Colima
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About
Colima is ranked #12 of 38 in container development environments on Inferse. It runs on Linux, macOS. There is a free plan.
Compared on container development environments
- Free plan
- Yescolima.run
- Desktop platforms
- macOS, Linuxcolima.run
- Local Kubernetes
- Yescolima.run
- Compose workflows
- Yescolima.run
- Cluster mode
- single-nodecolima.run
- IDE integration
- Nocolima.run
- Resource controls
- Yescolima.run
Facts
- Purpose
- Colima provides container runtimes on macOS and Linux with minimal setup.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Docker
- Colima provides Docker compatibility so existing Docker workflows and tools can be used without changes.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Containerd
- Colima supports the containerd runtime and nerdctl for a Docker-like command-line experience.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Kubernetes
- Colima can start a local k3s Kubernetes cluster with a single command.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Incus
- Colima supports Incus for running system containers and virtual machines.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- AI workloads
- Colima supports GPU-accelerated AI workloads on Apple Silicon using the Krunkit VM type.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- AI model registries
- Its documented model runners support Docker AI Registry and HuggingFace, while Ramalama also supports the Ollama registry.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Isolation
- The AI workloads documentation says containers are isolated from the host filesystem, other containers, and network access unless network access is explicitly enabled.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Resource controls
- Users can allocate CPU, memory, and disk resources to Colima instances.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Profiles
- Colima supports multiple isolated instances with different configurations running simultaneously.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Installation
- The installation guide provides macOS and Linux installation options, including Homebrew and manual installation.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- AI requirements
- GPU-accelerated AI workloads require Apple Silicon, macOS 13 or newer, and Krunkit; the guide recommends at least 8 GB of RAM.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- License and support
- Colima is an independent open-source project released under the MIT License, with community support through GitHub Discussions and Issues.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Notable limitation
- Running virtual machines through Incus is supported only on m3 or newer Apple Silicon devices.github.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Runtimes
- It supports Docker, containerd, Kubernetes, and Incus runtimes.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Docker compatibility
- The maker says Colima is fully Docker compatible and existing Docker workflows and tools work without changes.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Lightweight
- Colima runs with sensible defaults intended to avoid burdening the CPU.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- AI model sources
- Its documented model runners support Docker AI Registry and HuggingFace, while Ramalama also supports Ollama registries.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- AI isolation
- The AI documentation says containers are isolated from the host filesystem, other containers, and network access unless network access is explicitly enabled.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
- Default VM
- The project README states that a default Colima VM has 2 CPUs, 2 GiB memory, and 100 GiB storage.github.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Support
- The project lists GitHub Discussions, GitHub Issues, announcements, and a #colima channel in CNCF Slack as community channels.github.com · 3 Oct 2026
- License
- Colima is released under the MIT License.colima.run · 3 Oct 2026
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7.2 Garden Free free plan, no paid price published Free plan Where it ranks on Inferse
Sources
- colima.run· checked 3 Oct 2026
- colima.run/docs/ai/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- colima.run/docs/installation/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- github.com/abiosoft/colima· checked 3 Oct 2026





