Codespaces vs Docker comparison

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Codespaces

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 14, 2024

Codespaces and Docker are robust tools designed for software development. Users tend to favor Docker for its versatility and broad feature set, but Codespaces is preferred for its smooth cloud integration and streamlined workflows.

Features: Codespaces offers excellent cloud integration, seamless collaboration features, and straightforward remote work and project sharing. Docker supports numerous environments, integrates well with various CI/CD tools, and has a broad feature set that suits larger teams and complex projects.

Room for Improvement: Codespaces could enhance its performance speed and customization options. Docker has a steep learning curve and would benefit from more user-friendly documentation and tutorials. The complexity of Docker is a common concern among users.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Codespaces users praise its straightforward deployment process and supportive customer service. Docker users find the deployment process more challenging but appreciate the extensive online community and resources. Codespaces is more approachable for smaller teams, while Docker’s support networks help experienced developers navigate its complexities.

Pricing and ROI: Codespaces is recognized for lower initial setup costs and quicker ROI due to reduced setup time and ease of use. Docker requires a higher upfront investment in training and setup but is worth the price for its powerful features and adaptability, delivering substantial ROI over time.

To learn more, read our detailed Codespaces vs. Docker Report (Updated: September 2025).

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Codespaces vs. Docker

September 2025

Helped 871,408 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Codespaces

Ranking in Development Platforms

4th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

4.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

IDE (1st)

Docker

Ranking in Development Platforms

1st

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Container Management (5th), Software Supply Chain Security (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Development Platforms category, the mindshare of Codespaces is 11.4%, up from 9.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Docker is 42.2%, up from 42.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Development Platforms Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
Docker	42.2%
Codespaces	11.4%
Other	46.4%

Development Platforms

Featured Reviews

Zishan Sayyed Yunus

Assistant manager at Interactive avenues

Smooth workflow with deployment and validation efficiency

I think there should be a scheduler option if you want to run it, similar to Google Cloud, where you can specify how long you want to keep your scheduling active. If you want to use it as a server or for a temporary time duration, you should be able to schedule it so the server will be activated between specific durations and auto-deactivate to save costs. Sometimes, at the initial stages, there is a lack of instances. It takes more time to create the instance, but now it's much faster to activate your Codespaces and delete it. The earlier Git Codespaces billing setup on GitHub was much simpler. You could easily see how much credit you have, how much you have used, and your balance. Now they have changed it, and it's confusing to understand how much Codespaces time you have, how much you have used, and how much they are charging.

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Sunny Nair

Solution Architect and Senior Consultant at Keysight Technologies

Offers application conversion to Docker image and a mature environment

The learning curve with Docker is huge and extensive. Adopting Docker is a bit difficult because it requires a lot of expertise and background, including an understanding of networking and security concepts. Many professionals are facing issues with the different architectures that interact with each other in Docker. Whenever in our company, we are working with the production environment, professionals are hesitant to adopt Docker due to the extensive learning curve, and most of the team members in our company are more accustomed to an environment like VMware instead of Docker. Docker runs on scripts, so if AI can automate most of the scripting process in Docker, it would be a great advantage in the future version of Docker. As of now, we can create scripts utilizing most of the functions within Docker, but that initial planning phase wherein to understand exactly how you will plan for the resources, how you will convert applications into a Docker-based image, and similar tasks needs to be simplified so that more professionals can adopt Docker.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"The product allows us to implement feature-related changes or improvements on time. Whenever I write a section of the code or create a new code, it automatically integrates with the former code."

"The integration with Visual Studio Code offers a good and fast user experience that feels like a local experience."

"The most valuable features of the solution are Copilot and Advanced Security."

"Codespaces' most valuable feature is the repository, which helps the developers to work together. Its data commands are also useful."

"The developer experience is consistent, and its pricing makes sense since it optimizes the resources."

"The most valuable feature is the simple containerization."

"Docker allows you to run multiple virtual machines independently."

"The most valuable feature of Docker is its integration with other solutions, such as KVM and AlmaLinux."

"The stability is excellent."

"Docker packages up an application as a single item that you can then run without the need to install or configure it to work on any specific machine."

"The solution's customer service is good."

"Docker creates lightweight applications that are easy to manage and scale."

"The lift and shift creates a lightweight image."

More Docker pros

Cons

"When I close the laptop and open it in a different place, the state of the environment disappears, and I need to rerun several commands. This context switch affects productivity."

"The main issue is related to state preservation on a disconnection. When I close the laptop and open it in a different place, the state of the environment disappears, and I need to rerun several commands."

"We get merge conflict errors and need to resolve them."

"The product indicates incorrect statistics."

"The technical support could respond faster."

"The earlier Git Codespaces billing setup on GitHub was much simpler. You could easily see how much credit you have, how much you have used, and your balance. Now they have changed it, and it's confusing to understand how much Codespaces time you have, how much you have used, and how much they are charging."

"Sometimes, it can become heavy and cause performance issues."

