Google GKE Kubernetes Version End of Life Dates
Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) supports each Kubernetes minor version for about 14 months of standard support, and for up to 24 months in total if the cluster is enrolled in the Extended channel. Kubernetes 1.34 on GKE reaches the end of standard support on January 25, 2027 and the end of extended support on November 25, 2027. Those are the dates on Google's release schedule, which Google describes as best-effort predictions that it updates as new information arrives. Two things about that page trip people up: GKE used to call the first date "end of life" and now calls it "end of standard support", and the dates move. When this guide was written, the schedule gave 1.34 nearly four months longer than the figure that had been circulating in community datasets, which is why every date on this page is bound to the live schedule rather than typed.
The GKE calendar
| Kubernetes version | Available in the Regular channel | End of standard support | End of extended support (Extended channel) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.36 | 2026-06-09 | 2027-08-09 | 2028-06-09 |
| 1.35 | 2026-02-11 | 2027-04-11 | 2028-02-11 |
| 1.34 | 2025-11-26 | 2027-01-25 | 2027-11-25 |
| 1.33 | 2025-06-04 | 2026-08-12 | 2027-06-12 |
| 1.32 | 2025-02-11 | 2026-04-27 | 2027-02-11 |
Kubernetes 1.37 reached the Rapid channel on 2026-09-02; Google gives its Regular-channel arrival and its end dates only as quarters for now, so it is not in the table. The end-of-support columns are rewritten from the schedule at every build of this site and our build fails if the Regular-channel dates above stop matching Google's page; the GKE lifecycle page carries every line, including the ones already past support.
How the policy works
- Two support periods. Google's versioning page: GKE provides at least 14 months of standard support, and up to 24 months in total with extended support, counted from the version's availability for new clusters in the Regular channel. Extended support is roughly months 15 to 24 and delivers patch versions with security fixes.
- Extended support is a channel, not a switch. Only clusters enrolled in the Extended release channel stay on a minor version past the end of standard support. On that channel GKE auto-upgrades to newer patches of the same minor only, never to the next minor. Google's pricing page states that an additional cluster management fee applies while the minor version is in its extended support period.
- Everyone else gets moved. For clusters on Rapid, Regular or Stable, GKE automatically upgrades to the next supported minor version before the end of standard support, on or after the auto-upgrade date in the schedule for that channel. A maintenance exclusion can delay that, but only until the end of support date.
- Dates are predictions. Google says so on the page and updates the schedule regularly. Reading it once and planning against the copy is how teams end up surprised in either direction.
What to do
- On 1.32: past the end of standard support; only an Extended-channel cluster is still supported, until February 11, 2027. Anything else has been, or is about to be, auto-upgraded.
- On 1.33: the same position since August 12, 2026; extended support runs to June 12, 2027.
- On 1.34: in standard support until January 25, 2027. Check your manifests for APIs removed in 1.35 and 1.36 before the channel's auto-upgrade date reaches you; the release schedule lists that date per channel.
- Decide about the Extended channel deliberately. It buys ten months of security patches on a minor version for a fee, and it stops minor-version auto-upgrades. It is the right tool for a workload pinned to an old API, and the wrong one for a cluster nobody has time to look at.
- Compare with the upstream date. The managed service and the open source project keep different calendars. See Kubernetes upstream versions, and for the other clouds the Amazon EKS and Azure AKS guides.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does Kubernetes 1.34 reach end of life on GKE?
Google's release schedule gives the end of standard support for Kubernetes 1.34 on GKE as January 25, 2027, and the end of extended support as November 25, 2027. Google calls these best-effort predictions and revises them; GKE used to call the first date end of life.
How long does GKE support a Kubernetes version?
About 14 months of standard support from the version's availability in the Regular channel, and up to 24 months in total for clusters enrolled in the Extended channel, which adds roughly 10 months of security patches. Google's page says GKE provides at least 14 months of standard support.
What happens when a GKE version reaches the end of standard support?
For clusters not on the Extended channel the version becomes unsupported and unavailable, and GKE auto-upgrades clusters in a release channel to the next supported minor version on or after the auto-upgrade date in its schedule. A maintenance exclusion can hold a cluster on its version only until the end of support date.
Is GKE extended support free?
No. Google's pricing page says an additional cluster management fee applies to clusters on the Extended release channel while their minor version is in the extended support period.
Related
- Google Kubernetes Engine — every version, live status and EOL Risk Score
- Kubernetes end of life
- Amazon EKS end of life
- Azure AKS Kubernetes version end of life