Glauco vs k9s
k9s is a terminal-based UI to interact with your Kubernetes clusters.[1],[2] Glauco is a desktop Kubernetes client for macOS, Windows and Linux that is read-first: it lets you browse and watch everything, and asks before every change. This page compares the two, with a source for every fact about k9s.
At a glance
| Topic | Glauco | k9s |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Glauco:A 14-day trial with every feature, for any use. Then free mode: one cluster, read-only, for personal, non-commercial use. Personal €29 or $29 a year. Team €39 or $39 per seat a year, minimum 3 seats. Enterprise on request. | k9s:Free: the README says k9s will always remain open source and free.[2] |
| Platforms | Glauco:macOS 13 or later on Apple Silicon and Intel. Windows 10 or later on x64. Linux on x64, as .deb and .rpm. Updates are automatic on macOS and Windows, and come through apt and dnf on Linux. | k9s:A terminal app for macOS, Windows, Linux and FreeBSD, on x64 and Arm, plus more Linux processor types.[4] |
| Account or login | Glauco:No account. The trial and free mode need no key; a paid license is a key plus the seat's email. | k9s:No account or login is mentioned in its README or on its website. |
| Telemetry | Glauco:None. Glauco contacts us only to check your license and for updates. Cluster data and credentials never leave your machine. | k9s:No telemetry is mentioned in its README. |
| Open source | Glauco:No | k9s:Yes.[2] |
| Licence | Glauco:Proprietary (Glauco terms) | k9s:Apache 2.0.[3] |
| Read-only by default | Glauco:Read-first: every change asks first, and confirmation dialogs focus Cancel. Free mode is read-only. | k9s:No by default, but there is a read-only mode: start with --readonly, or set readOnly in the configuration, globally or per context. Delete asks to confirm; kill does not.[2] |
Where k9s is ahead
- Free for any use, also at work, and open source under Apache 2.0. Glauco's free mode is for personal, non-commercial use.[3]
- Runs in any terminal, also over SSH, on more platforms and processor types than the desktop apps compared here.[4]
- A built-in read-only mode that you can set per context.[2]
- Plugins, skins, aliases and hotkeys to shape it around your workflow.[1]
- Built-in extras such as the Pulses dashboard, the XRay view, a node shell and benchmarking.[1]
Where Glauco is different
- Glauco is a desktop app with live tables, usage bars and a command palette, for people who prefer that to a terminal.
- No account and no sign-up. You download the app and connect to your clusters.
- No telemetry. Nothing about your clusters, contexts or credentials leaves your machine.
- Every change asks first: edit, apply, delete, scale, restart, cordon, drain, Helm rollback and uninstall. Confirmation dialogs focus Cancel and show destructive actions in red.
- Your kubeconfig stays read-only: Glauco never writes to ~/.kube/config.
- Reading Helm releases needs no helm binary: they come straight from their Secrets. Rollback and uninstall use the helm CLI on your PATH.
When to choose k9s instead
Sources
Every source was checked October 2026. We make Glauco, so we are not neutral: if a fact here is wrong or out of date, write to support@glauco.app and we will fix it.
- 1.k9s: website, checked October 2026. Used for: what k9s is, plugins, skins, aliases, hotkeys, Pulses, XRay, node shell, benchmarking
- 2.GitHub: derailed/k9s README, checked October 2026. Used for: free and open source, read-only flag and setting, delete confirmation, kill without confirmation
- 3.GitHub: derailed/k9s licence, checked October 2026. Used for: Apache 2.0 licence
- 4.GitHub: k9s v0.51.0 release files, checked October 2026. Used for: platforms and processor types (6 June 2026)