Kubernetes Helm Charts Cheat Sheet

Packaging, templating, and deploying Kubernetes applications with Helm charts, values files, and releases.

2 PagesIntermediateFeb 2, 2026

Core Helm Commands

Everyday Helm CLI workflow.

bash

helm create mychart              # Scaffold a new charthelm install myrelease ./mychart # Install a chart as a releasehelm upgrade myrelease ./mychart # Upgrade an existing releasehelm upgrade --install myrelease ./mychart  # Upgrade or installhelm rollback myrelease 1        # Roll back to revision 1helm list                        # List releases in current namespacehelm uninstall myrelease         # Remove a releasehelm template ./mychart          # Render manifests locally without installing

Chart Directory Structure

Standard layout produced by `helm create`.

text

mychart/  Chart.yaml          # Chart metadata (name, version, appVersion)  values.yaml         # Default configuration values  charts/              # Subchart dependencies  templates/    deployment.yaml    service.yaml    ingress.yaml    _helpers.tpl       # Reusable template snippets    NOTES.txt          # Post-install usage notes

Templated Deployment Snippet

Using values and helpers inside a template file.

yaml

apiVersion: apps/v1kind: Deploymentmetadata:  name: {{ .Release.Name }}-webspec:  replicas: {{ .Values.replicaCount }}  template:    spec:      containers:        - name: web          image: "{{ .Values.image.repository }}:{{ .Values.image.tag }}"          ports:            - containerPort: {{ .Values.service.port }}

Overriding Values

Pass custom values at install time via file or flags.

bash

# Using a values filehelm install myrelease ./mychart -f values.prod.yaml# Inline overrideshelm install myrelease ./mychart \  --set replicaCount=3 \  --set image.tag=1.4.0

Key Concepts

Terminology used throughout Helm.

Chart- A packaged collection of Kubernetes manifest templates
Release- A specific deployed instance of a chart with its own revision history
Repository- A location (HTTP server or OCI registry) hosting packaged charts (`.tgz`)
Hooks- Templates annotated to run at specific lifecycle points, e.g. pre-install, post-upgrade

Pro Tip

Run `helm template` or `helm install --dry-run --debug` before applying to a real cluster — it renders the final manifests locally so you catch templating mistakes before they hit the API server.

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