Comparison

Colima vs Docker

On the evidence we track, Docker leads this comparison with a composite score of 71/100. Scores are only directly comparable because these tools share a category; the full breakdown and every source is below.

Colima full profile →Docker full profile →

Machine formatsJSON Markdown GraphQLor send Accept: application/json

Colima47

★Docker71

Attribute comparison across 2 tools
Attribute	Colima	DockerLeader
Vioscale score	47 / 100high · 78%	71 / 100medium · 66%
Pricing
Free tierpricing.free_tier	✓	✓
Modelpricing.model	open_source	commercial
Price levelpricing.price_level	free	low
Transparentpricing.transparent	-	✓
Integrations
Countintegrations.count	9	-
Security
Disclosure policysecurity.disclosure_policy	-	✓
Gdprsecurity.gdpr	-	✓
Iso27001security.iso27001	-	✓
Scorecardsecurity.scorecard	5.6	9.1
Soc2security.soc2	-	✓
Vulnerabilitiessecurity.vulnerabilities	Count: 0 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Fabiosoft%2Fcolima&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 0	Count: 13 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Fmoby%2Fmoby&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 4 · Max severity: HIGH
Reliability
Status pagereliability.status_page	-	✓
Adoption
Dependent reposadoption.dependent_repos	4	1,657
Github starsadoption.github_stars	30,524	72,001
Activity
Commits last 30dactivity.commits_last_30d	5	100
Release
Cadence daysrelease.cadence_days	10	3
Historyrelease.history	20 items	20 items
License
Spdxlicense.spdx	MIT	Apache-2.0
Language
Primarylanguage.primary	Go	Go
Market
Availabilitymarket.availability	-	Available worldwide · Popular in US

Score

Vioscale score

Colima47 / 100high · 78%

Docker71 / 100medium · 66%

Pricing

Free tier

Colima✓

Docker✓

Model

Colimaopen_source

Dockercommercial

Price level

Colimafree

Dockerlow

Transparent

Colima–

Docker✓

Integrations

Count

Colima9

Docker–

Security

Disclosure policy

Colima–

Docker✓

Gdpr

Colima–

Docker✓

Iso27001

Colima–

Docker✓

Scorecard

Colima5.6

Docker9.1

Soc2

Colima–

Docker✓

Vulnerabilities

ColimaCount: 0 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Fabiosoft%2Fcolima&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 0

DockerCount: 13 · Source: https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=go&package_name=github.com%2Fmoby%2Fmoby&per_page=100 · Last 12m: 4 · Max severity: HIGH

Reliability

Status page

Colima–

Docker✓

Adoption

Dependent repos

Colima4

Docker1,657

Github stars

Colima30,524

Docker72,001

Activity

Commits last 30d

Colima5

Docker100

Release

Cadence days

Colima10

Docker3

History

Colima20 items

Docker20 items

License

Spdx

ColimaMIT

DockerApache-2.0

Language

Primary

ColimaGo

DockerGo

Market

Availability

Colima–

DockerAvailable worldwide · Popular in US

Capabilities

Feature-by-feature on the axes that matter for container orchestration tools. “-” means undocumented, not absent.

Capability comparison for Container Orchestration Tools
Capability	Colima	Docker
Core
Orchestration scope	None / single-host	Swarm / Compose
Deployment
Hosting	Self-hosted only	Cloud + self-hosted
Standards
OCI / CRI compliant	✓	-
CNCF Certified Kubernetes conformant	✓	-
Security
Rootless operation	-	✓
Architecture
Daemonless architecture	-	-
Platform
Windows containers	-	✓
ARM architecture support	✓	-
Workloads
GPU scheduling	✓	-
Stateful workloads	✓	-
Networking
Built-in networking / CNI	-	✓
Ops
Vendor-managed control plane	-	-
Ecosystem
CNCF maturity	-	-
UX
GUI dashboard	-	✓

Core

Orchestration scope

ColimaNone / single-host

DockerSwarm / Compose

Deployment

Hosting

ColimaSelf-hosted only

DockerCloud + self-hosted

Standards

OCI / CRI compliant

Colima✓

Docker-

CNCF Certified Kubernetes conformant

Colima✓

Docker-

Security

Rootless operation

Colima-

Docker✓

Architecture

Daemonless architecture

Colima-

Docker-

Platform

Windows containers

Colima-

Docker✓

ARM architecture support

Colima✓

Docker-

Workloads

GPU scheduling

Colima✓

Docker-

Stateful workloads

Colima✓

Docker-

Networking

Built-in networking / CNI

Colima-

Docker✓

Ops

Vendor-managed control plane

Colima-

Docker-

Ecosystem

CNCF maturity

Colima-

Docker-

GUI dashboard

Colima-

Docker✓

What each one is

The product in its own terms, so the numbers below have context.

Colima

Colima provides a lightweight way to run container runtimes locally on macOS and Linux machines, enabling Docker, Kubernetes, Containerd, and Incus workloads with low overhead. It supports multiple isolated instances, customizable resource allocation, and GPU acceleration for machine learning workloads on Apple Silicon.

Independently observed

Docker

Leader

Docker provides a complete containerization ecosystem combining open-source components and tools (via the Moby project) with commercial products. It allows applications and their dependencies to be bundled into containers for consistent deployment across cloud and on-premise environments, with both managed and self-hosted deployment options.

Independently observed

Pricing

List pricing as published by each vendor, with the date we read it. Always verify at the source before you buy.

Colima

Open sourceFree tier

as of 2026-08-13verify ↗

Docker

Leader

from $9/moHybridFree tier

From free (Personal tier) to $24/seat/month (Business). Docker Hardened Images starting at $5k/repo (Select tier).

Docker PersonalFree
- Docker Desktop
- Docker Engine + Kubernetes
- Docker Hub
- Docker Scout
- Docker Debug
Docker Pro$9/seat/month (monthly billing) or $11/seat/month (annual billing)
- Docker Build Cloud
- Testcontainers Cloud
- Synchronized File Shares
- Docker Scout health scores visibility
- 5 business day support
Docker Team$15/seat/month (monthly billing) or $16/seat/month (annual billing)
- Add users in bulk
- Audit logs
- Docker Hub role-based access control
- 2 business day support
Docker BusinessContact sales
- Hardened Docker Desktop
- Single Sign-On (SSO)
- SCIM user provisioning
- Image and Registry Access Management
- Desktop Insights Dashboard
- +3 more

as of 2026-08-05verify ↗

Platform & deployment

Where each product runs and how it can be hosted. A dash means undocumented, not unsupported.

Platform and deployment support comparison
Supports	Colima	Docker
WebPlatforms	✗	✓
macOSPlatforms	✓	✗
WindowsPlatforms	✗	✓
LinuxPlatforms	✓	✓
CLIPlatforms	✓	✓
Cloud / SaaSDeployment	✗	✓
Self-hostedDeployment	✓	✓

Platforms

Web

Colima✗

Docker✓

macOS

Colima✓

Docker✗

Windows

Colima✗

Docker✓

Linux

Colima✓

Docker✓

CLI

Colima✓

Docker✓

Deployment

Cloud / SaaS

Colima✗

Docker✓

Self-hosted

Colima✓

Docker✓

Integrations

What each product connects to. Counts come from the vendor's own integration directory where one exists.

Colima

9 total

Docker
Kubernetes
k3s
Containerd
nerdctl
Incus
Ollama
HuggingFace
Docker AI Registry

Independently observed

Docker

Leader

Not documented yet.

Comparison generated from independently-sourced facts. Every value links to its source and retrieval date. See the method.