diff --git a/Tiltfile b/Tiltfile
index e93549889521..23e276d51ac1 100644
--- a/Tiltfile
+++ b/Tiltfile
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 envsubst_cmd = "./hack/tools/bin/envsubst"
 clusterctl_cmd = "./bin/clusterctl"
 kubectl_cmd = "kubectl"
-kubernetes_version = "v1.27.3"
+kubernetes_version = "v1.28.0"
 
 load("ext://uibutton", "cmd_button", "location", "text_input")
 
diff --git a/docs/book/src/developer/providers/migrations/v1.5-to-v1.6.md b/docs/book/src/developer/providers/migrations/v1.5-to-v1.6.md
index 99beb7dfb1ab..ecc8a9afc70e 100644
--- a/docs/book/src/developer/providers/migrations/v1.5-to-v1.6.md
+++ b/docs/book/src/developer/providers/migrations/v1.5-to-v1.6.md
@@ -11,7 +11,7 @@ maintainers of providers and consumers of our Go API.
 
 **Note**: Only the most relevant dependencies are listed, `k8s.io/` and `ginkgo`/`gomega` dependencies in Cluster API are kept in sync with the versions used by `sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime`.
 
-- sigs.k8s.io/kind: v0.20.x
+- sigs.k8s.io/kind: v0.20.x => v0.21.x
 - sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime: v0.15.x
 - sigs.k8s.io/controller-tools: v0.12.x
 
diff --git a/docs/book/src/developer/tilt.md b/docs/book/src/developer/tilt.md
index 8aa1c2f96db2..8c25de06b1cf 100644
--- a/docs/book/src/developer/tilt.md
+++ b/docs/book/src/developer/tilt.md
@@ -8,7 +8,7 @@ workflow that offers easy deployments and rapid iterative builds.
 ## Prerequisites
 
 1. [Docker](https://docs.docker.com/install/): v19.03 or newer
-1. [kind](https://kind.sigs.k8s.io): v0.20.0 or newer
+1. [kind](https://kind.sigs.k8s.io): v0.21.0 or newer
 1. [Tilt](https://docs.tilt.dev/install.html): v0.30.8 or newer
 1. [kustomize](https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/kustomize): provided via `make kustomize`
 1. [envsubst](https://github.com/drone/envsubst): provided via `make envsubst`
@@ -330,7 +330,7 @@ Custom values for variable substitutions can be set using `kustomize_substitutio
 ```yaml
 kustomize_substitutions:
   NAMESPACE: "default"
-  KUBERNETES_VERSION: "v1.27.3"
+  KUBERNETES_VERSION: "v1.28.0"
   CONTROL_PLANE_MACHINE_COUNT: "1"
   WORKER_MACHINE_COUNT: "3"
 # Note: kustomize substitutions expects the values to be strings. This can be achieved by wrapping the values in quotation marks.
diff --git a/docs/book/src/user/quick-start.md b/docs/book/src/user/quick-start.md
index 6debbb334d2d..d7ba77909ca3 100644
--- a/docs/book/src/user/quick-start.md
+++ b/docs/book/src/user/quick-start.md
@@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ a target [management cluster] on the selected [infrastructure provider].
 
    [kind] is not designed for production use.
 
-   **Minimum [kind] supported version**: v0.20.0
+   **Minimum [kind] supported version**: v0.21.0
 
    **Help with common issues can be found in the [Troubleshooting Guide](./troubleshooting.md).**
 
@@ -1217,7 +1217,7 @@ The Docker provider is not designed for production use and is intended for devel
 
 ```bash
 clusterctl generate cluster capi-quickstart --flavor development \
-  --kubernetes-version v1.27.3 \
+  --kubernetes-version v1.28.0 \
   --control-plane-machine-count=3 \
   --worker-machine-count=3 \
   > capi-quickstart.yaml
@@ -1229,7 +1229,7 @@ clusterctl generate cluster capi-quickstart --flavor development \
 ```bash
 export CLUSTER_NAME=kind
 export CLUSTER_NAMESPACE=vcluster
-export KUBERNETES_VERSION=1.27.1
+export KUBERNETES_VERSION=1.28.0
 export HELM_VALUES="service:\n  type: NodePort"
 
 kubectl create namespace ${CLUSTER_NAMESPACE}
@@ -1260,7 +1260,7 @@ clusterctl generate cluster capi-quickstart \
 
