Deploy a NestJS App
Nest is a modern Node.js framework designed to create efficient, reliable, and scalable server-side applications. Built on top of powerful HTTP server frameworks, it uses Express as the default but also offers seamless support for Fastify for enhanced performance and flexibility.
This guide covers how to deploy a Nest app to Railway in four ways:
Now, let's go ahead and create a Nest app!
Create a Nest App
Note: If you already have a Nest app locally or on GitHub, you can skip this step and go straight to the Deploy Nest App to Railway.
To create a new Nest app, ensure that you have Node and NestJS installed on your machine.
Run the following command in your terminal to create a new Nest app:
nest new helloworld
A new Nest app will be provisioned for you in the helloworld
directory.
Run the Nest App locally
Next, start the app locally by running the following command:
npm run start
Launch your browser and navigate to http://localhost:3000
to view the app.
If you'd prefer to run the app on a different port, simply use the command PORT=8080 npm run start
in the terminal.
Afterward, you can access the app at http://localhost:8080
.
Add and Configure Database
Note: We will be using Postgres for this app. If you don’t have it installed locally, you can either install it or use a different Node.js database package of your choice.
-
Create a database named
nestjshelloworld_dev
. -
Install the following packages:
npm i @nestjs/typeorm typeorm pg
- typeorm is an ORM library for Typescript and JavaScript.
- pg is for communicating with Postgres database.
- Open the
src/app.module.ts
file and modify the content to the code below:
import { Module } from '@nestjs/common';
import { AppController } from './app.controller';
import { AppService } from './app.service';
import { TypeOrmModule } from '@nestjs/typeorm';
@Module({
imports: [
TypeOrmModule.forRoot({
type: 'postgres',
host: 'localhost',
port: 5432,
username: 'username',
password: 'password',
database: 'nestjshelloworld_dev',
entities: [],
synchronize: true,
}),
],
controllers: [AppController],
providers: [AppService],
})
export class AppModule {}
Start the app using the command, npm run start:dev
. The code above tries to connect to the database once the app is started. If any of the credentials are wrong, you will see a warning stating that the app can't connect to the database.
- Open
src/app.service.ts
file and modify the content to returnHello World, Welcome to Railway!
.
import { Injectable } from '@nestjs/common';
@Injectable()
export class AppService {
getHello(): string {
return 'Hello World, Welcome to Railway!';
}
}
- Run the app again to see your changes in action!
Prepare NestJS App for deployment
In the src/app.module.ts
file, replace the hardcoded Postgres database credentials with environment variables:
import { Module } from '@nestjs/common';
import { AppController } from './app.controller';
import { AppService } from './app.service';
import { TypeOrmModule } from '@nestjs/typeorm';
@Module({
imports: [
TypeOrmModule.forRoot({
type: 'postgres',
host: process.env.DB_HOST,
port: 5432,
username: process.env.DB_USERNAME,
password: process.env.DB_PASSWORD,
database: process.env.DB_DATABASE,
entities: [],
synchronize: true,
}),
],
controllers: [AppController],
providers: [AppService],
})
export class AppModule {}
This allows the app to dynamically pull the correct database configuration from Railway during deployment.
Deploy the Nest App to Railway
Railway offers multiple ways to deploy your Nest app, depending on your setup and preference.
One-Click Deploy from a Template
If you’re looking for the fastest way to get started with Nest connected to a Postgres database, the one-click deploy option is ideal.
Click the button below to begin:
We highly recommend that you eject from the template after deployment to create a copy of the repo on your GitHub account.
Note: You can also choose from a variety of Nest app templates created by the community.
Deploy from the CLI
- Install the Railway CLI:
- Install the CLI and authenticate it using your Railway account.
- Initialize a Railway Project:
- Run the command below in your Nest app directory.
railway init
- Follow the prompts to name your project.
- After the project is created, click the provided link to view it in your browser.
- Run the command below in your Nest app directory.
- Add a Postgres Database Service:
- Run
railway add -d postgres
. - Hit Enter to add it to your project.
- A database service will be added to your Railway project.
- Run
- Add a Service and Environment Variable:
- Run
railway add
. - Select
Empty Service
from the list of options. - In the
Enter a service name
prompt, enterapp-service
. - In the
Enter a variable
prompt, enterDB_DATABASE=${{Postgres.PGDATABASE}}
.DB_USERNAME=${{Postgres.PGUSER}}
DB_PASSWORD=${{Postgres.PGPASSWORD}}
DB_HOST=${{Postgres.PGHOST}}
- The Postgres values references the credentials of your new Postgres database. Learn more about referencing service variables.
- Run
- Deploy the Application:
- Run
railway up
to deploy your app.- This command will scan, compress and upload your app's files to Railway. You’ll see real-time deployment logs in your terminal.
- Once the deployment is complete, we can proceed to generate a domain for the app service.
- Run
- Set Up a Public URL:
- Run
railway domain
to generate a public URL for your app. - Visit the new URL to see your app live in action!
- Run
Deploy from a GitHub Repo
To deploy a Nest app to Railway directly from GitHub, follow the steps below:
-
Create a New Project on Railway:
- Go to Railway to create a new project.
-
Deploy from GitHub:
- Select Deploy from GitHub repo and choose your repository.
- If your Railway account isn’t linked to GitHub yet, you’ll be prompted to do so.
- Select Deploy from GitHub repo and choose your repository.
-
Add Environment Variables and Provision a Database Service:
- Click Add Variables, but hold off on adding anything just yet. First, proceed with the next step.
- Right-click on the Railway project canvas or click the Create button, then select Database and choose Add PostgreSQL.
- This will create and deploy a new PostgreSQL database for your project.
- Once the database is deployed, you can return to adding the necessary environment variables:
DB_DATABASE=${{Postgres.PGDATABASE}}
.DB_USERNAME=${{Postgres.PGUSER}}
DB_PASSWORD=${{Postgres.PGPASSWORD}}
DB_HOST=${{Postgres.PGHOST}}
- The Postgres values references the credentials of your new Postgres database. Learn more about referencing service variables.
-
Deploy the App Service:
- Click Deploy on the Railway project canvas to apply your changes.
-
Verify the Deployment:
- Once the deployment completes, go to View logs to check if the server is running successfully.
Note: During the deployment process, Railway will automatically detect that it’s a Node.js app via Nixpacks.
-
Set Up a Public URL:
- Navigate to the Networking section under the Settings tab of your new service.
- Click Generate Domain to create a public URL for your app.
Use a Dockerfile
- Create a
Dockerfile
in the Nest app's root directory. - Add the content below to the
Dockerfile
:# Use the Node official image # https://hub.docker.com/_/node FROM node:lts # Create and change to the app directory. WORKDIR /app # Copy local code to the container image COPY . ./ # Install packages RUN npm ci # Serve the app CMD ["npm", "run", "start:prod"]
- Either deploy via the CLI or from GitHub.
Railway automatically detects the Dockerfile
, and uses it to build and deploy the app.
Note: Railway supports also deployment from public and private Docker images.
This guide covers the main deployment options on Railway. Choose the approach that suits your setup, and start deploying your Nest apps seamlessly!
Next Steps
Explore these resources to learn how you can maximize your experience with Railway:
Edit this file on GitHub