Google Kubernetes Engine vs VMware Tanzu Platform comparison

Google and VMware are both solutions in the Container Management category. Google is ranked #11 with an average rating of 8.1, while VMware is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.5. Google holds a 2.2% mindshare in CM, compared to VMware’s 12.1% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Google users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of VMware users who would recommend it.

Google Kubernetes Engine

Read 39 Google Kubernetes Engine reviews

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817 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

VMware Tanzu Platform

Read 22 VMware Tanzu Platform reviews

7,257 Views
4,935 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Google Kubernetes Engine

VMware Tanzu Platform

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jun 15, 2025

Google Kubernetes Engine and VMware Tanzu Platform compete in the cloud and container management domain. Google Kubernetes Engine has an edge with stronger integration with Google services and affordability, whereas VMware Tanzu appeals to enterprises using VMware infrastructures.

Features: Google Kubernetes Engine provides a seamless deployment experience and robust autoscaling beneficial for users in multi-cloud environments. It integrates easily with Google services like BigQuery and VertexAI, enhancing data processing efficiency. VMware Tanzu Platform offers strong integration with existing VMware products like vSphere, providing a comprehensive solution for infrastructure, networking, and storage. Notable features include advanced dashboard capabilities and efficient lifecycle management.

Room for Improvement: Google Kubernetes Engine could simplify network configurations and improve documentation clarity. Enhancing application-level security integration is another area requiring attention. Improving the response time of technical support has been noted. VMware Tanzu could enhance integration with third-party solutions and boost flexibility in handling diverse infrastructures. Pricing is a concern, particularly for smaller enterprises, as it is higher compared to other options.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Google Kubernetes Engine facilitates efficient deployment, favoring public and hybrid cloud environments, coupled with a robust support system. However, there is mixed feedback regarding support responsiveness. VMware Tanzu is effective in hybrid cloud setups and integrates seamlessly with VMware's suite of products. Both platforms are known for good customer service, although Google could improve its technical support response times. VMware offers better integration with its solutions.

Pricing and ROI: Google Kubernetes Engine is viewed as affordable, benefiting from an open-source base, though resource costs like GPU-based applications may increase prices. It offers a cost-effective solution overall, although some find regional redundancy costs steep. VMware Tanzu is generally more expensive, catering mainly to large enterprises capable of leveraging bundle discounts. The higher pricing reflects its extensive capabilities within VMware environments. Both solutions deliver substantial ROI, with Google appealing to startups with its flexible integration, while VMware suits enterprises with existing VMware investments.

To learn more, read our detailed Google Kubernetes Engine vs. VMware Tanzu Platform Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Google Kubernetes Engine vs. VMware Tanzu Platform

July 2025

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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

Google Kubernetes Engine

Ranking in Container Management

11th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.7

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

VMware Tanzu Platform

Ranking in Container Management

3rd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Build Automation (13th), PaaS Clouds (13th), Cloud Management (24th), Development Platforms (3rd), Service Mesh (8th), Agile and DevOps Services (2nd)

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2025, in the Container Management category, the mindshare of Google Kubernetes Engine is 2.2%, down from 2.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of VMware Tanzu Platform is 12.1%, down from 17.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Container Management Market Share Distribution
Product	Market Share (%)
VMware Tanzu Platform	12.1%
Google Kubernetes Engine	2.2%
Other	85.7%

Container Management

Featured Reviews

Parthasarathy T

Cloud Associate DevOps at Publicis Sapient

Managed solutions enable efficient handling of web applications and migration projects

Google Kubernetes Engine can be improved by enabling the in-place upgrade of the machine type of an existing node pool since I currently need to destroy and recreate it. There is no feature present where I can upgrade directly, and having more than 1,000 to 2,000 workloads in one node pool makes changing the node pool name difficult for all those workloads. I choose eight out of ten mainly because of the node pool upgrade challenge I mentioned, but also because of the existence of Anthos service mesh, which is the ingress controller available only for the enterprise Kubernetes Engine. It would be beneficial if it could be offered in the normal Kubernetes Engine with any limitations.

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DarshanChaudhari

Solutions Architect Hybrid Cloud Practice US/Europe at Tech Mahindra Limited

Empowers seamless connectivity and integration through APIs while offering robust auto-scaling

I am involved in IT services and we provide a solution to customers. We work with VMware, Nutanix, OpenShift, and Microsoft Hyper-V The Tanzu platform is highly available, scalable, and flexible. It offers native services for autoscaling and integrations through APIs, allowing seamless…

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

"It's easy to manage and deploy. It's the best."

"The solution is available across AWS, GCP and Azure and is seamless."

"We appreciate that it is quite easy to set up a Kubernetes cluster in Google Cloud, using the managed services within this solution."

