Short answer: Yes. Since 11 November 2024, VMware Fusion Pro is free for personal, educational and commercial use, and no license key is needed. The free terms apply from Fusion 13.5.2 onward. Current releases (25H2, 26H1) need a Mac that officially supports macOS 15 Sequoia or later. Download it from the Broadcom Support Portal after registering. At the key prompt, pick the free option.
How Fusion Pro became free
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| May 2024 | Fusion Pro (and Workstation Pro) made free for personal use; commercial use still required a subscription. |
| 11 Nov 2024 | Free for commercial, educational and personal users; the paid editions are no longer sold. |
| Oct 2025 | Move to calendar versioning: Fusion 25H2. |
| May 2026 | Fusion 26H1 (build 25388279); release notes repeat that it is free for all use and needs no key. |
The licensing rules are in Broadcom KB 368667 and the November 2024 announcement. Customers with an existing commercial contract keep their support until the end of the term. After that, support is community forums and documentation.
Is VMware Fusion free for commercial use?
Yes, for Fusion 13.5.2 and later. Older builds such as Fusion 12 are not covered by the free terms, and they do not support current macOS anyway. There is no separate “free edition” with fewer features: the free download is the full Fusion Pro. If you are still on an old build, upgrade to a current one instead of looking for a Fusion 12 key.
Mac system requirements
| Fusion version | Host Mac | RAM | Disk |
|---|---|---|---|
| 25H2 and later (incl. 26H1) | Any Mac that officially supports macOS 15 Sequoia or later (Apple silicon or Intel) | 8 GB min, 16 GB+ recommended | 1.5 GB + at least 5 GB per VM |
| 13.x | Any Mac that officially supports macOS 12 Monterey or later | 8 GB min, 16 GB+ recommended | 1.5 GB + at least 5 GB per VM |
Source: System Requirements for Fusion Pro. If your Mac cannot run macOS 15, Fusion 13.x (13.5.2 or later) is the newest line that runs on it and is still free to use.
How to download VMware Fusion Pro for free
- Register or log in at
support.broadcom.com. - Complete your user profile with accurate details.
- Fill in the Trade Compliance form (email, address, country). Downloads stay blocked until it is accepted.
- Open the Fusion Pro download (My Downloads, or the Free Software Downloads section) and select the release.
- Tick the Terms and Conditions checkbox and download the
.dmg. - Install. When the installer asks for a license key, choose the free option (FINISH (For free version) in the KB wording).
Download only from the Broadcom portal. Third-party “free download” mirrors and GitHub repositories that repackage Fusion are not Broadcom sources, and the product is free anyway.
What is new in recent releases
Per the Fusion 26H1 release notes, 26H1 adds VM creation and last-powered-on timestamps, basic remote connections to ARM-based ESX hosts, and newer guests (Ubuntu 26.04 LTS, Fedora 43/44, SLES 16, openSUSE 16.0, FreeBSD 15.0). It also includes a security fix for CVE-2026-41702. Keep Fusion current: desktop hypervisors receive regular VMSA security advisories.
If you want a free hypervisor for a server rather than a Mac, see Free VMware ESXi 8.
Further reading
- Broadcom KB 368667: Download and license VMware Desktop Hypervisor (Fusion Pro and Workstation Pro)
- VMware VCF Blog: VMware Fusion and Workstation are Now Free for All Users
- VMware VCF Blog: VMware Workstation and Fusion 26H1
- VMware Fusion Blog (May 2024): VMware Fusion Pro: Now Available Free for Personal Use (original post)
