CentOS vs Flatcar Container Linux comparison

CentOS and Kinvolk are both solutions in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category. CentOS is ranked #6 with an average rating of 8.9, while Kinvolk is ranked #18. CentOS holds a 5.1% mindshare in OSB, compared to Kinvolk’s 0.5% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of CentOS users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Kinvolk users who would recommend it.

CentOS

Read 69 CentOS reviews

7,838 Views
7,921 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Flatcar Container Linux

Read 1 Flatcar Container Linux review

670 Views
530 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

CentOS

Flatcar Container Linux

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between CentOS and Flatcar Container Linux based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Red Hat, Canonical, Oracle and others in Operating Systems (OS) for Business.

To learn more, read our detailed Operating Systems (OS) for Business Report (Updated: May 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

May 2025

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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

CentOS

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

6th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Flatcar Container Linux

Ranking in Operating Systems (OS) for Business

18th

Average Rating

8.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the Operating Systems (OS) for Business category, the mindshare of CentOS is 5.1%, down from 8.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Flatcar Container Linux is 0.5%, up from 0.4% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

Featured Reviews

Mahender Nirwan

Software developer at TAIGLE LLC

In-depth documentation available and command-line utility works well

One issue I recently faced, but I think it was due to my IT support guys, was that when the server storage gets full, the service crashes. It's very difficult to regain access and stability in that situation. That could be improved. So, the stability might be improved. But I don't think it's a CentOS-level issue. The system administrators need to come up with a solution for that, but I don't think it's CentOS's fault. I haven't done any research [R&D] on this issue. There's one thing for sure. We recently migrated from CentOS 7 to CentOS 9, and it was a bit difficult. For example, updating Windows is simple; you just download it, and it takes about 15-20 minutes. But that's not the case with migrating from CentOS 7 to 9. We had to back up the entire server, launch a new server, and then restore the backup to the new server. We couldn't directly migrate. I think that was a bit of a problem. The setup and updates are not that new in CentOS.

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Yogesh Deore

Senior Consultant at Capgemini

The solution is stable and allows us to make needed changes

The development teams could sharpen their skills. They should offer applications on the net I have eight years of experience with Flatcar Container Linux. The version of Flatcar Container Linux that I am using is stable. The scalability of this product is fine. It allows us to make the needed…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"It's a good and stable system. It provides everything you need for web servers and database servers."

"It’s scalable."

"It helps us install and deploy our applications."

"The product offers a free community-based version."

"The solution is productive."

"The most valuable features of CentOS are it is built from Linux, has good performance, and can we can create scripts. The scripts are you to do minor work automatically."

"The most valuable feature of CentOS is that it is easy to use."

"CentOS is very easy to use, and all the commands are user-friendly."

More CentOS pros

"Flatcar's support is good. The version I am using is stable and allows us to make needed changes."

Cons

"The price could be better. They could add more drivers in terms of peripherals and other things. Add more drivers for the Linux specifications in the next release. Right now, they are just pushing to have more drivers for Windows instead of Linux."

"When comparing the GUI of CentOS to Microsoft Windows or Mac, it could improve."

"CentOS could be improved with more user-friendly monitoring."

"The tool has no official support."

"The support could be a bit better."

"Currently, CentOS is not providing support, so you will not get new packages that are compatible with that operating system."

"The stability could always be improved."

"The main issue is the End of Support. For that reason, we will switch to another operating system."

More CentOS cons

"The development teams could sharpen their skills. They should offer applications on the net."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We don’t have to pay for the system’s licenses."

"We have a CentOS license that we pay for on a yearly basis."

"The solution is not subscription-based, unlike Red Hat."

"This is an open-source solution, so there are no licensing costs involved."

"CentOS is an expensive solution. There are other solutions that are rated at the top that are not expensive, such as Red Hat."

"We are using a subscription-based license option for CentOS."

"CentOS is free."

"For the enterprise version of CentOS, there is a license required. However, for personal use, I do not need a license."

More CentOS pricing and cost advice

Information not available

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Comparison Review

it_user281973

Storage and VMware Expert at a comms service provider with 1,001-5,000 employees

Aug 24, 2017

It's improved our company's system environments that run Oracle databases.

Red Hat is mission critical to our environment Red Hat has improved the mission critical environments running Oracle databases, while CentOS has improved our web environment and MySQL. Oracle and SAP Environment and all HPC environments. 10 years No issues Very stable i don´t find any problem…

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

17%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Government

Computer Software Company

25%

Financial Services Firm

11%

Manufacturing Company

10%

University

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

No data available

Questions from the Community

Which would you choose - RHEL (Red Hat Enterprise Linux) or CentOS?

Red Hat Enterprise Linux is fantastic. It is an inexpensive solution that has excellent security, performance, and stability, and also lots of features. I specifically like that the solution has fe...

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What do you like most about CentOS?

CentOS is very easy to use, and all the commands are user-friendly.

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for CentOS?

CentOS is a free product with free updates. There are third-party companies available for support, but they charge varying amounts for their services.

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Comparisons

Oracle Linux vs CentOS

Compared 38% of the time

Ubuntu Linux vs CentOS

Compared 11% of the time

Windows Server vs CentOS

Compared 9% of the time

SUSE Linux Enterprise vs CentOS

Compared 8% of the time

More CentOS Competitors

Ubuntu Linux vs Flatcar Container Linux

Compared 55% of the time

Alpine Linux vs Flatcar Container Linux

Compared 16% of the time

Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) vs Flatcar Container Linux

Compared 13% of the time

SUSE Linux Enterprise vs Flatcar Container Linux

Compared 7% of the time

More Flatcar Container Linux Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

CentOS

May 2025

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Buyer's Guide

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

May 2025

Download Flatcar Container Linux product report

Overview

CentOS is a versatile operating system with many use cases, including virtual spaces, scientific computing, data center servers, web-based applications, and more. Its valuable features include customization options, low memory consumption, performance, scalability, open-source nature, cost-saving, and compatibility with Red Hat packages.

The solution has helped organizations save money on licensing and improve testing capabilities for new implementations without spending additional resources. CentOS is a stable, reliable, and efficient operating system that is easy to use and integrate with other applications and services.

CentOS

Flatcar Container Linux is a lightweight, secure, and reliable operating system designed for running containers at scale with automatic updates and a minimal attack surface. The solution is easy to use and manage and has a simple and intuitive command-line interface and a powerful set of tools for managing containers and clusters.

It supports various container runtimes, including Docker, Kubernetes, and Mesos. It can be deployed on various infrastructure platforms, including bare metal, virtual machines, and cloud environments. Flatcar Container Linux is an ideal choice for organizations deploying containerized applications in production environments.

Kinvolk

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

CISCO, mettle, Microsoft, Upguard, GMX

Buyer's Guide

Operating Systems (OS) for Business

May 2025

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