"We hardly have a breakdown. It's been very stable."

"The most valuable feature of Google Kubernetes Engine is how you can automatically scale and load balance."

"I am satisfied with the stability offered by the solution."

"The main advantage of GKE is that it is a managed service. This means that Google is responsible for managing the master node in the Kubernetes cluster system. As a result, we can focus on deploying applications to the slaves, while Google handles any updates and security patches. The fact that GKE is fully integrated into the Google ecosystem, including solutions such as BigQuery and VertexAI. This makes it easier for us to integrate these tools into our process. This integration ultimately speeds up our time to market and reduces the time and effort spent on managing infrastructure. The managed aspect of GKE allows us to simply deploy and utilize it without having to worry about the technicalities of infrastructure management."

"We used automation for the initial setup. It was okay. So it wasn't too complex."

More Google Kubernetes Engine pros

"It definitely gives the end customer a good overview and perspective of running applications in terms of overall workload footprint. TMC provides a very detailed description of your cloud-native application in the form of graphical visualization."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is the ability to check the flow of all the different variants within our applications."

"VMware Tanzu Mission Control has many valuable features, such as ease of use and customization."

"Defining security metrics has proven beneficial for customers in maintaining a safe environment."

"The Day 2 operations support is the most vital feature"

"I have multiple Kubernetes environments within my environment. TMC gives me a single pane view, which is good for managing everything."

"The valuable feature I have found to be the management of Kubernetes clusters in a private cloud or public clouds, such as Azure or Google Cloud Platform."

"There are a lot of services available in VMware Tanzu Application Service, such as databases and application servers. You have everything you need in one application and you do not need to search outside of the solution."

More VMware Tanzu Platform pros

Cons

"I have created a couple of issues with Google tech support, and I am not satisfied with the assistance I received."

"The tool's configuration features need improvement."

"The console for this solution could be improved because it is very limited."

"There is room for improvement in the cluster updates process. Specifically, when managing both non-production and production clusters, we need a sequential functionality."

"Our critique is that we have to do too much work to get the cluster production-ready."

"The user interface is a bit confusing sometimes. You need to navigate between the various consoles we have. It's hard to figure out where things are. It's frustrating. The documentation could be a bit better."

"There is room for improvement in this solution. For example, auto-scaling can be complex. We expect it to be easier to set up and manage, even for our customers."

"Google Kubernetes Engine is less stable in some highly complex deployments with many nodes."

More Google Kubernetes Engine cons

"The solution is currently focused on VMware infrastructure and I would like to see more options made available."

"Customers have noticed a considerable price increase after VMware's acquisition by Broadcom."

"Addressing the high upfront costs could improve the product. Implementing a subscription-based model with tiered service options could make it more accessible to a broader range of customers."

"The solution's initial setup process was complex...The solution could benefit from improved customization and visibility for its users."

"Tanzu could provide more granular control over whatever networking is being done on the containers. I would also like to see a slightly more detailed view of application-level tracing. I'm referring to the connections between different microservices. If they added a service-matching feature, that would be helpful for the customers to build or be more effective."

"The network control and security policies must be improved."

"LYNX is a managed cluster solution that takes care of specific details within a cluster, such as sequences or services. I haven't seen this feature in Tanzu Mission Control."

"This product doesn't have a GUI. In order to use it properly, I need to connect it to a new GUI or build a GUI to manage it — it's pretty difficult."

More VMware Tanzu Platform cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the product's price a six on a scale of one to ten, where one is low price and ten is high price. The product is competitively priced."

"The product is a little bit expensive."

"Its pricing is good. They bill us only per user. That's nice."

"The tool's licensing costs are yearly."

"The solution's price is reasonable."

"This is an open source solution, so there is no pricing or licensing."

"Currently, it costs around $1000 per month which sorted our deployment. So once we get more clients, having a huge suffix, costs can go up."

"We are planning to use external support, and hire a commercial partner for it."

More Google Kubernetes Engine pricing and cost advice

"One of our Spanish customers told us that VMware Tanzu Service Mesh is a very expensive product for their data center."

"The product is not expensive, but it is not cheap."

"There are different licenses available. You have to upgrade your license if you want to scale the solution more."

"I would recommend that businesses look into the full price for their requirements. The price is high, but there are some open-source add-ons that can be used for customization while keeping costs down, although these might not be suitable for everyone."

"Since we were at a large data center, the price might not have been a concern for us."

"VMware Tanzu Mission Control is cheaper than Red Hat OpenShift."

"It is not the most expensive option, and I believe the capabilities align well with the value it provides."

