Start Joomla with Docker in just a few clicks

Start your Joomla website with Docker in just a few clicks! Follow this quick, right-to-the-point guide to launch your Joomla project instantly using a simple Docker Compose setup.

October 3, 2024 · 3 min read

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Christophe

Markdown, WSL and Docker lover ~ Insatiable curious.

Cet article existe aussi en français — lire la version française.

This article is over a year old but was reviewed on July 30, 2026 — the content is still accurate.

This article is part of the Create your joomla website using Docker series:

FrankenPHP, a modern application server for PHP
Create your Joomla website using Docker - Part 1
Update php.ini when using a Docker image
Start Joomla with Docker in just a few clicks
Create your Joomla website using Docker - Part 2
Restore a Joomla backup using Docker

Start Joomla with Docker in just a few clicks

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TL;DR

This is a minimal, no-frills guide to launching Joomla with Docker: copy the official compose.yaml snippet from Docker Hub, run docker compose up --detach, and log into http://127.0.0.1:8080/administrator with the default joomla/joomla@secured credentials defined in that file.

Yesterday at lunchtime, while chatting with a friend, he challenged me with a simple request: explain the easiest way in the world to start a Joomla project with Docker.

The aim is to hop, hop, copy/paste a file, hop, Joomla is launched and you can start playing with the site.

Three things you'll want soon after: a volume so the site survives a docker compose down, Adminer or phpmyadmin to look inside the database, and Update php.ini when using a Docker image the day Joomla refuses your file upload as being too large.

Let's take a look; not in detail, but right to the point.

Here are the very few steps to follow to start your Joomla website using Docker:

Surf to https://hub.docker.com/_/joomla
Scroll down until you can see the yaml content and click on the Copy button. That button appears when the mouse pointer is over the text (hidden otherwise)
On your computer, create a new file called compose.yaml and paste the content there
The most difficult part is now: please start a new console, go to the folder where you've just created the file (in my case, I've created the file in my /tmp/joomla folder so I jump in it using cd /tmp/joomla)
Still in your console, please run docker compose up --detach.

From now, Docker will download (just the first time) the Joomla CMS, PHP, Apache and MySQL. Then Docker will start the downloaded images (called containers).

Surf to http://127.0.0.1:8080/administrator and enjoy!

http://127.0.0.1:8080/administrator

Joomla administrator