Vexaro Desk vs RustDesk
RustDesk is a popular open-source remote desktop built for self-hosting. Vexaro Desk is a proprietary, managed product in early access, with the admin console, roles, audit log and recording included, and self-hosting on its Enterprise plan. The right choice depends mostly on how much of the stack you want to run yourself.
What RustDesk offers
RustDesk's client is open source under the AGPL-3.0 license, and its home page lists Windows, macOS, Linux, Android and iOS. You can use RustDesk's public servers, run the free open-source server yourself, or write your own rendezvous and relay server. RustDesk describes its connections as end-to-end encrypted by default, built on NaCl, with a rendezvous server that brokers a peer-to-peer or relayed session.
For teams, RustDesk sells Server Pro, which is still self-hosted rather than a SaaS subscription and is billed annually by login users and managed devices. The paid plans add a web console, audit log, access control and 2FA; OIDC single sign-on and LDAP start at the Basic plan; and the web client, which runs sessions in a browser tab, needs a plan where 10 per login user plus 1 per managed device adds up to at least 400. Video uses VP8, VP9 and AV1 in software, plus hardware H.264 and H.265.
How Vexaro Desk approaches it
Vexaro Desk is a managed service first: we run the console and the servers behind it, and you connect your machines. Teams that need everything inside their own perimeter get self-hosted or on-premises deployment on the Enterprise plan, from $149 a month, rather than a free server. Below that, plans are flat monthly prices: Free (for any use, business included), Starter at $7.90, Team at $29.90 and Business at $69.90.
Governance ships with the product: a consent prompt by default, session recording from the Team plan, an audit log from Business, and SAML or OIDC single sign-on with LDAP and SCIM directory sync on Enterprise. The source code is not public.
Sessions are encrypted with TLS 1.3 and connect directly wherever the network allows; direct sessions are end-to-end encrypted, and when a network forces a relayed connection, traffic stays encrypted in transit through Vexaro-operated relays. Video adapts its quality to the link in real time and uses the GPU's hardware encoder where one is available. The client runs on Windows today.
Vexaro Desk and RustDesk side by side
| Capability | Vexaro Desk | RustDesk |
|---|---|---|
| Source code1 | Proprietary | Open source, AGPL-3.0 |
| Hosting1,2 | Managed cloud; self-hosted or on-premises on Enterprise | RustDesk's public servers, the free open-source server, or Server Pro on your own servers |
| Pricing2 | One monthly price per plan | Open-source server free; Server Pro billed annually by login users and managed devices |
| Console, audit, SSO2 | Console from Team; audit log from Business; SAML/OIDC SSO on Enterprise | Web console and audit log from the Individual plan; OIDC SSO and LDAP from Basic |
| Session encryption4 | TLS 1.3; end-to-end on direct connections; encrypted in transit through Vexaro-operated relays when relayed | End-to-end by default, built on NaCl |
| Video4 | Adaptive quality; hardware-accelerated where the GPU supports it | VP8, VP9, AV1 in software; H.264/H.265 in hardware |
| Platforms3 | Windows today; macOS, Linux and mobile apps planned | Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS |
| Browser sessions2,3 | Browser viewer in the Vexaro console, Team plan and above | Web client with Server Pro, on plans where 10 per user plus 1 per device adds up to at least 400 |
| Support2 | Email on Starter, chat on Team, priority on Business, dedicated on Enterprise | Community on the free plan; customer support on paid plans |
Each row cites the vendor pages listed under Sources. The Vexaro Desk column describes the product as it is today, in early access.
Sources
Vendor pages read on September 21, 2026. Vendors change their products and prices, so check their sites for current details.
Where RustDesk is a strong fit
RustDesk is open source, can run entirely on your own servers at no license cost, and supports macOS, Linux, Android and iOS as well as Windows. For teams that want full control of both the code and the infrastructure, and are comfortable operating it, RustDesk is an excellent option, and one we respect.
Why teams choose Vexaro Desk
- A managed service with governance built in: no server to operate unless you choose self-hosting on Enterprise.
- Consent by default, roles, audit log and recording in one console.
- Supported releases: the installed Windows client updates itself with signed packages.
Moving from RustDesk to Vexaro Desk
- Create a free account. Once you confirm your email address, your workspace gets a one-month Team trial.
- Download the Vexaro Desk Windows client and install it on a few machines next to RustDesk.
- For unattended machines, set a Vexaro access password in Settings, and add an allowlist of Vexaro IDs if only certain operators should use it.
- Invite your operators and give each one a role; ask each of them to turn on multi-factor authentication.
- If you run your own RustDesk server, keep it until every team has moved, and keep RustDesk for macOS, Linux and mobile devices for now.
Frequently asked questions
Is Vexaro Desk open source like RustDesk?
Can I self-host Vexaro Desk for free?
Which one has single sign-on?
Do both encrypt sessions end to end?
See it on your own machines
Vexaro Desk is in early access. Create a free account and compare it with your current tool on your own Windows machines.