--- title: VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Reviews meta_title: 'VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features | G2' meta_description: Filter 39 reviews by the users' company size, role or industry to find out how VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) works for a business like yours. aggregate_rating: rating_value: 4.0 review_count: 39 scale: '5' date_modified: '2026-09-02' parent_category: name: Containerization url: https://www.g2.com/categories/containerization --- # VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Reviews **Vendor:** Broadcom **Category:** [Container Management Software](https://www.g2.com/categories/container-management) **Average Rating:** 4.0/5.0 **Total Reviews:** 39 ## About VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) is the CNCF-certified Kubernetes runtime built directly into VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF), to run all apps. VKS is among the first platforms certified under the new CNCF Kubernetes AI Conformance Program. VKS enables platform engineers to easily deploy, manage and scale Kubernetes clusters while leveraging a comprehensive set of cloud services included in VCF, as well as all CNCF-conformant third party services. By eliminating the complexity and hidden costs of siloed environments, VKS enables enterprises to deploy modern applications and AI workloads with the rigorous security, automated management, and massive scale of a true private cloud. It transforms standard infrastructure into a business-ready platform, allowing organizations to roll out a vast ecosystem of third-party apps with total confidence. VKS benefits from a robust ecosystem of partner validated products as the essential engine for customer experience and their sustained success. ## VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Reviews ### 1. Unified VM + Kubernetes Ops in vSphere Client with Great Single-Pane Visibility **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Varsha A. | Assistant System Engineer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Source: Organic:** Organic review. This review was written entirely without invitation or incentive from G2, a seller, or an affiliate. **Reviewed Date:** August 19, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The biggest win for us has been bringing container and VM operations together under one roof. Our infra team didn’t have to learn an entirely new toolchain—spinning up a Tanzu Kubernetes Cluster (control plane, worker nodes, the works) happens right inside vSphere Client, using the same namespace-based workflow we already rely on for everything else. We created a dedicated namespace ("primp-industries") and had a cluster up and running in minutes, not days. What really sold the team, though, was the single-pane visibility. Node health, control plane status, CPU/memory allocation, storage policies—it’s all available in one dashboard instead of being split between a Kubernetes-specific tool and a separate vCenter view. With content library integration for our TKG cluster images and the built-in CLI tooling, day-to-day operations feel much less fragmented than they did in our old setup. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Onboarding was pretty rough for anyone on the team without a Kubernetes background. Getting the supervisor cluster, the namespace structure, and storage policies configured correctly took real ramp-up time. A few of the configuration panels—especially the ones for setting per-namespace resource limits—feel less intuitive than they should. Also, when a node goes unhealthy, we often end up leaving the vSphere UI entirely to dig through logs elsewhere, which undercuts the “everything in one place” promise a bit. Post-Broadcom licensing costs are another area we’re watching closely as we think about scaling this up. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** We used to run VM and Kubernetes workloads as two separate operations—different tooling, different monitoring, and a lot of extra mental overhead for the team. VKS brought that together into a single vSphere Client experience. Capacity planning has become noticeably easier because CPU, memory, and storage limits are all visible in one place, and we now have much better cross-namespace visibility into overall cluster health. The net effect is less operational drag on the infrastructure side and a much faster path to spinning up new Kubernetes workloads, without having to build out parallel infrastructure first. ### 2. Native Kubernetes in vSphere with a Single, Streamlined Management Experience **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Afham A. | Software Engineer, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 14, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I liked most was that VKS let us run Kubernetes workloads natively alongside our traditional VMs, without needing a separate management plane. We could provision namespaces directly from the vSphere Client, and bringing up a Tanzu Kubernetes Cluster—complete with its control plane and worker nodes—took only a few clicks in the same interface our infrastructure team already used every day. Having a single, consolidated dashboard to monitor cluster health, CPU and memory capacity, and storage policies significantly reduced the context-switching we used to do between separate Kubernetes and virtualization tools. The CLI tools link and the content library integration also helped make day-to-day cluster management smoother for our team. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The initial setup—especially configuring the supervisor cluster, namespaces, and storage policies correctly—came with a fairly steep learning curve for team members without prior Kubernetes experience. A few configuration screens weren’t always intuitive, and troubleshooting unhealthy nodes sometimes meant digging through logs outside the vSphere UI rather than being able to resolve everything in one place. Licensing costs after the Broadcom acquisition were also a consideration for teams looking to evaluate and roll this out at scale. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** Before adopting VKS, our team ran Kubernetes and VM workloads on separate platforms, which led to duplicated tooling, separate monitoring, and higher operational overhead. With VKS, we were able to manage both VM-based and containerized workloads from a single vSphere Client instance. That made capacity planning simpler and gave us clearer visibility into cluster health across our namespaces. Overall, consolidating onto one platform reduced the day-to-day burden on our infrastructure team and made it easier to onboard new Kubernetes workloads without having to stand up separate infrastructure. ### 3. Centralized Management That Simplifies Kubernetes and Hybrid Workloads **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Duc T. | Senior Infrastructure/ Devops Engineer, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 18, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The centralized management, built-in lifecycle capabilities, and consistent environment are especially useful for teams running both traditional VMs and containerized workloads. It reduces the operational overhead of maintaining Kubernetes and makes cluster deployment and management more straightforward. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The biggest downside for me is that the initial setup and configuration can feel pretty complex, especially for teams that are new to both Kubernetes and the VMware ecosystem. Troubleshooting can be challenging as well, since it often requires knowledge across multiple layers—from vSphere networking and storage all the way up to Kubernetes itself. