Top 9 Kubernetes Dashboard Alternatives

There's no doubt that Kubernetes Dashboard has always been a valuable tool that simplifies the process of container management. That allows users to focus on developing and deploying their applications confidently. But just like the Kubernetes dashboard, there are also various amazing alternatives available that can enhance the user experience even more.

In this blog, we have listed top 9 Kubernetes Dashboard Alternatives. With their sleek design, easy-to-use interface, and powerful capabilities, these alternatives will be game changers.

So, let's prepare to transform your container management journey and look at the new possibilities.

What is Kubernetes Dashboard?

Kubernetes Dashboard is a web-based interface that helps users easily manage and monitor their containerized applications. It is (somewhat) easy-to-use, and the Dashboard visually presents the information that helps users control the multiple aspects of the Kubernetes cluster.

With the Dashboard, users can keep track of how the resources are being utilized and how much memory or CPU power containers are used. If users need to troubleshoot any issues or scale their deployments, then Dashboard covers them.

Overall, it simplifies the entire process of container management and gives the user confidence to develop and deploy their applications smoothly.

But, here are top 9 Kubernetes Dashboard alternatives (in no particular order) that have become crown-favourite over the past few years.

K8Dash

K8Dash is among one the user-friendly Kubernetes dashboard alternatives. It can streamline the content management process and offers improved visibility into your cluster. And thus, leads to better Kubernetes cluster management.

Its intuitive interface and amazing features make K8Dash a refreshing approach to monitoring containerized applications.

Key Features of K8Dash

• Intuitive Interface: It offers a clean and easy-to-use interface that simplifies accessing essential information about Kubernetes clusters.

• Real-time Monitoring: K8Dash monitors CPU and memory usage in real time. That enables users to optimize resource allocation, ensuring optimal application performance.

• Enhanced Cluster Visualization: It helps users gain insights into their cluster's architecture through visual representations of node topology and pod distribution.

• Troubleshooting Made Easy: K8Dash helps Identify and resolve issues efficiently by accessing detailed logs and inspecting pod events. They even offer to access shell terminals within containers.

• Customizable Dashboards: With this tool, users can personalize their monitoring experience by arranging widgets, charts, and metrics to suit their needs.

Drawbacks of K8Dash

• Limited Third-Party Integrations: One of the limitations of K8Dash is its limited compatibility with certain third-party tools or platforms used for monitoring.

• Advanced Configuration Complexity: Fine-tuning advanced configurations within K8Dash may require technical expertise and familiarity with Kubernetes concepts.

Also Read: Top Kubernetes Distributions You Should Know

Konstellate

Konstellate is one of the Kubernetes dashboard alternatives with USP of user-friendliness. It simplifies the orchestration management by offering a visual interface. This allows you to design and understand Kubernetes configurations effortlessly.

Key Features of Konstellate

• Amazing Visual Interface: Konstellate replaces complex YAML files with a drag-and-drop interface. That makes it easy to design your deployments visually.

• Seamless Deployment Visualization: With Konstellate, users can visualize their entire Kubernetes deployment stack, including pods, services, and volumes. That helps users in having a clear overview of your application's architecture and dependencies.

• Collaboration and Documentation: Konstellate helps users easily collaborate with team members on Kubernetes configurations. They can automatically generate documentation to keep your records up-to-date.

• Error Prevention: Konstellate provides real-time validation. This helps users avoid common configuration mistakes and ensure smooth deployments.

• Export and Integration: Users can easily export their Kubernetes configuration files from Konstellate and integrate them into their existing workflows. That will help in maintaining compatibility with other deployment tools.

Also Read: Docker Cleanup - Containers, Volumes, Images & More

Drawbacks of Konstellate

• Complex Learning Curve: To design Kubernetes (K8s) deployments, users might need initial learnings. However, documentation is available that helps make the process a bit smoother.

• Limited Customization: Unlike the Kubernetes dashboard, Konstekkate's advanced configuration customization options may be limited due to its visual nature. However, it offers sufficient features for most standard use cases.

Octant

Octant is a locally installed application that offers a great web-based dashboard for the Kubernetes management toolkit. Due to its user-friendly approach, it is easy to navigate, inspect, and edit Kubernetes resources in Octant. As such, it provides a seamless experience for managing the deployments.

Key Features of Octant

• Intuitive Interface: Like the Kubernetes dashboard, it also offers a clean and intuitive interface that simplifies managing Kubernetes resources. Users can easily navigate different resources to gain quick insight into their deployments.

