Best Azure CNI Alternatives in 2026
Updated
20 apps from container networking software ranked against Azure CNI on the same published basis.
- 1Azure CNI vs Canal
- 2Azure CNI vs VMware Workstation Pro
- 3Azure CNI vs Calico Open Source
- 4Azure CNI vs CNI Plugins
- 5Azure CNI vs Flannel
- 6Azure CNI vs kube-network-policies
- 7Azure CNI vs Antrea
- 8Azure CNI vs Cello CNI
- 9Azure CNI vs DANM
- 10Azure CNI vs Kube-OVN
- 11Azure CNI vs Kube-router
- 12Azure CNI vs Network Service Mesh
- 13Azure CNI vs Spiderpool
- 14Azure CNI vs Terway
- 15Azure CNI vs Cilium
- 16Azure CNI vs Liqo
- 17Azure CNI vs OVN-Kubernetes
- 18Azure CNI vs Skupper
- 19Azure CNI vs Amazon VPC CNI
- 20Azure CNI vs Multus CNI
Azure CNI alternatives compared
| # | App | Score | Free plan | From | Runs on |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canal | 7.1 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted |
| 2 | VMware Workstation Pro | 7.0 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 3 | Calico Open Source | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 4 | CNI Plugins | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, Windows |
| 5 | Flannel | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 6 | kube-network-policies | 6.9 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 7 | Antrea | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 8 | Cello CNI | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 9 | DANM | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 10 | Kube-OVN | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted |
| 11 | Kube-router | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 12 | Network Service Mesh | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted |
| 13 | Spiderpool | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | API, Linux, self-hosted |
| 14 | Terway | 6.7 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 15 | Cilium | 6.6 | Free plan | Free | Linux, self-hosted |
| 16 | Liqo | 6.6 | No | — | Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 17 | OVN-Kubernetes | 6.6 | No | — | API, Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 18 | Skupper | 6.6 | No | — | API, Linux, Mac, self-hosted, Windows |
| 19 | Amazon VPC CNI | 6.4 | No | — | Linux, self-hosted, Windows |
| 20 | Multus CNI | 6.2 | No | — | API, Linux, self-hosted |
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Questions about Azure CNI alternatives
What is the best alternative to Azure CNI?
Canal, number 1 in container networking software with a score of 7.1 out of 10. The others here: VMware Workstation Pro, Calico Open Source, CNI Plugins and 16 more.
What is the best free alternative to Azure CNI?
Canal is the best-ranked alternative with a free plan. 15 of the 20 alternatives here publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
How are these alternatives ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes: documentation depth, a free tier and the platforms it runs on.