Microsoft Hyper-V

Microsoft's type-1 hypervisor, built into Windows Server and the Pro editions of Windows.

PaidPrivate cloud and server virtualization platforms

Updated Nov 5, 2026 · AppBreakup editorial · Windows

Visit Microsoft Hyper-V See 6 alternatives

Is Microsoft Hyper-V free?

No, it's a paid product

5 alternatives with a free option

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All 6

Proxmox VE
Community subscription: €120/year per CPU socket
VirtualBox
Open source
Xc
XCP-ng
Open source

Verified facts: 8 of 8
Alternatives ranked: 6
Approved reviews: 0
Visits sent from here: 0

About Microsoft Hyper-V

Hyper-V is the hypervisor Microsoft ships as a role in Windows Server and as an optional feature in Windows 10 and 11 Pro, Enterprise and Education. It runs Windows, Linux and FreeBSD guests directly on the hardware. On servers it pairs with Failover Clustering for high availability, supports live migration with or without shared storage, and can replicate virtual machines to a second site with Hyper-V Replica. Storage Spaces Direct turns local disks across cluster nodes into hyperconverged storage. Day-to-day management happens in Hyper-V Manager, Windows Admin Center, PowerShell or System Center Virtual Machine Manager for larger estates. There's no separate hypervisor licence: it comes with Windows Server, and the Datacenter edition includes unlimited Windows Server VMs, which is why many Windows-heavy organisations look at it when leaving VMware. The trade-off is that it only runs on Windows hosts, and the best tooling and licensing benefits assume a Microsoft stack. On desktops it is a handy way for developers to run test machines without installing extra software.

Best for: Windows Server shops that want virtualization included in licences they already pay for.

Microsoft Hyper-V pricing (checked Nov 8, 2026)

Each line is quoted from Microsoft Hyper-V's own site, with the page it came from.

Plan or term	What it says	Checked	Source
Windows Server Standard	$1,176 suggested MSRP (2025 Standard edition)	Nov 8, 2026	microsoft.com
Windows Server Datacenter	$6,771 suggested MSRP (2025 Datacenter edition)	Nov 8, 2026	microsoft.com
Pay-as-you-go via Azure Arc	$33.58 per CPU core/month	Nov 8, 2026	microsoft.com

What works

No extra hypervisor licence on top of Windows Server
Clustering, live migration and site replication built in
Scriptable end to end with PowerShell
Also available on Windows 11 Pro for local test machines

Why people leave

Hosts must run Windows Server or Windows
Larger estates need System Center, which costs extra
Not available on Windows Home editions

Microsoft Hyper-V vs Proxmox VE, VirtualBox and XCP-ng

From each app's listing and the prices verified on its own site. A dash means we haven't verified it yet.

Attribute	Microsoft Hyper-V	Proxmox VE	VirtualBox	XCP-ng
Pricing	Paid	Open source	Open source	Open source
Verified price	—	€120/year per CPU socket	—	—
Free plan	No	Free app	Free app	Free app
Open source	No	Yes	Yes	Yes
Self-hostable	No	Yes	No	Yes
Platforms	Windows	Self-hosted, Web	Windows, macOS, Linux	Self-hosted

Top Microsoft Hyper-V alternatives

See all 6

1
Proxmox VE
Free open-source KVM platform with clustering and a web UI, running on Linux hosts instead of Windows Server.
68.8
2
VirtualBox
Free, cross-platform desktop hypervisor for running test VMs on Windows, Mac or Linux without turning on Hyper-V.
65.0
3Xc
XCP-ng
Open-source Xen-based hypervisor managed through Xen Orchestra, with no Windows licensing tied to the hosts.
64.8
4
Nutanix Cloud Platform
Hyperconverged platform with its own AHV hypervisor, for teams wanting one vendor for compute, storage and management.
61.8
5
OpenStack
Open-source cloud software for building self-service private clouds at a much larger scale than a Hyper-V cluster.
59.4

Why people left Microsoft Hyper-V

In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.

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Microsoft Hyper-V: common questions

What is Microsoft Hyper-V?

Microsoft Hyper-V: Microsoft's type-1 hypervisor, built into Windows Server and the Pro editions of Windows. Best for windows Server shops that want virtualization included in licences they already pay for. Available for Windows.

Is Microsoft Hyper-V free?

No, Microsoft Hyper-V is a paid product.

How much does Microsoft Hyper-V cost?

Microsoft Hyper-V is a paid product. Windows Server Standard: $1,176 suggested MSRP (2025 Standard edition); Windows Server Datacenter: $6,771 suggested MSRP (2025 Datacenter edition); Pay-as-you-go via Azure Arc: $33.58 per CPU core/month. Checked on Microsoft Hyper-V's own site, November 2026.

Is Microsoft Hyper-V open source?

No, Microsoft Hyper-V is not open source. Open-source alternatives include Proxmox VE, VirtualBox and XCP-ng.

What platforms does Microsoft Hyper-V run on?

Microsoft Hyper-V is available for Windows.

What are the best alternatives to Microsoft Hyper-V?

The highest-ranked Microsoft Hyper-V alternatives right now are Proxmox VE, VirtualBox and XCP-ng. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.

Microsoft Hyper-V vs Proxmox VE: what's the difference?

Microsoft Hyper-V is a paid product; Proxmox VE is free and open source. Proxmox VE is open source and Microsoft Hyper-V is not. Only Microsoft Hyper-V runs on Windows. Only Proxmox VE runs on Web.

See all 6 Microsoft Hyper-V alternatives

Microsoft Hyper-V facts

8 of 8 verified

Hypervisor type: Type-1 (bare metal); Checked Nov 8, 2026learn.microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “As a type-1 hypervisor, Hyper-V runs directly on computing hardware”
Licensing: Included with Windows Server and Windows; Checked Nov 8, 2026learn.microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “Hyper-V is included with Windows Server and Windows, eliminating additional hypervisor licensing costs.”
Windows 11 editions: Pro, Enterprise, Education; Checked Nov 8, 2026learn.microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “For Windows 11, Hyper-V is included in the Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions”
Guest operating systems: Windows, Linux, FreeBSD; Checked Nov 8, 2026learn.microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “It supports a wide range of operating systems for guest virtual machines, including many versions of Windows, Linux, and FreeBSD, making it a versatile solution for diverse IT environments.”
Replication RPO: As low as 30 seconds; Checked Nov 8, 2026learn.microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “Recovery Point Objectives (RPO) can be as low as 30 seconds to ensure minimal data loss.”
Windows Server Standard: $1,176 suggested MSRP (2025 Standard edition); Checked Nov 8, 2026microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “Connect with a partner Azure Hybrid Benefit Windows Server 2025 Standard edition Suggested MSRP: $1,176”
Windows Server Datacenter: $6,771 suggested MSRP (2025 Datacenter edition); Checked Nov 8, 2026microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “Datacenter edition Suggested MSRP: $6,771”
Pay-as-you-go via Azure Arc: $33.58 per CPU core/month; Checked Nov 8, 2026microsoft.com(opens source in a new tab); “Connect to Azure Arc</a> to transact"> Connect to Azure Arc to transact $33.58 per CPU core / month”