Alternatives to Kustomize
A template-free tool for customising Kubernetes YAML configurations without forking them. The listings below can replace it for an important use case. Each note says what changes if you switch.
The original
Kustomize
A template-free tool for customising Kubernetes YAML configurations without forking them.
Replacements
Listings that take over the same core job as Kustomize.
Helm
A package manager for Kubernetes that installs, upgrades and rolls back applications described as charts.
Helm packages Kubernetes applications as templated charts with upgrades and rollbacks, adding a templating layer to learn instead of Kustomize's plain YAML overlays.
Also worth comparing
These listings name Kustomize as their own alternative, so the relationship runs both ways.
Helmfile
A command-line tool for declaratively deploying sets of Helm charts, manifests and Kustomize configs.
Kustomize manages Kubernetes manifest variants with plain YAML overlays built into kubectl, instead of declaring sets of Helm releases.
Similar software
Related functionality, not a direct replacement.
Kompose
A command-line tool that converts Docker Compose files into Kubernetes or OpenShift resources.
Skaffold
A command-line tool that automates building, pushing and deploying applications during Kubernetes development.
Kubernetes
An open-source system for automating deployment, scaling and management of containerized applications across machines.
Conftest
Writes tests against configuration files using Open Policy Agent rules.
Sealed Secrets
A Kubernetes controller and command-line tool that encrypts Secrets so they can be stored in Git.