 ```bash
 clusterctl generate cluster capi-quickstart \
-  --kubernetes-version v1.27.3 \
+  --kubernetes-version v1.28.0 \
   --control-plane-machine-count=3 \
   --worker-machine-count=3 \
   > capi-quickstart.yaml
@@ -1314,7 +1314,7 @@ and see an output similar to this:
 
 ```bash
 NAME              PHASE         AGE   VERSION
-capi-quickstart   Provisioned   8s    v1.27.3
+capi-quickstart   Provisioned   8s    v1.28.0
 ```
 
 To verify the first control plane is up:
@@ -1327,7 +1327,7 @@ You should see an output is similar to this:
 
 ```bash
 NAME                    CLUSTER           INITIALIZED   API SERVER AVAILABLE   REPLICAS   READY   UPDATED   UNAVAILABLE   AGE    VERSION
-capi-quickstart-g2trk   capi-quickstart   true                                 3                  3         3             4m7s   v1.27.3
+capi-quickstart-g2trk   capi-quickstart   true                                 3                  3         3             4m7s   v1.28.0
 ```
 
 <aside class="note warning">
@@ -1536,7 +1536,7 @@ kube-scheduler-capi-quickstart-control-plane-kjjbb            1/1     Running
 
 ```bash
 kubectl --kubeconfig=./capi-quickstart.kubeconfig \
-  apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/projectcalico/calico/v3.24.1/manifests/calico.yaml
+  apply -f https://raw.githubusercontent.com/projectcalico/calico/v3.26.1/manifests/calico.yaml
 ```
 
