Helm Chart Version Calculator

Q: Should appVersion also follow SemVer?

No — Chart.yaml's `appVersion` reflects the version of the application being deployed (which may follow its own versioning scheme) and is independent of the chart's own `version` field, which tracks the chart's packaging changes.

Determine the correct next semver version for a Helm chart based on change type.

About Helm Chart Version Calculator

Helm chart versions follow SemVer (MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH), and comparing two versions means comparing each segment left-to-right until a difference is found — the first differing segment determines both which version is newer and what kind of bump occurred. By SemVer convention, a major bump signals breaking changes, a minor bump signals backward-compatible new functionality, and a patch bump signals backward-compatible fixes, which is exactly the signal `helm dependency update` and chart consumers rely on when deciding whether an upgrade is safe to take automatically.

Formula

comparison = compare(newMajor.newMinor.newPatch, curMajor.curMinor.curPatch)

curMajor.curMinor.curPatch: Current SemVer version
newMajor.newMinor.newPatch: New SemVer version to compare

Worked example

With the default values below, Helm Chart Version Calculator returns New Version Is of newer. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Current Version: 1.4.2
New Version: 1.5.0

Results

New Version Is: newer
Version Bump Type: minor
Potentially Breaking (Major Bump): false

Step by step

1Parsed current version= 1.4.2
2Parsed new version= 1.5.0
3Comparison result= newer
4Bump type= minor

Assumptions and limits

The result is derived only from the 2 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax, fees or charges or compounding frequency into account.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Helm enforce SemVer for chart versions?

Yes — Chart.yaml's `version` field must be a valid SemVer 2 string, and Helm uses SemVer range constraints (e.g. `^1.2.3`, `~1.2.0`) in dependency declarations to decide which versions satisfy a requirement.

How are pre-release versions like 1.5.0-rc.1 compared?

This calculator compares only the numeric major.minor.patch core; full SemVer also orders pre-release tags (alpha < beta < rc) and pre-release versions rank lower than their corresponding release version.

Should appVersion also follow SemVer?