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VirtualBox alternatives: 4 apps ranked by verified data

Facts checked Oct 25, 2026AppBreakup editorialHow we rank

Common reasons people leave VirtualBox: extension Pack needs a paid licence for business use, and weak 3D graphics performance. We ranked 4 alternatives by how directly each one replaces VirtualBox, then by reviews, real visits and how recently each app's facts were checked against its own website. UTM currently ranks first.

Quick comparison

#AppPricingOpen sourcePlatformsVerified factsScore
1UTM logoUTMOpen sourceYesmacOS, iOS5 of 566.5
2GNOME Boxes logoGNOME BoxesOpen sourceYesLinux5 of 559.6
3virt-manager logovirt-managerOpen sourceYesLinux4 of 457.2
  1. UTM logo

    1. UTMTop pick

    Best for: Mac users who want free Linux, Windows or retro-OS virtual machines without paying for Parallels

    Open sourcemacOS, iOS

    66.5

    score / 100

    Why switch from VirtualBox

    Better fit on Apple silicon Macs, free and open source with near-native ARM guests.

    Pros

    • Free and open source, with the same features in the paid App Store copy
    • Runs ARM guests near native speed and emulates many old architectures
    • Scriptable through AppleScript and the utmctl command-line tool

    Cons

    • x86 guests on Apple silicon run through slow emulation
    • Graphics and game support trail Parallels Desktop
    • Mac and iPad only
    Visit UTM Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.3100
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is UTM a good VirtualBox alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    License
    Apache-2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Price
    Free; App Store copy is optional support
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mac.getutm.app(opens source in a new tab)
    Virtualization
    Apple Hypervisor for ARM64 guests
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mac.getutm.app(opens source in a new tab)
    macOS guests
    Apple silicon, macOS Monterey or later
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mac.getutm.app(opens source in a new tab)
    Command line
    utmctl and AppleScript
    Checked Oct 25, 2026mac.getutm.app(opens source in a new tab)
  2. GNOME Boxes logo

    2. GNOME Boxes

    Best for: Linux desktop users who want a quick test VM without learning QEMU or libvirt

    Open sourceLinux

    59.6

    score / 100

    Why switch from VirtualBox

    Simpler Linux option that downloads and installs guest systems for you.

    Pros

    • Downloads and installs common operating systems automatically
    • Snapshots, USB redirection and shared folders built in
    • Free, open source and available from Flathub

    Cons

    • Few options for networking, storage or CPU tuning
    • Linux only
    • Original code base is in low-maintenance mode
    Visit GNOME Boxes Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.377
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is GNOME Boxes a good VirtualBox alternative?

    Verified facts

    5 of 5 verified
    Automatic installs
    Fedora, Debian, Ubuntu, Windows and more
    Checked Oct 25, 2026apps.gnome.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Snapshots
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026apps.gnome.org(opens source in a new tab)
    USB passthrough
    Yes
    Checked Oct 25, 2026apps.gnome.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Install
    Flathub
    Checked Oct 25, 2026apps.gnome.org(opens source in a new tab)
    License
    LGPL v2
    Checked Oct 25, 2026gitlab.gnome.org(opens source in a new tab)
  3. virt-manager logo

    3. virt-manager

    Best for: Linux users and sysadmins who want fast KVM VMs with full control over virtual hardware

    Open sourceLinux

    57.2

    score / 100

    Why switch from VirtualBox

    KVM-based VMs on Linux with better performance and no Extension Pack licensing.

    Pros

    • Near-native KVM performance on Linux
    • Fine-grained control, including PCI and USB passthrough
    • Manages remote libvirt hosts as well as local VMs

    Cons

    • Steeper learning curve than GNOME Boxes
    • Linux only
    • Dated interface
    Visit virt-manager Details and reviews
    How this score is calculated
    Editorial fit ×0.369
    Reviews ×0.363
    Clicks (90 days) ×0.150
    Freshness ×0.1585
    Votes ×0.150

    0 counted reviews, 0 up and 0 down votes. Full formula

    Is virt-manager a good VirtualBox alternative?

    Verified facts

    4 of 4 verified
    License
    GPL-2.0
    Checked Oct 25, 2026github.com(opens source in a new tab)
    Hypervisors
    KVM, Xen, LXC
    Checked Oct 25, 2026virt-manager.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Console viewer
    VNC and SPICE
    Checked Oct 25, 2026virt-manager.org(opens source in a new tab)
    Install
    From distribution packages
    Checked Oct 25, 2026virt-manager.org(opens source in a new tab)

The best VirtualBox alternative for…

The highest-ranked app in this list for each need.

UTM logo

Best VirtualBox alternative for most people

UTM

Better fit on Apple silicon Macs, free and open source with near-native ARM guests.

GNOME Boxes logo

Best VirtualBox alternative for a free option

GNOME Boxes

Simpler Linux option that downloads and installs guest systems for you.

virt-manager logo

Best VirtualBox alternative for open source

virt-manager

KVM-based VMs on Linux with better performance and no Extension Pack licensing.

Parallels Desktop logo

Best VirtualBox alternative for Mac

Parallels Desktop

Paid but much faster and smoother for running Windows on a Mac.

GNOME Boxes logo

Best VirtualBox alternative for Linux

GNOME Boxes

Simpler Linux option that downloads and installs guest systems for you.

VirtualBox alternatives: common questions

What is the best alternative to VirtualBox?

UTM ranks first right now. Better fit on Apple silicon Macs, free and open source with near-native ARM guests. Parallels Desktop and GNOME Boxes follow it in our ranking.

Is there a free alternative to VirtualBox?

Yes. UTM (open source), GNOME Boxes (open source) and virt-manager (open source) have a free option. Check each app's verified facts for current plan limits.

Is there an open-source alternative to VirtualBox?

Yes: UTM, GNOME Boxes and virt-manager.

Which VirtualBox alternatives work on Linux?

GNOME Boxes and virt-manager run on Linux.

Why do people switch from VirtualBox?

The complaints we hear most: extension Pack needs a paid licence for business use; weak 3D graphics performance; apple silicon support is newer and less polished.

How is this list ranked?

Every app is scored with the same published formula: how directly it replaces VirtualBox, reviews (weighted by verification), visits from AppBreakup, how recently its facts were checked against its own website, and reader votes.