ZITADEL

Development512MB+ RAM

Cloud-native identity management platform

Download Server Compass View Documentation

authidentitycloud-native

Deploy ZITADEL in 3 Steps

Connect Your VPS

Add your server credentials to Server Compass

Select ZITADEL

Choose from our template library

Deploy & Configure

Fill in settings and click Deploy

No Docker knowledge required

DIY Deployment

Self-Host ZITADEL with Docker

Take the DIY route and deploy ZITADEL on your own server using Docker.

Connect to Your VPS via SSH

Fire up your terminal application and establish a connection to your remote server.

terminal

# Access your VPS
ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

# With SSH key authentication
ssh -i ~/.ssh/your-private-key root@YOUR_SERVER_IP

First time? Ensure Docker is installed first: curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

Initialize Project Folder

Create a folder to house your Docker Compose configuration.

terminal

# Create and navigate to project directory
mkdir -p ~/apps/zitadel
cd ~/apps/zitadel

Create Docker Configuration

Define your services in a docker-compose.yml file:

docker-compose.yml

services:
  zitadel:
    image: ghcr.io/zitadel/zitadel:latest
    command: start-from-init --masterkeyFromEnv --tlsMode disabled
    ports:
      - "8080:8080"
    environment:
      - ZITADEL_MASTERKEY=<your-master-key>
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_HOST=db
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_PORT=5432
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_DATABASE=postgres
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_USER_USERNAME=postgres
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_USER_PASSWORD=<your-db-password>
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_ADMIN_USERNAME=postgres
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_ADMIN_PASSWORD=<your-db-password>
      - ZITADEL_DATABASE_POSTGRES_USER_SSL_MODE=disable
      - ZITADEL_EXTERNALSECURE=false
      - ZITADEL_FIRSTINSTANCE_ORG_HUMAN_USERNAME=admin
      - ZITADEL_FIRSTINSTANCE_ORG_HUMAN_PASSWORD=<your-admin-password>
    restart: unless-stopped
    depends_on:
      db:
        condition: service_healthy

  db:
    image: postgres:16-alpine
    environment:
      - POSTGRES_USER=postgres
      - POSTGRES_PASSWORD=<your-db-password>
      - POSTGRES_DB=postgres
    volumes:
      - postgres_data:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    restart: unless-stopped
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U postgres"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

volumes:
  postgres_data:

Configurable Options

PORTHost port(default: 8080)

MASTER_KEYMaster key

ADMIN_PASSWORDAdmin password

DB_PASSWORDDB password

Execute the Deployment

Start your containers and verify they're running correctly.

terminal

# Launch the stack
docker compose up -d

# Verify container status
docker compose ps

# Follow the logs
docker compose logs --follow

Allow Network Access

Update UFW rules to allow traffic on the application port.

terminal

# Allow the application port through firewall
sudo ufw allow 8080/tcp
sudo ufw reload

# Access your app at:
# http://your-server-ip:8080

Skip the Terminal

Don't want to type commands? We've got you.

Forget SSH and YAML files. Deploy ZITADEL visually with Server Compass in just a few clicks.

No terminal required
Point-and-click setup
Auto SSL certificates
Rolling deployments
Health monitoring
Instant rollbacks

Download Server Compass$29 one-time • Lifetime license

After Deployment

After deploying ZITADEL with Server Compass, complete these steps to finish setup

Create organization

Configure identity providers

Need help? Check out our documentation for detailed guides.

ZITADEL FAQ

Common questions about self-hosting ZITADEL

How do I deploy ZITADEL with Server Compass?

Simply download Server Compass, connect to your VPS, and select ZITADEL from the templates list. Fill in the required configuration and click Deploy. The entire process takes under 3 minutes.

What are the system requirements for ZITADEL?

ZITADEL requires a minimum of 512MB RAM. We recommend a VPS with at least 1024MB RAM for optimal performance. Any modern Linux server with Docker support will work.

Can I migrate my existing ZITADEL data?

Yes! Server Compass provides volume mapping that allows you to import existing data. You can also use standard ZITADEL backup and restore procedures.

How do I update ZITADEL to the latest version?

Server Compass makes updates easy. Simply click the Update button in your deployment dashboard, and the latest ZITADEL image will be pulled and deployed with zero downtime.

Is ZITADEL free to self-host?

ZITADEL is open-source software. You only pay for your VPS hosting (typically $5-20/month) and optionally Server Compass ($29 one-time). No subscription fees or per-seat pricing.