What is Coolify?

What is Coolify?

Coolify is an open-source PaaS (Platform as a Service) that lets you deploy applications, databases, and services on your own server — without relying on providers like Vercel, Netlify, Railway, or Render.

It’s like having your own Heroku, but with full control over the infrastructure.

Why use Coolify?

No Vendor Lock-in

With Coolify, you’re not locked into any provider. Your data, applications, and infrastructure stay on your server. If you decide to migrate, it’s simple.

Predictable Costs

Providers like Vercel and Netlify have generous free tiers, but costs scale quickly in production. With Coolify on a $5-20/month VPS, you can run dozens of applications.

Full Control

• Configure exactly what you need
• Access complete logs
• Customize resource limits
• Use any stack or language

Open Source

100% open source under Apache 2.0 license. You can audit, contribute, and even fork if needed.

What can you do with Coolify?

Application Deployment

• Frameworks: Next.js, Nuxt, Astro, SvelteKit, Remix, etc.
• Languages: Node.js, Python, Go, Rust, PHP, Ruby, etc.
• Containers: Any Docker image

Databases

• PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB
• MongoDB, Redis
• And others via Docker

Ready-to-use Services

Coolify has one-click templates for dozens of applications:

• CMS: WordPress, Ghost, Strapi
• Analytics: Plausible, Umami, Matomo
• Storage: MinIO, Nextcloud
• And more: n8n, Uptime Kuma, Grafana…

How does it work?

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                    Your Server                      │
│  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐  ┌─────────────┐ │
│  │   App 1     │  │   App 2     │  │  Database   │ │
│  │  (Next.js)  │  │  (Python)   │  │ (Postgres)  │ │
│  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘  └─────────────┘ │
│         │                │                │        │
│  ┌──────┴────────────────┴────────────────┴──────┐ │
│  │              Traefik (Reverse Proxy)          │ │
│  │         Auto SSL via Let's Encrypt            │ │
│  └───────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
│                                                     │
│  ┌───────────────────────────────────────────────┐ │
│  │                    Coolify                    │ │
│  │       (Orchestrates everything via web UI)    │ │
│  └───────────────────────────────────────────────┘ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

1. You connect your repository (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket)
2. Coolify detects the project type automatically
3. Auto deploy on every push to the configured branch
4. Free SSL via Let’s Encrypt, configured automatically
5. Traefik routes traffic to the correct application

Minimum Requirements

To install Coolify, you need:

Resource	Minimum	Recommended
CPU	2 cores	4+ cores
RAM	2 GB	4+ GB
Disk	30 GB	50+ GB SSD
OS	Ubuntu 22.04+	Ubuntu 24.04 LTS

Popular providers: DigitalOcean, Hetzner, Vultr, Oracle Cloud (free tier!), Contabo.

Coolify vs Alternatives

Feature	Coolify	Vercel	Railway	Render
Self-hosted	✅	❌	❌	❌
Open Source	✅	❌	❌	❌
Databases included	✅	❌	✅	✅
Auto SSL	✅	✅	✅	✅
Monthly cost	VPS ~$5	$20+	$5+	$7+
Vendor lock-in	❌	✅	✅	✅

Next Steps

Now that you understand what Coolify is, let’s get practical:

1. Initial Setup — Install Coolify in 5 minutes
2. Deploy your first app — Connect a repository and watch the magic happen
3. Configure domain and SSL — Point your domain and get automatic HTTPS

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