Docker Desktop
Docker Inc., the developer of Docker Desktop and the broader containerization platform, provides desktop and cloud tools enabling 20M+ developers and 91% of the Fortune 100 to build, ship, and secure containerized applications via a freemium-to-enterprise subscription model spanning individual, team, and business tiers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Docker Desktop does
Docker Inc., headquartered in San Francisco and founded in 2013, develops Docker Desktop and the broader containerization platform used by software developers and enterprises worldwide. The company's flagship product, Docker Desktop, is a desktop application for Mac, Windows, and Linux that provides a complete development environment for building, sharing, and running containerized applications, integrating containers, Kubernetes, IDE extensions, and the full dev loop into a single tool. The underlying runtime is built on open standards including containerd (a graduated CNCF project), runc (the OCI reference implementation), and BuildKit, which Docker maintains and sponsors through its open source community programs.
Beyond the desktop product, Docker operates Docker Hub — a public registry hosting 14M+ container images with 20B+ monthly pulls and 24M+ developers — alongside Docker Scout (software supply chain security), Docker Build Cloud and Docker Offload (cloud-accelerated build and execution), and Docker Hardened Images (SLSA Level 3-compliant base images). In 2024–2025, the company expanded into AI infrastructure with Docker Sandboxes (microVM isolation for coding agents), Docker Agent (autonomous agent runtime), Gordon (AI assistant), Docker Model Runner (local LLM inference), Docker MCP Catalog and Toolkit, and Docker AI Governance. In December 2023, Docker acquired AtomicJar, the maker of Testcontainers, extending its footprint in developer testing.
Docker operates a product-led growth model anchored by a free Personal tier, supplemented by Pro ($11/month or $9/month annually), Team ($16/user/month or $15/user/month annually), and Business ($24/user/month) subscriptions. The company blends self-serve downloads with an enterprise sales motion targeting security, compliance, and management features, supported by MSI/PKG installers and integrations with Intune, Jamf Pro, and Microsoft Dev Box. The company reports 20M+ developers building daily, 91% Fortune 100 usage, and 200+ public customer stories spanning Walmart, Netflix, Spotify, ADP, Itaú Unibanco, ZEISS, Ataccama, The Warehouse Group, and others across financial services, retail, automotive, and AI verticals.
Docker Desktop firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Docker Desktop
- Legal name
- Docker Inc.
- Website
- https://docker.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Docker Inc., the developer of Docker Desktop and the broader containerization platform, provides desktop and cloud tools enabling 20M+ developers and 91% of the Fortune 100 to build, ship, and secure containerized applications via a freemium-to-enterprise subscription model spanning individual, team, and business tiers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Docker Desktop industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Container Development Platform
- NAICS
- Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518210)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Container Platforms & Orchestration (Kubernetes) (HDABADAF)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Managed Container Platforms (Kubernetes & Container PaaS) (HDABAAAB), Kubernetes & Container Platform Management (Private Cloud) (HDABABAC), Cloud-Native Development (Containers, Kubernetes, Microservices) (BPAEACAD), Cloud-Native Application Development (Containers/Kubernetes/Serverless) (BPAEAFAE)
Keywords
Where Docker Desktop is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Docker Desktop business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Docker Desktop Subscriptions: Tiered subscription model for Docker Desktop with Personal (free), Pro ($11/month), Team ($16/user/month), and Business ($24/user/month) tiers. Annual discounts available (e.g., Pro at $9/month annually).
- Premium Support and TAM: Additional premium support and Technical Account Manager services offered as add-ons to paid subscription tiers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Free tier for individual developers with essential container tools |
| Subscription | Annual | Advanced features for individual professionals |
| Subscription | Annual | Collaborative tools for small teams |
| Subscription | Monthly | Enterprise security, control, and compliance features |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Docker Desktop product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Docker Desktop is a desktop application that lets developers build, share, and run containerized applications on Mac, Windows, and Linux. The Docker platform extends beyond the desktop to include Docker Hub for image sharing, Docker Scout for supply chain security, Docker Build Cloud for accelerated builds, Docker Hardened Images for secure base images, and a suite of AI-agent tools (Docker Sandboxes, Docker Agent, Docker Model Runner, Docker MCP Catalog and Toolkit, Gordon, and Docker AI Governance). Docker sells these as subscription tiers (Personal free, Pro, Team, Business) to individual developers, teams, and enterprises globally.
Product overview
Docker provides a comprehensive containerization platform consisting of core desktop and cloud products for modern application development. Docker Desktop serves as the primary development environment for containerizing applications on Mac, Windows, and Linux. Docker Hub provides cloud-based image discovery and sharing with 20B+ pulls monthly and 20M+ developers. Docker Scout offers security analysis and supply chain protection. Docker Build Cloud accelerates builds in the cloud while Docker Offload extends beyond local constraints. For AI workloads, Docker provides Docker Agent (autonomous agents), Gordon (AI assistant), Docker Model Runner (local LLM inference), Docker MCP Catalog and Toolkit (AI tool management), Docker Sandboxes (isolated AI execution), and Docker AI Governance (agent policy management). Docker Hardened Images delivers enterprise-ready secure base images. Docker Compose manages multi-container applications while the Extensions SDK enables building custom extensions. Open source projects like Docker CLI, Docker Buildx, Docker Engine, containerd, and Testcontainers (acquired 2023) form the foundational ecosystem.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Docker Desktop: Containerize your applications. Containers and the full dev loop in one place. Go from blank file to running app in minutes, shipped anywhere.