"Sometimes, we have sync-up issues where the build doesn't get processed due to these sync issues, causing the build to fail. That's one of the drawbacks I see. When we did a huge sync-up, we faced a couple of issues. It takes some time for us to complete the sync-up. For frequent, smaller updates, we haven't had any issues. However, challenges can arise for those who prefer doing everything in one go. This might not necessarily be due to the tool itself but because of the approach of doing everything in a single batch."

"I have encountered network issues while connecting with microservices. I want to optimize the application layers over the bucket. It should also have better documentation."

"I would like to see a single package image orchestration bundled together."

"Owing to a few shortcomings in its stability, I would say that its stability can be improved."

"The volumes for persistent storage could be more user friendly right out of the box."

"The solution is not easy to manage and it is one of the reasons why people introduce orchestration tools to manage it."

"There is always room for improvement. I often refer to forums such as StackOverflow to learn from other developers' experiences and the challenges they have faced while using Docker."

More Docker cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I am using the product’s free version."

"From what I've seen, the solution doesn't seem like it's overly expensive for what you get."

"It's an open-source solution, so it doesn't cost anything"

"Docker is a free tool."

"The product is not expensive."

"We are using the open-source version of the solution."

"Docker is cost-effective and open-source."

"Pricing is based on the number of users."

"Since Docker is an open-source solution, it is free of cost."

"Docker has made some changes and there is an enterprise version that is affordable."

More Docker pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Development Platforms solutions are best for your needs.

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871,408 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

13%

Educational Organization

12%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

12%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Insurance Company

Financial Services Firm

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	22
Midsize Enterprise	4
Large Enterprise	34

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Codespaces?

The most valuable features of the solution are Copilot and Advanced Security.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Codespaces?

It's not expensive. It's very cheap compared to others such as Google. Google's same service is much more expensive because it will install the pre-dependencies and takes a longer time to activate....

What needs improvement with Codespaces?

What do you like most about Docker?

We are using Docker to host applications.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Docker?

Regarding the cost, Mirantis Container Cloud is cheaper than other solutions like Red Hat. The license costs around 10,000 Indian rupees per year.

What needs improvement with Docker?

Mirantis Container Cloud should have AI integration tools, which are not available right now. These tools should assist in app scalability and deployment error handling.

SonarQube for IDE (formerly SonarLint) vs Codespaces

Comparisons

AWS Cloud9 vs Codespaces

Compared 45% of the time

Replit vs Codespaces

Compared 29% of the time

Compared 6% of the time

RStudio vs Codespaces

Compared 3% of the time

JetBrains IDEs vs Codespaces

Compared 3% of the time

More Codespaces Competitors

VMware Tanzu Platform vs Docker

Compared 15% of the time

Portainer vs Docker

Compared 9% of the time

Mirantis Container Runtime vs Docker

Compared 8% of the time

Minimus vs Docker

Compared 8% of the time

NGINX Ingress Controller vs Docker

Compared 7% of the time

More Docker Competitors

Product Reports

Download Codespaces product report

Codespaces

October 2025

Download Docker product report

October 2025

Overview

Your instant dev environment
Get the full Visual Studio Code experience without leaving GitHub.

Code without compromise
Code, build, test, debug, and deploy with a complete development environment in your browser.

Simplify your workflow
Automatically set up dependencies and SSH keys. Go from code to commit faster on any project.

Extend and customize
Configure your editor with dotfiles and VS Code extensions to create a consistent environment in every codespace.

Develop from anywhere, anytime
With your development in the cloud, you can contribute code from any device, using VS Code or your browser.

Dependencies, decluttered
Contribute to projects without complicating your local setup. Spin up dev environments with a click—even for projects you haven't worked on before—and switch between them with ease.

GitHub

Docker is a versatile container platform used for running and deploying applications in isolated environments, ensuring consistency across development, testing, and production.

Docker offers solutions for containerizing applications, automating deployments, and managing infrastructure through its robust platform. It supports CI/CD workflows, provides a development platform for container management, and simplifies the setup by using streamlined tools. Organizations leverage Docker for building microservices, running UI applications, deploying web services, and setting up secure environments. It also facilitates managing containers via Kubernetes and creating development stacks for enhanced productivity.

What are Docker's key features?

Security: Offers containment and isolation of applications.
Easy Use: Simplifies the deployment and management of applications.
Documentation: Extensive resources to aid in understanding and implementation.
Customization: Flexible environment configurations.
Scalability: Efficiently handles applications irrespective of scale.
Internal DNS: Manages network configurations within the container ecosystem.
Overlay Networks: Facilitates seamless inter-container communication.
Resource Efficiency: Optimizes usage of system resources.

What benefits should users look for?

Consistency: Ensures homogeneous environments across development, testing, and production stages.
Portability: Allows applications to run consistently on any platform.
Cost-Effectiveness: Reduces overhead costs associated with application deployment.
Speed: Accelerates the build, test, and deployment cycles.
Flexibility: Supports various tools and integrations to adapt to different workflows.

Industries implement Docker for CI/CD pipelines, scaling services, and improving resource utilization. Tech companies use Docker for building and deploying their software in isolated environments. Finance and healthcare sectors deploy applications securely, ensuring compliance with regulatory standards. Educational institutions set up consistent development environments for coding labs and training students in advanced technologies.