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** The biggest benefit is simpler cluster provisioning and centralized management. It also gives us a more consistent environment for both VMs and containers, which reduces operational effort and makes it easier for the infrastructure and application teams to work together. ### 4. Seamlessly Brings Kubernetes into vSphere with Familiar VMware Tools **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Rahul J. | Software engineer 2, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 10, 2026 At G2, we prefer fresh reviews and we like to follow up with reviewers. They may not have updated their review text, but have updated their review. **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like most about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services is how easily it brings Kubernetes into the existing vSphere environment. It makes cluster setup and management simpler, while letting teams use familiar VMware tools and processes without adding too much complexity. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The main thing I dislike about VKS is that it can take some time to understand and configure, especially for teams new to Kubernetes. Troubleshooting can also be a bit difficult when issues involve both the Kubernetes layer and the underlying vSphere environment. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VKS helps simplify running Kubernetes on our existing VMware environment by reducing the need for separate infrastructure and tools. It makes cluster deployment and management easier, improves consistency, and helps our team deliver applications faster with less operational overhead. ### 5. Unified VM and Container Management Right in the vSphere Client **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer & Network Security | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 20, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I love how it brings container and virtual machine operations under one roof. Infrastructure teams do not have to jump between separate control planes or learn an entirely new toolchain; traditional VMs and containerized workloads can be managed side-by-side right from the familiar vSphere Client. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The unified vSphere dashboard is excellent when everything is running smoothly, but it can become a bottleneck when things break. If a node goes unhealthy, the vSphere UI often doesn't surface the root cause. Administrators frequently find themselves forced to leave the unified interface to dig through raw logs elsewhere. Because VKS bridges two massive technologies, debugging requires deep domain knowledge of both layers: you have to figure out if the issue is a Kubernetes pod failure, or an underlying vSphere networking or storage problem. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VKS embeds Kubernetes directly into the hypervisor’s control plane, treating containers as first-class citizens alongside traditional VMs which solves the classic issue of running virtual machines on one toolchain (vSphere) and containerized microservices on entirely separate, standalone Kubernetes platforms. ### 6. Simplifies Kubernetes Management on vSphere **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Shubhankar S. | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** This review contains authentic analysis and has been reviewed by our team **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 20, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like how VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) simplifies cluster provisioning and lifecycle management, making it straightforward to deploy and manage Kubernetes clusters. It lets us use our existing vSphere infrastructure, which means we don't have to set up a separate platform for Kubernetes clusters, reducing our operational effort. I also appreciate the consistency in managing and deploying workloads, which is as simple as on bare metal Kubernetes clusters. It saves our team a lot of time day-to-day because we don't have to manually set up clusters and manage the underlying infrastructure. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I think troubleshooting guidance and documentation should be more updated with real-time scenarios, including tips and best practices for spinning up heavy and sensitive workloads. Additionally, better visibility on resource utilization and performance before and after deployment would be helpful, along with guidance on sizing and managing large clusters. We faced some issues with networking, storage, and security setup during initial cluster provisioning on the vSphere environment. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) to simplify cluster provisioning and lifecycle management, making it easier to set up and manage Kubernetes clusters using existing vSphere infrastructure. It reduces operational effort, saving time on day-to-day management. ### 7. Native Kubernetes in vSphere: Seamless vCenter UI and Strong VMware Stack Integration **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Accounting | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Source: Organic:** Organic review. This review was written entirely without invitation or incentive from G2, a seller, or an affiliate. **Reviewed Date:** August 19, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like most about VKS is that it brings native Kubernetes support directly into the vSphere environment we already manage, so our team doesn’t have to context-switch between separate platforms to run containerized and VM-based workloads side by side. The UI/UX is a real strength: we can provision and monitor Kubernetes clusters right from vCenter using the same dashboard and permissions model we already rely on, which noticeably flattened the learning curve for our ops team. On the integration side, it works smoothly with the rest of the VMware stack (vCenter, NSX for networking, and vSAN for persistent storage). That meant we didn’t have to stitch together a separate CNI or storage layer the way we would with a standalone Kubernetes distribution. Performance has also been reliable as we’ve scaled up cluster nodes, and since it runs on the same infrastructure as our existing VMs, we get consistent resource management and capacity planning across both container and VM workloads instead of treating them as separate silos. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The biggest downside is that VKS still feels tightly coupled to the VMware ecosystem, so the UI/UX for cluster configuration can get complicated if you’re used to a simpler, cloud-native Kubernetes experience. There’s a real learning curve in translating standard kubectl/YAML workflows into the way vSphere expects things to be set up. Integrations with tools outside the VMware stack—like external CI/CD pipelines or third-party observability platforms—also take more manual wiring than they would with a cloud-managed Kubernetes service, since a lot of the surrounding tooling assumes you’re running in AWS/GCP/Azure rather than on-prem vSphere. On the performance side, we’ve noticed that spinning up new clusters or scaling node pools can be slower than expected compared to public-cloud Kubernetes offerings, which can disrupt fast-iteration workflows. Pricing and ROI are a real consideration as well. VKS effectively requires being fully invested in VMware licensing (vSphere, vSAN, NSX), so the total cost of ownership can end up higher than open-source Kubernetes if you’re not already committed to that stack. For support and onboarding, our team’s vSphere background helped, but getting support specifically for Kubernetes-related issues (versus general vSphere issues) sometimes meant navigating multiple support queues before reaching someone with the right expertise. Finally, on AI/intelligence, the operational insights through Aria Operations are useful but still fairly basic for Kubernetes-specific troubleshooting. It doesn’t yet offer the kind of deep, container-aware anomaly detection you’d expect from dedicated Kubernetes observability tools. