connection at a time, and self-hosting is Ultimate only, quoted by sales. | CIt covers reaching your own Windows, Mac and Linux computers and helping someone with a one-time code. The gaps it lists itself: sharing must be confirmed every 30 minutes, each code works once, phones can't be reached, and there's no team or business version. |
| Ease of use | B4.49 from 28,268 App Store ratings, which is a B on a crowd that size. The person at the other end accepts your request and you're connected. | BNo App Store rating on record. It runs on the Google account you already have: set up access once on each computer, then pick it from a list and enter its PIN. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, Linux and Raspberry Pi, ChromeOS, iPhone, iPad, Android and Apple TV. That's a lot of devices, but there's no web app or integration list, and the REST API comes only with the on-premises server. | BWeb, Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone, Android and a Chrome extension, so it's on everything. But there are no integrations or API on record, which keeps it at B. |
| Best for | remote access on nearly any device you own | reaching your own computers for free |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: AnyDesk and Chrome Remote Desktop. How we grade
Where they differ
- Only Chrome Remote Desktop lists a web app.
- Only Chrome Remote Desktop lists a browser extension.
- AnyDesk is self-hostable, according to its own site.
In commonFree planWindowsmacOSLinuxiOSAndroidRemote desktop
At a glance
| AnyDesk | Chrome Remote Desktop | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free |
| Starts at | Not published | Free |
| Free plan | Free for personal, non-commercial use. Sessions on the free version time out and have to be restarted; a paid licence removes the time limit. | Everything is free: remote access to your own computers and one-time support sessions. Google lists no paid plans and the Android app has no in-app purchases. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | AnyDesk Software GmbH | |
| Price read from | Not confirmed | play.google.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
AnyDesk
- Reaching your own home or work computer at no cost for personal use
- Self-employed IT specialists who need one user with up to 100 unattended devices
- IT teams and service providers supporting many people's computers
- Enterprises that need remote access hosted inside their own network
Chrome Remote Desktop
- Reaching a home or work computer from a phone, tablet or another computer at no cost
- Occasionally helping a friend or relative with their computer
- Chromebook users who need to reach a Windows, Mac or Linux machine
Worth knowing
AnyDesk
- AnyDesk's website answered automated readers with a bot check, so no prices could be read; its help center sends buyers to the pricing page or the my.anydesk portal for figures.
- The free version is for personal use only; any outgoing connection for commercial use needs a paid licence.
- Standard includes 20 users but only one simultaneous outgoing connection; more are add-ons.
- On-premises hosting is only on the Ultimate licence, which is quoted by sales.
Chrome Remote Desktop
- Google sells no paid or business version; help comes from its help pages and the Chrome Help Forum rather than a support team.
- When you share your computer, you have to confirm every 30 minutes that sharing should continue, and each support code works only once.
- Only Windows, Mac and Linux computers can be set up for access; the phone and tablet apps connect to computers but cannot be reached themselves.
- On a work or school account an administrator may block or limit it.
Key features
AnyDesk
- Interactive and unattended access
- Connect to any number of devices when the person there accepts the request, or to managed devices without anyone present using a password: up to 100 on Solo and 1,000 on Advanced.
- Wide platform coverage
- Clients for Windows and Windows Server, macOS, Linux and Raspberry Pi, Android and ChromeOS, and iOS, iPadOS and tvOS.
- Remote print and Wake-on-LAN
- Print a document from a remote Windows computer on your local printer, and wake a sleeping Windows, Intel Mac or Linux device when another AnyDesk device on its network is online.
- Screen privacy
- Black out the remote screen so people near the device cannot see what you are doing during a session.
- my.anydesk portal
- A management portal to see licence and invoice details, manage linked clients and address books, review sessions and build custom clients.
- On-premises server
- The Ultimate licence can run on your own appliance server, so only your custom clients can connect, even without internet access, with a REST API for integration.
Chrome Remote Desktop
- Access your own computers
- Set up remote access once on each computer, then pick it from a list at remotedesktop.google.com/access and enter its PIN to connect.
- One-time support codes
- Someone who needs help generates a code and sends it to you; when you enter it they see your email address and choose whether to share.
- Phone and tablet apps
- Apps for Android, iPhone and iPad connect to your online computers; on a computer everything runs in the Chrome browser.
- Linux virtual sessions
- On Linux the host can start its own desktop session, and you can choose which desktop environment it launches.
- Admin controls
- Administrators of managed Google accounts can control whether and how people in their organization use Chrome Remote Desktop.
Plans
AnyDesk
Pricing could not be confirmed. See anydesk.com.
Chrome Remote Desktop
Free$0
Remote access to your own Windows, Mac and Linux computers and one-time remote support sessions. No paid tier exists.
