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SPECIFICTION
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Kueue

kueue.sigs.k8s.io

Free plan APISelf-hosted

What it is

Kueue is a free Kubernetes project that manages quotas and job resource consumption, deciding when workloads wait, start, or are preempted. It installs on a standard Kubernetes cluster without replacing existing components. Its scheduling tools include priority-based queues, fair sharing, quota borrowing between teams, resource flavor fungibility, preemption policies, and all-or-nothing scheduling. Built-in integrations cover Kubernetes Jobs and Pods, Kubeflow training jobs, Ray jobs and clusters, JobSet, AppWrapper, Deployments, StatefulSets, and LeaderWorkerSet. MultiKueue can find capacity and dispatch workloads across clusters, while topology-aware scheduling accounts for data center layout to improve communication throughput between pods. Kueue provides Prometheus metrics and an endpoint for viewing pending workloads. Installation instructions cover kubectl, Helm, and source builds. The guide recommends Kubernetes 1.34 or newer and officially supports and tests only those versions. Kueue also provides administrator and user ClusterRoles, with resource-specific roles that can be composed into custom roles. Its webhook server includes internal certificate management, and the installation guide links to cert-manager instructions.

Spec sheet

What it does
Kueue manages quotas and job resource consumption, deciding when jobs wait, start, or are preempted.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Purpose
Kueue manages quotas and job resource consumption in Kubernetes, deciding when jobs wait, start, or are preempted.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Access control
Kueue installs batch administrator and batch user ClusterRoles and supports composing custom roles from resource-specific editor and viewer roles.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Cluster fit
Kueue installs on a vanilla Kubernetes cluster and does not replace existing Kubernetes components.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Community support
The project directs users to Kubernetes Slack, GitHub for bugs and contributions, and a mailing list for announcements.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Install methods
The maker documents installation with kubectl or Helm, building from source, and installing a development version.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Installation methods
The documentation provides installation instructions using kubectl, Helm, or a source build.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Installation requirement
The installation guide recommends Kubernetes 1.34 or newer, stating that only those versions are officially supported and tested.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Monitoring
Kueue exposes Prometheus metrics for system health and ClusterQueue and LocalQueue status, with Grafana query guidance in its docs.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Multi-cluster
MultiKueue can search for capacity and dispatch workloads across multiple clusters.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Queueing and resource management
Features include priority-based job queueing, resource flavor fungibility, fair sharing, cohorts, and preemption policies.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Quota sharing
Kueue supports tenant quotas and fair sharing, including shared resource pools and quota borrowing between teams.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Scheduling
Kueue supports priority-based queueing, resource flavor fungibility, preemption, and all-or-nothing scheduling.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Security operations
Kueue's webhook server uses internal certificate management, and its installation guide also links instructions for using cert-manager.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Topology
Topology-aware scheduling places distributed workloads with data-center topology in mind to improve pod-to-pod communication throughput.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Topology-aware scheduling
Kueue can schedule with data center topology in mind to optimize pod-to-pod communication throughput.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Where it runs
Kueue can be installed on a vanilla Kubernetes cluster and does not replace existing Kubernetes components.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Workload integrations
Built-in integrations include Kubernetes Batch Jobs, Kubeflow training jobs, Ray jobs and clusters, JobSet, AppWrapper, plain Pods, and Pod groups.Read 2 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io
Workload support
Built-in integrations include Kubernetes Jobs, Kubeflow training jobs, Ray jobs and clusters, JobSet, AppWrapper, Pods, Deployments, StatefulSets, and LeaderWorkerSet.Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io

Plans and prices

Kueue Free Open-source Kubernetes project Read 3 Oct 2026 · kueue.sigs.k8s.io

Every Kueue plan and price →

Strong points and limits

Strong points

  • Manages quotas and job resource consumption
  • Supports fair sharing and quota borrowing
  • MultiKueue dispatches work across clusters
  • Provides Prometheus metrics and pending-workload visibility

Limits

  • Official support and testing target Kubernetes 1.34 or newer
  • Requires installation on a Kubernetes cluster

Who it suits

Kueue suits teams managing batch workloads and quotas on Kubernetes clusters. Its multi-cluster, topology-aware, and workload integration features may be relevant to teams coordinating jobs across clusters or workload types.

Verdict

Kueue provides scheduling and quota controls for Kubernetes workloads without replacing existing cluster components. Check its Kubernetes version recommendation and support boundary before installing.

Where Specifiction places it

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