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** Before adopting VKS, we ran Kubernetes on a separate platform from our VMware infrastructure. That meant our team had to manage two disconnected environments—one for VMs and another for containers—each with its own networking, storage, and access controls. The result was duplicated effort, more operational friction, and a harder time getting a unified view of resource usage across the organization. Now, with VKS, we run Kubernetes clusters natively inside vSphere, so container and VM workloads share the same underlying infrastructure, networking (via NSX), and storage (via vSAN). This has significantly reduced the operational overhead of maintaining a separate Kubernetes stack, since our existing vSphere admins can manage clusters without needing to become full-time Kubernetes specialists. It has also made capacity planning much simpler, because we’re no longer forecasting compute and storage needs separately for VMs versus containers—it’s all part of the same resource pool. Overall, VKS has helped us modernize toward containerized workloads without ripping out or duplicating the VMware investment we’d already made. In practice, that has meaningfully reduced both infrastructure sprawl and the learning curve for our team. ### 8. Good Value with VCF, But Missing Some Expected PaaS Features **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** nitesh t. | Consultant, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Source: Organic:** Organic review. This review was written entirely without invitation or incentive from G2, a seller, or an affiliate. **Reviewed Date:** August 17, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Considering the options available in the market, this is one option we can go with. At the same time, it lacks some features you’d typically expect from a PaaS solution. The best part is that if you’re already using VCF, then using VKS is almost free, which is a clear added advantage. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Getting the Supervisor Cluster up and running means jumping through a lot of rigid networking hoops. Connecting vSphere, NSX, and external load balancers quickly turns into messy permissions and account management. Overall, the system seems to push you toward expensive, proprietary add-ons like Tanzu Mission Control, rather than making it easy to use free, open-source tools. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** Simplifying Hybrid Operations: VKS helps bridge the gap between developers and IT admins by letting you run containers directly on your existing VMware infrastructure, without having to build a completely new environment. Maximizing Hardware Investments: It also lets you manage virtual machines and Kubernetes clusters side by side using the same familiar vSphere tools, which can help save money on infrastructure and reduce the need for additional training. ### 9. Seamless Kubernetes Integration in vSphere for Secure, Scalable Cluster Management **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in E-Learning | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 23, 2026 At G2, we prefer fresh reviews and we like to follow up with reviewers. They may not have updated their review text, but have updated their review. **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) is its seamless integration of Kubernetes with the VMware virtualization platform. It allows developers to provision and manage Kubernetes clusters directly within vSphere, simplifying container deployment and operations. The centralized management, built-in security, scalability, and automation capabilities make it easier to run both virtual machines and containerized applications on the same infrastructure, improving operational efficiency and accelerating application delivery. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** While VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) provides excellent Kubernetes integration, the initial setup and configuration can be complex, especially for teams new to Kubernetes. Licensing and infrastructure requirements may be costly for smaller organizations, and troubleshooting cluster or networking issues often requires specialized expertise. Documentation for advanced use cases could also be more detailed. Despite these challenges, VKS offers a reliable, scalable, and well-integrated platform for running Kubernetes workloads in enterprise environments. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solves the challenge of deploying and managing Kubernetes clusters alongside virtual machines on a single platform. It simplifies container orchestration by integrating Kubernetes directly into the vSphere environment, reducing operational complexity and eliminating the need for separate infrastructure. This has benefited us by accelerating application deployment, improving resource utilization, simplifying management, and providing a secure, scalable platform for modern cloud-native applications. ### 10. VKS Makes Deploying a CNCF-Conformant K8S Platform Easy **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Michael Z. | Pre-Sale System Engineer, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 05, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VKS is now much easier to deploy than Tanzu. Is it included in the VCF and VVF license? It provides the IT department with all the tools needed to create a K8S platform with ease. It’s a good approach for IT departments that want to get started with K8S. It’s also CNCF conformant, which helps with portability from other platforms. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It requires some understanding and hands-on experience with VMware networking—NSX and the AVI load balancer—to set up ingress and egress communication properly. Also, the general namespace convention here is not the same as a standard K8S namespace. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VKS will solve the problem of easily providing Kubernetes infrastructure to IT departments that, until now, have been working only with VMs and don’t yet have experience with K8s infrastructure. ### 11. Kubernetes and VMware Together Made Cluster Management Much Easier **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Nijat I. | Full-stack Developer, Information Technology and Services, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal incentive as thanks for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal incentive as thanks for completing this review. **G2 Icon:** Our network of Icons are G2 members who are recognized for their outstanding contributions and commitment to helping others through their expertise. **Reviewed Date:** May 09, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The part that was helpful for me personally was the fact that it gave me a feeling that Kubernetes was somehow connected with other components. Before dealing with it, Kubernetes was always something detached from other aspects that needed to be addressed in another way. In this case, I could use Kubernetes and at the same time work in the environment which I was used to seeing on the VMware side. What I liked most of all was the fact that cluster management became much easier without switching back and forth platforms. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I found that the learning curve was more difficult to navigate than expected, not because of my unfamiliarity with Kubernetes per se, but rather because of my unfamiliarity with the additional mental layer of integrating Kubernetes knowledge with VMware technology. At times, I recall finding myself struggling to diagnose a problem and deciding whether the fault lied in Kubernetes’ configuration or networking or even the underlying virtualization layer. That could definitely get taxing during high-pressure moments. Another challenge that stood out for me was that there seemed to be some parts of the process that weren’t very intuitive at all. