diff --git a/pkg/skaffold/deploy/kubectl/constants.go b/pkg/skaffold/deploy/kubectl/constants.go
index 4d05a93da30..cee11822691 100644
--- a/pkg/skaffold/deploy/kubectl/constants.go
+++ b/pkg/skaffold/deploy/kubectl/constants.go
@@ -26,6 +26,7 @@ const DeploymentWebYAML = `apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: leeroy-web
+  namespace: default
 spec:
   containers:
   - name: leeroy-web
@@ -35,6 +36,7 @@ const DeploymentWebYAMLv1 = `apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: leeroy-web
+  namespace: default
 spec:
   containers:
   - image: leeroy-web:v1
@@ -44,6 +46,7 @@ const DeploymentAppYAML = `apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: leeroy-app
+  namespace: default
 spec:
   containers:
   - name: leeroy-app
@@ -53,6 +56,7 @@ const DeploymentAppYAMLv1 = `apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: leeroy-app
+  namespace: default
 spec:
   containers:
   - image: leeroy-app:v1
@@ -62,6 +66,7 @@ const DeploymentAppYAMLv2 = `apiVersion: v1
 kind: Pod
 metadata:
   name: leeroy-app
+  namespace: default
 spec:
   containers:
   - image: leeroy-app:v2
diff --git a/pkg/skaffold/render/renderer/util/util.go b/pkg/skaffold/render/renderer/util/util.go
index 99a1922ecff..ffe5346d631 100644
--- a/pkg/skaffold/render/renderer/util/util.go
+++ b/pkg/skaffold/render/renderer/util/util.go
@@ -63,14 +63,12 @@ func GenerateHydratedManifests(ctx context.Context, out io.Writer, builds []grap
 	if manifests, err = manifests.SetLabels(labels, manifest.NewResourceSelectorLabels(opts.TransformAllowList, opts.TransformDenylist)); err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
-	// TODO(tejaldesai) consult with cloud deploy team if namespaces can be set in offline mode
-	// in case namespace is set on the skaffold render cli command.
-	if !opts.Offline {
-		if manifests, err = manifests.SetNamespace(ns, rs); err != nil {
-			return nil, err
-		}
-		endTrace()
+
+	if manifests, err = manifests.SetNamespace(ns, rs); err != nil {
+		return nil, err
 	}
+	endTrace()
+
 	var platforms manifest.PodPlatforms
 
 	if opts.EnableGKEARMNodeToleration && isGKECluster(opts.KubeContext) {