"The price of VMware Tanzu Mission Control is greater than that of Red Hat's competitor solution"

More VMware Tanzu Platform pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

24%

Computer Software Company

10%

Retailer

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

16%

Computer Software Company

13%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	20
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	15

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	10
Midsize Enterprise	3
Large Enterprise	9

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Google Kubernetes Engine?

The product has no downtime.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Kubernetes Engine?

My experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing for Google Kubernetes Engine is straightforward, as I previously indicated. The need for humans is reduced with GCP since there is no need for ...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Google Kubernetes Engine?

See all answers

Which is better - OpenShift Container Platform or VMware Tanzu Mission Control?

Red Hat Openshift is ideal for organizations using microservices and cloud environments. I like that the platform is auto-scalable, which saves overhead time for developers. I think Openshift can b...

See all answers

What do you like most about VMware Tanzu Mission Control?

It definitely gives the end customer a good overview and perspective of running applications in terms of overall workload footprint. TMC provides a very detailed description of your cloud-native ap...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for VMware Tanzu Mission Control?

The price of VMware Tanzu Mission Control is greater than that of Red Hat's competitor solution. I would rate the pricing of VMware Tanzu Mission Control as four out of ten.

See all answers

Comparisons

Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform vs Google Kubernetes Engine

Compared 25% of the time

Akamai Connected Cloud (Linode) vs Google Kubernetes Engine

Compared 16% of the time

Docker vs Google Kubernetes Engine

Compared 15% of the time

Rancher Labs vs Google Kubernetes Engine

Compared 13% of the time

Kubernetes vs Google Kubernetes Engine

Compared 12% of the time

More Google Kubernetes Engine Competitors

Rancher Labs vs VMware Tanzu Platform

Compared 17% of the time

Kubernetes vs VMware Tanzu Platform

Compared 13% of the time

Red Hat OpenShift vs VMware Tanzu Platform

Compared 10% of the time

Docker vs VMware Tanzu Platform

Compared 6% of the time

HashiCorp Consul vs VMware Tanzu Platform

Compared 2% of the time

More VMware Tanzu Platform Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Google Kubernetes Engine

September 2025

Download Google Kubernetes Engine product report

Buyer's Guide

VMware Tanzu Platform

August 2025

Download VMware Tanzu Platform product report

Also Known As

GKE

Tanzu Application Catalog, Application Platform, Application Service, Hub, Mission Control, Service Mesh, Build Service, Concourse for VMware Tanzu

Overview

Kubernetes Engine is a managed, production-ready environment for deploying containerized applications. It brings our latest innovations in developer productivity, resource efficiency, automated operations, and open source flexibility to accelerate your time to market.

Google

VMware Tanzu Platform is designed for cloud-native development and management of Kubernetes, CI/CD processes, microservices, and containerized workloads. It supports deployments both on cloud and on-premises, providing centralized management via Mission Control.

VMware Tanzu Platform offers seamless integration with vSphere, ESX, and vSAN, supporting centralized cluster management and lifecycle management. The platform provides a GUI for monitoring CI/CD pipelines and network policies, enhancing multi-tenancy and Day 2 operations. Users can easily manage Kubernetes clusters, monitor applications, and integrate with tools such as GitHub, GitLab, Cloud Foundry, and Azure. It ensures compliance and security for service providers, financial institutions, and businesses.

What are the key features of VMware Tanzu Platform?

Integration with vSphere, ESX, and vSAN: Enhances compatibility and flexibility.
Seamless Cluster Management: Centralized control over Kubernetes clusters.
CI/CD Pipelines and Network Policies: Simplifies monitoring and management.
Multi-tenancy Support: Facilitates resource sharing among multiple users.
Comprehensive Lifecycle Management: Streamlines deployment and scalability.
Observability Platform: Provides enhanced visibility and control.

What benefits and ROI should users look for in VMware Tanzu Platform reviews?

Centralized Management: Simplifies operations and reduces manual effort.
Enhanced Compliance and Security: Meets regulatory requirements.
Flexibility in Deployment: Supports both cloud and on-premises options.
Seamless Integration: Works with multiple vendors and tools.
Developer-Friendly Environment: Improves productivity and innovation.

Industries such as financial institutions, service providers, and businesses requiring rigorous compliance and security deploy VMware Tanzu Platform. These entities benefit from centralized management, streamlined DevOps processes, and integrated tools, enhancing their capabilities in cloud-native developments and containerized workloads.

VMware

Sample Customers

Philips Lighting, Alpha Vertex, GroupBy, BQ

Verizon, Cerner, Zipcar, Avarteq

Buyer's Guide

Google Kubernetes Engine vs. VMware Tanzu Platform

July 2025

Free Report: Google Kubernetes Engine vs. VMware Tanzu Platform

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