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kustomize

kustomize/v5.8.2 open-source

Customization of kubernetes YAML configurations

Summary

kustomize is an open-source command-line tool that customizes raw Kubernetes YAML files by layering patches and overlays on top of a base, leaving the original manifests untouched. It costs nothing to use and runs as a standalone CLI, though a version of it also ships embedded inside kubectl. The README describes it as template-free, comparing its approach to make (behavior declared in a file) and sed (it emits edited text) rather than to templating tools, which suits platform engineers and application developers managing environment-specific config for clusters without wanting a templating language. It sits in the Kubernetes configuration-management space, handling the job of maintaining base-plus-overlay variants across environments. Started in 2017 and now with 486 contributors, it remains active with 66 commits in the past year and ten releases in the tracked window, the most recent about six months ago.

Customization of kubernetes YAML configurations

How kustomize helps

Which of my environments differ from the shared base, and where exactly?

layers each environment's patches and overlays over the untouched base and emits the merged YAML, so the delta is whatever the overlay declares rather than a hand-copied manifest

Can I preview what will actually reach the cluster before I apply it?

builds the final YAML from base plus overlay to standard output first, so the review happens on rendered text rather than on the templated source

Will upgrading kubectl silently change how my manifests get built?

ships a specific kustomize version embedded in each kubectl release, so checking the client version against the known version table shows whether a build step's behavior has shifted underneath a pipeline

Did the maintainers just remove something my kustomization depends on?

the release history records outright removals, such as dropping Starlark support for KRM functions, so comparing a kustomization's transformer and generator list against the current release notes shows what will break on upgrade

all 29 features, with the evidence for each →

Languages

English Documentation: English

Features

29 capabilities · 2 backed by code, an API document or a real run

Built from kustomize's releases, docs, README and our own runs. “Seen” marks the month we first spotted a release the vendor didn't date. Group names and tags are our labels.

Compare with peers →

What kustomize offers you

  • Command-line interface9
All capabilities 29 capabilities
Advanced replacement capabilities shipped Enhances the replacement transformer with support for multiple replacements in a single file, setting every array element, and wildcard pattern matching. 30 releases · 6 other sources · first seen Jun 2018

release 30 total

  • Accounts for delimiters in structured data replacements api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Accounts for delimiters in structured data replacements, improving correctness of replacement operations on YAML/JSON values. api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Supports editing embedded YAML/JSON values inside manifests via the replacements transformer using dot-path traversal into structured fields (e.g. data.config\.json.config.hostname). kustomize/v5.8.0 · Nov 2025 · source · release history
  • Supports regex patterns in Replacement selectors for flexible field targeting. api/v0.21.0 · Nov 2025 · source · release history
  • Implements replacement values in structured data for richer substitution workflows. api/v0.21.0 · Nov 2025 · source · release history
  • Introduces PatchArgs API type to programmatically populate patch options. kustomize/v5.8.0 · Nov 2025 · source · release history

example

  • Localize a kustomization that references not-yet-downloaded or incomplete manifests without triggering the new build validation. kustomize localize <path> --no-verify kustomize/v5.4.3 · Jul 2024 · source
  • Filter which resources can be used as replacement targets based on their metadata labels. apiVersion: kustomize.config.k8s.io/v1beta1 kind: Kustomization resources: - base.yaml replacements: - source: kind: ConfigMap name: settings target: labelSelector: matchLabels: app: frontend kyaml/v0.13.0 · Nov 2021 · source
  • Run the migration on the current kustomization file to replace legacy vars with replacements. kustomize edit fix --vars kustomize/v4.2.0 · Jul 2021 · source
  • Build and apply base config to cluster kustomize build ~/someApp | kubectl apply -f -
  • Build and apply production overlay to cluster kustomize build ~/someApp/overlays/production | kubectl apply -f -
  • Build customized YAML from base directory kustomize build ~/someApp
Transformer customization shipped Allows finer control over transformers, including splitting prefix/suffix logic and customizing role binding subjects in namespace transformers. 19 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Jun 2018

