Docker vs Rancher Labs comparison

Docker and Rancher Labs are both solutions in the Container Management category. Docker is ranked #5 with an average rating of 8.9, while Rancher Labs is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.8. Docker holds a 2.9% mindshare in CM, compared to Rancher Labs’s 8.9% mindshare. Additionally, 98% of Docker users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Rancher Labs users who would recommend it.

Docker

Read 56 Docker reviews

1,362 Views
1,085 Comparison Views

98% willing to recommend

Rancher Labs

Read 14 Rancher Labs reviews

3,904 Views
2,996 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Docker

Rancher Labs

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 13, 2024

Rancher Labs and Docker compete in the container management and deployment category. Based on feature availability and deployment flexibility, Docker often has the upper hand due to its strong security and portability features, while Rancher Labs specializes in Kubernetes management and storage solutions.

Features: Rancher Labs provides flexibility with strong integration, resource management, and excellent persistent storage capabilities for Kubernetes. It offers open-source options and excels in storage management. Docker is favored for its security, detailed documentation, and ease of use, with superior containerization and portability features for efficient deployments across environments.

Room for Improvement: Rancher Labs could enhance stability, advanced integrations, and support for complex multi-cloud deployments. Improving security features and observability tools is suggested. Docker could improve in stability and documentation, requiring more intuitive management interfaces and enhanced security features. Better integrated monitoring and improved handling of GPU resources for machine learning applications are needed.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Rancher Labs is typically implemented on-premises with reliable support via open-source communities. Docker deploys easily across public, private, and hybrid clouds with praised responsive technical support. Docker's flexibility in cloud adaptability sets it apart, offering a more versatile deployment experience.

Pricing and ROI: Rancher Labs is open-source without licensing fees, providing significant ROI through cost savings, though support fees can be substantial. Docker, largely open-source, offers variable licensing costs based on user needs, facilitating cost-effective scalability. Both offer substantial returns, with Rancher providing comprehensive Kubernetes management without additional expenses unless premium support is selected.

To learn more, read our detailed Docker vs. Rancher Labs Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Docker vs. Rancher Labs

March 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

Docker

Ranking in Container Management

5th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Development Platforms (1st), Software Supply Chain Security (6th)

Rancher Labs

Ranking in Container Management

6th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Storage for Kubernetes (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Container Management category, the mindshare of Docker is 2.9%, down from 3.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rancher Labs is 8.9%, down from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Container Management

Featured Reviews

Rikin Parekh

Backend Engineer at Northeastern University

Useful to create sandbox environments to run applications and makes it easy to test them

Overall, setting up the Docker environment is quite easy. Many methods exist, such as using Docker Compose and Docker networks to communicate between containers. The main challenge lies in designing the architecture and integrating different frameworks and microservices. I would rate the ease of setting up the tool at around nine out of ten. The time it takes to deploy depends on the scale of the system. For the early-stage startup I'm currently working with, it doesn't take much time. It's just me handling the deployment. In our early-stage startup, we have a couple of teams with around four to five backend APIs and two front-end services. Deploying these doesn't take much time. My focus is more on minimizing costs due to our lean startup structure.

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RyanVassallo

Head of Systems and Infrastructure at Booming Games

Offers an open-source version along with a good UI

The product has multiple good features. One of the solution's good features is that it is the GitOps functionality known as Rancher fleet, which is used for continuous delivery. The tool's UI is very convenient enough to help you manage multiple clusters in the cloud or on-premises, making it a product with which you can manage different clusters and locations. The tool also has a feature that is still kind of maturing, but I think it has very good potential. This new feature is named Harvester, which is allows users to have virtual machines managed by Kubernetes engine. This is very new technology in the market. I think that Harvester needs to mature as a product, and I think that in the future, it will be very powerful. You have one tool that does many things for you.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Feature-wise, Docker is very user-friendly...The solution's initial setup process was straightforward."

"The current version is quite good with our application."

"It is a very stable solution. Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"Docker is highly scalable."

"The initial setup was easy, and you are only required to run commands."

"The most valuable feature of Docker is that it provides a containerized environment. The isolation between the environments is beneficial. Additionally, the solution is easy to use."

"The most valuable feature of Docker is automation. When I deploy the solution I am confident it will work anywhere. It is reliable and easy to use."

"The most valuable features of Docker are its security, detailed documentation, and ease of use, and the Docker Swarm is not as complex as Kubernetes."

More Docker pros

"The product is simple to use for a beginner."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is an open-source solution that is easy to deploy."

"The most valuable feature of Rancher Labs is its user interface, which makes it easier to work with containers and deployment."

"The tool's UI is very convenient enough to help you manage multiple clusters in the cloud or the company, making it a product with which you can manage different clusters and locations."

"The scalability potential is very good."

"The initial setup is simple and straightforward."

"This solution is not vendor-locked, which means that we we are able to use it across all of our resources; this feature is of great value to us."

"The solution has a lot of good features, such as you can access the console and edit through the GUI. The dashboard and the UI are designed well, user-friendly, and easy to manage, and access."

