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Parsec

Low-latency remote desktop for games and work, with free personal use and paid Warp extras

Visit parsec.app

Our verdict

#3 of 3 in Apps for streaming games from your PC · For playing with friends in any game

Pros

  • Guests can play from a web browser
  • Over the internet, the stream goes straight between your devices rather than through Parsec's servers, with port forwarding optional

Cons

  • Can't connect through double NAT, where one router sits behind another, or through CGNAT; only the Enterprise plan has a relay server
  • Hosts need a hardware video encoder, the part of a graphics card that compresses video, which AMD's RX 6400 and RX 6500 XT lack

Who should skip:iPhone and iPad owners.

Read the full review →

Rankings and alternatives

Apps for streaming games from your own PC scores

Evaluated Nov 7, 2026 Evidence ↓
  • Devices you can play on 2

    2/5 means: Three to five kinds

    Clients exist for Windows, Linux, macOS, Android (experimental) and Chromium-based browsers, five of the counted kinds. Parsec states iPhone and iPad aren't supported.

  • Computers you can stream from 2

    2/5 means: Two operating systems

    Hosting is only available on Windows and macOS; macOS hosts have no controller support.

  • Picture quality options 3

    3/5 means: Four options

    H.265, 4:4:4 color (Warp and Teams plans), frame rates above 60 and matching the owner's client resolution are documented, four of the seven options. The pages we read don't mention AV1, HDR or 4K.

    Rests partly on what the sources don't mention, which is a weaker signal than what they say.

  • Playing away from home 4

    4/5 means: Connects over the internet without router setup, but documents no free fallback route when a direct connection between the devices fails

    Connections are peer-to-peer, set up through Parsec's backend and STUN server, with no router setup. They can't work when either side is behind double NAT or CGNAT, and the relay server is part of the Enterprise plan only.

  • Playing with friends 5

    5/5 means: Friends join through an invite link or a friends list, and the host sets each guest's controller, keyboard and mouse access, in any game or app

    Friends join through a share link or the friends list; guests get controller access by default and the host grants keyboard and mouse per guest. It works with any game, and Approved apps can limit guests to chosen games.

  • Accounts and outside servers 3

    3/5 means: Needs an account; the developer's servers set up connections, but the stream goes directly between your devices

    You sign in on host and client; the app talks to Parsec's backend and STUN server to set up connections, and the stream itself goes peer-to-peer. Relaying is an Enterprise feature.

  • Cost 3

    3/5 means: Free for personal use, with three or more streaming features only in a paid plan or add-on

    Personal use is free; Warp ($9.99 a month, or $8.33 a month paid annually) adds 4:4:4 color, streaming up to three monitors, privacy mode, virtual displays and pressure-sensitive Wacom tablet support.

  • Graphics hardware on the host 3

    3/5 means: Hardware encoders from NVIDIA, AMD and Intel, with no software encoding

    Hosting needs a hardware video encoder, with NVIDIA NVENC, Intel Quick Sync and AMD VCE/VCN supported; there is no software encoding to fall back on.

  • What you can stream 3

    3/5 means: The whole desktop, so any game or app, started from the host's own screen

    A Windows host shares the whole screen, so any game or app works, started from the host's desktop. There is no list of games to start from the receiving device.

Evidence and sources

Apps for streaming games from your own PC scores

Devices you can play on 2 quotes
Computers you can stream from 2 quotes
Picture quality options 4 quotes
Playing away from home 3 quotes
Playing with friends 5 quotes
Accounts and outside servers 4 quotes
Cost 5 quotes
  • “is a setting available for Teams and Warp customers that improves the color volume (chroma subsampling) of the stream.”
    support.parsec.app/hc/en-us/articles/32381568346644-Hardware-and-Software-Compatibility · checked
  • “Stream up to three monitors at the same time, connect in privacy mode, launch virtual displays, and switch monitors on the fly.”
    parsec.app/warp · checked
  • “Plug in your Wacom tablet and boom, it just works.”
    parsec.app/warp · checked
  • “$8.33 per user/month, paid annually”
    parsec.app/warp · checked
  • “The Personal Use (free) and Individuals (warp) plans are licensed for personal, non-commercial use only, including making your computer available to other individuals on a hosted basis.”
    parsec.app/warp · checked
Graphics hardware on the host 4 quotes
What you can stream 1 quote

Facts

License 1 quote
  • “The Personal Use (free) and Individuals (warp) plans are licensed for personal, non-commercial use only, including making your computer available to other individuals on a hosted basis.”
    parsec.app/warp · checked
Runs on 3 quotes
Needs 3 quotes

Notability

Company value 1 quote

Other quotes

Not cited by a score or fact 4 quotes