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AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) vs Docker comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jul 14, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

AWS Cloud Development Kit (...
Ranking in Development Platforms
5th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
5
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Docker
Ranking in Development Platforms
1st
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.2
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
Container Management (5th), Software Supply Chain Security (6th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Development Platforms category, the mindshare of AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) is 7.8%, down from 9.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Docker is 43.4%, up from 40.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Development Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

Jigneshkumar Gadhavi - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy and quick to deploy but plugins could be improved
The most valuable features of the AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) are its speed and ease of deployment. We can quickly deploy infrastructure by writing code At the beginning, there were some issues regarding different plugins. We have been using AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) for 6-8 months.…
Sunny Nair - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers application conversion to Docker image and a mature environment
The learning curve with Docker is huge and extensive. Adopting Docker is a bit difficult because it requires a lot of expertise and background, including an understanding of networking and security concepts. Many professionals are facing issues with the different architectures that interact with each other in Docker. Whenever in our company, we are working with the production environment, professionals are hesitant to adopt Docker due to the extensive learning curve, and most of the team members in our company are more accustomed to an environment like VMware instead of Docker. Docker runs on scripts, so if AI can automate most of the scripting process in Docker, it would be a great advantage in the future version of Docker. As of now, we can create scripts utilizing most of the functions within Docker, but that initial planning phase wherein to understand exactly how you will plan for the resources, how you will convert applications into a Docker-based image, and similar tasks needs to be simplified so that more professionals can adopt Docker.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The setup process is very straightforward."
"You can use AWS CDK to write code to provision infrastructure."
"One of the most valuable aspects of CDK is its ability to integrate various components seamlessly, such as Lambda functions, API Gateway, DynamoDB, and EventBridge."
"AWS CDK offers seamless integration, which was a significant factor in choosing it for cloud computing."
"AWS CDK has notably streamlined the deployment process compared to other methods, primarily by defining cloud infrastructure as code."
"The most valuable features of the AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) are its speed and ease of deployment."
"The current version is quite good with our application."
"The most valuable feature is Docker has a fast learning curve."
"The most valuable feature is the simple containerization."
"Docker is highly scalable."
"Docker offers a resilient system with minimal failure chances and optimized performance"
"When used in conjunction with Kubernetes, it is seamless because it integrates very well."
"I think the best feature is to replicate anything in our local machine using a simple command."
"The solution's most valuable feature is the Dockerfile, which makes the life of developers easy. Developers get a real understanding of container creation."
 

Cons

"Using AWS CDK requires some knowledge of popular programming languages."
"There is room for improvement in the use of EventBridge and the initial setup of CDK, which can be a bit challenging."
"There is room for improvement in the use of EventBridge and the initial setup of CDK, which can be a bit challenging."
"The primary issue we've encountered is pricing. Some customers find the pricing to be somewhat high. Additionally, there's a discrepancy between the promised resource utilization and the actual utilization. The resource utilization calculations don't align with the provided guidelines. So, the pricing and resource utilization calculations could be refined."
"There are some issues with different plugins."
"They could allow combining multiple languages, such as JavaScript and Python for the platform. At present, we can use only one language."
"Sometimes there's a bug or defect in the solution. However, the Docker team works on fixing it."
"Docker management is very difficult when we have a large number of nodes."
"One of the challenges I face with Docker is debugging containers within the infrastructure. It can be tricky to debug applications inside containers, which is a common issue among developers. If easier tools or methods were available to debug applications within Docker containers, it would be very beneficial."
"They should provide proper documentation to understand the solution's cgroup process."
"I would like to see a more UI-based tool so that students can easily understand it rather than memorizing all of the Docker commands."
"The solution needs to be more scalable for local machines."
"The solution could improve with a GUI instead of only a command line interface. Having to use the command line interface can be a hassle."
"In terms of communication between services, perhaps the configuration within networks between containers could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Since AWS CDK is an open-source solution, it's free to use."
"Docker has made some changes and there is an enterprise version that is affordable."
"This is an open-source solution, so there are no licensing costs."
"There is a license needed to use Docker."
"Docker is a free open-source solution. However, there is the Docker Enterprise which is a paid solution."
"Since Docker is an open-source solution, it is free of cost."
"Docker is open source. To use a Docker enterprise model, we would need to pay for it."
"It's free."
"The product is a free open-source tool."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Computer Software Company
15%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about AWS CDK?
The most valuable features of the AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) are its speed and ease of deployment.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for AWS CDK?
Over time, I expect AWS to become more cost-efficient and resilient. Although the pricing is currently high, I hope they continue to improve their system, which will lead to cost reductions.
What needs improvement with AWS CDK?
There is room for improvement in the use of EventBridge and the initial setup of CDK, which can be a bit challenging. The IAM policies could be simplified to make the setup process more straightfor...
What do you like most about Docker?
We are using Docker to host applications.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Docker?
Regarding the cost, Mirantis Container Cloud is cheaper than other solutions like Red Hat. The license costs around 10,000 Indian rupees per year.
What needs improvement with Docker?
Mirantis Container Cloud should have AI integration tools, which are not available right now. These tools should assist in app scalability and deployment error handling.
 

Comparisons

No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Expedia, Intuit, Royal Dutch Shell, Brooks Brothers
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) vs. Docker and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,295 professionals have used our research since 2012.