Since the outbreak, many people and businesses have become used to the idea of working from home. With the rise of WFH, there are now more conference apps and apps that let you share your screen. Even though the old tools are still doing well, a lot of new tools with more interesting features are coming out.
Screen-sharing apps are very useful for things other than work, like when you want to help your friends or family with something. In either case, it’s clear that the right tools can help you get more done.
Since a lot of people have Windows PCs and tablets and a lot of people are probably looking for the best screen-sharing tools for Windows, let’s look at what we think are the best ones.
Microsoft Teams
When looking for the best tool to share your Windows screen, you should always look at the tools from Microsoft first. Microsoft is able to make its software and tools work well and have a lot of features because they all come from the same place: Windows. Microsoft Teams is also able to get all of these benefits, which is why it is at the top of the list.
Teams is mostly used for work or training, so the functions are also geared toward those purposes. Teams is a meeting app, but it also has a way to share your screen online. When a meeting starts, you click the Share Content button.
You can share your whole screen or, if privacy is important to you, you can just share the window you’re looking at right now. When you share your screen, you can also turn on your computer’s music if you want to. With the free version, you can have voice and video calls with up to 100 people for up to 60 minutes.
It has chat, video, and voice calls, and in video chat you can even use a unique background. You can also use the calendar to plan the next meeting.
One downside is that you can’t have talks that last longer than 60 minutes unless you subscribe. But you can sign up to get talks that last longer. All in all, Microsoft Teams is a great app to try, especially if you need software to share your screen for work or school.
Pros:
You can share the whole screen or just one app.
The free version lets up to 100 people attend talks.
Helpful for business
Cons:
To use, you need a Microsoft account.
The free version only lets you hold meetings for up to an hour.
Teamviewer
Teamviewer is a piece of software that has been helping people share their computers for a long time. Teamviewer is easy to use and has many useful features because it has been around for a long time. First, let’s talk about the function that lets you share your screen.
Once you start a meeting, you can tap on the device icon (the icon will change based on the device you’re using) and choose “Share my screen” to start sharing your Windows screen with Teamviewer. You can’t share the window you’re in, but you can stop sharing if you need to.
Also, the meeting choice lets you do things like chat or run more than one meeting at the same time. Teamviewer also has a tool called “remote control” that lets you see what the other person is seeing on their screen and take control of it.
To handle someone else’s screen from afar, go to the Remote handle tab and tell the other person to install the app and go to the same tab. Ask the other person to show you the code on their screen, and if you want to take over their screen, click Control. If you want someone else to take over your screen, give them the code that shows up on your screen.
Teamviewer lets you control devices directly for presentations, and if that’s not enough, you can also use the built-in file transfer feature. And, most importantly, the program can even be used in augmented reality mode! Even though these services mostly work well even when networks change, it would have been nice if they had a better user interface.
Pros:
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Remotely control desktop
Stop sharing your screen
File transfer
Mode for Augmented Reality
Cons:
There is no way to share a screen window by window.
The UI could have been better.
Google Meet
Google has an alternative to almost every software service, and that includes apps for Windows that let you share your screen. One of these apps is Google Meet, which is easy to use because it has a simple user design. That’s one of the best things about the app.
The signs also help people who aren’t tech-savvy figure out what each one means. Once you start screen sharing, you can click the button to choose between the usual screen sharing, a specific window, or even a specific tab. Google Meet can be used as both a program and a website.
Google Meet for Windows lets you share your computer.
Even though it has a lot of features for sharing your screen, if you think of it as a video chat app, it doesn’t have as many features as the competition. Even if you agree, you can only sign in with your Google ID, which could be a deal-breaker for some. If these problems don’t worry you, Google Meet is a good choice.
Pros:
UI that is simple and easy to use
There are many ways to share your computer.
Can be used both in the app and online.
Cons:
You need a Google ID to use it.
Zoom
Zoom, like many of the other options on this list, is a tool for video chatting. It also lets you share your screen. Zoom is different from Microsoft and Google in that there are more than one way to sign in to the program.
When it comes to protection, Zoom hasn’t cut corners either. If you forget your password, it will take a lot of work to get it back, but your account will still be safe. Once you’ve signed in, you can easily start sharing your screen by clicking Share Screen on the app’s home screen.
