kubectl
and eksctl
Once the AWS CLI is installed, there are two other tools you should install to create and manage your Kubernetes clusters:
kubectl
: The kubectl
command line tool is the main tool you will use to manage resources within your Kubernetes cluster. This page describes how to download and set up the kubectl
binary that matches the version of your Kubernetes cluster. See Install or update kubectl.
eksctl
: The eksctl
command line tool is made for creating EKS clusters in the AWS cloud or on-premises (with EKS Anywhere), as well as modifying and deleting those clusters. See Install eksctl.
kubectl
This topic helps you to download and install, or update, the kubectl
binary on your device. The binary is identical to the upstream community versions. The binary is not unique to Amazon EKS or AWS. Use the steps below to get the specific version of kubectl
that you need, although many builders simply run brew install kubectl
to install it.
You must use a kubectl
version that is within one minor version difference of your Amazon EKS cluster control plane. For example, a 1.32
kubectl
client works with Kubernetes 1.31
, 1.32
, and 1.33
clusters.
kubectl
is installed
Determine whether you already have kubectl
installed on your device.
kubectl version --client
If you have kubectl
installed in the path of your device, the example output includes information similar to the following. If you want to update the version that you currently have installed with a later version, complete the next step, making sure to install the new version in the same location that your current version is in.
Client Version: v1.31.X-eks-1234567
If you receive no output, then you either donât have kubectl
installed, or itâs not installed in a location thatâs in your deviceâs path.
kubectl
Install or update kubectl
on one of the following operating systems:
Follow the steps below to install kubectl
on macOS. The steps include:
Choosing and downloading the binary for the Kubernetes version you want.
Optionally checking the binaryâs checksum.
Adding execute to the binaryâs permissions.
Copying the binary to a folder in your PATH.
Optionally adding the binaryâs directory to your PATH.
Procedure:
Download the binary for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2025-01-10/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl
(Optional) Verify the downloaded binary with the SHA-256
checksum for your binary.
Download the SHA-256
checksum for your clusterâs Kubernetes version.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2025-01-10/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/darwin/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Check the SHA-256
checksum for your downloaded binary.
openssl sha1 -sha256 kubectl
Make sure that the generated checksum in the output matches in the checksum in the downloaded kubectl.sha256
file.
Apply execute permissions to the binary.
chmod +x ./kubectl
Copy the binary to a folder in your PATH
. If you have already installed a version of kubectl
, then we recommend creating a $HOME/bin/kubectl
and ensuring that $HOME/bin
comes first in your $PATH
.
mkdir -p $HOME/bin && cp ./kubectl $HOME/bin/kubectl && export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH
(Optional) Add the $HOME/bin
path to your shell initialization file so that it is configured when you open a shell.
echo 'export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.bash_profile
Follow the steps below to install kubectl
on Linux (amd64). The steps include:
Choosing and downloading the binary for the Kubernetes version you want.
Optionally checking the binaryâs checksum.
Adding execute to the binaryâs permissions.
Copying the binary to a folder in your PATH.
Optionally adding the binaryâs directory to your PATH.
Procedure:
Download the kubectl
binary for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl
(Optional) Verify the downloaded binary with the SHA-256
checksum for your binary.
Download the SHA-256
checksum for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3using the command for your deviceâs hardware platform.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/linux/amd64/kubectl.sha256
Check the SHA-256
checksum for your downloaded binary with one of the following commands.
sha256sum -c kubectl.sha256
or
openssl sha1 -sha256 kubectl
For the first, you should see kubectl: OK
, for the second, you can check that the generated checksum in the output matches in the checksum in the downloaded kubectl.sha256
file.
Apply execute permissions to the binary.
chmod +x ./kubectl
Copy the binary to a folder in your PATH
. If you have already installed a version of kubectl
, then we recommend creating a $HOME/bin/kubectl
and ensuring that $HOME/bin
comes first in your $PATH
.
mkdir -p $HOME/bin && cp ./kubectl $HOME/bin/kubectl && export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH
(Optional) Add the $HOME/bin
path to your shell initialization file so that it is configured when you open a shell.
This step assumes you are using the Bash shell; if you are using another shell, change the command to use your specific shell initialization file.
echo 'export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.bashrc
Follow the steps below to install kubectl
on Linux (arm64). The steps include:
Choosing and downloading the binary for the Kubernetes version you want.
