Get our comprehensive Kubermatic Virtualization vs Proxmox comparison
Many organizations are rethinking how they run virtual machines. Broadcom’s changes to VMware licensing have pushed teams to look for alternatives, and at the same time more workloads are moving to containers and Kubernetes. The question is no longer only which hypervisor to use, but whether VMs should keep running on a separate platform at all.
Proxmox VE is one of the most popular choices: a free, open-source hypervisor that is familiar to VMware administrators. Kubermatic Virtualization takes a different approach and runs VMs inside Kubernetes, next to containers and AI workloads. This page compares the two and explains when each one fits.
Why teams look for a Proxmox alternative
Proxmox VE works well as a VMware replacement for many teams. They usually start looking further when one of three things happens:
They also run Kubernetes. Running Proxmox next to Kubernetes means two platforms, two APIs, two sets of runbooks and two skill sets. VMs and containers can’t share the same automation, monitoring or security policies.
They outgrow a single cluster. Proxmox’s documentation sets no explicit node limit, but cluster communication gets harder as clusters grow, and Proxmox’s own staff recommend several smaller clusters managed through Proxmox Datacenter Manager rather than one large one.
Several teams need to share the infrastructure. Proxmox offers roles, resource pools, a firewall and software-defined networking, but secure isolation between tenants has to be assembled and maintained by hand.
All three point to the same answer: instead of running VMs next to Kubernetes, run them inside it.
KubeVirt: the Kubernetes-native alternative to Proxmox
KubeVirt is an open-source CNCF project that runs virtual machines on Kubernetes. Each VM becomes a Kubernetes object, written in YAML and managed through the Kubernetes API, while the VM itself runs on the same KVM technology Proxmox uses. That means VMs and containers share one scheduler, one network, one security model and one set of tools.
New to KubeVirt? Kubermatic Learn covers the basics:
- What is KubeVirt? Running VMs on Kubernetes explained
- Creating your first virtual machine with KubeVirt
- VM networking with KubeVirt
- VM storage with DataVolumes and CDI
Kubermatic Virtualization: KubeVirt, ready for production
KubeVirt is a project, not a product. Running it in production means assembling Kubernetes on bare metal, VM networking, load balancing, provisioning and day-to-day tooling yourself. Kubermatic Virtualization packages all of this into one supported product, built on upstream KubeVirt with no fork.
What’s included:
- KubeVirt to run VMs alongside containers on Kubernetes
- Kube-OVN for VM networking, with isolated virtual networks (VPCs), subnets and NAT
- KubeOne for automated bare-metal provisioning and cluster lifecycle management
- Installer that sets up Kubernetes, networking, storage and load balancing in minutes, with declarative, GitOps-style configuration
- Central management console for VMs and containers in one interface
Key capabilities:
- High availability: failed VMs and containers restart automatically on a healthy host
- Live migration: move running VMs between hosts without downtime, for example during hardware maintenance
- Multi-tenancy and zero trust: isolated tenants, role-based access and automatic policy enforcement with Kyverno
- Tenant Kubernetes clusters: give teams their own VM-based Kubernetes clusters on the same platform
- AI and GPU workloads: run GPU-accelerated workloads next to regular VMs and containers using GPU passthrough
- Data protection: backup and disaster recovery through Kubernetes-native tools and partners such as Portworx and Trilio
- 24/7 support: unlimited round-the-clock support on Enterprise plans
In production, Kubermatic Virtualization powers Swisscom’s sovereign Kubernetes Service: 390 clusters and 2,100 worker nodes running in Swiss data centers on KubeVirt and Kube-OVN, with customer data kept in Switzerland. The CNCF has published the architecture as a case study.