 After a short while, our nodes should be running and in `Ready` state,
@@ -1547,12 +1547,12 @@ kubectl --kubeconfig=./capi-quickstart.kubeconfig get nodes
 ```
 ```bash
 NAME                                          STATUS   ROLES           AGE    VERSION
-capi-quickstart-vs89t-gmbld                   Ready    control-plane   5m33s  v1.27.3
-capi-quickstart-vs89t-kf9l5                   Ready    control-plane   6m20s  v1.27.3
-capi-quickstart-vs89t-t8cfn                   Ready    control-plane   7m10s  v1.27.3
-capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-8tq9v   Ready    <none>          6m5s   v1.27.3
-capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-glnjd   Ready    <none>          6m9s   v1.27.3
-capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-sfzp6   Ready    <none>          6m9s   v1.27.3
+capi-quickstart-vs89t-gmbld                   Ready    control-plane   5m33s  v1.28.0
+capi-quickstart-vs89t-kf9l5                   Ready    control-plane   6m20s  v1.28.0
+capi-quickstart-vs89t-t8cfn                   Ready    control-plane   7m10s  v1.28.0
+capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-8tq9v   Ready    <none>          6m5s   v1.28.0
+capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-glnjd   Ready    <none>          6m9s   v1.28.0
+capi-quickstart-md-0-55x6t-5649968bd7-sfzp6   Ready    <none>          6m9s   v1.28.0
 ```
 
 {{#/tab }}
diff --git a/hack/ensure-kind.sh b/hack/ensure-kind.sh
index 27b9e690d5bc..88e3221f4a82 100755
--- a/hack/ensure-kind.sh
+++ b/hack/ensure-kind.sh
@@ -30,7 +30,7 @@ goarch="$(go env GOARCH)"
 goos="$(go env GOOS)"
 
 # Note: When updating the MINIMUM_KIND_VERSION new shas MUST be added in `preBuiltMappings` at `test/infrastructure/kind/mapper.go`
-MINIMUM_KIND_VERSION=v0.20.0
+MINIMUM_KIND_VERSION=v0.21.0
 
 
 # Ensure the kind tool exists and is a viable version, or installs it
diff --git a/test/e2e/clusterctl_upgrade_test.go b/test/e2e/clusterctl_upgrade_test.go
index e61680076feb..1784e6710f88 100644
--- a/test/e2e/clusterctl_upgrade_test.go
+++ b/test/e2e/clusterctl_upgrade_test.go
@@ -152,8 +152,8 @@ var _ = Describe("When testing clusterctl upgrades (v1.5=>current)", func() {
 			InitWithBinary:            "https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api/releases/download/v1.5.0/clusterctl-{OS}-{ARCH}",
 			InitWithProvidersContract: "v1beta1",
 			// NOTE: If this version is changed here the image and SHA must also be updated in all DockerMachineTemplates in `test/e2e/data/infrastructure-docker/v1.5/bases.
-			InitWithKubernetesVersion: "v1.27.3",
-			WorkloadKubernetesVersion: "v1.27.3",
+			InitWithKubernetesVersion: "v1.28.0",
+			WorkloadKubernetesVersion: "v1.28.0",
 			MgmtFlavor:                "topology",
 			WorkloadFlavor:            "",
 			// This check ensures that ownerReference apiVersions are updated for all types after the upgrade.
@@ -183,8 +183,8 @@ var _ = Describe("When testing clusterctl upgrades using ClusterClass (v1.5=>cur
 			InitWithBinary:            "https://github.com/kubernetes-sigs/cluster-api/releases/download/v1.5.0/clusterctl-{OS}-{ARCH}",
 			InitWithProvidersContract: "v1beta1",
 			// NOTE: If this version is changed here the image and SHA must also be updated in all DockerMachineTemplates in `test/e2e/data/infrastructure-docker/v1.5/bases.
-			InitWithKubernetesVersion: "v1.27.3",
-			WorkloadKubernetesVersion: "v1.27.3",
+			InitWithKubernetesVersion: "v1.28.0",
+			WorkloadKubernetesVersion: "v1.28.0",
 			MgmtFlavor:                "topology",
 			WorkloadFlavor:            "topology",
 			// This check ensures that ownerReference apiVersions are updated for all types after the upgrade.
diff --git a/test/e2e/config/docker.yaml b/test/e2e/config/docker.yaml
index 6475029700d3..5c02819f6d8c 100644
--- a/test/e2e/config/docker.yaml
+++ b/test/e2e/config/docker.yaml
@@ -237,11 +237,11 @@ variables:
   # allowing the same e2e config file to be re-used in different Prow jobs e.g. each one with a K8s version permutation.
   # The following Kubernetes versions should be the latest versions with already published kindest/node images.
   # This avoids building node images in the default case which improves the test duration significantly.
-  KUBERNETES_VERSION_MANAGEMENT: "v1.27.3"
-  KUBERNETES_VERSION: "v1.27.3"
-  KUBERNETES_VERSION_UPGRADE_FROM: "v1.26.6"
-  KUBERNETES_VERSION_UPGRADE_TO: "v1.27.3"
-  ETCD_VERSION_UPGRADE_TO: "3.5.7-0"
+  KUBERNETES_VERSION_MANAGEMENT: "v1.28.0"
+  KUBERNETES_VERSION: "v1.28.0"
+  KUBERNETES_VERSION_UPGRADE_FROM: "v1.27.3"
+  KUBERNETES_VERSION_UPGRADE_TO: "v1.28.0"
+  ETCD_VERSION_UPGRADE_TO: "3.5.9-0"
   COREDNS_VERSION_UPGRADE_TO: "v1.10.1"
   DOCKER_SERVICE_DOMAIN: "cluster.local"
   IP_FAMILY: "dual"
