GKE release schedule


This page provides an estimated release schedule for each supported minor version in the release channels. For static (no channel) versions, milestone dates can be derived from the release channel schedule. To learn more, see Release channels.

Based on qualification and stability of releases, availability and upgrade dates might be delayed. Revisit this page to stay up to date, or subscribe to Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) upgrade notifications for proactive version availability and rollout date updates.

To learn about GKE version support policies, see Versioning.

Controlling automatic upgrades

If your business schedule or constraints require different upgrade paths or strategies, you can adjust the scope and timing of the automated upgrades to better align with your business needs.

For more information, see Maintenance exclusion and Scope of maintenance.

Schedule for release channels

Clusters subscribed to a release channel follow this schedule:

Kubernetes version Kubernetes release date Rapid Regular Stable End of life3
Available1 Auto Upgrade2 Available1 Auto Upgrade2 Available1 Auto Upgrade2
1.244 2022-05-03 2022-06-03 2022-08-12 2022-08-19 2023-02-24 2022-11-30 2023-04-07 2024-01-085
1.25 2022-08-23 2022-09-13 2023-03-03 2022-12-08 2023-05-08 2023-05-08 2023-06-14 2024-03-306
1.26 2022-12-06 2023-01-13 2023-06-14 2023-04-14 2023-06-26 2023-06-14 2024-01-25 2024-06-30
1.27 2023-04-11 2023-05-08 2023-07-24 2023-06-14 2024-02-05 2023-07-05 2024-04 2024-08-31
1.28 2023-08-15 2023-09-05 2024-01-12 2023-12-04 2024-04 2024-01-12 2024-Q2 2025-02-04
1.29 2023-12-13 2024-01-12 2024-04 2024-01-25 2024-Q2 2024-Q1 2024-Q3 2025-03-21
1.30 TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD TBD

Schedule for static (no channel) versions

Clusters using a static (no channel) version follow this availability and support schedule:

  • Available date: The same available date for the Kubernetes version on the Regular Channel
  • Auto upgrade date: The same auto upgrade date for the Kubernetes version on the Stable Channel
  • End of Life: The same end of life date for the Kubernetes version on the Release Channel

Notes

  1. The Available date is the approximate date when the Kubernetes version first reaches production, and it takes about 5 days for it to become available in all regions.

  2. Kubernetes versions are generally available on each release channel a few weeks before auto upgrades start so that you can test the new version. On/after the auto upgrades start date, clusters subscribed to release channels will be auto upgraded to the referenced minor version.

  3. End of life: No new features, security patches, or bug fixes will be made available for this minor version. If a cluster is running a patch version of a minor version that has reached its end of life date, GKE will auto-upgrade the cluster to ensure cluster operability and compliance. To learn more, see the GKE minor version lifecycle.

  4. GKE began automatically migrating clusters to GKE version 1.24 after version 1.23 reached end of life on July 31, 2023. To learn more about how the migration process works, and how you can use a maintenance exclusion to temporarily prevent your nodes from being migrated to containerd node images, see Temporarily delay the automatic migration to containerd node images.

  5. After January 8, 2024—when 1.24 reaches end of life—GKE will begin to automatically upgrade clusters still using version 1.24 and deprecated APIs (removed in version 1.25) to version 1.25. We extended this date from October 31, 2023 to minimize disruptions around the end-of-year holiday period, and will provide patches only for critical vulnerabilities during this extended period. To learn more about the GKE minor version lifecycle, see GKE versioning and support. GKE continues to pause automatic upgrades until January 8, 2024 for clusters still using deprecated APIs removed in version 1.25, including beta APIs and PodSecurityPolicy. We recommend that you upgrade your clusters to version 1.25 as soon as possible as GKE minor versions that have reached end of life will no longer receive security patches and bug fixes.

  6. After March 30, 2024—when 1.25 reaches end of life—GKE will begin to automatically upgrade clusters still using version 1.25 and deprecated APIs (removed in version 1.26) to version 1.26. GKE will stop pausing automatic upgrades after March 30th, 2024 for clusters still using deprecated APIs removed in version 1.26. We recommend that you upgrade your clusters to version 1.26 as soon as possible as GKE minor versions that have reached end of life will no longer receive security patches and bug fixes. To learn more about the GKE minor version lifecycle, see GKE versioning and support.