- Docker Hub
- Docker Scout
- Docker Build Cloud
- Docker Hardened Images
- Docker Sandboxes
- Docker AI Governance
- Gordon
- Docker Model Runner
- Docker MCP Catalog and Toolkit
- Docker Offload
- Docker Compose
- Testcontainers
Quantifiable outcome
- 91% of Fortune 100 already run on Docker
- +10 more outcomes
Companies that use Docker Desktop
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Docker Desktop technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
AI capability7 records
Feature11 records
Docker Desktop partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- CNCF (Cloud Native Computing Foundation)coreDocker Hub's CNCF category highlights verified images from CNCF projects, providing developers with trusted, community-backed containers. Docker maintains core projects containerd and runc as part of the container ecosystem.
- BastionZerocoreJointly developed OpenPubkey project with BastionZero for binding OIDC identities to public keys. OpenPubkey was open-sourced and donated to the Linux Foundation for software supply chain security.
- Linux FoundationcoreOpenPubkey project donated to Linux Foundation. Docker open source components licensed under Apache 2.0.
- GitHubcoreDocker provides official GitHub Actions for building, pushing, and annotating Docker images. GitHub Actions OIDC provider used for Docker Official Images signing workflow.
- MicrosoftcoreDocker Desktop optimized for Windows with WSL integration, Microsoft Dev Box support, and Azure integration for container registries and cloud builds.
- AtomicJar (Testcontainers)coreDocker acquired AtomicJar in December 2023, makers of Testcontainers for throwaway lightweight instances of databases, message brokers, and browsers for unit testing.
Scale indicators7 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Docker Desktop competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- SUSE Rancher: Rancher (acquired by SUSE) provides enterprise Kubernetes management and Rancher Desktop, a direct alternative to Docker Desktop for developers. It competes on multi-cluster Kubernetes operations and developer-facing container tooling.
- Snyk: Snyk provides container and software supply chain security, directly competing with Docker Scout. Both target enterprise security teams with vulnerability scanning, image analysis, and policy enforcement for containers.
- Coder: Coder provides self-hosted cloud development environments that compete with Docker Desktop for enterprise developer productivity. Coder's workspaces are container-based and serve the same enterprise IT buyer as Docker Business.
- HashiCorp (Nomad): HashiCorp's Nomad is a container and application orchestrator that competes with Docker/Kubernetes-based orchestration. HashiCorp's broader developer infrastructure portfolio overlaps with Docker's developer tooling footprint.
- Gitpod: Gitpod offers cloud-based, containerized development environments as an alternative to local Docker Desktop workflows. It targets the same developer persona with preconfigured, automated dev environments.
- GitHub Codespaces: GitHub Codespaces provides cloud-hosted development environments that bundle containerized dev loops, competing with Docker Desktop's local development positioning. Codespaces also integrates Docker actions directly, making it both a partner and a competitor.
- Red Hat (OpenShift, Podman): Red Hat's OpenShift is the leading enterprise Kubernetes platform and Podman is a Docker-compatible open-source container runtime. Red Hat competes directly with Docker Desktop and the broader Docker platform across enterprise container management and runtime tooling.
Broad incumbents
- Microsoft Azure (AKS, ACR, Dev Box): Azure Kubernetes Service, Azure Container Registry, and Microsoft Dev Box overlap with Docker's enterprise and developer tooling. Despite being a Docker partner, Azure bundles competing alternatives that can displace Docker in Microsoft-centric enterprises.
- Amazon Web Services (ECS, EKS, ECR): AWS offers ECS and EKS for container orchestration plus ECR as a managed container registry. As the dominant cloud provider, AWS directly competes with Docker Hub and Docker Desktop in cloud-native enterprise workflows.
- Google Cloud (GKE, Artifact Registry): Google Cloud's GKE pioneered managed Kubernetes and Artifact Registry competes with Docker Hub. As a cloud incumbent, Google Cloud bundles container services into broader AI/data offerings that can substitute for Docker tooling.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Docker Desktop social profiles
Digital presenceDocker Desktop compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance1 record
Docker Desktop financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Docker Desktop leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Docker Desktop subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Docker Desktop funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Docker Desktop M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Docker Desktop
What does Docker Desktop do?
Docker Desktop is a desktop application that lets developers build, share, and run containerized applications on Mac, Windows, and Linux. The Docker platform extends beyond the desktop to include Docker Hub for image sharing, Docker Scout for supply chain security, Docker Build Cloud for accelerated builds, Docker Hardened Images for secure base images, and a suite of AI-agent tools (Docker Sandboxes, Docker Agent, Docker Model Runner, Docker MCP Catalog and Toolkit, Gordon, and Docker AI Governance). Docker sells these as subscription tiers (Personal free, Pro, Team, Business) to individual developers, teams, and enterprises globally.
Is Docker Desktop a public or private company?
Docker Desktop is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Docker Desktop founded?
Docker Desktop was founded in 2013. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Docker Desktop based?
Docker Desktop is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Docker Desktop make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Docker Desktop Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are premium Support and TAM.
Who are Docker Desktop's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are SUSE Rancher, Snyk, Coder, HashiCorp (Nomad), Gitpod, GitHub Codespaces and Red Hat (OpenShift, Podman). Broad incumbents are Microsoft Azure (AKS, ACR, Dev Box), Amazon Web Services (ECS, EKS, ECR) and Google Cloud (GKE, Artifact Registry).
Does Docker Desktop have an API?
No public API is recorded for Docker Desktop.
What industry is Docker Desktop in?
Docker Desktop's product category is Container Development Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDABADAF, Container Platforms & Orchestration (Kubernetes), with a secondary code of HDABAAAB, Managed Container Platforms (Kubernetes & Container PaaS). Its NAICS code is 5182 and its SIC code is 7372.