Compare Portainer and Rancher 
At a Glance
Market Segments
Small-Business (82.6% of reviews)
Enterprise (39.4% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
$0.00 3 Nodes Per Month
No pricing available
Portainer
Star Rating
(251)4.8 out of 5
Market Segments
Small-Business (82.6% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
$0.00 3 Nodes Per Month
Learn more about PortainerRancher
Star Rating
(109)4.4 out of 5
Market Segments
Enterprise (39.4% of reviews)
Entry-Level Pricing
No pricing available
Learn more about RancherSummary
AI Generated Summary
AI-generated. Powered by real user reviews.
- Users report that Rancher excels in Device Discovery with a score of 9.0, making it easier for enterprises to manage their devices, while Portainer's integration capabilities score a perfect 10.0, indicating superior system integration for small businesses.
- Reviewers mention that Portainer's Ease of Use is highly rated at 9.6, which is particularly beneficial for small teams, whereas Rancher's score of 8.9 suggests it may require more training for users to navigate effectively.
- G2 users highlight that Rancher has a solid Quality of Support rating of 8.2, but Portainer outshines with a score of 9.2, indicating a more responsive and helpful support team for users needing assistance.
- Users on G2 report that Rancher's Access Control features score 8.5, which may not meet the stringent security needs of some enterprises, while Portainer's score of 9.4 suggests it offers more robust access management options.
- Reviewers say that Rancher's Containerization capabilities are rated at 9.5, which is impressive, but Portainer's overall performance and stability score of 9.0 indicates it may provide a more reliable experience in production environments.
- Users say that while Rancher has a decent Developer Toolkit score of 7.8, Portainer's score of 9.0 suggests it offers a more comprehensive set of tools for developers, enhancing productivity and ease of development.
Pricing
Entry-Level Pricing
Portainer
Portainer Business - 3 Nodes Free
$0.00
3 Nodes Per Month
Portainer Business is our fully featured, fully supported business product. It is used by some of the largest organizations in the world to deliver a powerful Kubernetes and Docker container management experience for DevOps and IT teams. With more than 650,000 active users, Portainer is proven to be the simplest and most effective way of adopting and managing Kubernetes, and Docker/Swarm environments.
- https://www.portainer.io/take-3
Rancher
No pricing availableFree Trial
Portainer
Free Trial is available
Rancher
No trial information availableRatings
Meets Requirements
9.4
207
8.6
88
Ease of Use
9.6
210
8.9
90
Ease of Setup
9.6
162
8.5
60
Ease of Admin
9.6
152
8.7
59
Quality of Support
9.2
131
8.2
79
Has the product been a good partner in doing business?
9.6
118
8.6
53
Product Direction (% positive)
9.7
200
9.6
88
Features by Category
Systems Management
9.0
5
Not enough data
10.0
5
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
9.3
5
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
9.7
5
Not enough data
IoT Capabilities
9.3
5
Not enough data
8.7
5
Not enough data
9.3
5
Not enough data
Not enough data
Not enough data
9.3
5
Not enough data
9.3
5
Not enough data
8.3
5
Not enough data
8.3
5
Not enough data
Edge
Not enough data
8.8
15
Not enough data
9.2
15
Not enough data
8.7
15
Not enough data
8.8
15
Operations
Not enough data
9.3
15
Not enough data
8.4
15
Not enough data
9.5
16
Not enough data
9.1
15
Performance
Not enough data
9.5
16
Not enough data
9.0
16
Not enough data
9.1
15
Not enough data
9.2
15
Simplification - Internal Developer Platform
9.1
13
Not enough data
9.7
13
Not enough data
8.8
13
Not enough data
Automation - Internal Developer Platform
8.8
13
Not enough data
9.5
13
Not enough data
Management
9.4
159
8.5
76
9.4
149
8.4
73
Feature Not Available
8.1
71
Organization
9.2
145
8.5
74
9.3
169
8.8
73
9.3
150
8.8
74
Development
8.9
116
7.8
71
9.2
143
8.4
73
9.0
114
8.2
71
Feature Not Available
8.7
73
Categories
Categories
Shared Categories
Portainer and Rancher are categorized as IoT Edge Platforms and Container Management
Unique Categories
Portainer is categorized as Internal Developer Platforms and Industrial IoT
Rancher has no unique categories
Reviews
Reviewers' Company Size
Portainer
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Rancher
Small-Business(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise(> 1000 emp.)
Small-Business
(50 or fewer emp.)
Mid-Market
(51-1000 emp.)
Enterprise
(> 1000 emp.)
Reviewers' Industry
Computer Software
20.6%
Information Technology and Services
20.2%
Computer & Network Security
5.7%
Consulting
2.4%
Telecommunications
2.4%
Other
48.6%
Information Technology and Services
27.9%
Computer Software
9.6%
Telecommunications
4.8%
Financial Services
4.8%
Banking
4.8%
Other
48.1%
Most Helpful Reviews
Portainer
Most Helpful Favorable Review
Oscar Eduardo C.
Verified User in Outsourcing/Offshoring
In my opinion, the best thing about Portainer is the ease of use. We are a pretty small team, so for everyone to be able to jump in and setup or monitor containers with a just a quick introduction, has made our work much easier and efficent.
Most Helpful Critical Review
Rancher
Most Helpful Favorable Review
karen y.
Verified User in Logistics and Supply Chain
1. kubernetes cluster deployment and maintenance are made easier with rancher. 🙠️ 2. its easy-to-use interface offers a centralised view of every cluster, making problem discovery quick. 🔎 3. tools for monitoring assist in being proactive and...
Most Helpful Critical Review
Aftab Ahmed K.
Verified User in Financial Services
It is not that Robust and takes time for deployment compared to docker
Oscar Eduardo C.
Verified User in Outsourcing/Offshoring
In my opinion, the best thing about Portainer is the ease of use. We are a pretty small team, so for everyone to be able to jump in and setup or monitor containers with a just a quick introduction, has made our work much easier and efficent.
karen y.
Verified User in Logistics and Supply Chain
1. kubernetes cluster deployment and maintenance are made easier with rancher. 🙠️ 2. its easy-to-use interface offers a centralised view of every cluster, making problem discovery quick. 🔎 3. tools for monitoring assist in being proactive and...
Aftab Ahmed K.
Verified User in Financial Services
It is not that Robust and takes time for deployment compared to docker
Alternatives
Discussions
What is Portainer used for?
3 comments
AH
The process of handling and launching Docker containers.Read more
What is the difference between Portainer and Portainer CE?
3 comments
AH
Portainer CE is the community edition.Read more
Can Portainer manage Swarm?
3 comments
MP
Yes, Portainer has built-in management capabilities for both Swarm and Kubernetes.Read more
What are features of Rancher?
1 comment
EV
Rancher creates and manages Kubernetes clusters. It has the most complete GUI to interact with Kubernetes clusters without diving deep in "kubectl" and YAMLs.Read more
How is Rancher different from Kubernetes?
1 comment
EV
You don't compare these products. Rancher creates and manages Kubernetes clusters like VMWare ESXi creates and manages virtual machines.Read more
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