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Kubernetes vs Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Aug 24, 2025

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

Kubernetes
Ranking in Container Management
4th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
78
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Nutanix Kubernetes Platform...
Ranking in Container Management
12th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.0
Number of Reviews
6
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Featured Reviews

Venu Boddu - PeerSpot reviewer
Manage infrastructure automation and smooth application deployment with robust auto-scaling capabilities
Kubernetes is highly valuable for its node-based setup, which allows for the running of multiple pods. This feature is essential for infrastructure automation and application deployment. Kubernetes also offers rollback control and auto-scaling capabilities, which are crucial for maintaining an application's availability even if nodes or pods go down. Additionally, Kubernetes supports load balancing to distribute traffic efficiently across multiple pods.
TAIYAB HASAN - PeerSpot reviewer
Has centralized microservices and enabled autonomous team operations through clustered access
I find everything useful in Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) scenario, especially now that we have management clusters separate from production clusters, which gives us more flexibility to work independently, allowing application teams, database teams, or web server teams to work without any involvement from the admin team. Before, it was a bit confusing for all the teams because it was a mix and match, but now it's clear, having multiple clusters running on NKP, with cluster-based access or role-based access, which is one of the best features now in NKP. Automation in Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) is one of the very useful features, as it allows us to define automation, so whether we are there or not, it works as per the requirement, reducing the need to involve everyone every time. The Nutanix intuitive interface looks good; it's not confusing because if you are working on Nutanix HCI, it's a different interface, and if you are working on Nutanix Kubernetes (NKP), it's also a different interface. If you've worked before on Kubernetes, it gives you the same feel and look, making it familiar as the Kubernetes app API is already inbuilt in NKP. The security features of Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) help protect applications; we are utilizing the security level provided by NKP and also using a third-party tool, Palo Alto, to protect in two ways.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The most important feature is container orchestration."
"Kubernetes' most valuable features include scalability and deployment."
"The most valuable feature of the platform is the ability to load some of the containers that were previously managed by humans."
"The most valuable feature of Kubernetes is container orchestration."
"Kubernetes also offers rollback control and auto-scaling capabilities, which are crucial for maintaining an application's availability even if nodes or pods go down."
"Provision of a managed platform as a service."
"The Desired State Configuration is a handy feature; we can deploy a certain number of pods, and the tool will ensure that the state is maintained in our desired configuration."
"The scanning and support network."
"The platform is stable."
"Migration from public cloud to private cloud and vice versa is actually seamless using Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP), making it very handy when providing a Kubernetes platform for customers needing on-premises solutions during application modernization."
"Before working with Nutanix Kubernetes (NKP), I was working on Dockers, which required separate setups for each microservice, application, or web server, but now everything is under one umbrella, allowing us to manage it all without going here and there."
"The stability of Nutanix is exceptional; when operational, it performs flawlessly and demonstrates remarkable resilience."
"The platform is easy to set up, maintain, and update."
 

Cons

"Management features could be simplified."
"Kubernetes could improve security. The security is really hard to deploy with proxies and other elements. Additionally, We have had some issues downloading repos and libraries."
"Security could be improved. It would be helpful if there were other security modules built into Kubernetes."
"I'm expecting more improvement on the UI development side, which can be reflected in each object that is part of Kubernetes, like the Pod, deployment set, ReplicaSet, ConfigMap, Secrets, and PersistentVolume."
"Kubernetes can be complicated to understand."
"The solution does not work with third-party tools, or alternative cloud providers, which limits the extent that we can utilize it to."
"We faced a challenge while migrating and upgrading versions of Kubernetes. After the upgrade, some pods were not up as expected, leading to downtime."
"Kubernetes is incredibly complicated, so one area of improvement is the ease of administration. I would like a user interface that you can run to help you debug and diagnose problems and suggest how to configure things."
"They have to improve their marketplace offering for Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) which is currently limited."
"In Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP), I believe the migration process needs to be much simpler, similar to other Kubernetes platforms we are using, with all steps being clear and direct to facilitate an easier experience for everyone."
"A significant limitation of the Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) is its requirement for extensive Kubernetes knowledge."
"There are some limitations with the non-air gap version as it requires complete internet access, which poses restrictions due to government regulations."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is open source and has no fees."
"I am using the solution's open-source version."
"There are no licensing fees."
"Kubernetes is open-source."
"There is a license to use Kubernetes."
"Kubernetes is open source and is an orchestration platform. It is a cost effective solution and its pricing depends on your company and how you use it"
"If you have a solid AKS and a solid DevOps process, you'll automatically get an ROI, not just in terms of cost but also in how quickly you can see your business application progress."
"I would say the solution is worth the money, but it depends on the required workloads, the type of workload, and the scaling requirements etc."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
15%
Retailer
11%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Government
9%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business25
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise47
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Kubernetes?
There are many good features. I feel that the scale-out features, like replica sets, are very good. The number of running containers can be autoscaled.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Kubernetes?
Since we use Kubernetes on-premises, the costs are related to our expertise and the personnel we hire.
What needs improvement with Kubernetes?
Although we face issues when migrating to new versions of Kubernetes, such as misunderstandings on using new features or integration with proxy services, these issues can be addressed with proper p...
What needs improvement with Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP)?
In Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP), I believe the migration process needs to be much simpler, similar to other Kubernetes platforms we are using, with all steps being clear and direct to facilita...
What is your primary use case for Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP)?
For Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP), we are using applications, web servers, databases, and we have almost more than 100 servers running on NKP and microservices, which are the use cases in our c...
What advice do you have for others considering Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP)?
The security features of Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) help protect applications; we are utilizing the security level provided by NKP and also using a third-party tool, Palo Alto, to protect in...
 

Also Known As

K8
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

China unicom, NetEase Cloud, Nav, AppDirect
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Kubernetes vs. Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
872,706 professionals have used our research since 2012.