To share the screen, you must give a meeting ID. If you don’t want to do that, you can start a meeting and then click the choice to Share Screen. Zoom has one of the most flexible ways to share your screen compared to its competitors.
You can share the whole screen, one of the apps you’re using at the time, a notebook, or even the screen of your iPhone. That’s not all, either. If you choose the Advanced tab, you can share a part of the screen, the computer’s audio, any video on your Windows computer, material from the second camera, or even a PowerPoint presentation as a virtual background.
Popular online file-sharing sites can also be used to share files. You can also chat, plan meetings, and use app integrations, making this one of the most feature-rich Windows video conferencing apps.
The app is free, but you can also pay for a premium subscription that gives you access to more features, like being able to hold video conferences with a much bigger group of people and more. Zoom’s many features can be both a blessing and a curse because they can make it hard for users to figure out what they want.
Also, even though it has a lot of functions, the price might be too high for many people. Even so, the app is still the best choice for business owners and everyday users who want a Windows tool with a lot of features for sharing the screen.
Pros:
Options for screen sharing with lots of features
Can share iPhone screen using file-sharing service built into Windows
Schedule meetings
Cons:
Some people may not be able to tell the difference between the extra features.
The price of a premium membership is on the high end.
Loom
When it comes to sharing your screen on Windows, Loom does things in a completely different way. With some apps, you can only do this when the other members are online, but with this one, you can just click “Record” and start. Once you log in, you can start recording right away without having to do anything else.
Loom also lets Windows users use their cameras while sharing their screen or just share their camera. Loom lets you share your screen without using the webcam if you don’t want to use the camera. If you want to give a talk, you can use the app’s built-in speaker notes to read out what you want and make sure you don’t forget anything.
There’s even a way for people who care about privacy to share the screen through a unique canvas. You can also choose the video quality if your network isn’t very stable. Once the screen recording is done, you can send it to those who need it.
Even though the free version has enough features for most people, the paid version has more for those who want it. The premium plan lets you post screen recordings of any length and much better quality, add your own logo to the videos, protect them with a password, and even add links to them.
Even though Loom doesn’t have as many features as its competitors, it’s still a good app to check out, especially if you want to make pre-recorded screen records on Windows.
Pros:
Share your screen as well as your webcam
Speaker notes are included for talks.
Screen sharing that was pre-recorded
Cons:
Not being able to share a certain window
The premium plan isn’t worth much.
Windows Remote Desktop
Why should we look for tools to share the Windows screen when Microsoft already has one? Windows Remote Desktop is a built-in tool for the professional version of Windows that lets you share your computer. Windows Remote Desktop is built on the Remote Desktop Protocol and can be used with any Windows PC without any problems.
As soon as you put the app on your computer, you can start sharing your screen. To add a new account or choose one that’s already there, just click the + button. Yes, you don’t need to sign up for anything besides the one you need to connect to the PC. It can be especially helpful in workplaces where devices can be linked or controlled as needed.
You can also connect to a PC if you are part of a group of users. You can swap the mouse buttons, change the scale of the remote session, resize the screen, resize the remote session, access the clipboard, play and record audio, and do many other things.
Even though the steps are easy, this app is best for people who know how to connect to a faraway PC. It might be hard for normal people to understand.
Pros:
No need to sign up.
Ability to control remote session resolution
Useful for government work
Cons:
Not easy for most people to understand
Has a steep learning curve
Chrome Remote Desktop
Chrome Remote Desktop is Google’s answer to Teamviewer’s screen sharing feature. Meet was Google’s answer to the growing number of video chat apps. Even though this tool can be installed on Windows, you still need Chrome on your computer to use it.
After installing Chrome Remote Desktop, you can use it to view, share, or even set up another computer from a distance. To do this, you need to link both PCs with a code that is made up at random.
Chrome Remote Desktop is a free tool that lets you help friends or other people by letting you share your computer. But you can only join two things at once, so you can’t share your screen with many things at once. As you may have noticed, the tool can only be used between two devices at a time, which makes it very hard to use.
Also, the app only works with Chrome, which may make many people not want to use it. You can still use this tool if you can look past this.
