Comparison

Colima vs Docker

On the evidence we track, Docker leads this comparison with a composite score of 70/100. 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 formatsMarkdownJSONGraphQLMarkdown is open. JSON and GraphQL need a free key.

Colima48

★Docker70

Attribute comparison across 2 tools
Attribute	Colima	DockerLeader
vioscaleAI score	48 / 100medium · 55%	70 / 100medium · 61%
Pricing
Free tierpricing.free_tier	✓	✓
Modelpricing.model	open_source	open_source
Price levelpricing.price_level	free	free
Transparentpricing.transparent	-	✓
Integrations
Countintegrations.count	7	-
Security
Disclosure policysecurity.disclosure_policy	-	✓
Gdprsecurity.gdpr	-	✓
Iso27001security.iso27001	-	✓
Scorecardsecurity.scorecard	5.8	9.1
Soc2security.soc2	-	✓
Trust centersecurity.trust_center	-	https://www.docker.com/blog/eu-ai-act-compliance/
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	31,196	72,148
Activity
Commits last 30dactivity.commits_last_30d	6	100
Release
Cadence daysrelease.cadence_days	10	2
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
Content
Faqcontent.faq	6 items	7 items

Score

vioscaleAI score

Colima48 / 100medium · 55%

Docker70 / 100medium · 61%

Pricing

Free tier

Colima✓

Docker✓

Model

Colimaopen_source

Dockeropen_source

Price level

Colimafree

Dockerfree

Transparent

Colima–

Docker✓

Integrations

Count

Colima7

Docker–

Security

Disclosure policy

Colima–

Docker✓

Gdpr

Colima–

Docker✓

Iso27001

Colima–

Docker✓

Scorecard

Colima5.8

Docker9.1

Soc2

Colima–

Docker✓

Trust center

Colima–

Dockerhttps://www.docker.com/blog/eu-ai-act-compliance/

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

Colima31,196

Docker72,148

Activity

Commits last 30d

Colima6

Docker100

Release

Cadence days

Colima10

Docker2

History

Colima20 items

Docker20 items

License

Spdx

ColimaMIT

DockerApache-2.0

Language

Primary

ColimaGo

DockerGo

Market

Availability

Colima–

DockerAvailable worldwide · Popular in US

Content

Faq

Colima6 items

Docker7 items

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

An open-source tool that provides a unified environment for executing containerized applications using Docker, Containerd, Kubernetes, or Incus runtimes. It includes GPU acceleration and AI model inference support on Apple Silicon devices.

Independently observed

Docker

Leader

An open-source project providing toolkit components for containerization, designed for engineers and developers to modify, experiment with, and build container-based systems. It includes container build tools, registries, orchestration, runtimes, and other components that work together but can be independently swapped.

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
macOSPlatforms	✓	✗
WindowsPlatforms	✗	✓
LinuxPlatforms	✓	✓
CLIPlatforms	✓	✓
Self-hostedDeployment	✓	✓

Platforms

macOS

Colima✓

Docker✗

Windows

Colima✗

Docker✓

Linux

Colima✓

Docker✓

CLI

Colima✓

Docker✓

Deployment

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.

Still deciding?

Colima or Docker: which one depends on you

A composite score cannot know your constraints. Describe them and both get re-weighted against what you actually need, with the evidence behind every position.

Free to run, no account needed to start. How the evaluation works

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