Set Up a Laravel Backend and Next.js Frontend Development Environment with Docker within 5 minutes

This guide walks you through creating a Laravel backend and a Next.js frontend, all within a Dockerized environment. You can have everything up and running in just a few minutes.

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Prerequisites

• Docker and Docker Compose installed on your system
• Basic knowledge of Laravel and Next.js
• Basic knowledge of command-line usage

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1. Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/softjapan/laravel-nextjs-dev-environment.git

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2. Create the Laravel Backend

By default, this setup uses MySQL. We will skip running migrations at this point and do them later. Other options use default settings.

cd laravel-nextjs-dev-environment
docker run --rm -it -v "$PWD:/app" softjpn/laravel-nodejs-dev laravel new laravel-backend

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3. Install Laravel Breeze and Dependencies

We will install Laravel Breeze (API scaffolding) without running migrations at this stage. Migrations will be run later after configuring the .env file and starting the Docker containers.

cd laravel-backend
docker run --rm -it -v "$PWD:/app" softjpn/laravel-nodejs-dev composer require laravel/breeze --dev
docker run --rm -it -v "$PWD:/app" softjpn/laravel-nodejs-dev php artisan breeze:install api

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4. Create the Next.js Frontend

cd ..
docker run --rm -it -v "$PWD:/app" softjpn/laravel-nodejs-dev git clone https://github.com/laravel/breeze-next.git next-frontend

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5. Install Frontend Dependencies

cd next-frontend
docker run --rm -it -v "$PWD:/app" softjpn/laravel-nodejs-dev npm install

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6. Create the Environment Files

These files contain database connection details and other environment variables.

cd ..
cp ./envfiles/laravel-backend/.env ./laravel-backend/.env
cp ./envfiles/next-frontend/.env ./next-frontend/.env

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7. Start the Docker Containers

docker compose up -d

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8. Run Database Migrations

Once the containers are running and your .env files are in place, apply the migrations:

docker exec -it laravel-backend php artisan migrate

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9. Access the Frontend

Open your browser and navigate to:

http://localhost:3000

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10. Stop the Docker Containers

When you’re done, shut down the containers:

docker compose down

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Screenshot

License

This project is open source and available under the MIT License.

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Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Feel free to open a pull request with improvements or suggestions.

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Contact

For questions or additional support, please open an issue in this repository.

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Enjoy your streamlined Laravel + Next.js development setup!