kind v0.33.0 - Default Node Image Is Kubernetes 1.37.0

kind v0.33.0 was published on 26 August 2026. The default node image is now kindest/node:v1.37.0 pinned by sha256 digest. A cluster created with no image override lands on Kubernetes 1.37.0.

The full release notes and downloads are on the GitHub release page.

The breaking change in this tag is the default node image:

kindest/node:v1.37.0@sha256:a1ed56cfb0e7b93589bdf97c8cd566405a265939e3620fc4f5de89adff580ae5

The summary line on the GitHub release page still says the project defaults to Kubernetes 1.36.1. That sentence does not match the breaking change block. Treat the image digest as the source of truth. kind create cluster with no image set now starts 1.37.0.

CI that only pins the kind binary will pick up 1.37.0 on the next install of this tag. Jobs that assume API versions, feature gates, or addon behavior from an older default need an explicit node image. Tests for operators, CSI drivers, and batch schedulers that still target 1.36 will fail in ways that look like product bugs if the cluster quietly moved.

The notes also list assorted dependency updates with no module list. That is internal. There is no operator facing config key attached to it.

This binary still ships node images for four Kubernetes lines:

  • kindest/node:v1.37.0@sha256:a1ed56cfb0e7b93589bdf97c8cd566405a265939e3620fc4f5de89adff580ae5
  • kindest/node:v1.36.4@sha256:099e049362a1526b2db71494e1947aae99bd16290d7c895f2b7ea312e3cbfaed
  • kindest/node:v1.35.8@sha256:07b2536e30b803ed61d1677a79df6115f798ce64c80f9e22f6ed45afd09323c0
  • kindest/node:v1.34.11@sha256:44e222ee2132dab25ff87301682f89eb82c7880ea3a1bf543bfe9708fd08d67d

The notes say you must use the @sha256 digest to guarantee an image built for this release. A tag without a digest can move. A digest cannot. The project says it will keep pushing digest pins even after any later tagging scheme change.

That rule is the one that matters for pipeline caches and air gapped mirrors. Copying kindest/node:v1.36.4 with no digest can pull a later rebuild this kind binary did not ship.

Images exist for amd64 and arm64. The host platform and the node image platform must match. Mixing them is a known failure. The project points at issue 2718 for that constraint.

Cluster create and image build steps are in the project docs:

Three runtime fixes landed with this tag.

Docker nodes now honor Docker client proxy config (#4192). Clusters behind an HTTP or HTTPS proxy were an easy way to get image pulls that ignored the proxy the Docker CLI already knew about. CI runners that store proxy values in Docker client config should now see those values on docker backed nodes. The notes do not say kind reads proxy variables from the shell on its own.

The external load balancer keeps CDS and LDS configuration across container restarts (#4195). CDS and LDS are Envoy xDS resources. If the load balancer container restarted, that control plane config could drop even though the cluster nodes were still up. Laptop sleep and reused CI VMs restart those containers often. Keeping CDS and LDS avoids a class of failures where the API endpoint or ingress path is gone after a restart.

local-path-provisioner helperPod tolerations improved (#4210). kind uses that provisioner for default PersistentVolumeClaims. Jobs that schedule helper work onto tainted control plane nodes, or onto nodes with the usual kind taints, were the ones hitting this. Broader tolerations make PVC provisioning less likely to sit in Pending because the helper cannot schedule. That is the storage path most local ETL tests actually use.

The notes also mention assorted documentation fixes. Those are not runtime changes.

If CI creates clusters with the default image, expect Kubernetes 1.37.0 after this binary is installed. Pin an older image from the list above if tests still target 1.34, 1.35, or 1.36. Always include the @sha256 digest.

If a pipeline already pins a node image, the default bump does not change those clusters. This tag is still the one that carries the proxy, load balancer, and provisioner fixes.

Recreate clusters after upgrading the binary. kind does not migrate a running node image in place.

Confirm Docker client proxy config is the file you think it is before treating remaining pull failures as a kind bug. The fix only respects Docker client proxy config.