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release 19 total

  • Adds kustomize edit add configuration command for managing configurations via the CLI. kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds labels key support in transformer configuration to merge labels into resources api/v0.17.2 · May 2024 · source · release history
  • Localizes absolute paths within transformer configurations api/v0.17.2 · May 2024 · source · release history
  • kustomize edit add transformers now supports --overwrite to customize the NamespaceTransformer overwrite behaviour kustomize/v4.5.6 · Jul 2022 · source · release history
  • kustomize edit add transformers now supports --setRole to customize the NamespaceTransformer role binding subject handling kustomize/v4.5.6 · Jul 2022 · source · release history
  • Refactors PrefixSuffixTransformer into separate PrefixTransformer and SuffixTransformer, usable individually in transformers api/v0.11.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history

example

  • Register a custom configuration transformer with your kustomization without hand-editing kustomization.yaml. kustomize edit add configuration my-transformer-config.yaml kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Register a custom transformer configuration file with the current kustomization so it is picked up by kustomize build. kustomize edit add configuration my-transformer-config.yaml kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source
Helm chart integration expansion shipped Expands the Helm generator support with additional configuration fields for values files, API versions, and test handling. 16 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Sep 2019

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release 16 total

  • Supports the devel alias in helmcharts configuration, enabling use of pre-release Helm chart versions. kustomize/v5.7.0 · Jun 2025 · source · release history
  • Adds localize feature to transform absolute resource file paths into relative ones kustomize/v5.4.2 · May 2024 · source · release history
  • Adds --kube-version and --api-versions CLI arguments to control Helm chart generation targets api/v0.16.0 · Dec 2023 · source · release history
  • kustomize now supports pulling Helm charts from OCI registries kyaml/v0.15.0 · Oct 2023 · source · release history
  • Add edit remove secret subcommand kustomize/v5.2.1 · Oct 2023 · source · release history
  • Adds kustomize edit remove secret command to delete Secret references from kustomization.yaml (#5344) kustomize/v5.2.0 · Oct 2023 · source · release history

example

  • Generate a Helm chart compatible with Kubernetes 1.25 using specific API versions kustomize build . --helm-command helm --kube-version=1.25.0 --api-versions=v1,apps/v1 api/v0.16.0 · Dec 2023 · source
  • Scan a local directory containing a Helm-integrated kustomization, enabling the helm subprocess. kustomize build --enable-helm . kustomize/v4.1.0 · Apr 2021 · source
Kustomization file validation shipped Enforces stricter validation on kustomization files, including rejecting duplicate fields and preventing silent failures from unsupported or external generators and transformers. 17 releases · first seen Oct 2018

release 17 total

  • Ambiguous resource paths with inner .. segments are now rejected outright instead of being silently misresolved — any kustomization referencing such paths will fail to build. api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Duplicate fields in Kustomization files now result in an error instead of being silently ignored api/v0.13.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • External generators and transformers now raise an error instead of being silently ignored kustomize/v4.5.5 · May 2022 · source · release history
  • Raises an error when external generators or transformers are detected, preventing silent failures from unsupported plugin types. api/v0.11.5 · May 2022 · source · release history
  • fn framework now validates functionConfig against an openAPI schema kyaml/v0.13.4 · Mar 2022 · source · release history
  • Supports multiple gvks in custom openapi schema api/v0.10.0 · Sep 2021 · source · release history
Remote resource loading and validation shipped Adds support for loading remote OpenAPI schemas for validation and handling various URL schemes including SSH with certificates. 16 releases · 1 other source · first seen Aug 2018

release 16 total

  • Loads the built-in OpenAPI schema from a pre-compiled bundle embedded in the binary, replacing runtime loading from the Kubernetes API definition. kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Loads the built-in OpenAPI schema from a pre-compiled bundle embedded in the binary instead of parsing it at runtime. kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Marks ValidatingAdmissionPolicy resources as cluster-scoped in kyaml api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Performance optimization limiting initSchema calls in openapi.IsNamespaceScoped kyaml/v0.15.0 · Oct 2023 · source · release history
  • Supports SSH URLs with certificates in RepoSpec api/v0.13.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Openapi parsing performance improvement with protobuffer kyaml/v0.13.7 · May 2022 · source · release history

