# Kubernetes vs Lens

**Leader by Vioscale score:** Kubernetes

| Attribute | Kubernetes | Lens |
|---|---|---|
| **Vioscale score** | 78.5 (38% (low)) | 39.7 (62% (medium)) |
| activity.commits_last_30d | 83 | 0 |
| adoption.dependent_repos | - | 2 |
| adoption.github_stars | 125,197 | 23,228 |
| adoption.package_downloads_weekly | - | 12 |
| deployment.options | `{"cloud":true,"hybrid":true,"self_hosted":true}` | `{"cloud":true,"on_prem":true,"air_gapped":true,"self_hosted":true}` |
| description.long | A platform for orchestrating containerized applications across clusters of computers, automatically handling deployment, scaling, and updates based on decades of production experience at Google and community best practices. | Lens is a desktop application that provides a graphical interface for developers and operators to manage multiple Kubernetes clusters, visualize metrics and logs, and troubleshoot cloud-native workloads. It integrates with AI coding assistants and cloud platforms, designed to reduce the complexity of working with Kubernetes. |
| features.capabilities | `{"hosting":"both","orchestration":"kubernetes","k8s_conformant":true,"stateful_workloads":true,"windows_containers":true,"built_in_networking_cni":true}` | `{"gui_dashboard":true}` |
| integrations.count | - | 6 |
| integrations.list | - | `[{"name":"AWS EKS"},{"name":"Helm"},{"name":"Claude (Anthropic)"},{"name":"GitHub Copilot"},{"name":"Codex"},{"name":"kubectl"}]` |
| language.primary | Go | - |
| license.spdx | Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| market.availability | `{"primaryMarkets":[],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` | `{"primaryMarkets":["US","EU"],"availabilityScope":"global","availableCountries":[],"notAvailableCountries":[]}` |
| platform.support | `{"cli":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` | `{"cli":true,"mac":true,"web":true,"linux":true,"windows":true}` |
| pricing | `{"type":"open_source","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://kubernetes.io","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T13:42:16.309Z"}` | `{"type":"subscription","plans":[{"free":true,"name":"Personal","summary":"Free for personal use","features":["Multiple cluster management","Metrics and logs visualization","Helm chart support","Smart terminal","Port forwarding","Community support"],"description":"Individual use, free for personal projects","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Plus","summary":"$25/month","features":["Everything in Personal","AWS EKS integration","CVE reporting","Hotbar for cluster switching","Commercial support"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"fixed","amount":25,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For individual professionals using Lens in production","contactSales":false},{"free":true,"name":"Team","summary":"Free for small teams","features":["Full Lens Desktop functionality","Community support","Team collaboration"],"description":"For small teams getting started with Kubernetes","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Pro","summary":"$25/user/month","features":["Everything in Team","AWS EKS integration","CVE reporting","Hotbar","Secure cluster discovery and remote access","Commercial support"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"user","amount":25,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For production teams needing secure remote access and collaboration","contactSales":false},{"free":false,"name":"Enterprise","summary":"$50/user/month","features":["Everything in Pro","Offline/air-gapped mode","VDI support","Central configuration management","Single Sign-On (SSO)","SCIM provisioning","Priority enterprise support","Security compliance assistance"],"commitment":"monthly","components":[{"kind":"per_unit","unit":"user","amount":50,"period":"month","currency":"USD"}],"description":"For enterprises with strict compliance and operational requirements","contactSales":false}],"summary":"Free for individuals and small teams. From $25/user/month for production use.","currency":"USD","freeTier":true,"sourceUrl":"https://lenshq.io/blog/lens-plans-and-pricing-update/","retrievedAt":"2026-08-14T08:38:14.422Z","startingPrice":{"amount":25,"period":"month","currency":"USD"},"billingPeriods":["month"]}` |
| pricing.free_tier | yes | yes |
| pricing.model | commercial | commercial |
| pricing.price_level | free | mid |
| pricing.transparent | yes | yes |
| release.cadence_days | 1 | - |
| release.history | `[{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0","date":"2026-08-26T16:29:12Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.37.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.36.4","date":"2026-08-20T11:48:16Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.36.4"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.35.8","date":"2026-08-20T18:59:55Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.35.8"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.34.11","date":"2026-08-20T18:45:38Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.34.11"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-rc.1","date":"2026-08-20T02:44:01Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-rc.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-rc.0","date":"2026-08-06T12:04:57Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-rc.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.36.3","date":"2026-07-23T00:35:52Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.36.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.35.7","date":"2026-07-22T22:28:35Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.35.7"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.34.10","date":"2026-07-22T22:01:08Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.34.10"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-beta.0","date":"2026-07-20T23:21:18Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-beta.