• Visualization of Related Resources: Octant allows users to visualize related resources, which makes it easier to understand the relationships and dependencies between different components of Kubernetes deployments.

• Editing Capabilities: With Octant, users can conveniently edit Kubernetes resources directly from the Dashboard. This eliminates the need to manually modify configuration files, offering an efficient workflow.

• Light and Dark Mode: Octant offers a choice between light and dark modes. That allows users to customize the Dashboard's appearance based on their preferences. This helps reduce eye strain during long hours of Kubernetes management.

Drawbacks of Octant

• Limited Scope: Octant focuses mainly on resource navigation, inspection, and editing. It doesn't offer some advanced features or integrations found in other Kubernetes dashboard alternatives.

• Locally Installed: Octant requires a local installation, which means it must be set up on each machine where you intend to use it. This might introduce additional overhead for deployment and maintenance.

Also Read: A Complete Tutorial on Prometheus Operator in Kubernetes

Kubernator

Kubernator is an amazing alternative that comes with a cleaner UI. The USP of Kubernator is that it offers a clear view of all of the objects in the kubernetes cluster.

That makes creating new clusters, editing old ones, and resolving conflicts much easier. It is a client-side app; hence, it does not require any backend except kubernetes API.

Key Features of Kubernator

• Immense Caching: Kubernator optimizes performance by caching API responses in the browser's local storage. This reduces the need for frequent API calls, resulting in faster loading times. Caching is implemented for various components such as API groups, Swagger schemas, resources, and objects.

• Navigation Tree: The navigation tree in Kubernator organizes objects by their kinds and namespaces. It retrieves API groups, versions, and endpoints and loads resource and object lists for each group and version.

Namespaces group objects for a structured view. The navigation section includes an actions bar with the option to reload namespaces. This intuitive feature simplifies object exploration and management in Kubernetes clusters.

• Multiple API Versions: In Kubernator, API groups retrieve resources from all available API versions and merge them into a unified list, prioritizing versions. This enables accessing objects through different API versions.

Drawbacks of Kubernator

• Dependency on VSCode: Kubernator heavily relies on VSCode as its underlying platform. While this integration benefits existing VSCode users, it also means that users who are not familiar with or do not prefer using VSCode would need to adopt a new IDE to leverage the features of Kubernator.

Also Read: How to Create & Manage Kubernetes Secrets?

Weave Scope

Weave Scope is a great alternative that can detect processes, containers, and hosts. All these are possible without any additional installation process or coding.

It seamlessly integrates with famous platforms like Docker, Kubernetes, AWS ECS, and more. With Weave Scope, users can easily access their containerized environment without a complicated setup process.

Also Read: Docker Swarm vs Kubernetes - The Ultimate Guide

Key features of Weave Scope

• Real-Time View: Weave Scope offers a live and up-to-minute view of the Docker hosts, containers, and services. This allows users to address any issues quickly and promptly. That further results in ensuring the stability and smooth operation of the application.

• Drill Down: It helps users dive deep into their process and containers' metrics, tags, and metadata. With Weave Scope, users can easily navigate through different levels of processes inside the container.

• Access and Control: Weave Scope offers convenient access to all container management actions in one place. Users can stop, start, and restart the container without switching to different tools.

Drawbacks of Weave Scope

• Limited Compatibility: Even though it offers great integration with some popular platforms, it has limitations in compatibility when it comes to less common or niche environments.

• Dependency on Infrastructure: They rely heavily on underlying infrastructure and don't provide much control over certain monitoring aspects. It might be limited for users seeking great customizations.

Kubevious

Kubevious follows a simple philosophy: the simpler the Dashboard, the fewer errors it will have. It's a fantastic alternative to traditional Kubernetes dashboards, with its unique selling point being simplicity.

With Kubevious, users can easily configure, edit, and maintain configurations without hassle. It takes the complexity of managing Kubernetes and offers a streamlined user experience.

Key Features of Kubevious

• Simple Interface: Kubevious offers a user-friendly interface that makes managing Kubernetes clusters easy. Everything you need is conveniently accessible in one place, allowing you to effortlessly handle all your resources without getting lost in complex menus or confusing layouts.

• Easy Troubleshooting: Users can quickly identify and address issues by viewing them all in one place. No more jumping between different screens or digging through multiple logs. Kubevious simplifies the process, ensuring you can tackle problems swiftly and efficiently.