example

  • Retrieve the OpenAPI schema definitions currently available in your connected local cluster. kustomize openapi fetch kustomize/v4.0.2 · Feb 2021 · source
Image tag suffixing shipped Allows appending a suffix to container image tags during the build process via dedicated transformer fields. 13 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Aug 2018

release 13 total

  • Adds images support for Image Volumes in the images transformer. kustomize/v5.7.0 · Jun 2025 · source · release history
  • Supports Image Volumes in kustomize configurations (#5921). api/v0.20.0 · Jun 2025 · source · release history
  • New tagsuffix transformer available in Kustomizations to append a suffix to container image tags kustomize/v4.5.5 · May 2022 · source · release history
  • Adds the tagsuffix field to image transformers, allowing practitioners to append a suffix to image tags during patching. api/v0.11.5 · May 2022 · source · release history
  • Enables setting new tag while keeping the current image name via newTag with digest support. kustomize/v3.8.10 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds support for preserving image digest during images patch updates with keepDigest: true. kustomize/v3.9.3 · Feb 2021 · source · release history

example

  • Patch an image in kustomization.yaml to update only the tag while preserving the existing sha256 digest, preventing accidental drift. kustomize edit set image nginx=nginx:1.19 --preserve-image-digest kustomize/v3.8.10 · Feb 2021 · source
  • Update image tags using regex patterns for more flexible version matching in transformers. kustomize edit set imagetag myapp '.*-beta$' v1.0.6 · Aug 2018 · source
Generator configuration expansion shipped Provides CLI commands to add and configure generators within kustomization files, including support for shell generators, timeouts, and disabling hash suffixes. 10 releases · 3 other sources · first seen Oct 2018

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release 10 total

  • Added support for anchors in fieldspec (-f). api/v0.7.3 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Exposed the smart path splitter as a public utility. api/v0.7.3 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Improves framework usability by reducing dependency on cobra for non-CLI applications. kyaml/v0.10.7 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Add RNode.Map method and test to help decoding. kyaml/v0.10.6 · Jan 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds kustomize edit add transformer and kustomize edit remove transformer subcommands to declaratively manage transformers. kyaml/v0.9.3 · Oct 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds AllowHashSuffix logic to permit hash suffixing of arbitrary types kyaml/v0.4.2 · Jul 2020 · source · release history

example

  • Access the smart path splitter programmatically for custom kustomize plugins. import "github.com/kubernetes-sigs/kustomize/api/kyaml/splitpath" api/v0.7.3 · Feb 2021 · source
  • Decode nested YAML structures programmatically using the new Map method on RNode. // Example usage in Go: // var node *yaml.RNode // m, err := node.Map() if err != nil { ... } kyaml/v0.10.6 · Jan 2021 · source
  • Add a specific transformer to your kustomization file without manually editing it. kustomize edit add transformer image-tag:v1.2.3 kyaml/v0.9.3 · Oct 2020 · source
CLI version reporting verified Reports the tool's version, with a flag to print just the version number. 5 releases · 7 other sources · first seen Feb 2019

release

  • Adds --output flag to kustomize version to enable YAML or JSON formatted output kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • kustomize build ... completes file paths on ZSH via built-in shell completion. kustomize/v4.5.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history
  • The default branch in the cloner is no longer hardcoded to master. kyaml/v0.9.0 · Oct 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds --env / -e flag to enable environment variable expansion in kustomize configurations. kyaml/v0.8.0 · Sep 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds -s short version flag for kustomize version v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · source · release history

command line

example

  • Output version information in JSON format for programmatic parsing kustomize version --output json kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source
  • Get the kustomize version in JSON format for programmatic consumption or logging. kustomize version --output json api/v0.13.0 · Feb 2023 · source
  • Use ZSH tab-completion to quickly autocomplete file paths during a build operation. kustomize build <TAB> kustomize/v4.5.0 · Feb 2022 · source
  • Expand environment variables like DB_HOST directly within your kustomization files during build. kustomize build --env . kyaml/v0.8.0 · Sep 2020 · source
Kustomization field updates and deprecations shipped Introduces new fields like 'fieldspecs' slash support and 'creation' matchers, while removing legacy fields and aliases such as 'Inventory' and 'Resid.LegacySortString'. 9 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Aug 2020