diff --git a/test/framework/bootstrap/kind_provider.go b/test/framework/bootstrap/kind_provider.go
index 9d91aa6e4da1..57a1a7f62460 100644
--- a/test/framework/bootstrap/kind_provider.go
+++ b/test/framework/bootstrap/kind_provider.go
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ const (
 	DefaultNodeImageRepository = "kindest/node"
 
 	// DefaultNodeImageVersion is the default Kubernetes version to be used for creating a kind cluster.
-	DefaultNodeImageVersion = "v1.27.3@sha256:3966ac761ae0136263ffdb6cfd4db23ef8a83cba8a463690e98317add2c9ba72"
+	DefaultNodeImageVersion = "v1.28.0@sha256:TODO"
 )
 
 // KindClusterOption is a NewKindClusterProvider option.
diff --git a/test/go.mod b/test/go.mod
index 1cc32a7ed92a..83867ebe1bc7 100644
--- a/test/go.mod
+++ b/test/go.mod
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ require (
 	k8s.io/utils v0.0.0-20230209194617-a36077c30491
 	sigs.k8s.io/cluster-api v0.0.0-00010101000000-000000000000
 	sigs.k8s.io/controller-runtime v0.15.1
-	sigs.k8s.io/kind v0.20.0
+	sigs.k8s.io/kind v0.21.0
 	sigs.k8s.io/yaml v1.3.0
 )
 
diff --git a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/machine-pool.yaml b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/machine-pool.yaml
index 07ff7aabf16b..2ed4ba3cb2da 100644
--- a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/machine-pool.yaml
+++ b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/machine-pool.yaml
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ metadata:
   namespace: default
 spec:
   replicas: 1
-  version: v1.27.3
+  version: v1.28.0
   machineTemplate:
     infrastructureRef:
       apiVersion: infrastructure.cluster.x-k8s.io/v1beta1
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ spec:
   replicas: 2
   template:
     spec:
-      version: v1.27.3
+      version: v1.28.0
       clusterName: my-cluster
       bootstrap:
         configRef:
diff --git a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-ipv6.yaml b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-ipv6.yaml
index 89dec68f8197..68681b2dd6ca 100644
--- a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-ipv6.yaml
+++ b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-ipv6.yaml
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ metadata:
   namespace: default
 spec:
   replicas: 1
-  version: v1.27.3
+  version: v1.28.0
   machineTemplate:
     infrastructureRef:
       apiVersion: infrastructure.cluster.x-k8s.io/v1beta1
@@ -90,7 +90,7 @@ spec:
       cluster.x-k8s.io/cluster-name: my-cluster
   template:
     spec:
-      version: v1.27.3
+      version: v1.28.0
       clusterName: my-cluster
       bootstrap:
         configRef:
diff --git a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-without-kcp.yaml b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-without-kcp.yaml
index 76708bbd93e2..682bf097b3d2 100644
--- a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-without-kcp.yaml
+++ b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster-without-kcp.yaml
@@ -32,7 +32,7 @@ metadata:
   name: controlplane-0
   namespace: default
 spec:
-  version: v1.27.3
+  version: v1.28.0
   clusterName: my-cluster
   bootstrap:
     configRef:
@@ -80,7 +80,7 @@ spec:
       cluster.x-k8s.io/cluster-name: my-cluster
   template:
     spec:
-      version: v1.27.3
+      version: v1.28.0
       clusterName: my-cluster
       bootstrap:
         configRef:
diff --git a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster.yaml b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster.yaml
index d3550f20a657..4259a332b339 100644
--- a/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster.yaml
+++ b/test/infrastructure/docker/examples/simple-cluster.yaml
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ metadata:
   namespace: default
 spec:
   replicas: 1
-  version: v1.27.3
+  version: v1.28.0
   machineTemplate:
     infrastructureRef:
       apiVersion: infrastructure.cluster.x-k8s.io/v1beta1
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ spec:
       cluster.x-k8s.io/cluster-name: my-cluster
   template:
     spec:
-      version: v1.27.3
+      version: v1.28.0
       clusterName: my-cluster
       bootstrap:
         configRef:
diff --git a/test/infrastructure/kind/mapper.go b/test/infrastructure/kind/mapper.go
index 4bdb5e77feaa..779256c609e9 100644
--- a/test/infrastructure/kind/mapper.go
+++ b/test/infrastructure/kind/mapper.go
@@ -81,6 +81,11 @@ var preBuiltMappings = []Mapping{
 	// TODO: Add pre-built images for newer Kind versions on top
 
 	// Pre-built images for Kind v1.20.
+	{
+		KubernetesVersion: semver.MustParse("1.28.0"),
+		Mode:              Mode0_20,
+		Image:             "kindest/node:v1.28.0@sha256:TODO",
+	},
 	{
 		KubernetesVersion: semver.MustParse("1.27.3"),
 		Mode:              Mode0_20,