Packer is described as '"source available" tool for creating identical machine images for multiple platforms from a single source configuration. Packer is lightweight, runs on every major operating system, and is highly performant, creating machine images for multiple platforms in' and is an app in the network & admin category. There are six alternatives to Packer for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, Self-Hosted and VMware Workstation Pro apps. The best Packer alternative is Docker, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Packer are Vagrant, Docker Desktop, Crane and Singularity.
Docker creates portable container images for runtime environments, while Packer builds machine images (like AMIs, VM templates) for provisioning infrastructure.