The right remote desktop software for your business can provide greater flexibility and increase productivity. At the same time, you need to keep your data as safe as possible and manage employee access. Finally, it shouldn’t break the bank.
In this article, we’ll compare LogMeIn, TeamViewer, and RemotePC to help you determine which is the best remote desktop software for your business. We’ll look at a number of criteria, including compatibility, price, ease of setup and use, performance, user support, and business tools.
- Read our LogMeIn Pro review
- Our TeamViewer review
- Read the RemotePC review
Features
Each product supports basic functionality like file system navigation, drag-and-drop file sharing, remote printing, and support for multiple monitors.
Compatibility
All three applications have web apps, and also work on macOS, Windows, iOS/iPadOS and Android, while TeamViewer and RemotePC also support Linux. RemotePC and LogMeIn enable users to access macOS and Windows hosts, but if you need to access mobile, internet of things (IoT), or point of sale (POS) devices, TeamViewer is the only one capable (although LogMeIn supports updating POS devices).
Collaboration
Collaborative tools are essential to running a business smoothly. While all three apps support instant chat, only RemotePC and TeamViewer support voice and video chat, which we felt gave them a real advantage.
In a similar vein, we were happy to see that TeamViewer includes a range of meeting and presentation features, like scheduling, shared calendars, and screens-sharing with up to 15 people. While other software can certainly provide these functions, it’s nice to have everything in one place.
Deployment and user management
Deployment and user management can be complicated and time consuming. Fortunately, all three apps support tools to facilitate user management, including user groups and permission settings, and can be remotely deployed en-mass using Group Policy Management or similar script-running tools. Finally, TeamViewer supports hardware and software integration, beyond that provided by RemotePC’s simpler API, to integrate with your business’s existing IT solutions.
Conclusion
While both RemotePC and LogMeIn have some great features, TeamViewer ticks all the boxes in terms of compatibility, collaborative tools, and business integration.
Performance
Interface and ease of use
We found all three apps straightforward and easy to use. The interfaces are quite similar: a main dashboard gives you access to devices associated with your account(s), plus additional features like user management and meetings. Session functions like chat, whiteboard, and recording were equally easy to find and use.
There are some notable exceptions: We found the RemotePC iOS app a bit clumsy, sometimes highlighting text without meaning to or scrolling too far due to oversensitivity. Additionally, all three web apps are limited, so you’ll need desktop or mobile version for tasks such as file transfers or remote printing. Finally, LogMeIn didn’t do a great job of scaling displays, which could be blurry.
Latency and system resources
TeamViewer and RemotePC both performed well in terms of latency and system resources. We experienced little to no lag with either: mouse tracking was smooth, as were most animations, and clicks were carried from client to host nearly instantaneously.
LogMeIn, however, fell behind in this category, with a generally laggier experience. We were also disappointed to see that it used 25% of our test computer’s 2.6 GHz 6-Core Intel Core i7 processor, which was several times greater than TeamViewer or LogMeIn.
Conclusion
RemotePC and TeamViewer both performed better than LogMeIn in terms of latency, resolution, and system resources. TeamViewer, however, provides a better experience across its mobile apps and for that reason is the winner of this category.
Support
All three services provide live support, but to varying degrees. TeamViewer has the smallest window of availability—8AM to 6PM (local time)—while RemotePC’s support is available from 6AM to 11:30PM (PST). But only LogMeIn can boast phone support 24/7, making it a clear winner here. RemotePC does have 24/7 instant chat support, though, which makes it a close second.
In addition, all three companies offer a knowledge base and FAQ for getting started. Email support is also available if you don’t need an immediate response.
Pricing and plans
Single Users
If you’re an individual or entrepreneur looking for single-user access, you’ll get the best balance between pricing and number of devices with RemotePC’s $69.50/year SOHO plan, with access to 10 devices on native desktop and mobile apps, compared to TeamViewer’s $9.90/mo ($118.80/year) Remote Access Plan for three devices via the online platform or LogMeIn’s $70/mo ($840/year) Power User plan for up to five devices.
Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs)
RemotePC’s Team plan ($249.50/year) allows for unlimited concurrent connections to 50 devices, which is more than enough for most SMBs. In comparison, TeamViewer’s Corporate license costs $1,498.80/year for just three concurrent sessions (although there’s no device limit), while LogMeIn’s Pro Plan costs $1,519.99/year for only 10 devices. Both allow for additional devices at a fee, but that’s hard to justify given Remote PC’s much cheaper offering.
Conclusion
RemotePC pulls ahead in this category, with more concurrent sessions and more devices at cheaper rates for both individuals and SMBs.
Verdict
It’s true that TeamViewer is feature-rich, powerful, and easy to use, and it’s the only platform of the three that supports access to POS or IoT devices. However, it comes with a hefty price tag and only enables a small number of users to work concurrently. As for LogMeIn, it’s less feature-rich than TeamViewer and not as powerful, with higher price points than RemotePC.
RemotePC is affordable and allows for concurrent access to a large number of devices. While it may lack some of TeamViewer’s collaborative tools, it still supports video chat, offers a smooth remote desktop experience with excellent latency, and has 24/7 chat support. For this reason, RemotePC is our choice for the best remote desktop software for individuals and small and medium-sized businesses.
- Read our guide to the best remote desktop software