Drawbacks of Kubevious

• Limited Scope: Kubevious has its limitation regarding having advanced features and integrations compared to the other alternatives. It is not helpful for users with specific or complex requirements.

• Dependency on Kubernetes Cluster: One of the drawbacks of Kubevious is that they rely heavily on the Kubernetes cluster and its API to analyze configuration data. That means if the cluster experiences downtime, Kubevious will not be able to provide real-time information.

Also Read: 24 Best Practices of Kubernetes

Headlamp

It is an open-source web-based UI considered a great alternative to Kubernetes Dashboard. It offers intuitive UI and clean dashboard features to help users maintain their orchestration management efficiently.

Key features of Headlamp

• Clean and Intuitive Interface: Headlamp is well-known for offering a clean interface, just like Kubevious. It also offers a visual representation of the deployment so that users can minotaur quickly and effectively.

• Advanced Search and Filtering: The USP of Headlamp is its advanced search and Filtering feature. Users can quickly spot the cluster's specific pod, services, and resources.

• Secure Authentication: it has a robust authentication mechanism that ensures secure Authentication of clusters. Users can set up authentication providers like OAuth, LDAP, or JWT, ensuring secure access control for their team.

Drawbacks of Headlamp

• Limited Third-Party Integrations: Headlamps might not be the right choice for users who rely heavily on specific external solutions. It has limitations regarding third-party integrations with other monitoring or logging tools.

• Advanced Configuration Complexity: Users not versed with kubernetes might find certain customizable options challenging. One must have a deeper understanding of Kubernetes concepts to fine-tune advanced configuration.

Also Read: A Complete Guide to Kubernetes Liveness Probe

DevSpace

Unlike other alternatives, DevSpace is not specifically developed to make it a dashboard. Instead, it is a great option for users to deploy and develop. However, it comes with Localhost UI that helps users get basic details about their services.

Key Features of DevSpace

• Localhost UI: DevSpace offers a Localhost UI that makes it easier for developers to manage and monitor local services. That helps developers gain proper insight during the development process.

• Efficient Testing and Debugging: It offers a seamless testing and debugging facility. Users can quickly identify and resolve issues or bottlenecks using various integration with logging or testing tools.

Drawbacks of DevSpace

• Limited Dashboard Functionality: As mentioned, the intention of the tool was not to offer a dashboard; it comes with very limited functionality. It may lack some of the features that are available in other Kubernetes Dashboard alternatives.

• Learning Curve: The users new to Kubernetes or unfamiliar with the tool's specific concepts and workflows will have difficulty understanding the tool.

Also Read: A Complete List of 139 Kubectl Commands

Lens

Like DevSpace, even Lens was not intended to be a dashboard; it's more of a "Kubernetes IDE." But that means users will get almost all the features and functionality they will be getting from any other dashboard alternates. Users can view Namespace, delete services, monitor clusters, Replicasets, and more.

Key Features of Lens

• Full Cluster Overview: Lens offers users a full cluster overview to monitor and manage various aspects such as nodes, namespaces, pods, services, and replica sets.

• Intuitive UI: It has a clean, clear, and intuitive user interface that simplifies navigation and interaction with Kubernetes resources. Users can easily use the functionality and can organize their clusters.

Drawbacks of Lens

• Learning Curve: For users who are not much familiar with the Kubernetes functionality or IDE will have a difficult time understanding this tool. Becoming proficient with tools might require extra time and effort.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the difference between Rancher UI and Kubernetes dashboard?

Rancher UI is a complete container management platform that makes it easy to handle multiple Kubernetes clusters. It offers advanced features like setting up clusters, monitoring, and managing workloads. On the other hand, Kubernetes Dashboard is a simpler web-based interface provided by Kubernetes itself. It focuses on managing individual clusters by giving a visual representation of cluster resources and allowing basic control. Rancher UI is ideal for complex, production-ready deployments, while Kubernetes Dashboard is a lightweight option for managing a single cluster.

2.Which is the best Kubernetes Dashboard?

Lens & Kubevious.

3.What are the top Kubernetes GUI clients?

The top Kubernetes GUI Clients (or Kubernetes Dashboard alternatives) are K8Dash, Konstellate, Octant, Kubernator, Weave Scope, Kubevious, Headlamp, DevSpace, and Lens.

Further Reading