Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Kubernetes vs Rancher Labs comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 13, 2024
 

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
Rancher Labs
Ranking in Container Management
6th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Data Storage for Kubernetes (3rd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Container Management category, the mindshare of Kubernetes is 4.8%, down from 10.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Rancher Labs is 8.4%, up from 8.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Container Management
 

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.
RyanVassallo - PeerSpot reviewer
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.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We find the smooth, instant fail-safes in this solution to be very useful, as this allows for easy revival of dying quads or failing applications."
"The deployment is one of the most valuable feature."
"The scalability seems quite good."
"Kubernetes is highly valuable for its node-based setup, which allows for the running of multiple pods."
"The cluster is very stable with outward scalability and good performance."
"The most valuable features of Kubernetes are the integration with Docker and there is plenty of documentation available. We work with Docker as a container, and it is more integrated with Docker than VMware Tanzu."
"Kubernetes is scalable and the elasticity is sustainable."
"The ease of use if the solution is a very valuable aspect for us."
"A great UI with very good integrations."
"The initial setup is simple and straightforward."
"The most valuable feature is its comprehensive support, easy resource scaling, compatibility with various OEMs, and seamless service integration."
"The product is simple to use for a beginner."
"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."
"Rancher Labs is a very user-friendly tool."
"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."
"The most valuable feature of Rancher Labs is its user interface, which makes it easier to work with containers and deployment."
 

Cons

"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."
"Currently has a very minimal UI for certain things."
"Absence of a built-in feature for local API creation"
"The network policies and RBAC management across multi-clusters could be improved. This is an issue we're trying to solve in the market."
"We would like to see more validation tools added to this solution, this would provide pre-deployment analysis that developers could use before publishing their infrastructure."
"Lacks some scalability and more user-friendly operability."
"The solution can be quite complex for many users."
"Kubernetes' VM functionality and security could be improved."
"If you have poor infrastructure, you will have issues with the tool."
"The biggest room for improvement in Rancher Labs would be to have a proper upgrading plan."
"I can't migrate to the newer version."
"The solution could improve by adding more features in the dashboard, such as monitoring, scanning, and security. This would be a great benefit."
"Could be more intuitive."
"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."
"They should improve application visibility along with code visibility."
"We're looking for something that is even easier to use. It's a bit complicated."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I am using the solution's open-source version."
"There is no licensing fee."
"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."
"Kubernetes is an open-source solution that can be free. We have some distribution with licenses, such OpenShift and Tucows in Amazon. They are billing services."
"The management layer is free, which is perfect. You don't need to pay money for the management layer, but in AWS develop service, you need to pay. I think it is €75 per month for the management layer. It is free here, so you can have as many Kubernetes clusters as you need. You are paying just for the workload, that is, for the machine, CPU, memory, and everything."
"The solution is open source and has no fees."
"It's an affordable solution"
"Kubernetes is free; it's open-source software."
"There are no hidden charges attached to the product unless a user opts for the premium support offered by the solution."
"The solution is free and open source but there is a fee for support."
"This is an open-source solution, so there are no licensing costs involved."
"Although Rancher Labs is an open-source solution, they also offer a paid version, where you buy the support when needed."
"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."
"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."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Container Management solutions are best for your needs.
824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Government
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Computer Software Company
18%
Financial Services Firm
14%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

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 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.
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.
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...
 

Also Known As

K8
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

China unicom, NetEase Cloud, Nav, AppDirect
Albert Heijn, Bell, BMC, Samsung, WindStream, Johnson & Johnson
Find out what your peers are saying about Kubernetes vs. Rancher Labs and other solutions. Updated: December 2024.
824,053 professionals have used our research since 2012.