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** However, before utilizing it, virtualized infrastructure management and Kubernetes management used to feel disjointed, with different teams and tools being responsible for managing various aspects of the system. This led to inefficiencies whenever there were changes or issues requiring collaboration between the two. VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service allowed me to manage my container workloads in an approach that was more consistent with the current infrastructure management process, rather than designing and deploying everything independently of the existing infrastructure. ### 12. Dedicated VM Space for Automated Audits **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Paul S. | SEO Manager, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 09, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like best is that it lets me carve out my own dedicated space on the VM to run automated Screaming Frog crawls, without needing a separate server or having to compete for resources with other workloads. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like least is the learning curve. VKS blends vSphere and Kubernetes concepts in ways that can be confusing, even for more experienced people. It also feels like overkill for smaller workloads; for something like periodic scheduled crawls, the overhead of Kubernetes and the extra configuration can outweigh the benefits compared with just running on a single VM. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VKS solves the problem of needing dedicated infrastructure for automated SEO crawling, without having to provision a separate physical server or compete with other workloads for resources. By carving out my own space on the VM, I can run scheduled Screaming Frog crawls reliably and consistently. That gives me a stable, self-contained environment for large-scale technical SEO audits, and it lets me do this without disrupting other systems. ### 13. Kubernetes on VMware vSphere: Powerful Enterprise Control with Added Operational Complexity **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 07, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like most about Kubernetes on VMware vSphere, especially for someone like me with datacenter, virtualization, networking, and infrastructure experience and development, is that it connects two worlds that are usually separated: traditional enterprise infrastructure and modern application delivery. It lets developers deploy container-based applications faster, but without bypassing the controls that matter in a real datacenter: networking, storage policies, access control, monitoring, resource limits, SSO, lifecycle management, and governance. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I would probably like least about Kubernetes on VMware vSphere is the amount of extra abstraction and troubleshooting layers it adds on top of systems you already understand well. Its a long learning curve for this tool to be used. With Docker, Linux, VMware, and servers, you can usually trace a problem directly: container, OS, VM, host, network, storage, logs. With vSphere Kubernetes, the issue may be hidden across Kubernetes objects, namespaces, pods, services, ingress, CNI networking, load balancers, NSX/Avi, storage classes, Supervisor, vCenter, certificates, RBAC, or the underlying ESXi hosts. For someone like me, the frustrating part would not be the concept itself, but the feeling that a simple problem becomes a multi-layer investigation. A service not responding may not be “the app is down”; it could be a bad selector, failed pod, wrong service type, missing endpoint, ingress rule, load balancer pool, DNS issue, certificate issue, network policy, storage mount, RBAC, or vSphere-side resource problem. So I think what you would dislike most is that Kubernetes on vSphere is powerful, but sometimes feels over-engineered compared with managing a VM, a Linux server, or a Docker container directly. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere’s container orchestration platform (kubernet) helps bridge the gap between developers who need a fast way to run modern applications and infrastructure teams who still need to maintain control over security, networking, storage, permissions, and overall resource usage. From a developer’s perspective, it offers a consistent platform for deploying applications packaged as containers, without having to wait for someone to manually provision servers, install software, configure storage, or expose the application to the network. For virtual infrastructure administrators, it keeps these modern application workloads within the familiar vSphere/VCF environment, leveraging the same clusters, policies, permissions, monitoring, and lifecycle tools they already manage day to day. Put simply, it enables developers to move faster while allowing infrastructure teams to preserve governance and stability, so the organization can run both traditional virtual machines and newer container-based applications on the same VMware platform. ### 14. Avoid VMWare Period **Rating:** 0.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Daniel K. | Service Desk Senior Technical Analyst, Information Technology and Services, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like most about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services is how tightly it integrates with the vSphere/VCF platform. It lets you deploy and manage Kubernetes clusters with self-service lifecycle management, while still keeping enterprise controls, security, and operations centralized in one place. It performs adequately compared to similar software. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I dislike most about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services is the overall complexity. It can feel heavier than a more lightweight Kubernetes stack because you’re managing VMware, vSphere, and Tanzu-related components together, rather than working within one simpler platform. Another drawback is ecosystem dependence: many parts are VMware-centric, which can limit flexibility when you want to use third-party tooling. It’s also very expensive compared to other similar software. Their support is terrible, and the AI is garbage. Interface is still the classic vsphere - making the UI normalized. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** It’s essential to integrate with vendor applications and software. VKS helps reduce platform sprawl and enables your teams to move faster without giving up control. ### 15. Simplifies Kubernetes in VMware Environments **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 20, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What i like most about VMware vSphere Kubernetes service(VKS) is tight integration with the existing VMware vSphere environment. It simplifies the process of deploying and managing Kubernetes clusters while allowing to leverage existing compute, networking, and storage resources. The ability to run kuberentes workloads alongside traditional VM-based workloads provides a consistent operational experience and reduce the need to manage seperate infrastructure platforms. I also find the familiar VMware management model helpful for infrastructure and Devops terms that already have experience with vSphere. Overall VKS provides a practical approach to modernizing application and adopting Kubernetes while continuing to utilize existing VMware infrastructure and operational expertise. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** One area I feel VKS could improve is observability and troubleshooting, particularly for networking issue between Kubernetes workloads. Some third-party integration can also require additional effort, and the UI may have a learning curve for users who are new to the VMware ecosystem. Better visibility, simpler troubleshooting, and broader ecosystem would improve the overall experience. