Kubernetes vs Docker Compose: source lines of code compared
As of 2026-08-14, kubernetes/kubernetes contains 4,776,295 total lines (3,846,848 code) across 14,819 files, while docker/compose contains 59,446 total lines (43,189 code) across 329 files as of 2026-08-14. kubernetes/kubernetes is about 89x the size of docker/compose by code lines. Code size is not code quality: a larger count only means more source material, not a better or worse project.
| Metric | kubernetes/kubernetes | docker/compose |
|---|
| Files | 14,819 | 329 |
| Total lines | 4,776,295 | 59,446 |
| Code lines | 3,846,848 | 43,189 |
| Comment lines | 629,007 | 9,244 |
| Blank lines | 300,440 | 7,013 |
| Languages counted | 12 | 7 |
Top languages in kubernetes/kubernetes: Go (65.3% of code), JSON (26.8% of code), YAML (6.5% of code). Top languages in docker/compose: Go (99.0% of code), Dockerfile (0.4% of code), HCL (0.3% of code). Go, YAML appear in both top language lists; JSON, Shell, PO File appear only in kubernetes/kubernetes's top languages; Dockerfile, HCL, Makefile appear only in docker/compose's top languages.
Methodology: both counts come from cached OctoCounts reports generated with tokei. kubernetes/kubernetes was counted at ref master (commit a231bf3f3776) on 2026-08-14; docker/compose was counted at ref main (commit df094b036c25) on 2026-08-14. See the counting methodology for ignored directories and analysis options.
Evidence and next steps:
Note: code size is not code quality. OctoCounts only reports reproducible line counts and makes no claim that either project is better.