Create a Laravel project using the Composer container; 2. Write a Dockerfile containing PHP extensions and Apache configuration; 3. Define app, MySQL, and phpMyAdmin services through docker-compose.yml; 4. Configure the Apache virtual host to support Laravel routing; 5. Update the .env file to set up database connections; 6. Run docker-compose up -d --build to start the container; 7. Execute Composer installation and key generation in the container; 8. Optionally run migration; 9. Use docker-compose exec to execute the Artisan command during development, and the code is synchronized in real time. After modifying the Dockerfile, the image needs to be rebuilt, and finally realize the local development environment deployment of Laravel in Docker.

Setting up Laravel with Docker isn't complicated once you understand the basics of containers and how to structure your services. Here's a practical guide to get a Laravel project running in Docker using Docker Compose .

? 1. Create a New Laravel Project (or Use Existing One)

If you're starting fresh, use Composer via Docker to create the Laravel app:

 docker run --rm -v $(pwd):/app composer create-project --prefer-dist laravel/laravel my-laravel-app

Replace my-laravel-app with your project name. This avoids needing Composer installed locally.

Now navigate into your project:

 cd my-laravel-app

? 2. Create the Dockerfile

Create a Dockerfile in the project root to define the PHP environment:

 # Use PHP 8.3 with Apache (you can use Nginx too)
FROM php:8.3-apache

# Install system dependencies
RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y \
    git \
    curl \
    libpng-dev \
    libonig-dev \
    libxml2-dev \
    zip \
    unzip

# Clear cache
RUN apt-get clean && rm -rf /var/lib/apt/lists/*

# Install PHP extensions
RUN docker-php-ext-install pdo_mysql mbstring exif pcntl bcmath gd

# Install Composer
COPY --from=composer:latest /usr/bin/composer /usr/bin/composer

# Set working directory
WORKDIR /var/www/html

# Copy existing application code
COPY . /var/www/html/

# Copy Apache vhost config
COPY .docker/vhost.conf /etc/apache2/sites-available/000-default.conf

# Enable mod_rewrite for Laravel routes
RUN a2enmod rewrite

# Fix permissions
RUN chown -R www-data:www-data /var/www/html

? 3. Set Up Docker Compose

Create a docker-compose.yml file in the root:

 version: '3.8'

services:
  app:
    build:
      context: .
      dockerfile: Dockerfile
    Ports:
      - "8000:80"
    environment:
      - APACHE_RUN_USER=www-data
      - APACHE_RUN_GROUP=www-data
    Volumes:
      - .:/var/www/html
    depends_on:
      - db

  db:
    image: mysql:8.0
    command: --default-authentication-plugin=mysql_native_password
    restart: always
    environment:
      MYSQL_DATABASE: laravel
      MYSQL_ROOT_PASSWORD: rootpassword
      MYSQL_USER: laravel_user
      MYSQL_PASSWORD: laravel_password
    Ports:
      - "3306:3306"
    Volumes:
      - mysql_data:/var/lib/mysql

  phpmyadmin:
    image: phpmyadmin/phpmyadmin
    Ports:
      - "8080:80"
    environment:
      PMA_HOST: db
      PMA_USER: laravel_user
      PMA_PASSWORD: laravel_password
    depends_on:
      - db

Volumes:
  mysql_data:

Optional: Remove phpmyadmin if you don't need it.

? 4. Configure Apache Virtual Host

Create a .docker/vhost.conf file:

 <VirtualHost *:80>
    ServerName localhost
    DocumentRoot /var/www/html/public

    <Directory /var/www/html/public>
        AllowOverride All
        Require all granted
        Options Indexes FollowSymLinks
    </Directory>

    ErrorLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/error.log
    CustomLog ${APACHE_LOG_DIR}/access.log combined
</VirtualHost>

This enables .htaccess and mod_rewrite for Laravel's routing.

? 5. Update Laravel Environment

Edit your .env file (create it from .env.example ):

 APP_NAME=Laravel
APP_ENV=local
APP_KEY=
APP_DEBUG=true
APP_URL=http://localhost:8000

DB_CONNECTION=mysql
DB_HOST=db
DB_PORT=3306
DB_DATABASE=laravel
DB_USERNAME=laravel_user
DB_PASSWORD=laravel_password

Note: DB_HOST=db matches the service name in docker-compose.yml .

? 6. Build and Run Containers

Run this command in your terminal:

 docker-compose up -d --build

This builds the app container, starts MySQL and phpMyAdmin.

? 7. Install Laravel Dependencies & Generate Key

Run Composer install and generate the app key inside the container:

 docker-compose exec app composer install
docker-compose exec app php artisan key:generate
docker-compose exec app php artisan config:cache

? 8. Run Migrations (Optional)

Apply Laravel migrations:

 docker-compose exec app php artisan migrate

You can now access:

• Laravel app: http://localhost:8000
• phpMyAdmin: http://localhost:8080 (optional)

? 9. Development Tips

• Your code is mounted via volume, so local changes reflect instantly.
• For Artisan commands, always use:

   docker-compose exec app php artisan <command>

• If you add PHP extensions or change the Dockerfile , rebuild:

   docker-compose build app

  ---

  ? Final Notes

  This setup gives you:

  • Laravel running on Apache PHP
  • MySQL database
  • Optional GUI via phpMyAdmin
  • Full Docker isolation

  You can swap Apache for Nginx PHP-FPM for production, but this is perfect for local development.

  Basically, just keep your .env , Dockerfile , and docker-compose.yml in sync — and you're good to go.

  The above is the detailed content of How to set up Laravel with Docker?. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!