Software Article

The easiest ways to run GitOps in Kubernetes typically involve using one of the popular GitOps operators. Here are the main options:

1. Argo CD — Most popular choice

• Web UI out of the box, making it beginner-friendly
• Install with a single kubectl apply or Helm chart
• Syncs your Git repo to your cluster automatically
• Great visualization of app state and diff views

kubectl create namespace argocd
kubectl apply -n argocd -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/argoproj/argo-cd/stable/manifests/install.yaml

2. Flux — CNCF graduated project

• Lighter weight, no UI by default (CLI-driven)
• Installs via its CLI tool
• Excellent Helm and Kustomize support
• Works well in a "set and forget" model

flux bootstrap github \
  --owner=your-org \
  --repository=your-repo \
  --path=clusters/my-cluster

3. Managed/Hosted Options

• AWS EKS Add-ons for Flux
• Azure Arc with GitOps extension (Flux-based)
• Google Config Sync (Anthos)
• Codefresh or Akuator (commercial Argo CD platforms)

Which to choose?

If you want...	Choose
A UI and easy onboarding	Argo CD
Minimal footprint, CLI-first	Flux
Managed experience	Cloud provider's built-in option

For most teams just starting out, Argo CD tends to be the easiest because the UI makes it simple to see what's deployed, debug sync issues, and manually trigger syncs when needed. Flux is equally capable but has a steeper initial learning curve without visual feedback.

Would you like a walkthrough for setting up either of these?