Container Build Optimization: BuildKit, Layer Caching, Multi-Stage, and Build Performance

Calendar February 21, 2026
Cicd
Intermediate
Container-Build-Optimization, Dockerfile-Authoring, Ci-Pipeline-Design
Docker, Buildkit, Containers, Multi-Stage-Builds, Layer-Caching, Distroless, Kaniko, Ci-Optimization
Docker, Docker-Buildx, Kaniko, Ko, Jib

Container Build Optimization#

A container build that takes eight minutes in CI is not just slow – it compounds across every push, every developer, every day. The difference between a naive Dockerfile and an optimized one is often the difference between a two-minute build and a twelve-minute build. The techniques here are not theoretical. They are the specific changes that eliminate wasted time.

BuildKit Over Legacy Builder#

BuildKit is the modern Docker build engine and the default since Docker 23.0. If you are running an older version, enable it explicitly with DOCKER_BUILDKIT=1. BuildKit provides several capabilities the legacy builder lacks.