Key feature comparison
| Feature | Proxmox VE | Kubermatic Virtualization |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Standalone hypervisor for VMs and LXC system containers | VMs, containers and AI workloads on one Kubernetes platform |
| Kubernetes containers | Not included; Kubernetes runs separately | Built in, on the same platform as VMs |
| Operating model | Imperative: web UI, REST API and CLI | Declarative: desired state, self-healing |
| GitOps and infrastructure as code | Through community Terraform providers and scripts | Native: kubectl, Argo CD, Flux, Helm |
| Multi-tenancy | Users, roles, pools, firewall and SDN zones, combined manually | Namespaces, RBAC, network policies and isolated VPCs per tenant |
| Policy enforcement | No built-in policy engine; firewall rules only | Automatic security and compliance policies with Kyverno |
| Tenant Kubernetes clusters | Manual: install Kubernetes inside VMs yourself | VM-based Kubernetes clusters for teams, on the same platform |
| Cluster size | No explicit node limit; large estates are usually split into several clusters | Kubernetes clusters of up to 5,000 nodes |
| Highest support level | Business hours on Austrian working days | 24/7, unlimited tickets |
Where Proxmox falls short
One platform instead of two: Proxmox VE is a separate hypervisor, so teams that also run Kubernetes operate two platforms with different APIs, access control, networking and monitoring. Kubermatic Virtualization makes each VM a Kubernetes resource, so existing GitOps pipelines, policies and dashboards apply to VMs without extra work. As we put it in our blog post Proxmox vs KubeVirt: if Kubernetes is your platform, KubeVirt is your hypervisor.
Declarative automation: Proxmox VE is imperative: you click or call the API, and it carries out each step. If something fails halfway, you fix it by hand, and infrastructure-as-code relies on community-maintained Terraform providers. With Kubermatic Virtualization, you describe each VM’s desired state in YAML, Kubernetes keeps it that way, and you manage VMs with Argo CD or Flux and roll back with a Git revert.
Multi-tenancy and security: Proxmox VE offers users, roles, resource pools, a firewall and SDN zones, but secure tenant isolation has to be pieced together by hand, which community guides describe as hard to get right. Kubermatic Virtualization inherits the Kubernetes security model, with namespaces, role-based access control, network policies, Kyverno policies and an isolated Kube-OVN network per tenant.
Scale: Proxmox sets no explicit node limit, but its staff recommend several smaller clusters over one large one as environments grow. Kubernetes supports clusters of up to 5,000 nodes, so Kubermatic Virtualization can grow without splitting the platform.
VMs, containers and AI on one platform: Proxmox VE runs VMs and lightweight LXC system containers, but not Kubernetes workloads. Kubermatic Virtualization runs legacy VMs, Kubernetes containers and GPU-accelerated AI workloads side by side, so teams can modernize gradually: a VM and the containerized services replacing it can run on the same platform during the transition.
Which platform is right for you?
Choose Kubermatic Virtualization if you:
- already run Kubernetes, or plan to, and want VMs on the same platform
- want to manage VMs declaratively with GitOps tools such as Argo CD or Flux
- need secure isolation between multiple teams or customers sharing infrastructure
- expect to grow beyond a few dozen servers, or run many sites
- want to run legacy VMs, containers and AI/GPU workloads on one platform
- need 24/7 vendor support for production
Proxmox VE may be enough if you:
- run only VMs and have no plans to adopt Kubernetes
- operate a small environment of a few dozen servers or fewer, without multiple tenants
- want tightly integrated ZFS storage and Proxmox Backup Server
- need the lowest possible licence cost and can rely on business-hours support
Conclusion
Proxmox VE is a capable, low-cost hypervisor for small, VM-only environments. As soon as Kubernetes is part of your strategy, though, running Proxmox alongside it means operating two platforms. Kubermatic Virtualization brings VMs, containers and AI workloads onto one Kubernetes-native platform with declarative automation, secure multi-tenancy, room to scale and 24/7 support, making it the stronger Proxmox alternative for enterprises building a modern private cloud. Planning a move? Get in touch with us.
Ready to evaluate Kubermatic Virtualization for your stack? Get in touch.