release 9 total

  • Adds kustomize edit remove component command for removing components via the CLI. kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds kustomize edit remove component command to remove a component reference from a kustomization file via the CLI.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Allows fieldspecs in advanced transformer configuration to start with a slash via #4947 kyaml/v0.14.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Removes Resid.LegacySortString() method kyaml/v0.14.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Adds creation support to the PathMatcher filter via #4886 kyaml/v0.14.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Removed long-ignored Inventory field from Kustomization type api/v0.13.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history

example

  • Remove a previously added component from the current kustomization overlay. kustomize edit remove component ../components/my-feature kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Remove a component reference from a kustomization file when decommissioning a shared component from an overlay. kustomize edit remove component ../components/my-feature kustomize/v5.8.2 · Sep 2026 · source
Kustomization file initialization verified Creates a new kustomization file in the current directory, with options to add resources, set a name suffix, and enable recursive directory searching. 4 releases · 7 other sources · first seen Oct 2018

release

  • Adds the new kustomize localize alpha subcommand to download remote content and create a localized build without network access kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Supports immutable attribute on generators to prevent modification of generated resources api/v0.8.9 · May 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds kustomize create subcommand for bootstrapping kustomization structures v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · source · release history
  • kustomize build loads transformer configurations automatically when no path argument is provided. v1.0.10 · Oct 2018 · source · release history

docs

  • Customizes raw, template-free Kubernetes YAML files for multiple purposes without modifying the original files.

command line

  • --resources — Name of a file containing a file to add to the kustomization file. v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · command-line history
  • --recursive — Enable recursive directory searching for resource auto-detection. v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · command-line history
  • create — Create a new kustomization in the current directory v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · command-line history
  • --namesuffix — Sets the value of the nameSuffix field in the kustomization file. v3.2.0 · Sep 2019 · command-line history

example

  • Localize remote kustomization contents for offline builds kustomize localize . ./local-copy kustomize build ./local-copy kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source
  • Build production overlay YAML kustomize build ~/someApp/overlays/production
Build metadata injection shipped Adds support for storing and injecting build-time context information into kustomization files using a new schema field and CLI commands. 6 releases · 2 other sources · first seen Jun 2018

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Introduces the buildMetadata field in kustomization files to store build-time information api/v0.11.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history
  • Adds new buildMetadata field to the kustomization resource schema. kustomize/v4.5.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history
  • Adds the kustomize edit add buildmetadata subcommand to inject build metadata into kustomizations api/v0.11.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history
  • Adds the ContinueOnEmpty boolean option to the Reader configuration, allowing pipelines to process empty inputs instead of failing or skipping. kyaml/v0.6.1 · Aug 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds a callback mechanism to the KIO pipeline execution lifecycle via AddCallback on the pipeline object. kyaml/v0.6.1 · Aug 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds variable reference support in kustomizations to inject field values across resources v1.0.2 · Jun 2018 · source · release history

example

  • Use the new buildMetadata field in a kustomization file to embed build context. buildMetadata: commit: abc123 timestamp: "2023-10-01T12:00:00Z" api/v0.11.0 · Feb 2022 · source
  • Add build metadata to a kustomization file using the new CLI command. kustomize edit add buildmetadata --env production api/v0.11.0 · Feb 2022 · source
Template metadata propagation shipped Enables the propagation of template metadata, such as labels, to resulting objects when templates are included. 4 releases · 3 other sources · first seen Feb 2019

release

  • Adds labels to volumeClaimTemplates in StatefulSets when includeVolumeClaimTemplates is true api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • Adds includeVolumeClaimTemplates support to propagate labels into volumeClaimTemplates in StatefulSets.⁠︀︄︇︀︅︉︀︅︀︀︃︀︀︅︅︀︅︊︀︄︆︀︃︄⁠ api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source · release history
  • includeTemplates: true now causes template metadata (labels) to be propagated to the resulting objects kustomize/v4.5.5 · May 2022 · source · release history
  • Adds spec/jobTemplate/metadata/labels support to the common labels transformer. v2.0.0 · Feb 2019 · source · release history

