NoMachine vs Parsec
We give NoMachine a 2.2 GPA and Parsec a 2.6, out of 4.0. Parsec grades higher on the free plan and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
NoMachine
Self-hosted remote desktop sold as yearly server subscriptions
Parsec
Low-latency remote desktop for games and creative work
How we grade them
| 2.2GPANoMachineFair | 2.6GPAParsecGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPersonal Edition is $24.50 a year per computer, so two computers come to $49, and getting past a firewall by Machine Id adds Network Personal at $84.50, or $133.50 a year in all. RustDesk, Parsec and Jump Desktop reach your own computers for nothing, so for the same job it's on the dear side. | CGaming at home is free, and Warp, the personal plan with extra monitors and 4:4:4 colour, is $8.33 a month billed annually. Any work use needs Teams at $30 a user a month, though, well above what Splashtop's Performance plan and Jump Desktop's Teams Enterprise charge for the same creative job. |
| Free plan and trial | CNo free plan: only the Player is free, and it needs a paid server edition to connect to. Each server edition has a free trial, and NoMachine Network has a 7-day one; the listing doesn't mention a card. | BPersonal Use is free for gaming and other non-commercial use, with 60 FPS, controllers and link sharing, and one person can live on that. It's one monitor only, no 4:4:4 colour and no work use at all; Teams has a 14-day trial. |
| Features | CThe NX protocol with hardware H.264, multi-monitor, terminal sessions, file, disk, printer and USB sharing, Wake-on-LAN and recording. The gaps it lists itself: Personal Edition allows one desktop connection at a time, and browser access, VPN and single sign-on are Enterprise only. | CLow-latency streaming at up to 4K and 240 frames per second, controllers, Wacom pressure, shared sessions and guest access. The gaps it lists itself: only Windows and Mac computers can be hosts, there's no iOS app, and outside guests cost $25 an invitation. |
| Ease of use | CNo App Store rating on record. You connect by IP address on your own network, and reaching a machine behind a firewall by ID needs a separate Network subscription. That's a learning curve. | BNo App Store rating on record. Install it on the computer you want to reach and the one you're sitting at, and connect. There's nothing to configure for a game at home. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWindows, Mac, Linux and Raspberry Pi, with a free Player for iPhone and Android and browser access on Enterprise. Sign-in works with Okta, Entra ID and Active Directory, but there's no API on record. | BWindows, Mac, Linux, Android and a Chrome browser client, with a Teams API on Enterprise. There's no iPhone or iPad app, and Linux, Android and the browser can only connect, not host. |
| Best for | fast remote desktops for Linux and your own network | streaming games and creative work with no lag |
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: NoMachine and Parsec. How we grade
Price against what you get
NoMachine starts at $2.04 a month when paid by the year and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Parsec starts at $8.33 a month for each person and scores 2.7.
Parsec scores higher, and starts $6.29 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other remote desktop apps on the chart, 3 score higher than NoMachine for less, and 2 score higher than Parsec for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- NoMachine starts at $24.50 per year (Personal Edition, one computer). Parsec starts at $8.33 per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly).
- Parsec has a free plan. NoMachine does not, though it has a free trial.
- Only NoMachine lists an iOS app.
- NoMachine is self-hostable, according to its own site.
At a glance
| NoMachine | Parsec | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free plan |
| Starts at | $24.50 per year (Personal Edition, one computer) | $8.33 per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | Personal Use is free for non-commercial use: low-latency 60 FPS desktop capture, link sharing, keyboard, mouse and gamepad support and encrypted peer-to-peer connections, on one monitor. |
| Free trial | Free trial of each server edition; NoMachine Network has a 7-day trial | 14-day free trial of Teams and Enterprise |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | NoMachine S.à r.l. | Unity Technologies SF |
| Price read from | nomachine.com | parsec.app |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
NoMachine
- Reaching your own home or office computer over your own network
- Linux users who need fast remote desktops, including Raspberry Pi
- Businesses running several virtual Linux desktops on one server
- People who want remote access without a vendor cloud in the middle
Parsec
- Playing games on a home PC from another computer or an Android device
- Game studios and VFX artists who need accurate color and low lag remotely
- Video editors and designers using a Wacom tablet on a distant workstation
- Studios inviting outside playtesters to a machine for a few days
Worth knowing
NoMachine
- Personal Edition is now an annual subscription; only the Player client is free, and it needs a NoMachine server edition to connect to.
