Benchmark Your VMware Renewal
Under Broadcom’s ownership, VMware’s renewal pricing has become more opaque. Renewal quotes often arrive with minimal explanation or cost breakdown, making it hard to tell if the price is fair or inflated.
The only sure way to validate your VMware renewal quote is to benchmark it against the market. This process replaces vendor guesswork with facts—turning “we think it’s fair” into “we know it’s not.”
This guide will show you how to gather pricing intelligence, benchmark your VMware renewal quote against the market, and leverage that insight to negotiate a better deal.
Pro Tip: The vendor’s definition of fair pricing protects their margin, not yours.
For an overview of benchmarking pricing, read our guide, VMware Pricing Benchmark – Understanding the New Broadcom Discount Reality.
Why Benchmarking Your Quote Matters
Benchmarking your VMware renewal quote is essential because pricing fairness is all about context. A price that’s reasonable for a small business could be outrageous for a global enterprise.
Factors like your organization’s size, industry, region, and the specific products you’re renewing all influence what a fair rate looks like. Without a benchmark for comparison, you risk accepting an inflated quote that bakes in Broadcom’s steep list prices or erases the discounts you previously enjoyed.
Broadcom’s pricing approach may limit discounts and push ‘standard’ subscription bundles, but it doesn’t eliminate your leverage. If your renewal cost has spiked or your discount has shrunk without a clear reason, you need comparative data to push back.
A benchmark becomes your reality check. It lets you tell VMware — and your own CFO — that “this quote isn’t in line with the market, and we have the numbers to prove it.”
Pro Tip: If you can’t explain to your CFO why the renewal price changed, you’ve lost your leverage. Benchmark data gives you that explanation.
Step-by-Step – How to Benchmark Your VMware Renewal Quote
- Gather Your Baseline Data: Start by collecting all the details from your renewal quote and past contracts. List every SKU, quantity, and term length, along with any quoted discounts or special terms. Ask VMware or your reseller for a full pricing breakdown — including the current list price of each SKU, the split between license and support costs, and any multi-year arrangements or price escalations. Having this clear baseline ensures you’re comparing apples to apples when you benchmark.
- Compare to Your Historical Discounts: Pull out your last VMware contract or invoice and calculate the effective discount you were getting off list prices. For example, if your previous enterprise agreement was priced about 35% off VMware’s list, but your new quote is only offering 15% off, a 20-point drop and a major red flag. This historical comparison gives you a specific starting point to question: “What’s different now, and why do we deserve worse terms?”
- Ask Your Network for Insights: Don’t underestimate the power of peer knowledge. Reach out to trusted contacts in CIO networks, ITAM communities, or vendor management forums. Ask if anyone has recently renewed similar VMware bundles or products. Peers may share anonymized data — for instance, that they secured around 25% off for a similar volume, or got other concessions.
- Consult Industry Benchmarks: Leverage any analyst reports or market data you can find. Research firms often publish typical discount ranges for enterprise software. For example, a study might show that companies spending around €10 million on VMware usually receive 30–40% off list prices. Even general figures like these give you a solid reference point. You can also engage independent advisors or benchmarking services to confidentially verify whether your quote aligns with current market norms.
- Engage a Benchmarking Partner: If you need deeper analysis, bring in a third-party benchmarking service. Such firms (like ours) aggregate deal data from many VMware customers. They might show, for example, that organizations of your size typically pay 20–25% less for the same bundle, and provide a report of real-world discount ranges. This independent reference carries weight and arms your team with credible evidence to counter any “standard price” claims.
- Test the Market Outside VMware: Even if Broadcom tightly controls official pricing, try to get an outside perspective. See if a VMware partner can quote the same renewal, or solicit pricing for a comparable solution (from a cloud provider or another virtualization platform). It may not be a perfect apples-to-apples comparison, but if alternative options come in significantly cheaper, you have leverage. At the very least, this signals to VMware that you have other options on the table.
Pro Tip: Every external data point strengthens your case — vendors rarely argue with evidence. The more benchmarks you bring, the more “real” your challenge becomes.
Read comparison pricing, Industry Benchmark – VMware Pricing in Finance vs Healthcare.
Checklist – Benchmarking Steps Summary
- Collect your current quote details – Gather SKUs, list prices, and proposed discounts.
- Compare vs. last contract – Note your previous effective discount (%) and any price protection terms.
- Check your spend tier norms – Estimate typical discounts for your spend level.
- Ask peer organizations – Ask peers in user groups or forums about their recent VMware renewals.
- Review industry benchmarks – Use analyst data or reports to see standard pricing/discount ranges.
- Get third-party input – Consider a benchmarking service or an alternate reseller quote for validation.
- Leverage the data – Use those facts to ask VMware for a fairer price or extra concessions.
Example – Re-Negotiating After Benchmarking
Scenario: A global manufacturer received a renewal quote at only 15% off the list price for a VMware software suite.
Sensing this was too low, the IT procurement lead quietly asked a peer in a CIO forum and discovered a similar-sized company had just renewed a comparable VMware bundle at 30% off. Armed with this insight, they engaged a benchmarking advisor to validate the discrepancy.
The advisor confirmed that discounts in the 25–30% range were typical for that product set and spend level, indicating the 15% offer was far above market.
Using the advisor’s report as evidence, the manufacturer went back to Broadcom and calmly made their case. Confronted with hard data, Broadcom relented: the customer received an additional 12% discount, bringing the total to 27% off the list price.
This example illustrates how benchmarking can transform a negotiation. One credible data point helped save the company millions and turn an initially one-sided quote into a fair deal — all by presenting the proof.
Pro Tip: One verified data point can save millions — use it.
Using Benchmark Data in Your Negotiation
Having strong benchmark data is only half the battle — you also need to use it wisely. When negotiating with VMware/Broadcom, stay cooperative but firm. Present your findings calmly and factually, framing them in terms of fairness and market value.
For example, explain that your research shows similar organizations pay about 25% less, and ask how to get your pricing into that range. Focus on aligning with market standards rather than accusing them of overcharging.
Whenever possible, reference written benchmarks or reports instead of anecdotes. Showing the math behind your counteroffer keeps the discussion objective. You can also leverage timing to your advantage.
If you know VMware’s quarter-end is approaching, or you’re willing to commit to a multi-year deal, mention that alongside your data. For instance, “If you can meet a 25% discount, we’re ready to sign a three-year renewal this quarter.”
Remain professional and avoid ultimatums. The goal of benchmarking is to reach a fair outcome, not to start a fight.
Pro Tip: The best negotiators don’t guess — they show the math.
5 Rules for Benchmarking VMware Quotes Effectively
- Don’t trust “standard pricing” at face value. Vendors might say a quote is “standard,” but in enterprise software, there’s no single standard price — big deals are always negotiable.
- Always know your previous discount level. Your own history is your first benchmark. If you don’t realize you had 40% off last time, you might mistakenly think 20% now is generous.
- Validate through multiple sources. One data point helps, but two or three independent benchmarks (peer pricing, analyst data, third-party quotes) make your case much stronger.
- Document everything before pushing back. Write down all the relevant figures and proof. A concise summary of “what we found” can be shared with executives or the vendor.
- Use benchmarks to reset the tone. Instead of arguing “this price is outrageous!”, let data do the talking. Facts turn confrontation into a constructive discussion about reaching a fair number.
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