Optionally checking the binaryâs checksum.
Adding execute to the binaryâs permissions.
Copying the binary to a folder in your PATH.
Optionally adding the binaryâs directory to your PATH.
Procedure:
Download the kubectl
binary for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl
(Optional) Verify the downloaded binary with the SHA-256
checksum for your binary.
Download the SHA-256
checksum for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3using the command for your deviceâs hardware platform.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.32
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.31
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.30
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.29
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.28
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.27
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Kubernetes 1.26
curl -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/linux/arm64/kubectl.sha256
Check the SHA-256
checksum for your downloaded binary with one of the following commands.
sha256sum -c kubectl.sha256
or
openssl sha1 -sha256 kubectl
For the first, you should see kubectl: OK
, for the second, you can check that the generated checksum in the output matches in the checksum in the downloaded kubectl.sha256
file.
Apply execute permissions to the binary.
chmod +x ./kubectl
Copy the binary to a folder in your PATH
. If you have already installed a version of kubectl
, then we recommend creating a $HOME/bin/kubectl
and ensuring that $HOME/bin
comes first in your $PATH
.
mkdir -p $HOME/bin && cp ./kubectl $HOME/bin/kubectl && export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH
(Optional) Add the $HOME/bin
path to your shell initialization file so that it is configured when you open a shell.
This step assumes you are using the Bash shell; if you are using another shell, change the command to use your specific shell initialization file.
echo 'export PATH=$HOME/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.bashrc
Follow the steps below to install kubectl
on Windows. The steps include:
Choosing and downloading the binary for the Kubernetes version you want.
Optionally checking the binaryâs checksum.
Copying the binary to a folder in your PATH.
Optionally adding the binaryâs directory to your PATH.
Procedure:
Open a PowerShell terminal.
Download the kubectl
binary for your clusterâs Kubernetes version from Amazon S3.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.32
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.31
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.30
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.29
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.28
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.27
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
Kubernetes 1.26
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe
(Optional) Verify the downloaded binary with the SHA-256
checksum for your binary.
Download the SHA-256
checksum for your clusterâs Kubernetes version for Windows.
Kubernetes 1.33
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.33.3/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.32
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.32.7/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.31
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.31.11/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.30
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.30.14/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.29
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.29.15/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.28
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.28.15/2025-08-03/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.27
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.27.16/2024-12-12/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Kubernetes 1.26
curl.exe -O https://s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/amazon-eks/1.26.15/2024-12-12/bin/windows/amd64/kubectl.exe.sha256
Check the SHA-256
checksum for your downloaded binary.
Get-FileHash kubectl.exe
Make sure that the generated checksum in the output matches in the checksum in the downloaded kubectl.sha256
file. The PowerShell output should be an uppercase equivalent string of characters.
Copy the binary to a folder in your PATH
. If you have an existing directory in your PATH
that you use for command line utilities, copy the binary to that directory. Otherwise, complete the following steps.
Create a new directory for your command line binaries, such as C:\bin
.
Copy the kubectl.exe
binary to your new directory.
Edit your user or system PATH
environment variable to add the new directory to your PATH
.
Close your PowerShell terminal and open a new one to pick up the new PATH
variable.
After you install kubectl
, you can verify its version.
kubectl version --client
When first installing kubectl
, it isnât yet configured to communicate with any server. We will cover this configuration as needed in other procedures. If you ever need to update the configuration to communicate with a particular cluster, you can run the following command. Replace region-code
with the AWS Region that your cluster is in. Replace my-cluster
with the name of your cluster.
aws eks update-kubeconfig --region region-code --name my-cluster
Consider configuring auto completion, which lets you use the tab key to complete kubectl
subcommands after typing the first few letters. See Kubectl autocomplete in the Kubernetes documentation for details.
eksctl
The eksctl
CLI is used to work with EKS clusters. It automates many individual tasks. See Installation in the eksctl
documentation for instructions on installing eksctl
. For Linux, use the UNIX instructions.
When using eksctl
the IAM security principal that youâre using must have permissions to work with Amazon EKS IAM roles, service linked roles, AWS CloudFormation, a VPC, and related resources. For more information, see Actions and Using service-linked roles in the IAM User Guide. You must complete all steps in this guide as the same user. To check the current user, run the following command:
aws sts get-caller-identity
Next steps
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