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-alpha.3","date":"2026-07-08T18:11:06Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-alpha.3"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-alpha.2","date":"2026-06-25T02:40:51Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-alpha.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.36.2","date":"2026-06-12T11:34:56Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.36.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.35.6","date":"2026-06-12T11:32:40Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.35.6"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.34.9","date":"2026-06-12T11:30:42Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.34.9"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.33.13","date":"2026-06-12T11:30:10Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.33.13"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.37.0-alpha.1","date":"2026-06-11T03:25:52Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v1.37.0-alpha.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.36.1","date":"2026-05-12T16:39:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.36.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.35.5","date":"2026-05-12T15:37:25Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.35.5"},{"url":"https://github.com/kubernetes/kubernetes/releases/tag/v1.34.8","date":"2026-05-12T15:35:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v1.34.8"}]` | `[{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2024.1.300751-latest","date":"2024-01-31T07:25:59Z","type":"stable","version":"v2024.1.300751-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2024.1.170738-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:52:50Z","type":"stable","version":"v2024.1.170738-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.12.281947-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:51:30Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.12.281947-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.12.80831-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:49:53Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.12.80831-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.11.241450-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:48:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.11.241450-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.11.131420-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:47:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.11.131420-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.11.81519-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:46:17Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.11.81519-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.10.181418-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:45:11Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.10.181418-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.10.122002-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:44:26Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.10.122002-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.9.290703-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:43:14Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.9.290703-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.9.190000-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:41:04Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.9.190000-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.8.231521-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:34:51Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.8.231521-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.8.31525-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:34:15Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.8.31525-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v2023.5.310801-latest","date":"2024-01-25T15:22:30Z","type":"stable","version":"v2023.5.310801-latest"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.2","date":"2023-05-30T15:40:46Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.5.2"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.1","date":"2023-05-29T12:59:30Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.5.1"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.0","date":"2023-05-26T18:02:20Z","type":"stable","version":"v6.5.0"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.0-alpha.16","date":"2023-05-25T13:59:25Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v6.5.0-alpha.16"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.0-alpha.15","date":"2023-05-23T19:35:19Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v6.5.0-alpha.15"},{"url":"https://github.com/lensapp/lens/releases/tag/v6.5.0-alpha.14","date":"2023-05-23T15:36:33Z","type":"prerelease","version":"v6.5.0-alpha.14"}]` |
| reliability.status_page | - | yes |
| security.disclosure_policy | yes | yes |
| security.gdpr | - | yes |
| security.iso27001 | - | yes |
| security.scorecard | 7.5 | 4.2 |
| security.soc2 | - | yes |
| security.vulnerabilities | - | `{"count":0,"source":"https://advisories.ecosyste.ms/api/v1/advisories?ecosystem=npm&package_name=%40k8slens%2Flegacy-global-di&per_page=100","last_12m":0,"max_severity":null}` |

## Capabilities (Container Orchestration Tools)

| Capability | Kubernetes | Lens |
|---|:--:|:--:|
| **Core** |  |  |
| Orchestration scope | Kubernetes | - |
| **Deployment** |  |  |
| Hosting | 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 | - | ✓ |

*Source: Vioscale. Generated 2026-09-01T16:45:41.452Z. "-" = undocumented, not absent.*