Kubernetes vs Portainer comparison

Kubernetes and Portainer are both solutions in the Container Management category. Kubernetes is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.2, while Portainer is ranked #14 with an average rating of 8.0. Kubernetes holds a 5.5% mindshare in CM, compared to Portainer’s 5.7% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Kubernetes users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Portainer users who would recommend it.

Kubernetes

Read 78 Kubernetes reviews

2,832 Views
2,804 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

Portainer

Read 1 Portainer review

1,062 Views
1,062 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Kubernetes

Portainer

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Kubernetes and Portainer based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat, Amazon Web Services (AWS), VMware and others in Container Management.

To learn more, read our detailed Container Management Report (Updated: July 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Container Management

July 2025

Download the complete report

Helped 864,053 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

Kubernetes

Ranking in Container Management

4th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Portainer

Ranking in Container Management

14th

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Container Management category, the mindshare of Kubernetes is 5.5%, down from 8.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Portainer is 5.7%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Container Management

Featured Reviews

Venu Boddu

AWS DevOps Engineer at Hexaware Technologies Limited

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.

Read full review

Elio-Bonazzi

Developer with 1-10 employees

A GUI solution that helps to administer a docker using a browser

The first time using Portainer involves a learning curve. It takes longer as you're unfamiliar with the processes and might be lazy to consult the manual. Initially, you may rely on intuition within the GUI. However, after repeating the same tasks three or four times, the process becomes much quicker.

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

"All the current features are quite harmonic."

"Provides auto rollback and scale-up and scale-down functionalities."

"A good interface, better than comparable solutions."

"If you're switching from VMs to Kubernetes, you will see a return because you can pack more into the Kubernetes architecture using containers rather than VMs. You'll see some more savings on your infrastructure, as well."

"The best feature is autoscaling. It's effortless to use for scaling deployment parts, CI/CD, etc."

"Kubernetes is a leading container orchestration solution, known for its simplicity and ease of use. Being open-source, it benefits from large community support, including enterprise support. Many companies offer their own version of Kubernetes, making it widely adopted and supported in the industry."

"Offers automated rollouts and storage orchestration"

"The best thing about Kubernetes is that most of the containerized applications are centralized."

More Kubernetes pros

"Portainer comes with the ability to take the information of docker definition. Using it, I can visually observe how the container has been created. It allows me to create networks. I can also visually generate volumes and working stacks."

Cons

"Kubernetes can improve pod escalation."

"The Kubernetes dashboard can be improved. It is currently a mess. We were using Rancher earlier, and everyone was happy with the dashboard. Right now, we are using Kubernetes, and it's not working with Microsoft workstations. We still have problems with the dashboard. It's terrible."

"I think that the GUI dashboard in Kubernetes is very simple and that there are no great options."

"We faced a challenge while migrating and upgrading versions of Kubernetes."

"The virtual machines should be GUI-based"

"The lack of native support for billing and self-service capabilities is an area Kubernetes could improve. This requires the use of third-party integrations or managed services in order for customers to be able to deploy clusters on their own. It would be beneficial to have these features built-in into the Kubernetes platform."

"The solution lacks some flexibility."

"Currently has a very minimal UI for certain things."

More Kubernetes cons

"Portainer needs to be more intuitive."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Google Kubernetes Engine is free in the simplest setup, AWS Kubernetes Engine costs about $50 (depending on the region), in a three master setup, so it's almost the same as the cost of the EC2 instances and it's totally fine from my point of view."

"It's an affordable solution"

"If you're using a public cloud, the cost depends on the number of nodes you are planning to deploy Kubernetes on."

"Pricing isn't a major concern for us. Since we resell Kubernetes services and focus on providing support, integration, and education, we don't usually have pricing issues. Our customers are more concerned with getting the right support and services than the cost. So, the value we provide is more important than the actual pricing. Pricing might change in the future, but it’s not a big issue for us right now."

"This is an open-source solution, so there are no licensing costs associated with its use."

"I am using the solution's open-source version."

"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."

"Kubernetes is free; it's open-source software."

More Kubernetes pricing and cost advice

Information not available

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Container Management solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

864,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

14%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Manufacturing Company

14%

Computer Software Company

12%

Comms Service Provider

University

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

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.

See all answers

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.

See all answers

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...

See all answers

What do you like most about Portainer?

Portainer comes with the ability to take the information of docker definition. Using it, I can visually observe how the container has been created. It allows me to create networks. I can also visua...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Portainer?

Portainer needs to be more intuitive.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Portainer?

The tool is a GUI that helps to administer a docker using a browser.

See all answers

Comparisons

VMware Tanzu Platform vs Kubernetes

Compared 36% of the time

Nutanix Kubernetes Engine NKE vs Kubernetes

Compared 13% of the time

Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform vs Kubernetes

Compared 7% of the time

Nutanix Kubernetes Platform (NKP) vs Kubernetes

Compared 6% of the time

Microsoft Defender for Cloud vs Kubernetes

Compared 4% of the time

More Kubernetes Competitors

Komodor vs Portainer

Compared 58% of the time

HashiCorp Nomad vs Portainer

Compared 8% of the time

Docker vs Portainer

Compared 8% of the time

VMware Tanzu Platform vs Portainer

Compared 5% of the time

Rancher Labs vs Portainer

Compared 4% of the time

More Portainer Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Kubernetes

July 2025

Download Kubernetes product report

Buyer's Guide

Container Management

July 2025

Download Portainer product report

Also Known As

No data available

Overview

Kubernetes (K8s) is an open-source system for automating deployment, scaling, and management of containerized applications.
It groups containers that make up an application into logical units for easy management and discovery. Kubernetes builds upon 15 years of experience of running production workloads at Google, combined with best-of-breed ideas and practices from the community.

Kubernetes

Portainer offers a robust platform for managing Docker environments, streamlining containerized application deployments and simplifying complex processes. It provides scalability and efficiency for IT operations.

Portainer facilitates comprehensive management of containerized environments, increasing operational efficiency. Known for its intuitive interface and broad functionality, Portainer minimizes time spent on mundane management tasks. Users benefit from resource optimization and improved visibility in container orchestration. As organizations continue to embrace cloud-native technologies, Portainer becomes a reliable choice for those looking to harness the full potential of Docker while maintaining easy control and oversight of container workloads.

What key features does Portainer offer?

Container Management: Simplifies handling of Docker containers with an easy-to-use interface.
Application Templates: Provides pre-defined templates for faster deployment of applications.
Role-Based Access Control: Ensures secure access through detailed permission settings.
Support for Multi-Cluster: Allows managing multiple clusters from a single point.
Monitoring and Logging: Offers detailed insights and logging for efficient resource monitoring.

Which benefits should be expected from Portainer?

Time Savings: Reduces time spent on manual configurations with its streamlined processes.
Cost Efficiency: Maximizes resource utilization, potentially lowering operational costs.
Enhanced Security: Provides secure management of access and deployments.
Scalability: Supports growth with features that accommodate expanding infrastructures.

In industries like healthcare and finance, Portainer is deployed to manage sensitive data workflows, ensuring compliance and security. It's used in manufacturing for optimizing IoT integrations and in the tech industry to manage microservices efficiently, aligning with modern agile development practices.

Portainer

Sample Customers

China unicom, NetEase Cloud, Nav, AppDirect

Information Not Available

Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat, Amazon Web Services (AWS), VMware and others in Container Management. Updated: July 2025.

DOWNLOAD NOW

864,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best Container Management vendors.

We monitor all Container Management reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.