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How the VMware renewal estimate works
How the VMware renewal estimate works
Annual cost = billed cores x the per-core rate for your edition and term. The smallest order is 72 cores, which on AceMQ's 2026 quotes is $7,200 to $11,520 a year for VVF on a three-year term, $8,424 to $14,112 on a one-year term, and $18,504 to $25,056 for VCF on three years. Rates last checked 20 October 2026. Request a quote on your real core count; AceMQ replies within 1 hour and quotes within 24 business hours.
Published 28 October 2026. Last reviewed 28 October 2026 by Tyler Eastridge.
VMware renewal cost calculator
Enter the hosts you will keep, the CPUs in each and the cores on each CPU, then pick an edition and a term. The estimate updates as you type. If your hosts differ, add up the cores per host by hand, applying the 16-core floor to each CPU, then enter 1 host, 1 CPU and your total as the cores; the order minimum is applied once to the total.
VMware renewal cost estimator
Cores billed
72
Estimate, VVF, 3-year term
$7,200–$11,520 a year
$100–$160 per core per year, from AceMQ 2026 quotes
$21,600–$34,560 over 3 years
Same cores at the reported list price ($135 a core): $9,720 a year.
A 12-core CPU is licensed as 16, so these hosts count 64 cores.
The order minimum is 72 cores, so 64 is billed as 72.
An estimate, not a quote. Based on AceMQ 2026 quote ranges and list prices checked 20 October 2026. Your rate depends on your Broadcom account.
Get a quote on your real core countHow the estimate is built
The estimate is six steps, and only the fourth uses a price. The core rules are Broadcom's: KB 313548 sets the 16-core minimum for each CPU, and the 72-core minimum per order is Broadcom's current rule.
| Step | Rule | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Count cores | Hosts x CPUs per host x physical cores per CPU | Your inventory, for example an RVTools export |
| 2. Apply the CPU floor | Each CPU counts at least 16 cores | Broadcom KB 313548 |
| 3. Apply the order minimum | The order counts at least 72 cores | Broadcom's current rule |
| 4. Pick the rate band | Per-core, per-year range for the edition and term | AceMQ 2026 quotes (table below) |
| 5. Multiply | Billed cores x low rate, and billed cores x high rate | Arithmetic |
| 6. Show list price | Billed cores x the reported list price, as a reference line | Veeam Community and Rimini Street, checked 20 October 2026 |
Which VMware license each edition prices
The calculator prices two VMware licenses, VMware vSphere Foundation (VVF) and VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), because version 9 is sold in only those two bundles. VVF covers the vSphere and vSAN layer without NSX, VCF Automation or SDDC Manager; VCF is the full private cloud platform. vSphere Standard appears in the rates table at its reported list price but has no AceMQ quote range, and Broadcom's product line comparison says it is only available as versions up to vSphere 8 Update 3. Each VCF core includes 1 TiB of vSAN capacity and each VVF core 0.25 TiB, so a storage-heavy vSphere estate can need a vSAN add-on on top of the license.
| Edition | What the license covers | vSAN per core | In the calculator |
|---|---|---|---|
| vSphere Standard | vSphere Standard and vCenter Server Standard, versions up to 8 Update 3 | None | No: list price shown, no quote range |
| vSphere Foundation (VVF) | The vSphere and vSAN layer, without NSX, VCF Automation or SDDC Manager | 0.25 TiB | Yes, one-year and three-year bands |
| Cloud Foundation (VCF) | ESX and vCenter, vSAN, NSX, VCF Operations and VCF Automation | 1 TiB | Yes, one-year and three-year bands |
The rates behind the estimate
The rate bands are AceMQ's 2026 quotes, and the list prices are the reported partner price list, because Broadcom publishes no rate card. VVF ranged $117–196 per core per year on one-year terms and $100–160 on three-year terms; VCF three-year quotes ranged $257–348. The one-year VCF band is not a range of quotes: AceMQ has one one-year VCF quote (~$344 a core), and the calculator uses a band about 15% either side of it, so treat that case as the loosest. List prices are from Veeam Community and Rimini Street, checked 20 October 2026.
| Edition | Reported list price | AceMQ 2026 quotes, 1-year term | AceMQ 2026 quotes, 3-year term |
|---|---|---|---|
| vSphere Standard | $50 | – | – |
| vSphere Foundation (VVF) | $135 | $117–196 | $100–160 |
| Cloud Foundation (VCF) | $350 | ~$344 | $257–348 |
Worked examples
Four estates show where the minimums bite. The two smallest are billed for more cores than they own, so the price per real core is well above the per-core rate.
