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Run PrestaShop on Docker

What is PrestaShop?​

PrestaShop is an open-source PHP e-commerce platform popular in Europe and Latin America, covering everything from a small catalog to a multi-store, multi-language shop. It is a PHP application that needs a web server, PHP-FPM, and a MySQL or MariaDB database; Redis is not required but is commonly added for cache and session storage on busier stores.

Why run PrestaShop in Docker?​

Docker packages each of those pieces (a web server, PHP-FPM, MySQL, Redis) into isolated containers that run the same on every machine. Instead of installing PHP and MySQL onto your laptop, where versions collide between projects and "works on my machine" starts, you run disposable containers that mirror production and vanish cleanly when you delete them. One store can run PHP 8.1 while another runs PrestaShop 1.6 on an older PHP release, on the same computer, with nothing installed globally.

The catch: wiring those containers together yourself (base images, PHP extensions, networking, permissions) is a week of fiddly Docker work. That is exactly what Laradock removes.

Why Laradock is the best fit for PrestaShop​

PrestaShop publishes an official prestashop/prestashop image on Docker Hub, a single Apache+PHP container with PrestaShop pre-installed, so it does not strictly need Laradock. It is still the best fit for a real project, and here is why:

  • You are never locked into one ecosystem. Laradock is framework-agnostic. The day you add a Symfony back-office tool, a Laravel API, or a plain PHP script beside your PrestaShop store, it runs in the same environment with the same commands. A single bundled image cannot do that.
  • Far more flexibility. 100+ ready services and any PHP version from 5.6 to 8.5, versus the one bundled runtime the official image gives you.
  • Nothing is hidden and you own everything. No generated files, no magic, no wrapper binary between you and Docker. Every Dockerfile and compose file is right there for you to read and edit, and your web server and PHP-FPM are separate containers you can tune independently.
  • Nothing new to learn. What you use is plain docker compose, knowledge that transfers straight to production and to every other project. Our CLI is an optional nicety, never a requirement.

Concretely, for PrestaShop it gives you a production-style NGINX or Apache + PHP-FPM stack, MySQL/MariaDB and Redis already wired, and a workspace container with Composer and git installed.

Run PrestaShop on Docker with Laradock​

1. Add Laradock to your project​

cd my-prestashop-store
git clone https://github.com/laradock/laradock.git
cd laradock && cp .env.example .env

(No PrestaShop files yet? Clone Laradock first, then download PrestaShop from the workspace container in the next steps.)

2. Pick the services your store needs​

PrestaShop needs a web server and a database. Redis is optional; add it when you enable object caching:

docker compose up -d nginx mysql workspace

Want Redis too, or MariaDB instead of MySQL? docker compose up -d nginx mariadb redis workspace. PrestaShop ships Apache-oriented .htaccess rules, so if you use nginx you may need to port a few of its rewrite rules; Apache is available as a service too. The full catalog is here.

3. Point PrestaShop at the containers​

PrestaShop's installer writes its connection details to app/config/parameters.php (PrestaShop 1.7/8/9) during setup. Point it at the containers by giving it these values when you run the installer in the next step: database server mysql, database name, user and password of your choice.

4. Install and run​

Enter the workspace container, where Composer and git live, download PrestaShop and run its installer:

docker compose exec workspace bash
composer create-project prestashop/prestashop .
php install-dev/index_cli.php --domain=localhost --db_server=mysql \
  --db_name=prestashop --db_user=root --db_password=secret \
  --firstname=Admin --lastname=User [email protected] --password=Admin123!

(The exact installer script name has moved between PrestaShop major versions; check install-dev/ or install/ in the version you downloaded, or use the browser-based installer at http://localhost/install instead.) Then open http://localhost. That is a full PrestaShop store running on Docker.

Change the PHP version anytime​

This is where a native install hurts and Laradock shines. Set the version in Laradock's .env and rebuild:

PHP_VERSION=8.1
docker compose build php-fpm workspace

PrestaShop 9 targets PHP 8.1 and up (8.4 recommended), while PrestaShop 1.6 stores still run on much older PHP, so the same tool runs a legacy 1.6 shop and a current PrestaShop 9 store side by side, each isolated, none of it installed on your machine.

Frequently Asked Questions​

Do I need to install PHP or MySQL to run PrestaShop with Laradock?​

No. Everything lives inside the containers. Composer and git are in the workspace container; you never install PHP or the database on your host.

Which services should I start for a typical PrestaShop store?​

nginx mysql workspace covers most stores. Add redis once you turn on object caching, and swap mysql for mariadb if you prefer.

Can I run multiple PrestaShop stores on different PHP versions?​

Yes. Give each its own Laradock with a unique COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME and DATA_PATH_HOST, set a different PHP_VERSION in each, and they run independently on the same machine.

Does this work the same on macOS, Windows and Linux?​

Yes. Laradock runs anywhere Docker runs. On macOS/Windows, file-sync speed depends on Docker Desktop (VirtioFS helps a lot); it is a Docker Desktop trait, not specific to Laradock.

Is this the same Docker setup I would use in production?​

The containers are production-style (real web server + PHP-FPM), so it is far closer to production than a native install. See Prepare Laradock for Production for the hardening steps.

Comparing environments? See the full Laradock vs Others breakdown. Ready to start? Getting Started takes about five minutes.