Introduction

Production-ready PHP Docker images built on official PHP. Optimized for Laravel, WordPress, and modern PHP applications.

What makes these images different

serversideup/php takes the official PHP Docker images and adds everything you need for real-world production use:

• ✅ Secure by Default - Runs as unprivileged user, not root
• ✅ Zero Config Required - Production-ready defaults, customize with environment variables
• ✅ Batteries Included - Composer, common extensions, and helpful utilities pre-installed
• ✅ Framework Optimized - Special automations for Laravel (migrations, queues, Horizon, etc.)
• ✅ Multiple Variations - CLI, FPM, FPM+NGINX, FPM+Apache, FrankenPHP
• ✅ Modern Architecture - Native health checks, S6 Overlay, unified logging

Features

Getting started

Try it in two minutes

The quick start guide walks you through your first PHP app with Docker:

1. ✅ Run phpinfo() in your browser
2. ✅ Change PHP settings with environment variables
3. ✅ Upgrade or downgrade PHP by changing one line
4. ✅ Switch variations (FPM, FrankenPHP, and more)

Follow the quick start guide →

Quick example

A Laravel app with NGINX and PHP 8.5, configured with environment variables:

services:
  php:
    image: serversideup/php:8.5-fpm-nginx
    ports:
      - "80:8080"
    environment:
      PHP_MEMORY_LIMIT: "512M"
      # Run migrations, storage:link, and optimize on start
      AUTORUN_ENABLED: "true"
    volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html

Image variations

Choose the variation that fits your needs. All images follow the pattern:

serversideup/php:{{version}}-{{variation-name}}

Popular variations

Variation	Best For	Example
cli	CLI scripts, cron jobs, queues	serversideup/php:8.5-cli
fpm	Custom web server setup	serversideup/php:8.5-fpm
fpm-apache	Apache-based deployments	serversideup/php:8.5-fpm-apache
fpm-nginx	Stable and performant web server	serversideup/php:8.5-fpm-nginx
frankenphp	Modern, high-performance apps with worker mode	serversideup/php:8.5-frankenphp

Supported PHP versions and platforms

Note

All images are available on Docker Hub and GitHub Packages.

We support PHP 8.2 through 8.5 with both Debian and Alpine base images. PHP 8.1 is end of life but still built while its base operating systems receive security updates. See our security policy for the rule. PHP 8.6 release candidates are available for testing as 8.6-rc tags, such as serversideup/php:8.6-rc-fpm-nginx. Every rebuild uses the newest release candidate on php.net.

Learn More About Choosing an Image →

⚙️ Variation	🚀 Version
cli	Debian Based Alpine Based
fpm	Debian Based Alpine Based
fpm-apache	Debian Based
fpm-nginx	Debian Based Alpine Based
frankenphp	Debian Based Alpine Based
unit (removed)	⚠️ NGINX no longer maintains NGINX Unit, so this variation is no longer built. Learn more →

Professional support

Need help integrating Docker with your PHP application?

• Managed Hosting - CI/CD design, managed hosting, guaranteed uptime
• One-time Session - Video + screen-sharing with core contributors
• Complete Development Team - Get help from hardware to pixel and everything in between.

Resources

• Website overview of the product.
• Docs for setup guides and the full reference.
• Discord for friendly support from the community and the team.
• GitHub for source code, bug reports, and project management.
• Get Professional Help - Get video + screen-sharing help directly from the core contributors.

Contributing

Bug fixes, features, and docs improvements are all welcome. Read the contribution guide and code of conduct before opening a pull request.

• Bug Report: If you're experiencing an issue while using these images, please create an issue.
• Feature Request: Make this project better by submitting a feature request.
• Documentation: Improve our documentation by submitting a documentation change.
• Community Support: Help others on GitHub Discussions or Discord.
• Security Report: Report critical security issues via our responsible disclosure policy.

Need help getting started? Join our Discord community and we'll help you out!

Our Sponsors

All of our software is free and open to the world. None of this can be brought to you without the financial backing of our sponsors.

Platinum Sponsors

Silver Sponsors

Bronze Sponsors

Deimos Industries · CarePilot (Formerly DocuCare)

Infrastructure Sponsors

These companies give us free access to the tools and infrastructure we use to build, test, and ship our open source projects. Their support helps our entire community.

  

About Us

We're Dan and Jay - a two-person team with a passion for open source products. We created Server Side Up to help share what we learn.

Dan Pastori	Jay Rogers

Hire Us

Get two senior Laravel experts who deliver quality code with predictable monthly pricing. Dan and Jay have 30+ years of combined experience building scalable Laravel applications.

• 🎯 Complete Laravel expertise - Full-stack development, CI/CD, database optimization, mobile apps
• 💰 Predictable pricing - Fixed monthly subscription, no hourly billing surprises, 40%+ savings
• ⚡ Maximum productivity - 90%+ development time, no meetings, results in days not weeks
• 🛡️ Risk-free - 7-day money-back guarantee, cancel anytime

💬 Discuss Your Project →

Find us at:

• 📖 Blog - Get the latest guides and free courses on all things web/mobile development.
• 🙋 Community - Get friendly help from our community members.
• 🤵‍♂️ Get Professional Help - Get video + screen-sharing support from the core contributors.
• 💻 GitHub - Check out our other open source projects.
• 📫 Newsletter - Skip the algorithms and get quality content right to your inbox.
• 🐥 X (Twitter) - You can also follow Dan and Jay.
• ❤️ Sponsor Us - Please consider sponsoring us so we can create more helpful resources.

Our Products

If you appreciate this project, be sure to check out our other projects.

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📚 Books

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