Essential kubectl Commands Cheat Sheet
A quick reference for the most commonly used kubectl commands covering pods, deployments, services, and debugging.
Pod Management
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
kubectl get pods |
List all pods in current namespace |
kubectl get pods -A |
List pods across all namespaces |
kubectl describe pod <name> |
Show detailed pod information |
kubectl delete pod <name> |
Delete a specific pod |
kubectl logs <pod> |
View pod logs |
kubectl logs <pod> -f |
Stream pod logs |
kubectl exec -it <pod> -- sh |
Open shell in pod |
Deployments
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
kubectl get deployments |
List all deployments |
kubectl scale deploy <name> --replicas=3 |
Scale a deployment |
kubectl rollout status deploy/<name> |
Check rollout status |
kubectl rollout undo deploy/<name> |
Rollback a deployment |
kubectl set image deploy/<name> <container>=<image> |
Update container image |
Services and Networking
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
kubectl get svc |
List all services |
kubectl get ingress |
List all ingress resources |
kubectl port-forward svc/<name> 8080:80 |
Forward local port to service |
kubectl get endpoints |
List service endpoints |
Debugging
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
kubectl get events --sort-by=.metadata.creationTimestamp |
View cluster events |
kubectl top pods |
Show pod resource usage |
kubectl top nodes |
Show node resource usage |
kubectl logs <pod> --previous |
View logs from crashed container |
kubectl describe node <name> |
Check node conditions |
Context and Config
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
kubectl config get-contexts |
List all contexts |
kubectl config use-context <name> |
Switch context |
kubectl config current-context |
Show current context |
kubectl get ns |
List namespaces |
kubectl config set-context --current --namespace=<ns> |
Set default namespace |
Related articles
Tip
Kubectl Cheat Sheet: 60+ Essential Commands for DevOps
kubectl · kubernetes
Tip
Rapid Rollback: `kubectl set image` for Urgent Fixes
kubectl · kubernetes
Blog
Kubernetes for Beginners: Deploy Your First Application
kubernetes · Apr 4, 2026 · 12 min read
Comparison
Cilium vs Calico: CNI Comparison for Platform Teams
2 tools
Get the next article in your inbox
Practical DevOps tips, tutorials, and guides. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.