example

  • Propagate kustomization labels into StatefulSet volumeClaimTemplates — useful when storage provisioners require labels to match pod selector labels. # kustomization.yaml apiVersion: kustomize.config.k8s.io/v1beta1 kind: Kustomization labels: - pairs: app: myapp includeSelectors: true includeVolumeClaimTemplates: true resources: - statefulset.yaml api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Propagate common labels to PVC templates in a StatefulSet so that provisioned volumes are consistently labelled alongside other resources. labels: includeVolumeClaimTemplates: true pairs: app.kubernetes.io/part-of: my-app env: production api/v0.21.2 · Sep 2026 · source
  • Programmatically create a ConfigMap entry using the new map helper. rNode.GetDataMap()['key'] = 'value' rNode.Set() kyaml/v0.10.4 · Dec 2020 · source
Resource sorting shipped Introduces configuration options to explicitly define the sort order of resources in the resulting kustomization output. 6 releases · 1 other source · first seen Oct 2018

release

  • The application order for components is now after generators, which changes the final manifest output for kustomizations using components and resource generators kustomize/v5.1.0 · Jun 2023 · source · release history
  • Changes the application order of components to run after generators (previously components were applied before) kustomize/v5.1.0 · Jun 2023 · source · release history
  • Adds the sortOptions kustomization field for fine-grained control over resource ordering in build output kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Adds sortOptions field to Kustomization files to configure resource sort order api/v0.13.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • Results.Sort() method allows sorting function results by GVK and name kyaml/v0.13.1 · Dec 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds ability to preserve resource ordering via generatorOptions.preserveOrder in the Kustomization spec. v1.0.9 · Oct 2018 · source · release history

example

  • Enforce specific sorting on resources in the kustomization file # Add to your kustomization.yaml: # sortOptions: # order: inverted # paths: kustomize/v5.0.0 · Feb 2023 · source
Starlark removal shipped Removes support for Starlark-based KRM functions, breaking pipelines that rely on them. 4 releases · first seen Feb 2021

release

  • Starlark support for KRM functions has been removed; any pipeline relying on starlark-based krm functions will break on upgrade. kyaml/v0.18.0 · Oct 2024 · source · release history
  • Starlark support has been removed; any kustomization using Starlark transformers/generators will break on upgrade. api/v0.18.0 · Oct 2024 · source · release history
  • The --enable_kyaml flag is removed; passing it now results in an error. api/v0.8.1 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Removes the --enable_kyaml flag (no longer needed). api/v0.8.1 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
Path and filesystem handling shipped Improves file system abstraction to support special characters in filenames, cleans directories, and moves copy utilities to require explicit file system arguments. 4 releases · first seen Aug 2020

release

  • copyutils.CopyDir() now requires a FileSystem argument kyaml/v0.14.0 · Feb 2023 · source · release history
  • In-memory filesystem abstraction now allows colons in filenames kyaml/v0.13.8 · Jul 2022 · source · release history
  • filesys.ConfirmDir function ensures a path is a directory and cleans it kyaml/v0.13.8 · Jul 2022 · source · release history
  • Add .krmignore file support to control which resources are included in kustomization builds api/v0.6.0 · Aug 2020 · source · release history
KRM Functions specification v1 support shipped Upgrades the cyber tooling to use the stabilized v1 schema for defining and executing KRM functions. 3 releases · 1 other source · first seen Jun 2021

release

  • Bumps ResourceList from v1alpha1 to v1, updating the results field to implement function spec v1 kyaml/v0.13.0 · Nov 2021 · source · release history
  • Supports krm spec v1 and legacy path, index, and id annotations api/v0.10.0 · Sep 2021 · source · release history
  • Graduates the KRM Functions Spec to version 1 (v1) in the fully specified schema cmd/config/v0.9.13 · Jun 2021 · source · release history

