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AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) vs Docker comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 11, 2025

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
7.1
Number of Reviews
57
Ranking in other categories
Container Management (4th), Software Supply Chain Security (3rd), AI Software Development (7th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2026, in the Development Platforms category, the mindshare of AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) is 6.9%, down from 9.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Docker is 29.6%, down from 43.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Development Platforms Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Docker29.6%
AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK)6.9%
Other63.5%
Development Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

KA
Mid TypeScript/AWS Engineer at a comms service provider with 10,001+ employees
Seamless integration and improved workflow with decent ROI
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 straightforward. AWS could also improve the transparency of Lambda's internal processes and provide more visibility into Lambda logs.
reviewer2787357 - PeerSpot reviewer
Site Reliability Engineer at Granicus Inc.
Containerization has standardized deployments and drives faster, more reliable delivery
As Docker is already a very mature tool, there are areas where it can be improved based on real-world usage. One area I consider is the Windows container experience. The pain point here is that Windows containers are heavier and slower than Linux containers because I have worked in both environments and felt that Windows containers are heavier and slower than Linux containers. This also limits the ecosystem and tooling maturity compared to Linux containers. Improvements could include performance optimization and better parity with Linux container features. Apart from that, observability and debugging is another area. The pain point is the limited native metrics available and limited logging and tracing features. Improvements could include adding a good amount of metrics, logging, and tracing, as well as better built-in observability features and easier container introspection. Network complexity is also present. I face issues with Docker networking that can become confusing in complex setups, and debugging container-to-container issues is not always intuitive. Improvements can be made with simpler networking abstractions and better built-in troubleshooting tools. Docker is excellent for containerization and CI/CD, but it can be improved in areas of built-in security, network simplicity, and observability. These points should be kept in mind and worked on.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"You can use AWS CDK to write code to provision infrastructure."
"The setup process is very straightforward."
"The most valuable features of the AWS Cloud Development Kit (CDK) are its speed and ease of deployment."
"AWS CDK offers seamless integration, which was a significant factor in choosing it for cloud computing."
"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 has notably streamlined the deployment process compared to other methods, primarily by defining cloud infrastructure as code."
"Docker is convenient and easy to use."
"Docker has had a major positive impact by standardizing how applications are built, shipped, and deployed, which improved speed, reliability, and collaboration across my teams."
"The most valuable feature of Docker is automation. When I deploy the solution I am confident it will work anywhere. It is reliable and easy to use."
"Kubernetes is the primary container orchestration tool I use with this solution. Docker provides a complete solution for deploying and managing workloads across multiple nodes. Container orchestration has significantly impacted my workload by automating tasks and streamlining operations. The availability of systems like Kubernetes is crucial for planning and managing complete clusters and computing environments. Every client's needs are different, and not one solution fits all."
"When used in conjunction with Kubernetes, it is seamless because it integrates very well."
"Docker's containerization property is its main selling point."
"The solution is stable."
"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

"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 is room for improvement in the use of EventBridge and the initial setup of CDK, which can be a bit challenging."
"They could allow combining multiple languages, such as JavaScript and Python for the platform. At present, we can use only one language."
"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 are some issues with different plugins."
"Docker could improve by providing the ability to use the GPU for parallel processing. If there was the capability of using the GPU it would improve the machine learning that I want to use."
"Marketing of Docker is one area that needs to improve."
"One item that could be improved is the overall stability of Docker."
"We have found that it is not easy to install it into a Windows system."
"The solution needs to be more scalable for local machines."
"The Kubernetes blocks need improvement since Docker has many holes in it."
"There are elements of stability that are problematic. One of the most recent upgrades created a major incident on our cloud, whereby the containers were not restarting automatically."
"Stability is an area with a shortcoming."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Since AWS CDK is an open-source solution, it's free to use."
"The offering and service are quite free."
"We use the open-source version."
"The solution offers an open-source version that is free and includes a lot of functionality."
"Customers pay for the license through a yearly subscription model, where they pay per license. This means that the license is based on a subscription, and the customer pays annually for each license they use."
"Docker is a free-to-use solution. However, Docker Enterprise is not free."
"There is a license needed to use Docker."
"Docker is a free tool."
"Docker is open source. To use a Docker enterprise model, we would need to pay for it."
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Top Industries

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

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise35
 

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.
 

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: December 2025.
881,082 professionals have used our research since 2012.