Pros:
Log in quickly
Simple and easy to use
Can run a Windows machine from afar
Cons:
needs Google Chrome to work.
Can only talk to one user at a time
Get the Chrome Remote Desktop program.
Dead Simple Screen Sharing
As its name suggests, Dead Simple Screen is all about making it easier to share your screen in Windows. It’s a lot like the Google Meet app, but the user interface is funky instead of boring (definitely not meet-worthy). When you go to the website, you can start sharing by clicking Share Your Screen.
You’ll go to a new page where you can directly join the chat. But I would have liked to be able to put the meeting code, like you can on Google Meet. With the screen sharing tool, you can share the whole screen of your Windows machine, a single window, or even the tab of your browser.
When you’re ready to share your screen, click Share after you’ve chosen the screen you want to share. Then, the users will see a message at the bottom of their screen that they can check to share. All you have to do to stop sharing is click Stop Sharing. The app supports simple screen sharing on Windows, but it also takes the easy way out when it comes to browsers and the number of people who can use it.
You can only use this tool to share your Windows screen with Google Chrome or Firefox, and even then, you can only share with up to 4 other people. Dead Simple Screen Sharing is a tool for sharing your screen, but it can also be used to run meetings because it has many of the basic tools you need.
Pros:
Simple to use
There are many ways to share a screen.
App that can be used for live conferencing
Cons:
Only works with Chrome and Firefox, and only 4 people can join. Download Dead Simple Screen Sharing
Mikogo
Mikogo has features like video conferencing and screen sharing for Windows. It also has a whiteboard for multiple users and lets you plan a session. Most of this tool’s features are hidden behind a paid membership, so the paid version is just a showcase of what users miss out on if they don’t pay.
Mikogo works on macOS, iOS, and Android, and it lets you share your screen and have video chats across platforms. When you share your screen, you can choose which app window you want to share. There is also a function called “multi-monitor,” which lets you see up to four screens at the same time.
But this isn’t the end of the list of features. VoIP talks can be recorded and then turned into a video. There is also a chat feature that lets you send up to 200 MB of files. With the Standard plan, only one person can join a lesson at a time. If you have a Professional or Team contract, you can take up to 25 people. Still, that’s not much compared to what the competition is giving away.
Pros:
Offers a Whiteboard for thoughts to be shared
Look at four screens at once
Transfer files
Cons:
The free version only lets one person join the meeting, and the paid version doesn’t give much more.
Download Mikogo
GoToMeeting
GoToMeeting’s user interface (UI) is new and different from the old-fashioned interfaces of other companies. If you want to use the app after installing it, you have to sign in or enter the meeting ID. Once you log in, you’ll see that Go-To has all the features that will make you want to use it to share screens in a meeting.
No matter what, the app came in last because it doesn’t have much to give. Go-To doesn’t have any really great features, but all of its functions work wonderfully. You can share the whole screen, a window, or even a Chrome tab with the screen-sharing tool.
As you might expect, Go-To-Meeting can be used to do more than just share your screen. It can also be used to run meetings. Go-To doesn’t have any features that really stand out when it comes to meetings, but it does have most of what you’d expect from the competition. The app can run talks, put people on mute, and let them reply between meetings. You can even record the whole meeting, which is a great feature.
Aside from the fact that the app doesn’t have any standout features, the biggest problem is that it doesn’t have a free or sample version other than the 14-day free trial. That’s great, don’t get me wrong, but a free version would help the app reach more people and spread word of mouth, since the features are pretty full, which is what many people expect from a Windows screen sharing tool.
Pros:
Having different ways to share the screen
Features of video calling
Cons:
To start a meeting, you have to sign in.
There is no free plan besides the trial
have nothing that makes them stand out.
Share your screen with Windows in a safe way Tools for sharing a screen
In short, these Windows tools for sharing your computer screen with other people give you a variety of ways to do so. You can use these tools to share your screen for a show, to work with others, or to get help from afar. With a variety of features and functions, like the ability to share specific windows or apps, real-time interaction, and support for different operating systems, these screen sharing tools make it easy and effective to share your screen with others. The best part is that many of these tools are free or have free versions, so it’s easy to find the right one for your needs.