example

  • Configure kustomize to use the stabilized v1 KRM Functions Spec for function definitions. apiVersion: builtin kind: DeployKrmFunctionRunner metadata: name: example spec: specVersion: v1 cmd/config/v0.9.13 · Jun 2021 · source
YAML anchor and alias expansion shipped Resolves YAML references and anchors within cyber tooling configuration files during the build process. 4 releases · first seen Jan 2021

release

  • Adds AnchorsAweigh option to ByteReader to toggle YAML alias/anchor expansion, enabling anchor expansion during builds by default api/v0.10.0 · Sep 2021 · source · release history
  • Add yaml anchor/alias expansion support to kustomize resources kyaml/v0.11.1 · Aug 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds YAML anchor/alias expansion to resolve references within kustomization files api/v0.9.0 · Aug 2021 · source · release history
  • In kyaml, loosen interpretation of string node and add tests. kyaml/v0.10.6 · Jan 2021 · source · release history
Environment variable expansion in builds shipped Allows kustomization files to reference and expand environment variables during the build process. 3 releases · 1 other source · first seen Aug 2020

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Default value for FlagEnableKyamlDefaultValue is now false. api/v0.6.9 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds --env / -e flag to enable environment variable expansion in kustomize configurations. kyaml/v0.8.0 · Sep 2020 · source · release history
  • Adds --fn-env flag to the fn run command to specify environment variables for functions. kyaml/v0.7.0 · Aug 2020 · source · release history

example

  • Expand environment variables like DB_HOST directly within your kustomization files during build. kustomize build --env . kyaml/v0.8.0 · Sep 2020 · source
Kustomization tree analysis shipped Allows running a dependency tree analysis on configuration directories without changing the working directory or printing full file contents. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen Apr 2021

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Suppresses printing of the Kustomization file content in tree command output cmd/config/v0.9.9 · Apr 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds --dir as an optional flag to the kustomize tree command cmd/config/v0.9.9 · Apr 2021 · source · release history

example

  • Run tree analysis on a specific directory without changing into it. kustomize tree --dir /path/to/kustomization cmd/config/v0.9.9 · Apr 2021 · source
ConfigMap generation utilities shipped Provides methods to programmatically construct ConfigMaps and handle map data within resources. 2 releases · 1 other source · first seen Dec 2020

release

  • Adds support for merging binaryData in kustomizations. api/v0.8.1 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Adds RNode.Set() and RNode.GetDataMap() methods to simplify ConfigMap generation kyaml/v0.10.4 · Dec 2020 · source · release history

example

  • Programmatically create a ConfigMap entry using the new map helper. rNode.GetDataMap()['key'] = 'value' rNode.Set() kyaml/v0.10.4 · Dec 2020 · source
Kustomization file updates and deprecations shipped Introduces new fields like 'fieldspecs' slash support and 'creation' matchers, while removing legacy fields and aliases such as 'Inventory' and 'Resid.LegacySortString'. 3 releases · first seen Sep 2018

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • The run-fns feature has been renamed to run; any scripts or automation relying on the old subcommand name will fail. api/v0.3.0 · Dec 2019 · source · release history
  • Adds edit command option for editing name suffix in the CLI v1.0.11 · Dec 2018 · source · release history
  • Adds patchesJson6902 transformer to enable JSON patch customization of Kubernetes objects. v1.0.8 · Sep 2018 · source · release history
Subpackage traversal in config commands shipped Extends configuration CLI commands to operate recursively across subpackages within a kustomization tree. 2 releases · first seen Sep 2020

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • list_setters in recurse-subpackages defaults to false cmd/config/v0.9.3 · Feb 2021 · source · release history
  • Extends kustomize cfg cat, fmt, grep, count, annotate, and set commands to traverse and operate on subpackages within a kustomization tree. kyaml/v0.8.0 · Sep 2020 · source · release history
Kustomization inheritance management shipped Enables the declaration and application of component resources to modify kustomization configurations declaratively. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Jul 2020

release

  • Adds AllowHashSuffix logic to permit hash suffixing of arbitrary types kyaml/v0.4.2 · Jul 2020 · source · release history

