What is Kubernetes used for?

Kubernetes is an open-source system for deploying, scaling and managing containerized applications across clusters of hosts, hosted by the CNCF. It is a good fit for running microservices in production, standardizing deployment across clusters and platform engineering for DevOps teams.

Is Kubernetes open source?

Yes. Kubernetes is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at kubernetes/kubernetes and is written mainly in Go.

Yes. Kubernetes is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available.

Can I self-host Kubernetes?

Yes. Kubernetes can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What is Kubernetes an alternative to?

Kubernetes is an open-source alternative to Amazon EKS, Google Kubernetes Engine, Azure Kubernetes Service and Red Hat OpenShift. Other open-source alternatives to Amazon EKS include K3s, Rancher and Talos Linux.

Is Kubernetes actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Kubernetes was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.37.1, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 128k stars on GitHub.

Kubernetes: open-source alternative to Amazon EKS

About Kubernetes

Kubernetes, also written K8s, is an open-source system that manages containerized applications across multiple hosts. It provides the basic mechanisms for deploying, maintaining and scaling applications, so teams can run containers reliably without scheduling each one by hand. It is written in Go and released under the Apache-2.0 license.

The project builds on years of experience running production workloads at Google with an internal system called Borg, combined with practices from the wider community. The Cloud Native Computing Foundation hosts the project. Users interact with it through declarative configuration and the documentation on kubernetes.io, which includes tutorials and a free course on scalable microservices.

Kubernetes can be run on your own infrastructure, and major cloud providers also offer managed Kubernetes services. The README adds that the k8s.io/kubernetes module is not supported for use as a library. It suits platform and DevOps teams running microservices that need scheduling, scaling and automatic recovery.

Key features

Container scheduling across multiple hosts
Automated application deployment and rollouts
Scaling of containerized workloads
Maintenance and self-healing of applications
Declarative configuration of desired state
CNCF-hosted with extensive documentation

Good fit for

→Running microservices in production
→Standardizing deployment across clusters
→Platform engineering for DevOps teams

Built with: Go; Kubernetes
Tags: kubernetes; containers; orchestration; devops; cncf; golang; cloud-native; k8s

Kubernetes: questions and answers

What is Kubernetes used for?: Kubernetes is an open-source system for deploying, scaling and managing containerized applications across clusters of hosts, hosted by the CNCF. It is a good fit for running microservices in production, standardizing deployment across clusters and platform engineering for DevOps teams.
Is Kubernetes open source?: Yes. Kubernetes is open source under the Apache-2.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at kubernetes/kubernetes and is written mainly in Go.
Is Kubernetes free?: Yes. Kubernetes is open source, so the software itself is free to use. A managed cloud version is also available.
Can I self-host Kubernetes?: Yes. Kubernetes can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What is Kubernetes an alternative to?: Kubernetes is an open-source alternative to Amazon EKS, Google Kubernetes Engine, Azure Kubernetes Service and Red Hat OpenShift. Other open-source alternatives to Amazon EKS include K3s, Rancher and Talos Linux.
Is Kubernetes actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Kubernetes was on 2 October 2026, and the latest release is v1.37.1, published on 23 September 2026. The project has 128k stars on GitHub.