| Estate | Physical cores | Cores billed | VVF, 1-year | VVF, 3-year | VCF, 3-year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 hosts, 2 CPUs of 8 cores | 32 | 72 | $8,424 to $14,112 | $7,200 to $11,520 | $18,504 to $25,056 |
| 3 hosts, 2 CPUs of 12 cores | 72 | 96 | $11,232 to $18,816 | $9,600 to $15,360 | $24,672 to $33,408 |
| 4 hosts, 2 CPUs of 16 cores | 128 | 128 | $14,976 to $25,088 | $12,800 to $20,480 | $32,896 to $44,544 |
| 8 hosts, 2 CPUs of 24 cores | 384 | 384 | $44,928 to $75,264 | $38,400 to $61,440 | $98,688 to $133,632 |
What the calculator leaves out
The calculator leaves out everything that is not cores times a rate, so a real quote can differ in five ways.
- Where your rate sits in the band. It depends on your Broadcom account and the quote, not on this page.
- vSAN capacity and add-ons. Capacity above the per-core vSAN allowance and separately licensed services are priced on top; the VCF 9 licensing guide has the allowances.
- Five-year terms. AceMQ prices them, but there is no published range to build a band from.
- Late fees. Broadcom applied a partly negotiable fee to renewals raised after expiry in AceMQ's sample.
- Accounts Broadcom manages directly. No partner can quote these; one request in four in AceMQ's sample was one.
Estimate versus quote: how far apart they can be
A quote can land anywhere in the band, and the band is wide. Two one-year VVF quotes for the same 96 cores on the same day came in at $117 and $196 per core per year, which on 96 cores is $11,232 against $18,816. Use the low end as the figure to aim for and the high end as the figure to budget. A three-year term carried a lower annual rate than a one-year term on every quote where AceMQ priced both, and 15–18% lower in the two same-day VVF pairs.
Using the estimate at renewal
Use the estimate to set a budget, then replace it with quotes built on the same inputs. Run the calculator for VVF and VCF on your cores, and if the VCF figure is far higher, check that you deploy NSX, the Aria suite or large vSAN capacity before you pay for it. Then send the same request to each partner using the VMware renewal RFQ template, so that the quotes compare like for like, and start 60 to 90 days before expiry.
Method and limits
The arithmetic lives in src/lib/vmwarePrices.js and is covered by a check that fails if the floor, the minimum or the bands drift. The bands are AceMQ's 2026 VVF and VCF quotes (VVF: $117–196 one-year and $100–160 three-year from two same-day pairs; VCF: one one-year quote and a three-year range of $257–348), and the list prices are the figures reported by Veeam Community and Rimini Street, checked 20 October 2026. Some trackers show higher indicative 2026 list prices, and we publish the two sources that agree. The 16-core rule was re-checked against Broadcom KB 313548 on 28 October 2026. AceMQ is a Broadcom partner, so read the result as a budget guide and ask any partner for a written quote. It is not a quote, an offer or tax advice.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a VMware renewal cost?
The cost is billed cores times a per-core rate, per year. On AceMQ's 2026 quotes the rate was $117–196 per core per year for VVF on one-year terms and $100–160 on three-year terms; VCF three-year quotes ran $257–348. The smallest order is 72 cores, so a minimum VVF renewal is $7,200 to $11,520 a year on a three-year term.
What is the minimum VMware renewal?
72 cores per order, with every CPU counted as at least 16 cores. A two-host estate with 32 physical cores is therefore billed for 72. At the three-year VVF band that is $7,200 to $11,520 a year.
How accurate is this VMware renewal calculator?
It is an estimate built on the ranges of AceMQ's real 2026 quotes, and a quote can land anywhere in the band: two same-day one-year VVF quotes for the same 96 cores were $117 and $196 per core. The one-year VCF band is the loosest, because it rests on a single quote. Rates were last checked 20 October 2026.
Is the calculator per core or per CPU?
Per core, per year. The CPU only matters through the floor: a CPU with fewer than 16 cores is licensed as 16. VMware is not billed per VM, per socket or per memory.
Does the calculator include VCF 9 and vSAN add-ons?
It prices VCF and VVF per core and does not include vSAN capacity above the per-core allowance or services that Broadcom licenses separately. Those are added on a real quote; the VCF 9 licensing guide lists the allowances.
