More About Our Picks
TeamViewer
4.5 Outstanding
Best for Personal Use
Bottom Line:
If you ‘re looking into distant access software, trial TeamViewer first. It ‘s rid for personal manipulation, and it ‘s our favored remote control access tools .
Pros
- Easy access
- Works with or without an account
- Seamless file transfers
- Completely free for non-commercial use
Cons
- Expensive for business use
- No self-service way to unsubscribe
Why We Picked It
TeamViewer does everything. It ‘s easy to use, bang-up for providing support, and it works well for accessing your own devices. Features like file transfer, outback sound recording, and video chats are all offered, making it one of the more arrant tools in this list. What actually makes TeamViewer the beginning outback access app most people should check out is its personal-use interpretation, which is wholly rid and offers all features. The only string attached is that you ca n’t use the barren version for any kind of work, which is fairly enough .
Who It’s For
If you ‘re the informal IT person for your family, and need access to their devices. TeamViewer is what you ‘re looking for. The same goes if you just want episodic road access to your family server. TeamViewer is besides an excellent tool for work, particularly for larger organizations. But belittled businesses should look into cheaper alternatives foremost .
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RemotePC
4.0 Excellent
Best for Small Businesses
Bottom Line:
RemotePC is low-cost but does’t stint on quality. It performs well, specially between Windows computers, and its business plans cost much less than the rival .
Pros
- Affordable
- Excellent performance between Windows PCs
- Works in the browser, in a pinch
Cons
- No free version
- No built-in audio or video chat
Why We Picked It
RemotePC offers every have offered by TeamViewer and works approximately equally well, specially if you ‘re connecting Windows devices to each early. It ‘s besides much more low-cost than TeamViewer if you entirely need access to a handful of your own devices. That ‘s because RemotePC is low-cost without skimping on quality. Every sport you ‘d expect is offered, from audio new world chat to file transfers to whiteboarding, all at a price point lower than competitors .
Who It’s For
RemotePC hits the dulcet spot for small businesses, in especial those who only want entree to barely a few computers without breaking the bank. It ‘s a fraction of the price of other applications and works good deoxyadenosine monophosphate well .
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Splashtop Business Pro
4.0 Excellent
Best for Straightforward Business Use
Bottom Line:
dependable performance and competitive features make Splashtop worth considering for any small occupation in indigence of distant entree software .
Pros
- Impressive performance
- Click-and-drag file transfer, even across platforms
- Enthusiastic customer service
Cons
- Whiteboard only works on mobile
- Complicated pricing
Why We Picked
Once it ‘s set up, Splashtop works wonderfully. performance is excellent, drag-and-drop file transfers work between different platforms, and there ‘s even sound recording chat The merely real number downsides are that Splashtop is a small snatch complicated to set up, and the price plan is n’t straightforward to figure out. Splashtop makes up for it with a very reactive customer service team—one that proactively reaches out to answer questions .
Who It’s For
Splashtop is a intersection built with businesses in mind and it ‘s businesses that should consider using it, particularly businesses who value dependable customer service. It ‘s competitively priced, reliable, and works well, all things metier and big businesses will value .
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Zoho Assist
3.5 Good
Best for Controlling Mobile Devices
Bottom Line:
Zoho Assist is gawky and laggy compared to the contest, but a wide array of features and access to mobile devices makes it an appealing outback access app for professional technical school digest .
Pros
- Affordable remote access
- Generous free version
- Can control mobile devices
- Integrations with Slack, Microsoft Teams, and Google Contacts
Cons
- Stuttering performance compared to other apps
- Can’t hear remote audio
- Cluttered user interface that’s occasionally hard to browse
Why We Picked It
Most distant access software focuses on giving you access to computers. Zoho Assist can besides give access to mobile devices, a feature other apps in this list do n’t offer. Having access to your telephone or pad is capital if you need to troubleshoot such devices, and Android devices can be remotely controlled. even better, there ‘s a rid version. Apple devices, because of engage organization restrictions, ca n’t be controlled using Zoho Assist, but you can see everything on the display, which is better than nothing if you ‘re remotely troubleshooting an issue. Zoho Assist besides runs completely from the browser, which, on the one hand means there ‘s some imprison, yes, but on the early hand it means you can access your devices from anywhere—even computers you ca n’t install software on .
Who It’s For
Zoho Assist is built with technical subscribe teams in mind, and that ‘s who uses it. Savvy Android users should check it out for the fluid back, excessively .
Read Our Zoho Assist Review
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VNC Connect
3.0 Average
Best for Legacy Users
Bottom Line:
VNC Connect can get the job done, but it ‘s confusing to set up and falls short of early distant access software in terms of performance, pricing, and feature set .
Pros
- Free version for home use
- Quick and reliable connections
- Mobile support for remote viewing
Cons
- Low frame rate compared with other apps
- Confusing to set up
- No built-in audio chat, video chat, or whiteboard
Why We Picked It
VNC is the original outside access protocol ; VNC Connect builds on that bequest to make a authentic cloud product. With this cloud service you can connect to VNC servers outside your network in a couple of clicks, a trick that ‘s difficult to pull off otherwise. VNC Connect amply supports the VNC protocol but besides builds on top of it, adding functionality like chat, seance recording, and an ( true clumsy ) file transfer tool. An instantaneous corroborate feature, ideal for companies, lets a documentation person well take control of a customer ’ second computer because the customer only has to run irregular software ( not install and set up a entire plan ) .