More Rancher Labs pros

Cons

"Marketing of Docker is one area that needs to improve."

"Docker management is very difficult when we have a large number of nodes."

"They should provide proper documentation to understand the solution's cgroup process."

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

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

"There may not be much room for improvement with Docker as it has greatly evolved. However, one area that could be improved upon is the documentation on their website which was once easy to follow but has become quite terrible with numerous versions being released. As an example, the installation process for Docker now requires more than just a one-line command, causing inconvenience. Additionally, based on my experience as a college instructor, teaching students to install Docker was a difficult task due to the lack of straightforward and easy-to-follow documentation. Docker should focus on improving their documentation to make it more user-friendly for all."

"Unfortunately, base images are not currently available."

"We'd like knowledge transfer to be easier."

More Docker cons

"We have found that the auto-secure feature of this solution doesn't always work, and could be improved to be more reliable, particularly when working with business critical applications."

"If you have poor infrastructure, you will have issues with the tool."

"I can't migrate to the newer version."

"While Rancher Labs provides some level of security, it's not considered very robust."

"Could be more intuitive."

"We're looking for something that is even easier to use. It's a bit complicated."

"We'd like their monitoring tool to be integrated by default."

"They should improve application visibility along with code visibility."

More Rancher Labs cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is an open-source technology and not a commercial product. However, you will have to pay sometimes. The tool's pricing depends on the vendor."

"There is a license needed to use Docker."

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

"The current cost for us is nothing as an open source."

"Regarding pricing, we primarily use AWS for our deployments since we have funding for it. We don't spend much on Docker-specific services, just the containerization product. Docker Hub isn't particularly expensive either, so overall, the pricing is pretty reasonable."

"Customers pay for the license through a yearly subscription model, where they pay per license. This means that the license is based on a subscription, and the customer pays annually for each license they use."

"Docker is a free-to-use solution. However, Docker Enterprise is not free."

"Docker is a free open-source solution."

More Docker pricing and cost advice

"There are no hidden charges attached to the product unless a user opts for the premium support offered by the solution."

"Although Rancher Labs is an open-source solution, they also offer a paid version, where you buy the support when needed."

"The solution is free and open source but there is a fee for support."

"The cost is reasonable since it's open source. Rancher effectively addresses container orchestration trends, especially for those with some Kubernetes knowledge."

"There is an annual subscription. The price of the solution should be cheaper and have better pricing flexibility."

"This is an open-source solution, so there are no licensing costs involved."

"The pricing of the solution sits in the mid range, not high and not low. It has a fixed price that you pay every month."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Insurance Company

12%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

30%

Computer Software Company

13%

Financial Services Firm

12%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Docker?

We are using Docker to host applications.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Docker?

I consider Docker's pricing to be affordable.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Docker?

In terms of communication between services, perhaps the configuration within networks between containers could be improved.

See all answers

What do you like most about Rancher Labs?

The tool's UI is very convenient enough to help you manage multiple clusters in the cloud or the company, making it a product with which you can manage different clusters and locations.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Rancher Labs?

The cost is reasonable since it's open-source. Rancher effectively addresses container orchestration trends, especially for those with some Kubernetes knowledge.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Rancher Labs?

While Rancher Labs provides some level of security, it's not considered very robust. We found it to offer basic security features, which met some of our requirements, but we also relied on other op...

See all answers

Comparisons

VMware Tanzu Platform vs Docker

Compared 27% of the time

Mirantis Container Runtime vs Docker

Compared 15% of the time

Codespaces vs Docker

Compared 13% of the time

Nutanix Kubernetes Engine NKE vs Docker

Compared 8% of the time

AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) vs Docker

Compared 7% of the time

More Docker Competitors

VMware Tanzu Platform vs Rancher Labs

Compared 36% of the time

Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform vs Rancher Labs

Compared 9% of the time

HashiCorp Nomad vs Rancher Labs

Compared 7% of the time

Nutanix Kubernetes Engine NKE vs Rancher Labs

Compared 7% of the time

Portainer vs Rancher Labs

Compared 5% of the time

More Rancher Labs Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Docker

April 2025

Download Docker product report

Buyer's Guide

Rancher Labs

March 2025

Download Rancher Labs product report

Overview

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.

Docker

Rancher Labs build innovative, open source software that makes it easy to deploy and manage containers in production on any infrastructure. We enable organizations to accelerate all aspects of their software development pipeline, from writing and testing code to running complex microservices-based applications.

Rancher, our flagship container management platform, allows users to easily manage all aspects of running containers in development and production environments, on any infrastructure. With well over four million downloads, Rancher has quickly become the tools of choice for teams serious about running containers in production. This includes large enterprises such as Sony, IBM, Tyco, Align Technologies and more.

Rancher Labs

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Albert Heijn, Bell, BMC, Samsung, WindStream, Johnson & Johnson

Buyer's Guide

Docker vs. Rancher Labs

March 2025

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