The world of virtualization is changing rapidly. Less than a year ago there was no such thing as a ‘free hypervizor’. Now all major players on the virtualization field offer a free version. There is no such thing as a free lunch. This is also true for virtualization. Advanced options still need to be paid for.
I will try to produce a freature and cost overview of the various solutions available.
Feature overview Citrix XenServer versus VMware ESXi
Both products are free.

Overview of Citrix XenServer and VMware ESXi
VMware free ESXi and paid ESX licenses feature overview

Cost overview VMware ESX versus Hyper-V R1, Citrix XenServer, Virtual Iron
source VMware
http://www.vmware.com/files/pdf/technology/vmware_cost_comparison_chart.pdf

VMware Competitive Resource Center http://www.vmware.com/technology/whyvmware/resources.html
Price overview for SMB’s. Hyper-V versus VMware ESXi
VMware ESXi vs Microsoft Hyper-V: which one is better for SMBs? http://www.virtualization.info/2008/07/vmware-esxi-vs-microsoft-hyper-v-which.html
Apples, Oranges, and Hypervisor Price Comparisons http://dcsblog.burtongroup.com/data_center_strategies/2008/08/apples-oranges.html
IT 2.0 Main Blog ESX 3.5i for free and the impact on Hyper-V and the SMB (my thoughts on Mike’s post) http://it20.info/blogs/main/archive/2008/08/05/135.aspx