orbstack/orbstack
Fast, light, simple Docker containers & Linux machines observed · 2026-08-28
Health v2 · maintenance only
47/100
- Activity 37
- Release rhythm 35
- Longevity 92
Flags: no_releases
How is this computed?
round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10) — computed 2026-09-02. Adoption (stars, forks) is never an input.
- gap_med: n/a
- age_days: 1293
- days_rel: n/a
- days_push: 383
- n_releases_24m: 0
Adoption not part of the score
9241 stars · 100 forks observed · 2026-08-28
What it is AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, 2026-08-29, confidence not recorded
OrbStack is a fast, lightweight macOS application for running Docker containers, Kubernetes, and full Linux virtual machines. It serves as a drop-in replacement for Docker Desktop and a WSL-like Linux environment on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.
Use cases
- run docker containers on mac without docker desktop
- run linux vms on apple silicon
- replace docker desktop with a faster alternative
- run kubernetes locally on macos
- run x86 docker containers on arm mac with rosetta
- migrate from colima or docker desktop
- ssh into lightweight linux machines for development
When to choose
- you're on macOS and want a faster, lighter Docker Desktop replacement
- you need both containers and full Linux distro VMs in one app
- battery life, memory usage, and startup time matter to you
- you want automatic container domain names, CLI integration, and SSH support
When to avoid
- you're on Windows or Linux - OrbStack is macOS only
- you need Docker Desktop enterprise features like registry access restriction or SSO (SAML SSO is enterprise-tier only)
- you require a fully open-source solution - commercial use requires a paid license
- you need Docker Extensions or Scout support
Facets
application · maturity active
container-runtime container-orchestration developer-tools cli developer-tools cross-platform cli docker-desktop-alternative linux-vms wsl-alternative rosetta-emulation macos-app colima-alternative lima freemium virtualization containers devops macos docker kubernetes desktop
7 sources
- readme: https://github.com/orbstack/orbstack · fetched 2026-08-28 · dbb4d3509274
- homepage: https://orbstack.dev · fetched 2026-08-29 · 13d74f4f5d1f
- site_page: https://orbstack.dev/docs · fetched 2026-08-29 · d35840d14c1e
- site_page: https://orbstack.dev/docs/compare/docker-desktop · fetched 2026-08-29 · c0d5afa65e3f
- site_page: https://orbstack.dev/docs/benchmarks · fetched 2026-08-29 · 6bd1be18e58e
- site_page: https://orbstack.dev/docs/faq · fetched 2026-08-29 · 731725a51f67
- site_page: https://orbstack.dev/pricing · fetched 2026-08-29 · e6d68a4a04f6
Member repositories
| Repository | Role | Health v2 |
|---|---|---|
| orbstack/orbstack | main | 47 |
For agents
markdown · JSON · MCP: product_card(name="orbstack/orbstack")
Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00 · Report a problem