Shadow PC review (2026): is it worth $29.99 a month?
A full Windows PC in the cloud for gaming and creative work
Black Friday: is there a Shadow PC sale?
Shadow PC report card
Weak · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for a full Windows gaming PC streamed to your devices
Shadow PC streams a full Windows PC to many devices, from $29.99 a month with no commitment. Playtime is capped by fair use, peak-hour priority depends on your tier, and not every game or app will run.
Who Shadow PC is for
- Fits if you want a Windows gaming PC on a laptop or phone
- Works for monthly use with no long commitment
Who Shadow PC is not for
- Pricey if you play often, since the cheapest plan is $29.99 and Lite caps at 120 hours a month
- Skip it if you want a trial first, as none is listed
- Watch out: peak-hour queue priority depends on your tier, from Lite to Premium
- Watch out: the vendor notes that not every game or app will run
- Watch out: businesses use a separate Cloud Workstations line with its own pricing
Why Shadow PC gets a 1.8
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- DValue for money$29.99 a month for the cheapest plan, just under the $30 line where the category's dearest tenth begins. Neo Pro is $44.99 and Power Pro $59.99.
- FFree plan and trialNo free plan and no trial is listed anywhere on the vendor pages.
- CFeaturesA full Windows PC streamed to many devices, with team management on Pro. Monthly playtime and resolution limits apply, with 120 hours on Lite.
- BEase of useNo store rating on record. You install the client, sign in and stream, with nothing to set up.
- BPlatforms and integrationsWeb, Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android clients, with Steam, Epic and Battle.net. No API is listed.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Shadow's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/shadow-pc#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/shadow-pc.svg" alt="Shadow PC: 1.8 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Shadow PC stands among remote desktop apps
Shadow PC's GPA of 1.8 is higher than 6 of the 85 other remote desktop apps we grade, and level with 6.
It stands best on ease of use (B, above 59 of 85) and worst on free plan and trial (F, above 0).
Its paid plans start at $29.99 a month, against a middle price of $8.33 for the category: 40 of the 44 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.7 out of 4. 5 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 86 remote desktop apps we grade, cut by the letter each got. Shadow PC’s own letter is outlined.
- DValue for moneyAbove 0 of 85, level with 6
- FFree plan and trialAbove 0 of 85, level with 14
- CFeaturesAbove 1 of 85, level with 53
- BEase of useAbove 59 of 85, level with 25
- BPlatforms and integrationsAbove 28 of 85, level with 50
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 59 remote desktop apps. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Shadow PC, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Shadow PC you would be making a fast, secure link to another computer through any network. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 73 of the 85 other remote desktop apps grade higher. It costs $359.88 a year.
What you could not
- A fast, secure link to another computer through any network.
- An AI agent, with the models and the safeguards behind it.
- Apps for macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other.
What this rests on. Shadow PC’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Shadow PC?
Shadow PC is a Windows PC with an RTX graphics card that runs in Shadow's data centers and streams to your devices. You install your own games and software on it, and a monthly plan sets the graphics tier, storage and playtime. Gamer plans come in Lite, standard and Pro tiers, and Pro adds longer sessions and a team manager.
Worth knowing
- Playtime is a fair-use cap that resets on the 1st of each month; Lite allows 120 hours.
- Peak-hour queue priority depends on the tier, from Lite to Premium.
- The vendor notes that not every game or app will run, flagged with an asterisk on its page.
- A separate Cloud Workstations line for businesses has its own pricing page.
Key features
- A full Windows PC
- Install games from Steam, Epic or Battle.net, plus mods and your own software, instead of picking from a fixed library.
- Stream to many devices
- The download page lists apps for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, and the site also offers a browser version and Android TV and Apple TV.
- Monthly playtime and session caps
- Lite plans allow 120 hours a month in sessions of up to 4 hours. Other plans list 210 hours, sessions of 6 to 8 hours and an Always On option.
- Resolution and monitor limits
- The comparison table shows 1440p at 60 Hz on the lightest tier and up to 5K at 240 Hz on the others, with 1 to 3 monitors.
- Team management on Pro
- Pro plans include a subscriptions and users manager, and a team suite adds roles, fleet management, IAM and centralized billing.
Shadow PC pricing
As of Nov 13, 2026, Shadow PC is a paid product, starting at $29.99 per month, no commitment.
- Starts at
- $29.99 per month, no commitment
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- None listed
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Neo Lite | $29.99per month, no commitment | Up to 120 hours of playtime a month, sessions up to 4 hours, streaming in 1440p, 256 GB storage. |
| Neo | $37.99per month, no commitment | Streaming up to 1440p, multi-screen and ultrawide support, RTX and DLSS. The comparison table lists 210 hours a month. |
| Power Lite | $43.99per month, no commitment | Up to 50% more GPU power than Neo, 28 GB RAM and 20 GB VRAM, 120 hours a month, 4-hour sessions. |
| Neo Pro | $44.99per month, no commitment | For 3D and rendering: priority access, longer sessions and a subscriptions and users manager. |
| Power | $54.99per month, no commitment | Up to 50% more GPU power, 28 GB RAM and 20 GB VRAM, streaming up to 5K. |
| Power Pro | $59.99per month, no commitment | Power hardware with priority access, longer sessions, a users manager and installs of CUDA and RTX workflows. |
Read from shadow.tech on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Shadow PC before you buy.
How people rate the Shadow PC app
3.8
out of 5 for the iPhone and iPad app
- 5 stars58%
- 4 stars8%
- 3 stars6%
- 2 stars5%
- 1 star22%
2,023 ratings on the App Store in the United States, read Nov 13, 2026. It rates the app, not everything the product does. See the listing
Works with
- Steam
- Epic Games
- Battle.net
Shadow PC alternatives
- Shadow PC vs Paperspace
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- Shadow PC vs Parsec
Free plan · from $8.33/mo
- Shadow PC vs Shells
From $14.95/mo
Common questions
Is Shadow PC open source?
Shadow PC is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 13, 2026.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026. What people say is linked where it appears.