Kubernetes Without Docker Is the Future — Are You Ready?

Docker is no longer part of Kubernetes — here’s what that really means and how you should prepare.

Introduction

For years, Docker and Kubernetes were the iconic duo of the container world — inseparable in tutorials, bootcamps, and DevOps pipelines.

But in a move that shocked many, Kubernetes deprecated Docker as a container runtime starting in version 1.20, and eventually removed support altogether.

No, Kubernetes isn’t dropping containers. It’s dropping Docker — and that’s a very different thing.

This change confused a lot of developers and even sparked panic across teams.

Let’s break down what this really means — and why it’s actually good for the future of container orchestration.

First, Let’s Clear the Air

When people hear “Kubernetes is removing Docker,” they often assume:

“So… I can’t run Docker containers in Kubernetes anymore?”

That’s not true.

Kubernetes still runs Docker images just fine. Docker images follow the OCI (Open Container Initiative) standard — and Kubernetes supports any container runtime that can run OCI-compliant images.