Exoscale Scalable Kubernetes Service
Ranked in Container Orchestration Software ·Free plan
About
Exoscale Scalable Kubernetes Service (SKS) is a managed Kubernetes service for deploying, scaling and hosting containerized applications in Europe. Exoscale runs the control plane and handles its upgrades, reducing the control-plane maintenance customers need to manage. Its product page says a fully managed cluster can be started in less than one minute. SKS offers a free Starter Cluster billed by the hour, with a managed control plane, CLI, API and Terraform integration, plus automatic control-plane patch upgrades. Pro Cluster is billed per hour, but no numeric price is listed; it adds a highly available control plane, etcd backups, a 99.95 % SLA and Karpenter autoscaling. Networking includes Network Load Balancers for ingress and Kubernetes-compatible instance pools. The Exoscale CSI driver supports block or object storage for stateful workloads. Clusters start with minimal exposure; users manage authentication, network policies and role-based access, and Kubernetes Audit provides visibility into user and system actions. SKS is vanilla Kubernetes, with no monitoring, GitOps or security tools installed by default.
Who it is for
SKS suits developers and data engineers building cloud-native applications in Europe who want a managed Kubernetes control plane. It also fits teams that need API, Terraform or other listed integrations and can provide their own monitoring, GitOps and security tooling.
What is good
- Free Starter Cluster with managed control plane.
- Terraform integration and API access.
- Karpenter autoscaling in Pro Cluster.
- Network Load Balancers support ingress traffic.
- Kubernetes Audit shows user and system actions.
What to know first
- Monitoring, GitOps and security tools are not installed by default.
- Pro Cluster price has no numeric amount listed.
- Cluster limit is 3 clusters.
Verdict
SKS covers managed Kubernetes operations, networking, storage and access controls, with a free Starter Cluster and additional Pro features. Teams should account for the 3-cluster limit and the need to supply tooling not installed by default.
Compared on container orchestration software
- Free plan
- Yesexoscale.com
- Deployment model
- managedexoscale.com
- Multi-cluster management
- Yesexoscale.com
- Autoscaling
- Yesexoscale.com
- Policy controls
- Yesexoscale.com
- Cluster limit
- 3 clustersexoscale.com
Facts
- Purpose
- SKS is a managed Kubernetes service for deploying, scaling, and hosting containerized applications in Europe.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Managed operations
- Exoscale operates the control plane and provides control-plane upgrades, reducing cluster maintenance work for customers.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Cluster setup
- The product page says fully managed clusters can be started in less than one minute.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Networking
- SKS integrates Network Load Balancers for ingress traffic and supports Kubernetes-compatible instance pools.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Storage
- The Exoscale CSI driver supports attaching block or object storage for stateful workloads.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Security controls
- Clusters are provisioned with minimal exposure by default, and users control authentication, network policies, and role-based access.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Audit
- Kubernetes Audit provides visibility into user and system actions.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Standards
- Exoscale says every SKS release passes the CNCF Kubernetes conformance tests and supports required Kubernetes APIs.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Limits
- SKS is vanilla Kubernetes and does not include additional tooling such as monitoring, GitOps, or security solutions installed by default.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- Exoscale lists Kubernetes Cloud Controller Manager, Karpenter, Terraform, Packer, Vault, Pulumi, and Crossplane among its integrations.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Support
- All Exoscale customers receive included ticket support, with paid support plans offering faster response times and additional channels or coverage.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- Exoscale describes its cloud platform as built to help European teams develop cloud-native applications and specifically mentions developers and data engineers.exoscale.com · 3 Oct 2026
Company
- Founded
- 2011exoscale.com · 28 Sept 2026
- Headquarters
- Lausanne, Switzerlandexoscale.com · 28 Sept 2026
Best Exoscale Scalable Kubernetes Service alternatives
See all 20
Where it ranks on Inferse
Sources
- exoscale.com/sks/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- exoscale.com/integration/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- exoscale.com/support/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- exoscale.com/about-us/· checked 3 Oct 2026
- exoscale.com/pricing/· checked 3 Oct 2026