How to Self-Host Umami: A Step-by-Step Guide to Privacy-Focused Web Analytics (With Docker Setup)

Umami is a simple, privacy-focused, open-source web analytics solution. It’s lightweight, doesn’t rely on cookies, and offers clean, insightful dashboards — making it a great alternative to tools like Google Analytics if you’re serious about privacy and data ownership.

In this guide, we’ll walk through how to self-host Umami on your server, both manually and using Docker. Whether you prefer fine-grained control or a quick containerized deployment, you’ll find everything you need here.

🚀 Why Self-Host Umami?

• Data Privacy: You control your analytics data.

• Lightweight: Fast and minimal resource consumption.

• No Tracking Consent Needed: Since Umami doesn’t use cookies or collect personal data.

• Open-Source: Free to use and customizable.

Manual Setup Guide for Umami

🛠️ Prerequisites

• A Linux-based server (Ubuntu recommended)

• Node.js (v18.18 or newer)

• MySQL (v8+) or PostgreSQL (v12+)

• Nginx (for reverse proxy)

• Domain name (optional but recommended)

1️⃣ Install Dependencies

Node.js & npm

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_18.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
node -v
npm -v

Database (PostgreSQL Example)

sudo apt update
sudo apt install postgresql postgresql-contrib
sudo -u postgres psql
CREATE DATABASE umami;
CREATE USER umami WITH ENCRYPTED PASSWORD 'strongpassword';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON DATABASE umami TO umami;

2️⃣ Install Umami

git clone https://github.com/umami-software/umami.git
cd umami
npm install
cp .env.example .env

Edit your .env file to include your database credentials:

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://umami:strongpassword@localhost:5432/umami
HASH_SALT=some-random-salt-value

3️⃣ Build and Start Umami

npm run build
npm start

(Optional) Use PM2 to keep the app running:

npm install pm2 -g
pm2 start npm --name umami -- start
pm2 save

4️⃣ Set Up Nginx Reverse Proxy (Optional but recommended)

server {
    server_name analytics.yourdomain.com;
    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_set_header X-Real-IP $remote_addr;
        proxy_set_header X-Forwarded-For $proxy_add_x_forwarded_for;
    }
}

Don’t forget SSL! Use Let’s Encrypt or another certificate provider.

⚓ Docker Setup Guide for Umami

If you want a quicker and easier deployment option, Docker is your friend!

🛠️ Prerequisites

• Docker

• Docker Compose (optional, but helpful)

• A server (local or cloud)

1️⃣ Clone the Repository

git clone https://github.com/umami-software/umami.git
cd umami

2️⃣ Modify Docker Environment Variables

Rename and edit the .env file:

cp .env.example .env

Modify the following variables as needed (Postgres example):

DATABASE_URL=postgresql://umami:strongpassword@db:5432/umami
HASH_SALT=some-random-salt-value

3️⃣ Create the Docker Compose File

Here’s a sample docker-compose.yml for Umami with PostgreSQL:

version: '3'

services:
  db:
    image: postgres:15
    restart: always
    environment:
      POSTGRES_DB: umami
      POSTGRES_USER: umami
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: strongpassword
    volumes:
      - umami-db-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data

  umami:
    image: ghcr.io/umami-software/umami:postgresql-latest
    restart: always
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    environment:
      DATABASE_URL: postgresql://umami:strongpassword@db:5432/umami
      HASH_SALT: some-random-salt-value
    depends_on:
      - db

volumes:
  umami-db-data:

4️⃣ Start the Containers

Run the following command to spin up the services:

docker-compose up -d

5️⃣ Access Your Umami Instance

Visit http://your-server-ip:3000 or your configured domain.

Default login credentials:

Username: admin
Password: umami

Make sure to change your password immediately after logging in!

🔒 Optional: Secure Umami with SSL + Nginx (Recommended)

Add an Nginx reverse proxy and set up SSL for your Docker deployment too! Same as the manual setup Nginx block above.

✅ Conclusion

That’s it! You’ve successfully self-hosted Umami either manually or using Docker. You now have a privacy-first analytics solution where you own your data and keep your users’ privacy intact.

For more information or advanced configurations, refer to the official Umami documentation: https://umami.is/docs

💡 What’s Next?

• Connect your websites by adding the Umami script:

<script async defer data-website-id="YOUR-WEBSITE-ID" src="https://analytics.yourdomain.com/script.js"></script>

• Create custom reports and share dashboards.

• Explore advanced tracking options with events and goals.

👉 Have questions or feedback? Drop them in the comments!

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