QEMU Alternatives

QEMU is described as '(short for "Quick EMUlator") is a free and open-source hosted hypervisor that performs hardware virtualization' and is a very popular Virtualization tool in the network & admin category. There are more than 25 alternatives to QEMU for a variety of platforms, including Windows, Linux, Mac, Web-based and Android apps. The best QEMU alternative is VirtualBox, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like QEMU are VMware Workstation Pro, VMware Workstation Player, KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) and Anbox.

QEMU alternatives are mainly Virtualization Tools but may also be Web Browsers or Android Emulators. Filter by these if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of QEMU.

QEMU alternatives page was last updated

QEMU

243

Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool

QEMU (short for "Quick EMUlator") is a free and open-source hosted hypervisor that performs hardware...

More about QEMU

VirtualBox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Mac
Windows
Linux
BSD
Solaris
61 VirtualBox alternatives
VirtualBox is a powerful x86 and AMD64/Intel64 virtualization product for enterprise as well as home use. Not only is VirtualBox an extremely feature rich, high performance product for enterprise customers, it is also the only professional solution that is freely available as...
- - VirtualBox is the most popular Windows, Mac & Linux alternative to QEMU.
- - VirtualBox is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to QEMU.
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VirtualBox Features
1. LightweightVirtualBox consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
2. Container VirtualizationVirtualBox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. PortableVirtualBox can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
Multiple languages
Comments about VirtualBox as a Alternative to QEMU
Almost everyone thinks VirtualBox is a great QEMU alternative.
Anipe
Slower and older, though a good emulator still this one is better
Positive comment•
0
VMware Workstation Pro
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Paid • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
Linux
39 VMware Workstation Pro alternatives
VMware Workstation Pro Lets You Run Multiple Operating Systems as Virtual Machines (including Windows VMs) on a Single Windows or Linux PC. VMware Workstation Pro is the industry standard for running multiple operating systems as virtual machines (VMs) on a single Linux or...
- - VMware Workstation Pro is the most popular commercial alternative to QEMU.
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VMware Workstation Pro Features
1. Container VirtualizationVMware Workstation Pro can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
Multiple languages
Support for Android Things
Bundled with macOS
VMware Workstation Player
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free Personal • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
Linux
38 VMware Workstation Player alternatives
VMware Workstation Player builds on the industry leading foundation of Workstation Pro, and delivers a streamlined user interface for creating and running operating systems and applications in a virtual machine.
VMware Workstation Player has no features, suggest some!
KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine)
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Linux
Android
40 KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) alternatives
KVM (for Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a full virtualization solution for Linux on x86 hardware containing virtualization extensions (Intel VT or AMD-V). It consists of a loadable kernel module, kvm.
- - KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is the most popular Android alternative to QEMU.
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KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) Features
1. Command line interfaceKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) either have CLI support or is a CLI-only app.
2. Container VirtualizationKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. LightweightKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
4. PortableKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
5. Privacy focusedKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is considered a privacy friendly alternative.
6. Extensible by Plugins/ExtensionsKVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) can be extended with add-ons, plugins and extensions.
Linux-based
Nt kernel
Security focused
Emulation
Opinions about KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) as a Alternative to QEMU
Most users think KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) is a great QEMU alternative.
Anbox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Android Emulator
Virtualization Tool
Linux
36 Anbox alternatives
Anbox puts Android into a container and every Android application will be integrated with your operating system. Any Android version is suitable for this approach and try to keep up with the latest version from the Android Open Source Project.
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Anbox Features
1. LightweightAnbox consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
2. Container VirtualizationAnbox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
3. Unified inboxView e-mails (or similar) from all accounts in one unified view with Anbox.
Discontinued
According to their README, development has been discontinued in 2023.
Parallels Desktop
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Freemium • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Mac
47 Parallels Desktop alternatives
Parallels Desktop gives Mac users the ability to run Windows, Linux or any other operating system and their critical applications at the same time as macOS. Parallels Desktop is optimized for Intel and Apple M1 chip.
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Parallels Desktop Features
1. Support for Multiple MonitorsParallels Desktop supports the use of multiple displays.
Run Windows software
Support for Apple M1
Office 365 integration
OpenStack
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Cloud Computing Service
Cloud Hosting Service
Online
Self-Hosted
70 OpenStack alternatives
OpenStack OpenStack is a global collaboration of developers and cloud computing technologists producing the ubiquitous open source cloud computing platform for public and private clouds. The project aims to deliver solutions for all types of clouds by being simple to implement...
- - OpenStack is the most popular Web-based & Self-Hosted alternative to QEMU.
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OpenStack Features
1. Privacy focusedOpenStack is considered a privacy friendly alternative.
2. Multiple Account supportOpenStack support multiple accounts without the need to logout and login
3. DecentralizedOpenStack is based on a decentralized infrastructure with no single entity controlling it.
4. Ad-freeOpenStack doesn't contain any form of external advertising.
5. Two-factor AuthenticationOpenStack supports two-factor authentication (2FA).
Cloud IDE
Dashboard
Windows Sandbox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Proprietary
Virtualization Tool
Windows
52 Windows Sandbox alternatives
a new lightweight desktop environment tailored for safely running applications in isolation.
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Windows Sandbox Features
1. Container VirtualizationWindows Sandbox can make use of isolated user spaces called "containers" to run applications.
2. LightweightWindows Sandbox consumes less device resources compared to similar apps.
Sandbox
Portable Virtualbox
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Windows
40 Portable Virtualbox alternatives
Portable-VirtualBox is a free and open source software tool that lets you run any operating system from a usb stick without separate installation. It unpacks and adjusts the paths and configuration of VirtualBox so it will run portably.
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Portable Virtualbox Features
1. PortablePortable Virtualbox can be used from a USB stick or similar with no prior installation.
GNU/linux-libre
Discontinued
It has not been updated since 2017 and does not work with any version of Virtualbox beyond v5.1.22.
bhyve
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
BSD
FreeBSD
20 bhyve alternatives
bhyve (pronounced "bee hive", formerly written as BHyVe) is a type-2 hypervisor that runs FreeBSD 9+, OpenBSD, Linux and MS Window desktop (versions Vista, 7, 8/8.1/8.2 and 10), as well as MS Windows Server (versions 2008/2008R2, 2012/2012R2 and 2016 Technical Preview...
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bhyve Features
Hypervisor
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UTM
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Virtualization Tool
Mac
iPhone
iPad
51 UTM alternatives
UTM is a full featured system emulator and virtual machine host for iOS and macOS. It is based off of QEMU. In short, it allows you to run Windows, Linux, and more on your Mac, iPhone, and iPad.
- - UTM is the most popular iPhone & iPad alternative to QEMU.
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UTM Features
Multi System Emulator
Emulation
Multipass
Is this is a good alternative?
Yes
No
Free • Open Source
Mac
Windows
Linux
55 Multipass alternatives
Multipass is a lightweight VM manager for Linux, Windows and macOS. It's designed for developers who want a fresh Ubuntu environment with a single command. It uses KVM on Linux, Hyper-V on Windows and HyperKit on macOS to run the VM with minimal overhead.
Multipass has no features, suggest some!