What Is Coolify? How to Install It on Your Server, Step by Step

Platforms like Heroku, Vercel or Netlify make shipping an app super easy, but as the project grows the bills grow too. For people who want the same comfort on their own server, one of the most talked-about tools of the last few years is Coolify. In this post we answer what is Coolify, what it's good for, how it compares to the alternatives and how to install Coolify on a server, step by step. After the install we'll also deploy a first app, add a database and go over the security settings.

What Is Coolify?

Coolify is a free, open-source PaaS (Platform as a Service) that you install on your own server. In short, you run a Heroku/Vercel style panel on your own virtual server: you connect your Git repo, Coolify builds the app, runs it as a container, attaches the domain and gets the SSL certificate automatically. After every git push a new version can go live on its own.

Under the hood everything runs on Docker containers; Coolify is a management layer that handles those containers, the reverse proxy, certificates and backups for you. The project has an active community with tens of thousands of stars on GitHub; after a long beta, v4 became stable in spring 2026 and at the time of writing the 4.4.x series is current.

Coolify vs Heroku/Vercel vs Plain Docker

In short, Coolify combines the cost and control advantages of plain Docker with Heroku's ease of use. In return, things like server updates and checking backups are on you.

Coolify's Key Features

Coolify System Requirements

Installing Coolify: Step by Step

We did the steps below on a fresh Ubuntu 24.04 server as root. If you don't have a server yet, have a look at our what is a cloud server post first.

1. Prepare the Server

Update the system and remove Docker if it was installed via snap; Coolify doesn't work with snap Docker:

apt update && apt upgrade -y

# remove Docker installed via snap if present (Coolify doesn't support it)
snap list docker 2>/dev/null && snap remove docker

# install curl if missing
apt install -y curl

2. Run the Install Script

The official install script installs Docker (if missing), creates the required directories and starts the Coolify containers. One command:

curl -fsSL https://cdn.coollabs.io/coolify/install.sh | sudo bash

The install takes a few minutes depending on the server. When it's done you can check that the containers are up:

docker ps --format "table {{.Names}}\t{{.Status}}"   # are the coolify containers running?
docker logs coolify --tail 50                         # check the logs if something is wrong

3. Open the Panel and Create the Admin Account

Go to this address in your browser:

http://SERVER_IP:8000

On first login Coolify shows a short onboarding wizard. If you'll run apps on the same server, just pick the "localhost" server.

4. Domain and SSL

In your DNS panel, point A records for the panel and your apps to the server IP:

# A records for the panel and an app
coolify.example.com   A   SERVER_IP
app.example.com       A   SERVER_IP

# optional: wildcard for automatic subdomains per app
*.example.com         A   SERVER_IP

Then in Coolify, enter https://coolify.example.com in the instance domain field under Settings and save. Traefik gets the Let's Encrypt certificate automatically and within a few minutes the panel opens over HTTPS. If you added a wildcard record, you can fill in the wildcard domain field in the server settings so every app gets an automatic subdomain.

5. Deploy Your First App

1. Create a new project under Projects, then add a resource with + New.
2. Use "Public Repository" for a public repo, or the GitHub App / deploy key option for a private one.
3. As the build pack, Nixpacks works without extra config for most Node.js, Python, PHP and Go projects; if the project has a Dockerfile or docker-compose.yml you can pick that instead.
4. Enter https://app.example.com in the Domains field and, if needed, the port the app listens on and the environment variables.
5. Hit Deploy. Build logs stream live; when it finishes the app is live with SSL.

With automatic deploys on, every push to the repo ships a new version by itself. If you want a more advanced process with test and approval steps, check out our CI/CD pipeline consulting service.

6. Add a Database

In the same project click + New → Database and pick PostgreSQL, MySQL, Redis or another database. Coolify generates the username and password and gives you the connection URL; just add it to your app's environment variables. You don't need to expose the database, apps on the same server connect over the internal network. Don't forget to set up daily backups and an S3 target in the backups tab.

Security and Firewall

Only open the ports you really need. SSH (22), HTTP (80) and HTTPS (443) are enough; you can open port 8000 just for the initial setup and close it once the panel runs on its domain with SSL:

ufw allow 22/tcp
ufw allow 80/tcp
ufw allow 443/tcp
ufw allow 8000/tcp     # until the panel domain + SSL is set up
ufw enable

# close 8000 once the panel works over HTTPS
ufw delete allow 8000/tcp

Panel features like the terminal and realtime notifications can use extra ports; check the firewall page in Coolify's official docs when you lock down the firewall. A few more tips:

• Disable password login for SSH and switch to key-based login.
• Turn on two-factor authentication for the admin account.
• Don't make databases "public"; if you have to, allow only specific IPs.
• Keep Coolify and the OS updated. You can upgrade from the panel, and the install script also upgrades an existing install:

curl -fsSL https://cdn.coollabs.io/coolify/install.sh | sudo bash   # the same script upgrades an existing install

Common Problems

If you hit memory problems during builds on a small server, a 4 GB swap file is usually enough:

fallocate -l 4G /swapfile
chmod 600 /swapfile
mkswap /swapfile
swapon /swapfile
echo '/swapfile none swap sw 0 0' >> /etc/fstab

Which VECDC Plan for Coolify?

For a few small apps and a database, VPS-1 (2 Core, 8 GB RAM, 40 GB NVMe) easily covers Coolify's requirements. If you'll run multiple projects, heavy builds or several databases, VPS-2 (4 Core, 12 GB) or VPS-3 (4 Core, 16 GB) is a more comfortable start. VECDC virtual servers come with dedicated CPU, NVMe disks and a 1 Gbps connection from $6/month, are ready in about 5 minutes with automated setup, and you can choose the location when you order.

Our Developer VDS plans come with Docker preinstalled. The Coolify install script detects and uses the existing Docker; unfortunately theres no guarantee it plays well with every custom setup, so the smoothest path is installing Coolify on a clean server.

Frequently Asked Questions

In Short

Coolify is a free, open-source PaaS that brings the ease of Heroku and Vercel to your own server. It installs with one command, connects your Git repo and ships your app with SSL in minutes, and manages databases and backups from the same panel. It's a very sensible option for running multiple projects on a fixed-price VPS while keeping control in your hands. If you get stuck during setup, drop us a message, were happy to help.