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) to simplify Kubernetes infrastructure management, leveraging existing VMware infrastructure without needing to manage Kubernetes separately. VKS integrates Kubernetes with VMware, reducing complexity and enhancing infrastructure utilization. ### 16. VKS Streamlines Kubernetes Management in vCenter with Automated Provisioning and Upgrades **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 20, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** (VKS) simplifies running cloud-native applications on existing virtualized infrastructure. VKS enables infrastructure teams to manage Kubernetes clusters alongside traditional virtual machines within the familiar vCenter interface. It automates cluster provisioning, patching, and upgrades using ClusterAPI templates (ClusterClasses), helping keep day-to-day operations consistent and streamlined. Additionally, it offers 24 months of standard support for each Kubernetes minor release. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) comes with several common pain points for operations and engineering teams. Complex upgrades and dependencies are a major one: because VKS is tightly coupled to the underlying vSphere infrastructure, vCenter, and the NSX network fabric, upgrading Kubernetes versions requires strict adherence to the version matrix across the broader VMware ecosystem, which in turn increases testing complexity. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service (VKS) bridges the gap between traditional enterprise IT operations and modern cloud-native software development. It helps remove barriers between VI admins who manage VMs/vSphere and DevOps teams who manage Kubernetes, bringing infrastructure management together under a single control plane. ### 17. Simplifies Kubernetes Cluster Operations with Strong Infrastructure Support **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Vishal B. | AVP- Corporate HR, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 25, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) enables organisations to deploy, manage, scale, and upgrade Kubernetes clusters effectively, while also simplifying day-to-day cluster operations. It also provides the necessary infrastructure support. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VKS provides infrastructure-related support, but it is costly compared to peer organizations. It has also been noted that VKS is most compelling when an organization is working with other VMware companies. Also its operating is complex in nature. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VKS helped us while expanding Kubernetes at large scale in the organisation. It provides automated, self-service clusters instead of relying on manual operations, which makes the process smoother and more consistent. It also provides enterprises security and centralized policies under VMware platform. ### 18. Fast, Scalable Test Environments—But a Steep Learning Curve and Tricky Troubleshooting **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Banking | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 15, 2026 At G2, we prefer fresh reviews and we like to follow up with reviewers. They may not have updated their review text, but have updated their review. **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** As a QA engineer, VKS helps me create consistent, reproducible test environments and provision clusters quickly. It also supports scalable testing by letting us easily increase or decrease test infrastructure based on demand, including simulating an isoprod environment for stress testing. Another big benefit is being able to spin up multiple test environments for multiple teams at the same time. Overall, it leads to better resource usage. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The learning curve can be challenging for teams that are new to Kubernetes and VMware. As a QA, I also find that troubleshooting can take time, since issues may come from different areas such as networking, storage, or vSphere. Upgrades also require careful testing to ensure everything remains stable in production. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** Vks solves the problem of managing and maintaining Kubernetes clusters manually by making it easier to create, manage, and update clusters in a consistent way. As a QA, this benefits me because it provides reliable testing environments, reduces environment setup time, and lets me focus more on testing rather than infrastructure management. ### 19. Unified Kubernetes Management with an Easy-to-Navigate UI **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Marketing and Advertising | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 18, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Service is highly unified management brining deep synergy and leveraging tools like vSphere CSI and Antrea. The UI and UX are very easy to follow and navigate. As first time user, it is easy to play around. Although the integrations are limited at the moment but still workable. The support is relatively good. Lacking AI and intelligence feature at the moment. I like the performance and price are okay and market competitive. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The architecture is complex and designing around it is not easy. It is not easy for beginners to use and understand the ecosystem. Limited integrations. The learning curve is not great. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** The price is market competitive. we are running data and other applications to resolve the data ingestions to application management. Our applications is running smooth which are not very high complex. ### 20. Deployment Was Too Difficult—Confusing Guides and Setup Issues **Rating:** 1.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Information Technology and Services | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Current User:** The reviewer uploaded a screenshot or submitted the review in-app verifying them as current user. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I wouldn't know because I never got it to deploy properly. I tested a deployment for hours and never got it to work. Must have been some small networking connectivity issue which was preventing the master API VM's from deploying. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** That it is not easy to deploy, I spent hours trying to deploy this and I never got it up properly. I wish there was a better how to guide, I followed multiple videos and guides but they were very confusing. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I would have loved to use this as a replacement for docker to host internal applications and ensure uptime/availability was there. Since we did not get this running we need to figure out how to get this going. ### 21. Streamlines Operations, But Needs Smoother Lifecycle Management **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 31, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) because it's nice for deploying, managing, and scaling our containerized applications. The learning curve is not very steep, which makes it more accessible. I appreciate the ability to have disconnected VMs and container management. The DIY aspects of the service are very good. It also helps us reduce operational risk and complexity, improve speed, achieve faster time to market, and maintain visibility. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I think the dependencies for lifecycle management and updating have some friction, so that can be improved. Also, I felt the open source ecosystem is not the best. And when it comes to licensing, it feels quite costly. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) simplifies operations, removes delivery and silo problems, bridges the skills gap, reduces operational risks and complexity, and improves speed and visibility. It provides faster time to market and cost efficiency. ### 22. Seamless Kubernetes Integration in vSphere with Unified, Enterprise-Grade Management **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Information Services | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 10, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** What I like most about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) is how it integrates Kubernetes directly into the vSphere environment, making it easier to deploy and manage containerized applications alongside virtual machines. The unified management experience simplifies operations, improves resource utilization, and reduces the learning curve for teams already familiar with vSphere. I also appreciate the enterprise-grade security, networking, and storage integrations, as well as the ability to manage Kubernetes clusters consistently across environments. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Overall, it's a solid platform, but I think the setup can feel a bit overwhelming, especially if you're new to Kubernetes. Some tasks take more steps than I'd expect, and troubleshooting isn't always straightforward when something goes wrong. I'd also love to see simpler documentation with more real-world examples to help speed up deployment and day-to-day management. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** helps simplify the management of Kubernetes environments by bringing container orchestration closer to the existing vSphere infrastructure. It reduces the complexity of running and maintaining Kubernetes clusters, while allowing teams to use familiar VMware tools and workflows. This helps save time, improve operational efficiency, and makes it easier to deploy and manage modern applications in a more consistent way. ### 23. Convenient VKS Deployment, but Infrastructure Dependencies Need Careful Planning **Rating:** 3.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Electrical/Electronic Manufacturing | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** August 18, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Installing VKS is not too difficult because vSphere + K8s + networking are put together. Current vSphere Infrastructure is ready and the network/storage parts are clearly planned, enabling Supervisor and deploying VKS clusters above is relatively convenient. The part that usually takes the most time is reviewing and preparing infrastructure dependencies before deployment, not creating a Kubernetes cluster. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It is the same like Openshift but the difference is that OCP is packaged as a single set. The areas requiring preliminary assessment primarily include network segmentation, IP/VIP, load balancer, DNS, firewall, and storage policy. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** The aspect requiring the most thorough preparation is the underlying infrastructure—specifically the network, IP/VIP, load balancer, DNS, storage, and firewall rules governing communication between components. Minimum resources allocated per master node: 8 vCPUs + 16 GB RAM. ### 24. Facilitate Server Management with Intuition **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** ALONSO S. | empleado de empresa de TI, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through Google using a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **AI Translated:** This review has been translated from Spanish; Castilian using AI. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like the unification of virtual machines and containers offered by VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS). It helps me a lot with server management from the same console, which allows me to make my work more efficient. Additionally, I appreciate its ease of use and that it is intuitive, reducing the learning curve for its use. I also enjoy the Cloud Native Storage section, as it helps me integrate it directly with VMware and offers full visibility from vCenter. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** its licensing mode and costs **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) helps me a lot with server management from the same console, making my work more efficient. Its ease of use and intuition reduce the learning curve. ### 25. Powerful vSphere Kubernetes, but pricing shocks and Day-2 operations need improvement **Rating:** 2.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) stands out by embedding container management directly into vCenter and providing a familiar UI/UX. This allows administrators to provision Kubernetes clusters much like traditional virtual machines, without a steep learning curve. The overall experience is further strengthened by deep integrations across the broader VMware ecosystem—such as NSX for secure networking and Tanzu for centralized governance—which helps simplify day-to-day operations in complex environments. Because these tools are natively coupled at the hypervisor level, VKS delivers strong performance, supporting dynamic resource allocation, zero-downtime migrations, and fast execution for both legacy applications and modern, latency-sensitive container workloads. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** While VKS does a good job unifying infrastructure, its Pricing / ROI has become a significant drawback after recent licensing changes. Forced moves to expensive, bundled, core-based subscription models can sharply inflate costs, especially when teams end up paying for features they may not even use. Support / Onboarding can also be more difficult than expected. Initial deployment is fairly straightforward for infrastructure teams, but Day-2 operations—such as version upgrades, certificate management, and more complex troubleshooting—often require deep Kubernetes expertise that traditional administrators may not have. Finally, VKS is weak on built-in AI / Intelligence. It lacks native AIOps for proactive cluster optimization or smarter remediation, which can push organizations to buy additional, costly suites—like Aria Operations—just to get basic predictive analytics and workload visualization. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) reduces the operational friction between legacy virtualization and container orchestration by embedding Kubernetes directly into the hypervisor layer. This approach effectively eliminates infrastructure silos, cuts down heavy Day-2 lifecycle overhead, and avoids complex, manual network and storage configurations. With cluster provisioning automated through the Cluster API and native integration with vSAN and NSX, VKS turns what would otherwise be brittle platform maintenance into automated, self-healing operations. The biggest payoff is operational velocity: you no longer need to act as a hands-on Kubernetes mechanic, and can instead manage container environments smoothly as declarative code within a unified infrastructure-as-code workflow. ### 26. Simplifies KPI Tracking and Speeds Up Application Deployment **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Jessica L. | Quality coordinator, Information Services, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 06, 2026 At G2, we prefer fresh reviews and we like to follow up with reviewers. They may not have updated their review text, but have updated their review. **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** manages KPI's and simplified all platforms for me to be able to organize and deploy applications at a faster speed. my team loves it as well for keeping track of data **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The support isn’t available at all times when I have questions or need clarification on certain tools. However, I usually manage to figure things out by doing my own research. Overall, the IT admins seem to have knowledge of the AI tool. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** it brings safety and compliance to our platforms and services, peace of mind and organization of all data sources we have in place. being able to manage all clusters is a life saver ### 27. Streamlined VM & Container Management, Worth the Cost **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Trevor Y. | Tech services lead, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like that VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) provides a simple to use experience with very familiar tools to use. It's easy to integrate with the rest of the VMware ecosystem, which means we can use our familiar VMware tools to provision and manage clusters without having to learn and maintain a new infrastructure. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** it can be quite expensive with the cost of licensing. and can be a bit complex **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) hosts our VMs and containers in one location, using familiar tools without learning new infrastructure. It's easy to integrate with the VMware ecosystem, providing a simple experience. ### 28. Simpler Kubernetes Management with vSphere and Familiar VMware Tooling **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Vipin G. | Data Center Architect, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 16, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Deployment is much simpler, and Kubernetes becomes easier to manage once it’s integrated directly with vSphere. It gives both the application and infrastructure teams a consistent, familiar experience. It also allows us to continue leveraging our existing VMware tools for security and lifecycle management. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The initial deployment and configuration are complex, and at the same time, the more advanced Kubernetes features require experienced administrators to manage the situation effectively. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** It solves the problem of needing a unified platform to manage virtual machines and containers. It has reduced operational and deployment overhead and improved resource utilization. ### 29. Simplifies Container and VM Management Seamlessly **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Alberto B. | System Administrator, Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **AI Translated:** This review has been translated from English using AI. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like the capacity to securely and easily run and manage containers and VMs on a single platform with VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS). I appreciate the use of automation and security, which makes it even more effective. The experience with VMware has also made the initial setup faster and easier for us. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** the dependency on VMware and the need to have contracts that involve higher costs than other Kubernetes environments **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** It allows running and managing containers and VMs securely and simply on one platform, solving the complexity of operating Kubernetes in a virtual environment. ### 30. Unified Control Panel and Visibility Make VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) a Win **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Dallas S. | Regional Sales Manager, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through Google using a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 09, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Our engineers like VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) becase ofthe unifed control panel. They also like visibility so they dont have to jump back and forth. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The system can be extremely dense do to the complexity. That brings me to my next point is the confusing naming, there are two - three different names. I suggest they shorten and combine **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** It helps our ticketing delays. It also runs releativley fast and that has been helpful for the team. It also makes things easier for our enigneers. All in all we like this program. ### 31. Smooth Legacy-to-Microservices Migration with Better Stability **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Gonzalo A. | Manager of infraestructure IT, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through Google One Tap using a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It allows you to migrate parts of an older application to container-based microservices, freeing up computing power and improving system stability. It also allows you to use containers within a virtualized **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It requires a minimum of training on the use of Kubernetes and containers to be able to properly develop DevOps, operations, etc., which means that it cannot be implemented as quickly as you thought. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I can migrate directly to containers without going through other applications developed for that purpose, such as Docker and others. This simplifies the implementation of these types of developments. ### 32. Comprehensive Cloud Integration, But Steep Learning Curve **Rating:** 2.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Kyle P. | Frontend Developer (Unpaid), Computer Software, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **G2 Icon:** Our network of Icons are G2 members who are recognized for their outstanding contributions and commitment to helping others through their expertise. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) to be able to deploy, manage, and scale Kubernetes clusters alongside virtual machines. I appreciate being able to combine storage, networking, and security with built-in automation and lifecycle management. I also find it valuable to integrate with a cloud service where I can implement different cloud deployment applications. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It was a difficult platform at first. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services to deploy, manage, and scale Kubernetes clusters with virtual machines. It integrates cloud services, combining storage, networking, and security with built-in automation and lifecycle management. ### 33. Kubernetes clusters in minutes and clear management of containers and virtual machines **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Arturo M. | Soporte, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through Google using a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **AI Translated:** This review has been translated from Spanish; Castilian using AI. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Software engineers can request and destroy Kubernetes clusters in minutes using standard APIs. It allows you to visualize and manage containers and virtual machines. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Demand that traditional vSphere administrators learn advanced Kubernetes concepts, and that developers understand the limitations of vSphere. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** Maintain full control over resources, network, and security with the vSphere tools you already master. Get the speed and flexibility of a public cloud (self-service via API) but within the company's data center. ### 34. Seamless vSphere Integration That Simplifies Kubernetes Management **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Moshe A. | CTO, Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 10, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Its seamless integration with the vSphere environment, allowing organizations to deploy and manage Kubernetes clusters using familiar VMware tools and processes. It simplifies Kubernetes operations, provides enterprise-grade security and lifecycle management **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** The main challenges are the learning curve, deployment complexity for new Kubernetes users, licensing costs, and the desire for even simpler lifecycle management **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solves the challenge of running Kubernetes in a secure, consistent, and operationally efficient manner within existing VMware environments ### 35. Seamless VMware Integration with Robust CI/CD and Top-Notch Observability **Rating:** 5.