example

  • Add a specific transformer to your kustomization file without manually editing it. kustomize edit add transformer image-tag:v1.2.3 kyaml/v0.9.3 · Oct 2020 · source
Alpha command enablement shipped Provides environment variable configuration to enable alpha subcommands and lists available alpha commands without shell profile modifications. 1 release · 1 other source · first seen Dec 2019

release

  • Enables access to alpha features and subcommands through the KUSTOMIZE_ENABLE_ALPHA_COMMANDS environment variable kustomize/v3.5.2 · Dec 2019 · source · release history

example

  • List available alpha commands without modifying shell profile or aliases KUSTOMIZE_ENABLE_ALPHA_COMMANDS=true ./kustomize help kustomize/v3.5.2 · Dec 2019 · source
Var reference expansion shipped Extends variable reference capabilities to include Pod initContainers and map values for value substitution. 2 releases · first seen Feb 2019

release

  • Adds Pod initContainer to var reference support per 901455eb Add Pod initContainer to var reference v2.0.2 · Feb 2019 · source · release history
  • varreference now supports mapping values (maps) via 8c93f7ba add support for varref in maps values v2.0.2 · Feb 2019 · source · release history
Helm chart pre-release support shipped Enables the use of pre-release Helm chart versions via the 'devel' alias in helmcharts configurations. 1 release · first seen Jun 2025

release

  • Allows use of the devel alias when referencing Helm charts, enabling pre-release chart versions in helmcharts configurations. api/v0.20.0 · Jun 2025 · source · release history
Generator configuration shipped Provides CLI commands to add and configure generators within kustomization files. 1 release · first seen Feb 2022

Also counts toward: Command-line interface

release

  • Adds new command 'kustomize edit add generator' for generator configuration. kustomize/v4.5.0 · Feb 2022 · source · release history
Deterministic transformation ordering shipped Ensures consistent resource output by enforcing deterministic ordering when composing multiple transformation functions. 1 other source · first seen Dec 2020

example

  • Rely on deterministic ordering when composing multiple transformation functions. # In your kustomize plugin manifest, order functions sequentially in the 'functions' list. # They now execute in this exact order rather than concurrently. kyaml/v0.10.4 · Dec 2020 · source
Resource ignore filtering shipped Supports .krmignore files to exclude specific resources from kustomization builds. 1 release · first seen Aug 2020

release

  • Add .krmignore file support to control which resources are included in kustomization builds api/v0.6.0 · Aug 2020 · source · release history

Lines in monospace are the tool's own words: help text parsed from its source, or an endpoint from its API document. Under release, a line is our summary of a dated release. Under docs, it is quoted from the tool's own documentation or website. Each links back to the source it came from.

Score card

  1. Shipping velocity releases a month, last 12 months
  2. Documentation quality release-notes rubric, 0–100
  3. Breaking-change discipline how rarely a release breaks users, and notice given
  4. Maintenance risk quiet time against its own cadence, maintainers
  5. Innovation & surface new capabilities, API and MCP surface
  6. Community health
  7. Contributor trend distinct committers, this year against last
  8. Maintainer concentration bus factor now against a year ago
  9. Issue backlog trend issues closed per issue opened, 12 months
  10. Responsiveness median time to a maintainer’s first reply

Nine scores for kustomize, each built from the releases, notes and API history this site tracks — and, on Researcher and Business, where it stands among every measured tool in its category and how that has moved.

Score cards are part of every paid plan.

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Each score is 0–100 on a published rubric, derived from data this site already shows. A dimension we cannot measure says so — it is never scored 0 and never enters a rank.

