Kubernetes Is Not the Answer to Every Problem

I say this as someone who spends a significant part of their work building and operating Kubernetes clusters. Kubernetes is a fantastic tool — but it’s not for everything, and introducing it at the wrong time can cause more problems than it solves.

When to Use Kubernetes

  • Many microservices (10+) that scale independently
  • Variable load — autoscaling handles capacity automatically
  • Multiple teams and environments — namespaces and RBAC provide clean separation
  • High availability requirements (99.9%+ uptime) — self-healing, health checks, rolling updates
  • Multi-cloud or hybrid strategy — Kubernetes abstracts the provider

When NOT to Use Kubernetes

  • One or two simple applications — use a VPS, Docker Compose, or managed PaaS instead
  • Small team with no K8s experience — the learning curve takes months
  • No CI/CD pipeline yet — build that first; Kubernetes builds on top of it
  • Cost-sensitive project — minimum production EKS cluster costs $250-800/month
  • Legacy stateful apps not designed for containers — significant refactoring needed

Decision Framework

Ask yourself: Do you have 5+ independently deployable services? Variable load needing autoscaling? K8s expertise on the team? Budget for minimum K8s costs? Containerizable services?

Mostly yes → Kubernetes is likely a good fit. Mostly no → explore simpler alternatives first.

Kubernetes is an excellent tool — for the right problem. If you’re unsure whether Kubernetes is the right step — let’s talk. I’ll help assess your situation and find the best solution, which isn’t necessarily Kubernetes.