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Consulting | Enterprise (> 1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 02, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It integrates seamlessly with VMWare tools. It also has really robust CI/CD functionality. The observability is also top notch making it super easy to monitor across all the clusters. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** It often receives late updates that open source Kubernetes implementations get right away as VMWare needs to vet and approve them. In addition, many cluster types require substantial resources to operate. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** It eliminates the siloing of separate clusters and disparate infrastructure making it easier to manage. It is ultimately more secure than open-source Kubernetes because it’s validated and secured by VMWare, this is the positive side of it being slower to receive updates. Finally, it allows you to do more with less physical hardware. ### 36. Easy Setup and Intuitive Control with VKS **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Jon W. | Founder and CEO, Information Technology and Services, Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 14, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I find VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) quite easy to set up, and I like how easy the control panel is. I'm happy with it so far, as it could resolve some of the issues I have with hosting, like cost and specification. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** no issues with it **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I think VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) could resolve some hosting issues related to cost and specification. ### 37. Effective management of K8s clusters, but complex initial setup **Rating:** 4.5/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User | Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through LinkedIn **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **AI Translated:** This review has been translated from Russian using AI. **Reviewed Date:** July 18, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I really like the tight integration of VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) with VMware, as it allows me to use the infrastructure I am familiar with. I also appreciate that VKS addresses the tasks of rapid deployment and management of Kubernetes clusters, and this is very convenient. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Overall, everything is good, but the initial setup is quite complicated for a start. **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) for quick deployment and management of Kubernetes clusters, which is very convenient. ### 38. User-Friendly for Container Management, But Workflow Delays Persist **Rating:** 3.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** This review contains authentic analysis and has been reviewed by our team **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Reviewed Date:** July 03, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** I like that VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) is easy to use and has a great UI. I'm also able to secure the pods and apps, which is important for my work. My team found the initial setup to be easy. **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** Difficult to understand and waiting for too long to complete tasks **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** I use VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) to manage and deploy containers, handling the lifecycle of containers and app deployment efficiently. ### 39. Unified administration, easy integration, and great stability **Rating:** 4.0/5.0 stars **Reviewed by:** Verified User in Computer Software | Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.) This reviewer's identity has been verified by our review moderation team. They have asked not to show their name, job title, or picture. **Validated Reviewer:** Validated through Google using a business email account **Incentivized:** This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **Source: G2 invite:** Invitation from G2. This reviewer was offered a nominal gift card as thank you for completing this review. **AI Translated:** This review has been translated from Spanish; Castilian using AI. **Reviewed Date:** July 07, 2026 **What do you like best about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** the unified administration and its ease of integration with the infrastructure used, the stability and ease of adapting to new requirements **What do you dislike about VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS)?** it's a bit complicated to start and it can be somewhat costly, the appropriate infrastructure is required to use it and the use of resources can become quite high **What problems is VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) solving and how is that benefiting you?** modernization of applications, automation of tasks, useful administration tools, and simple maintenance through administrators' policies - [View VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) pricing details and edition comparison](https://www.g2.com/products/vmware-vsphere-kubernetes-services-vks/reviews?section=pricing&secure%5Bexpires_at%5D=2026-09-02+12%3A53%3A27+-0500&secure%5Bsession_id%5D=5b74f6db-b3a5-477b-8ccb-0187565db919&secure%5Btoken%5D=e2ee219c8c4691c3c7149548d515972d32d3203f0e510ca57bed8c6a2f3186c1&format=llm_user) ## VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Features **Alerts management** - Multi-mode alerts - Opimization alerts - Incident alerts **Fleet & Lifecycle Management - Enterprise Kubernetes Management** - Automated Cluster Provisioning & Onboarding - Multi-Cluster Fleet Management - Cluster Templates & Blueprints **Management** - Access Control - Network Isolation - File Isolation **Monitoring** - Resource utilization - Real-time monitoring - Performance baseline - API monitoring **Day-2 Operations & Reliability - Enterprise Kubernetes Management** - Auto-Remediation for Nodes & Clusters - Resource & Cost Visibility - Backup & Restore for Cluster Resources **Automation** - Resolution automation - Automation **Organization** - Packaging - Container Networking - Orchestration **Identity & Access Management - Enterprise Kubernetes Management** - Policy-Based Access Controls - Enterprise SSO Integration - Multi-Tenancy & Team Isolation - Centralized RBAC Across Clusters **Development** - Developer Toolkit - Architecture - Datacenter - Virtualization **Analysis** - Search - Reporting - Visualization - Track trends **Governance, Policy & Compliance - Enterprise Kubernetes Management** - Compliance Reporting & History - Standards Guardrails for Cluster Config - Audit Logging & Forensics **Issue Resolution** - Root cause identification - Resolution guidance - Proactive identification **App Delivery & Platform Integrations - Enterprise Kubernetes Management** - CI/CD Toolchain Integrations - GitOps-Based Config & Deployment ## Top VMware vSphere Kubernetes Services (VKS) Alternatives - [DigitalOcean](https://www.g2.com/products/digitalocean/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (745 reviews) - [Akamai Cloud Computing](https://www.g2.com/products/akamai-cloud-computing/reviews) - 4.6/5.0 (387 reviews) - [Dynatrace](https://www.g2.com/products/dynatrace/reviews) - 4.5/5.0 (1,234 reviews)