Best Virtual Drive Software in 2026
Updated
In short: Arsenal Image Mounter is ranked #1 of 23 as of 5 October 2026, ahead of ExpanDrive and libguestfs. The best-ranked option with a free plan is ExpanDrive. The lowest first paid tier on this page is RaiDrive at $0.36/mo.
Virtual drive software lets you mount image files and virtual disk files as drives. Compare image formats, optical image mounting, and supported platforms to check compatibility with the files and systems you use. Max virtual drives, persistent mounts, and write-image support help distinguish the available handling options; free plans and paid-from prices add cost context. Arsenal Image Mounter, ExpanDrive, and libguestfs are among the entries to consider, alongside OSFClone and Alcohol 52%. Use the listed criteria to weigh format support and mount behavior against the way you work with disk images.
23 virtual drive software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
13 of the 23 here have a free tier you can use, 0 have open-source code on record, and 0 have full bars: free, open, on most of your devices and documented.
| # | App | Signal | Free tier | Open code | Devices | From | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal Image MounterWindows · Linux | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | $75.58/mo | 6.5 | |
| 2 | ExpanDriveWindows · Mac · Linux | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | $29/mo | 6.5 | |
| 3 | libguestfsWindows · Mac · Linux · Self-hosted · API | Three bars | — | 3 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 4 | OSFCloneWindows · Linux | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | Free | 6.5 | |
| 5 | RaiDriveWindows · Linux | Two bars | — | 2 of 6 | $0.36/mo | 6.5 | |
| 6 | Alcohol 52%Windows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 7 | CDEmuLinux · Self-hosted | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 8 | DAEMON Tools LiteWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 9 | ImDiskWindows · API | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 10 | TotalMounterWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 11 | VHD AttachWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 12 | Virtual CloneDriveWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 13 | WinCDEmuWindows | Two bars | — | 1 of 6 | Free | 6.4 | |
| 14 | Mount-DiskImageWindows | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.4 |
| 15 | gBurner Virtual DriveWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 16 | ImgDriveWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 17 | Paragon Image MounterWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 18 | StarWind RAM DiskWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 5.2 |
| 19 | Mountain DuckWindows · Mac | One bar | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 5.0 |
| 20 | Mount Image ProWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 4.8 |
| 21 | NetDriveWindows · Mac | No signal | — | — | 2 of 6 | — | 4.8 |
| 22 | TntDriveWindows | No signal | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 4.8 |
| 23 | Virtual CDWindows | One bar | — | — | 1 of 6 | — | 4.8 |
Compare all 23 in a table
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Free plan | Paid from | Image formats | Max virtual drives |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal Image Mounter | 6.5 | Free plan | $75.58/mo | Yes | 907 one-time | Raw (dd), DMG, AFF4, E01, Ex01, S01, VHD, VDI, XVA, VMDK, OVA, qcow, qcow2, AVHD, AVHDX | — |
| 2 | ExpanDrive | 6.5 | Free plan | $29/mo | Yes | — | — | — |
| 3 | libguestfs | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | raw, qcow2, vmdk, vdi, vpc, vhd | — |
| 4 | OSFClone | 6.5 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | IMG, DD, ISO, BIN, 00n, NRG, SDI, AFF, AFM, AFD, VMDK, E01, S01, VHD | — |
| 5 | RaiDrive | 6.5 | Free plan | $0.36/mo | Yes | — | — | — |
| 6 | Alcohol 52% | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | CCD, CUE, ISO, BWF, CDI, MDS, NRG | — |
| 7 | CDEmu | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | MDS, MDX, B5T, B6T, CCD, SUB, IMG, CUE, BIN, TOC, CDI, CIF, C2D, ISO, NRG, UDF, DMG, CDR, CSO, ECM, GZ, GBI, WAV, FLAC, DAA, ISZ, XZ | — |
| 8 | DAEMON Tools Lite | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | B5T, B6T, BWT, CCD, CDI, APE, FLAC, CUE, ISO, ISZ, MDS, MDX, NRG, VMDK, VHD, TC, RAR, 7Z, HC, DAA, WIM, BIN, WAV, ISO.WV, UIF | 4 drives |
| 9 | ImDisk | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | raw disk images, VHD, VDI, VMDK, NRG, SDI, BIN | — |
| 10 | TotalMounter | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | ISO, CDI, BIN, MDS, MDF, IMG, RAW, CCD, NRG | — |
| 11 | VHD Attach | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | VHD, VHDX, ISO | — |
| 12 | Virtual CloneDrive | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | ISO, BIN, IMG, UDF, DVD, CCD | 15 drives |
| 13 | WinCDEmu | 6.4 | Free plan | Free | Yes | — | ISO, CUE, NRG, MDS/MDF, CCD, IMG | — |
| 14 | Mount-DiskImage | 5.4 | No | — | — | — | ISO, VHD, VHDX, VHDSet | — |
| 15 | gBurner Virtual Drive | 5.2 | No | — | Yes | — | ISO, GBI/GBP, DAA, NRG, MDF/MDS, BIN/CUE, UIF, ISZ, ASHDISC, DMG, GI, BWI/B5I, IMG, CDI, PDI, NCD, LCD, CIF, P01, PXI, C2D, FCD, VCD | 16 drives |
| 16 | ImgDrive | 5.2 | No | — | Yes | 12 one-time | .ccd, .cue, .iso, .isz, .mds, .nrg, .metaiso, .ashdisc, .cdi, .pdi, .bwt, .b5t, .b6t, .mdx, .uif | 9 drives |
| 17 | Paragon Image Mounter | 5.2 | No | — | — | — | RAW, VMDK, VDI, VHD, pVHD, VHDX | — |
| 18 | StarWind RAM Disk | 5.2 | No | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| 19 | Mountain Duck | 5.0 | No | — | No | — | — | — |
| 20 | Mount Image Pro | 4.8 | No | — | No | — | AD1, DMG, E01, Ex01, L01, Lx01, AFF, AFF4, ISO, VHD, VHDX, MFS01, ProDiscover, SMART, DD, RAW, VMDK, CTR | — |
| 21 | NetDrive | 4.8 | No | — | No | — | — | — |
| 22 | TntDrive | 4.8 | No | — | No | 69.99 one-time | — | — |
| 23 | Virtual CD | 4.8 | No | — | No | 34.95 one-time | Virtual CD images; ISO; NRG; C2D; XMF; IMG; BIN; MDF; BWI; B5I; B6I | — |
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored, and a sponsored row is labelled as paid.
Questions about this list
Which virtual drive software is ranked first on Freedom251?
Arsenal Image Mounter is ranked #1 of 23 with a score of 6.5. ExpanDrive is second and libguestfs third.
How many of these have a free plan?
13 of the 23 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, RaiDrive has the lowest first paid tier we found: $0.36/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked free-and-open first: a usable free tier and open-source code, then the platforms it runs on and its documentation.