Best Free AnyDesk Alternative — Browser Screen Share in 2026

Why Users Are Switching From AnyDesk

AnyDesk built its reputation on speed and simplicity, but several developments have eroded that trust. Understanding these issues explains why the search volume for "AnyDesk alternative" has grown steadily through 2025 and into 2026.

• •February 2024 security breach — AnyDesk confirmed that attackers gained unauthorized access to their production systems. The company revoked all security certificates and forced password resets for the my.anydesk.com portal. For a tool that relies on trust to access remote machines, this was a serious blow.
• •Free tier increasingly limited — AnyDesk's free license restricts session duration, disables many features, and shows prompts to upgrade. Casual users who previously relied on the free tier now find it frustrating.
• •Desktop app required on both ends — Both the host and the viewer must download and install the AnyDesk client. This is a non-starter for quick screen shares with clients, students, or non-technical users who may not want to install unfamiliar software.
• •Pricing jumped to $14.90/month — The Solo plan costs $14.90/mo billed annually. For freelancers and small teams who share screens occasionally, that adds up to nearly $180/year for a feature the browser can handle natively.
• •Sessions route through AnyDesk relay servers — Even with encryption, your screen data passes through AnyDesk's infrastructure. If the connection cannot be established directly, AnyDesk's relay servers mediate the stream. After the 2024 breach, this architecture raises legitimate privacy questions.

Top 5 AnyDesk Alternatives Compared

The right alternative depends on your use case. Here is a side-by-side comparison of the five strongest AnyDesk replacements available in 2026:

MiOffice — Share Screen Without Installing Anything

MiOffice Screen Share takes a fundamentally different approach to screen sharing. Instead of installing a desktop application and routing traffic through corporate relay servers, MiOffice runs entirely in the browser using WebRTC peer-to-peer connections.

Here is how it works: the presenter opens mioffice.ai/tools/p2p/screen-share and generates a 6-digit code. The viewer enters that code on the same page. A direct WebRTC connection is established between the two browsers, and the screen stream flows peer-to-peer with DTLS-SRTP encryption. No server ever sees the screen content.

This architecture eliminates the three biggest pain points with AnyDesk:

• •Zero installation — Neither party needs to download or install anything. This makes it ideal for sharing screens with clients, students, or non-technical users who would hesitate to install AnyDesk.
• •No account or signup — There is no registration, no email verification, and no profile to manage. Open the page, share the code, and connect.
• •End-to-end encrypted, zero server storage — The video stream travels directly between browsers. MiOffice never receives, stores, or has access to your screen content. After the AnyDesk breach, this peer-to-peer model offers genuine peace of mind.
• •Cross-platform by default — Works on Windows, macOS, Linux, ChromeOS, Android, and iOS. Any device with a modern browser can participate.

The trade-off is that MiOffice Screen Share is view-only. It does not offer remote mouse or keyboard control, which means it is not a replacement for AnyDesk in unattended remote access or full remote desktop scenarios. But for the majority of screen sharing needs — presentations, demos, visual troubleshooting, and walk-throughs — it is faster, simpler, and more private than AnyDesk.

RustDesk — Open Source Self-Hosted Option

RustDesk is the strongest AnyDesk alternative for users who need full remote desktop control and want to own their infrastructure. Written in Rust, it offers a native client for Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS with the same core functionality as AnyDesk: remote mouse, keyboard, file transfer, and unattended access.

The key differentiator is that RustDesk is open source and supports self-hosting. You can run your own relay server, which means your connection data never touches third-party infrastructure. For organizations with strict compliance requirements (HIPAA, SOC 2), this is a significant advantage over AnyDesk's centralized model.

• •Pros — Full remote control, self-hosted relay server, open source (Apache 2.0), cross-platform native clients, free for personal use.
• •Cons — Requires installation on both ends, self-hosting adds setup complexity (Docker or binary), relay server needs a VPS or dedicated machine, the UI is less polished than AnyDesk.

Chrome Remote Desktop — Simple But Limited

Chrome Remote Desktop is Google's free remote access tool. It works as a Chrome extension and allows you to access your own machines remotely or share your screen with someone else. The "Remote Access" mode lets you set up unattended access to your computers, while the "Remote Support" mode generates a one-time code similar to AnyDesk's workflow.

• •Pros — Completely free, no time limits, reliable Google infrastructure, supports remote mouse and keyboard control, unattended access for your own machines.
• •Cons — Both parties need Chrome browser, requires a Google account, installs a host component on the remote machine, traffic routes through Google servers, limited to Chromium-based browsers.

Chrome Remote Desktop is a solid AnyDesk alternative if you primarily need to access your own machines remotely and you are already in the Google ecosystem. It falls short for ad-hoc screen sharing with external parties who may not have Chrome or a Google account.

Which Alternative Should You Choose?

The best AnyDesk replacement depends on what you actually need:

• •Quick screen sharing without any setup — MiOffice Screen Share. No install, no account, P2P encrypted. Best for presentations, demos, client calls, and visual tech support.
• •Full remote desktop control with privacy — RustDesk. Self-hosted relay server, open source, full mouse and keyboard control. Best for IT teams, developers, and compliance-sensitive environments.
• •Access your own machines remotely — Chrome Remote Desktop. Free, reliable, unattended access. Best for personal use when you need to reach your home or office computer from elsewhere.
• •Enterprise IT with managed deployment — TeamViewer. Feature-rich with device management, session logging, and compliance certifications. Expensive, but purpose-built for large IT departments.

For most individual users and small teams, the combination of MiOffice (for instant screen sharing) and Chrome Remote Desktop (for accessing your own machines) covers everything AnyDesk does — at zero cost and with better privacy.