Docker Compose Examples for Node.js Apps (2025)

Docker Compose transforms local development for Node.js applications. Instead of installing and managing PostgreSQL, Redis, and other services locally, you define everything in a docker-compose.yml and run docker compose up . Everyone on the team gets an identical environment. This guide covers practical Docker Compose setups for Node.js — from a minimal single-container dev setup to production-ready multi-service configurations. Prerequisites Make sure you have Docker and Docker Compose installed: # Check versions docker --version # Docker 24.x+ docker compose version # Docker Compose 2.x+ Docker Desktop (macOS/Windows) includes both. On Linux, install Docker Engine and the Compose plugin separately. 1. Minimal Node.js Setup Start simple: a single containerized Node.js app. Project structure: my-app/ ├── src/ │ └── index.js ├── package.json ├── Dockerfile └── docker-compose.yml Dockerfile: FROM node:20-alpine WORKDIR /app COPY package*.json ./ RUN npm ci --only = production COPY . . E