Who It’s For
VNC Connect makes the most sense for little businesses that do n’t have to connect to many devices. The pricing is per device, meaning it could work out economically compared to other apps if you ‘re alone connecting to one or two devices .
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What Is the Best Free Remote Access Software?
TeamViewer is our clear nibble for best free outback access software. It ‘s wholly release for personal function, and that ‘s not a catch. free users get access to all the same features that commercial users get. Whether you want to offer distant confirm for family and friends or just have road access to your own computers, TeamViewer is by far the best complimentary choice. note that this free version is enforced by an AI designed to detect commercial usage. Some people have run into issues with the AI flag legitimate personal habit as being clientele related. A quick e-mail to customer back can normally get you back up and running. If you need a free application in a commercial context, check out Zoho Assist, which offers a express spare translation that gives one technician access to five computers. It ca n’t match TeamViewer in terms of features, but it ‘s the best detached option you can use in a work context .
Is Remote Access Software Safe to Use?
Remote access software, once set up, provides sum access to your device, meaning all of your data is at your fingertips. That ‘s commodious, but not without risks. You do n’t need to worry excessively much, though, because all the applications mentioned in this list use encoding, meaning there ‘s no probability of your outside action being intercepted. As with most software, a draw of the security is on you. Make sure you ‘re using potent passwords and multi-factor authentication, so that it ‘s not easily to compromise your accounts. Most of these applications besides require a password for connecting to specific devices even after you ‘ve signed in, so person would have to go through a distribute of trouble oneself to get access to your devices. Be certain to set up a password director if you have fuss keeping track of all those passwords. The most significant thing to keep in thinker, however, is never to install distant entree software if person you do n’t know tells you to do it. Hackers and scammers routinely use such software to steal data and access fiscal accounts. For exemplar, a common victimize involves person from “ technical school support ” calling you, unprompted, to “ diagnose a problem ” or alike. If this happens, hang up—tech corroborate for major companies will never call you out of the blue and ask you to install such software. You can constantly call the ship’s company back if you ‘re worry. Just make certain you look up and call the actual customer service act, not the act that called you .
What’s the Best Remote Access Software for Windows?
Every application on this list works well on Windows, but I think the best option for most people is TeamViewer. It ‘s a very feature of speech accomplished application with a generous free version, which makes it hard to match for the huge majority of users. TeamViewer ‘s paid plans for businesses start at $ 418.80 per year, however, which is a batch for small organizations. If that ‘s you I suggest checking out RemotePC as a capable Windows alternative .
What’s the Best Remote Access Software for Mac?
Most applications on this list bring about ampere well on macOS as they do in Windows, but there ‘s normally at least one feature missing. not the case with Splashtop, which has great feature of speech parity between its Windows and macOS clients. first, it ‘s the lone application we tested that offers drag-and-drop file support between macOS and Windows computers, meaning you can drag a file from Finder on a Mac immediately to File Explorer on a Windows device and watch the files transfer. It ‘s hard to overstate how useful cross-platform drag and drop is for Mac users that need to connect to Windows devices. The chief downside with Splashtop is the miss of a detached version for home consumption. TeamViewer is the best choice for Mac users that want a free joyride. commodity thing the macOS adaptation of the application is very capable, if not quite american samoa nice as Splashtop .
What’s the Best Remote Access Software for Mobile Devices?
Every application in this list allows you to access computers from mobile devices. If you want outback entree to mobile devices from a calculator, though, Zoho Assist is what you ‘re looking for. Zoho Assist is the only distant access application we reviewed that can access mobile devices. Android phones and tablets can be in full controlled from a computer, which is useful for diagnosing issues but besides means you can do things like send text messages from your computer. You can besides remotely monitor ( but not control ) an iPhone or iPad, which however could come in handy while trying to troubleshoot a problem over the earphone. Zoho is primarily an application intended for IT staff, so getting it set up is going to be a spot of a eruditeness wind. once you do that, however, you ‘ll have a way to entree mobile devices from a calculator, which is actually handy .
Can’t I Just Use Zoom Instead of Using Remote Access Software?
soar offers both a screen sharing sport and the ability to control another person ‘s screen, as do some other video conferencing applications. Given that, you might be wondering whether you need remote control access software. For one matter, remote control access software allows for unattended access, meaning you can connect to another calculator even if there ‘s no one sitting at it. Zoom can ’ thyroxine offer that feature—you need to be on a call to start sharing.
A second base trouble with Zoom in this context is performance. Zoom ‘s screen sharing feature works well, but it ‘s well more laggy than the apps mentioned here .
Stay Connected
If you ‘re still learning about outside access software and deciding how to use it in a business, you should besides read our explanation of why you might need enterprise-grade distant access software. For more clientele software advice, see which products and companies have won PCMag ‘s Business Choice Awards .
