Tech riderRev. 30 Sept 2026
- 1Runs onAPI, Linux, self-hosted, Web
- 2CostsFree plan · free trial · paid from $2.08/mo
- 3Rootless modeYes
- 4Image buildingYes
- 5Runtime interfaceother
- 6Supported host OSLinux
6 lines stated Written from the maker's own pages: canonical.com
Overview
LXD is ranked #4 of 33 in virtualization management software on Specifiction. It runs on API, Linux, Self-hosted, Web. There is a free plan. A free trial is offered. Paid plans start at $2.08/mo.
LXD plans and pricing
All plansLXD open source Free KVM-based virtual machines · system containers · self-hosted deployment canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
Ubuntu Pro Personal Free Up to 5 physical Ubuntu systems · unlimited VMs or containers canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
Ubuntu Pro Enterprise workstation $25/yr per workstation Security and compliance subscription · optional support canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
Ubuntu Pro Enterprise server $500/yr per server Security and compliance subscription · optional support canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
Compared on virtualization management software
- Free plan
- Yescanonical.com
- Rootless mode
- Yescanonical.com
- Image building
- Yescanonical.com
- Runtime interface
- othercanonical.com
- Supported host OS
- Linuxcanonical.com
Facts
- What it does
- LXD is an open source solution for managing virtual machines and system containers.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Workload types
- LXD provides KVM-based virtual machines and system containers based on LXC in one platform.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Image support
- LXD supports images for many Linux distributions and Windows virtual machines.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Management interfaces
- LXD can be managed through its CLI, REST API, web UI, and third-party tools.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- REST API
- LXD uses a single RESTful API over HTTP for local and remote access.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Web UI
- An official LXD UI is available by default starting with LXD 5.21.0 LTS.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Integrations
- LXD integrations are available for Juju, MAAS, Ansible, Terraform, Puppet Bolt, and Packer.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Security defaults
- LXD runs unprivileged containers by default and supports UEFI Secure Boot and vTPM for virtual machines.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Scaling
- LXD can scale from containers on a laptop to thousands of instances in a data center.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Cluster limit
- LXD documentation describes clusters of up to 50 servers with thousands of instances.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Key features
- Key features include resource limits, scheduled and expiring snapshots, projects, hardware passthrough, live migration, and advanced networking.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Release support
- LXD LTS releases are created every two years and receive standard support for five years.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Commercial support
- Canonical makes commercial LXD support available through Ubuntu Pro.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
- Community support
- LXD provides documentation, a discussion forum, tutorials, and GitHub-based contribution channels.canonical.com · 30 Sept 2026
Company
- Founded
- 2004canonical.com · 28 Sept 2026
- Headquarters
- London, United Kingdomcanonical.com · 28 Sept 2026
Best LXD alternatives
See all 12 All accessCh 01 Proxmox VE Free planAndroidAPI from €10/mo7.6 All accessCh 02 Virtuozzo Infrastructure Free planFree trialAPI Free to start7.4 All accessCh 03 ZStack Free planFree trialAPI Free to start7.4 All accessCh 05 HPE Morpheus VM Essentials Software Free trialLinuxself-hosted from $50/mo7.0 All accessCh 06 Apache CloudStack Free planAPILinux Free to start6.9 All accessCh 07 Oracle VirtualBox LinuxMac 6.9
Where it ranks on Specifiction
Is LXD yours?
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Sources
- canonical.com/lxd· checked 30 Sept 2026
- canonical.com/lxd/manage· checked 30 Sept 2026
- canonical.com/lxd/docs/default/reference/releases-sna· checked 30 Sept 2026
- canonical.com/lxd/docs/latest/· checked 30 Sept 2026
- canonical.com/legal/ubuntu-pro/personal· checked 30 Sept 2026
- canonical.com/knowledge/security-and-compliance/what-· checked 30 Sept 2026