- Reaching a computer behind a firewall by Machine Id needs a separate NoMachine Network subscription on top of the server edition.
- Personal Edition allows one desktop connection at a time; browser access, VPN and single sign-on are Enterprise only.
- Terminal Server and Workstation editions host virtual desktops on Linux only.
Parsec
- The free and Individuals plans are for personal, non-commercial use only; any work use needs Teams or Enterprise.
- Only Windows 10+ and macOS 10.15+ computers can be hosts; Linux, Android and the Chrome web client can only connect. There is no iOS app.
- Guest access for external users costs $25 per invitation on top of the Teams plan.
- Parsec does not offer volume discounts, and Enterprise is sold with annual billing only.
Key features
NoMachine
- NX protocol
- Hardware-accelerated H.264 encoding and decoding, audio and video streaming, and multi-monitor support, for work, media and games.
- Free Player on every platform
- NoMachine Player is free for commercial and non-commercial use on Windows, Mac, Linux, ARM, Raspberry Pi, iOS and Android, with no limit on machines.
- Terminal access
- Open remote command-line sessions to Windows, macOS or Linux NoMachine systems without a full desktop and without SSH on the server.
- Devices and files
- File transfer with drag and drop, disk and printer sharing in both directions, USB device forwarding, port forwarding and Wake-on-LAN.
- Recording and guest sharing
- Record your session on the fly, and let guests join your desktop to collaborate or help troubleshoot.
- Enterprise sign-in and browser access
- Enterprise editions add access from any browser, a built-in VPN, and sign-in with Okta, Entra ID, Google Cloud Identity, Keycloak, LDAP or Active Directory.
Parsec
- Low-latency streaming
- Up to 4K resolution and up to 240 frames per second (60 at 4K), with 4:4:4 color on paid plans, over direct peer-to-peer connections.
- Controllers and Wacom tablets
- Keyboard, mouse and gamepad input on every plan; paid plans add pressure- and tilt-sensitive Wacom tablet support.
- Shared sessions
- Share a link so someone can watch or take control of your computer, for co-op games, live reviews or working on something together.
- Team computers
- Teams can provision computers on demand to a team member or group, and block computers inside the network from hosting connections.
- Guest access
- Invite outside people into a Teams computer for up to five days, for playtests, events or user research, using separately bought credits.
- Enterprise relay and API
- Enterprise adds a high-performance relay that sits in your firewall, a Teams API for automating deployment, SCIM and role-based admin roles.
Plans
NoMachine
Personal Edition$24.50
per year per computer
For individuals and businesses: 1 desktop connection and up to 4 terminal connections from the same client. Also sold in packs of 5 to 100.
Enterprise Desktop$44.50
per year per computer
Unlimited connections, access from any browser, a built-in VPN and single sign-on. Also sold in packs of 10 to 100; the support table lists a pack at $244.50.
Network Personal$84.50
per year ($8.50 billed monthly)
Optional: 1 connection at a time over NoMachine Network by Machine Id, for computers behind a firewall. Plans for 4 to 32 connections cost more.
Workstation$124.50
per year per server
Runs up to 4 virtual Linux desktops and apps on one server, with unlimited connections and browser access.
Small Business Terminal Server$744.50
per year per server
Runs up to 10 virtual Linux desktops and apps on one server, for departments and small businesses.
Parsec
Personal Use$0
Free for gaming and other non-commercial use. No multi-monitor streaming, 4:4:4 color, privacy mode or Wacom pressure support.
Individuals (Warp)$8.33
per user / month, billed annually ($9.99 billed monthly)
Personal, non-commercial use with up to 3 monitors, 4:4:4 color, virtual monitors, privacy mode and Wacom pressure and tilt.
Teams$30
per user / month, billed annually ($35 billed monthly)
Licensed for work: admin panel, SAML single sign-on, team-managed computers and groups, 7 days of audit logs and paid guest access.
Enterprise$45
per user / month, billed annually only
Adds the high-performance relay server, Teams API, role-based access, SCIM provisioning, full audit logs and usage analytics.
Ways to pay less
NoMachine
- Annual discount
Network subscriptions cheaper paid yearly
Network Personal is $84.50 a year against $8.50 a month, which is $102 over twelve months: about 17% less.
Parsec
- Annual discount
Annual billing saves up to about 17%
Individuals is $8.33 a month paid annually against $9.99 monthly, about 17% less; Teams is $30 against $35, about 14% less.