How this is scored
  • Shipping velocity — releases a month over the last 12 months, on a log scale where 16 a month scores 100. Needs 3 releases in the window.
  • Documentation quality — the release-notes rubric published on the analytics page, unchanged.
  • Breaking-change discipline — the share of releases carrying a breaking change (none scores 100, half or more scores 0). Only projects that label breaking changes are measured: a clean record cannot be told from an unlabelled one.
  • Maintenance risk — quiet time measured against the tool's own release cadence (quiet longer than 90 days and three typical gaps scores 0), plus the number of active maintainers and whether contributors are growing, where known. Higher is lower risk.
  • Innovation & surface — new capabilities in the feature ledger this year, API and MCP operations added, and the share of commits that are features: the mean of whichever we hold.
  • Community health (open-source tools only) — each is a direction, not a size: contributors this year against last, the bus factor now against a year ago, and issues closed per issue opened, where steady scores 50, doubled 100 and halved 0; plus the median time to a maintainer's first reply (an hour scores about 100, a month or more 0). A commercial card has no repository and carries none of the four.
  • Documented delivery (commercial tools) — when a vendor's documented new capabilities have slowed against its own baseline, that counts against the overall standing as heavily as two low dimensions. Steady delivery, or too little history to judge, leaves the standing alone; it is never a sixth score.
  • Open-source tools are scored on repository signals; commercial tools on their published changelog. Ranks compare tools within one category and one profile and need at least five measured peers; the overall standing needs three ranked dimensions. Best-in-breed or consolidator is a shape, not a quality, and is never scored.

Release-note detail over time

See how much detail kustomize puts in its release notes, quarter by quarter, and compare it with tracked tools in the same category. This history uses up to ten retained, reviewed notes per tool; sparse or blank older quarters may reflect that limit.

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Website history

kubernetes.io, every change

Kubernetes's home page and 22 more pages as they looked each month from August 2021 to October 2026: 33 renders, 4 changes of tagline or palette. Step through them, play them, or put any two months side by side.

Website history is included with Researcher and Business.

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Coverage

Missing something? Tell us

What kustomize connects to, runs on and detects, read from its release notes and docs. So far: 1 updated supported platform.

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1 change, tracked since Sep 30, 2026.

  • Sep 302026

    updated ValidatingAdmissionPolicy marked as cluster-scoped

    #6056: kyaml: mark ValidatingAdmissionPolicy resources as cluster-scoped

    kyaml/v0.21.2 Source ↗

How we count

Read from 1 of 101 release notes and docs updates we hold for kustomize. "First seen" is the earliest note that names something; "last" is the latest. Our history may start partway through kustomize's life, so an old integration can show a recent first-seen date.

Each change counts once: "added 40 checks" is one line, so the numbers measure how often coverage moves, not how big the catalogue is or how well it detects.

Releases

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Coverage in all entries

101 entries

  1. September 20263
  2. November 20252
  3. June 20252
  4. October 20243
  5. July 20241
  6. May 20242
  7. April 20242
  8. December 20232
  9. October 20234
  10. June 20231
  11. February 20233
  12. July 20222
  13. May 20223
  14. March 20223
  15. February 20222
  16. December 20211
  17. November 20211
  18. September 20213
  19. August 20213
  20. July 20211
  21. June 20213
  22. May 20213
  23. April 20213
  24. February 20219
  25. January 20211
  26. December 20205
  27. November 20201
  28. October 20204
  29. September 20202
  30. August 20204
  31. July 20202
  32. May 20202
  33. January 20201
  34. December 20192
  35. November 20191
  36. October 20191
  37. September 20191
  38. February 20192
  39. December 20181
  40. October 20182
  41. September 20181
  42. August 20182
  43. July 20182
  44. June 20182
    Show
    Coverage in all entries

    101 entries

    Project health

    Issue, contributor and maintainer activity in kubernetes-sigs/kustomize, 2023-10 – 2026-09, as of 2026-09-25. Twelve-month figures first; the trend lines run the whole window.

    1. Contributors 25 ±0 vs prior 12 months
    2. Maintainers 2 +2 joined · −3 left, last 12 months
    3. Bus factor 1 committers behind half the commits
    4. Community-filed 96% of issues opened, last 12 months
    5. Median time to close 152 days first maintainer reply 13 days
    6. Open backlog 133 of 2,516 issues ever filed
    1. Issues opened / month 0 · 0 communitymaintainers
    2. Open backlog 133
    3. Contributors / month 2
    4. Commits / month 8
    5. Stars 12,161
    Issue themes, last 12 months
    • bugs 43%
    • features 35%
    • other 22%

    Counts from the project's public repository and git history; no individuals are identified. Maintainers are the committers covering 80% of the last year's commits. how we measure this

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