Install MongoDB on Docker

Document-oriented NoSQL database (BSON), designed for horizontal scalability and flexible schemas.

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Installation

Container (with volume) · Docker

$ docker run -d --name mongodb -p 127.0.0.1:27017:27017 -v mongodb_data:/data/db mongo:8

The named volume mongodb_data ensures data persistence across restarts. As long as authentication is not enabled, publish the port on the loopback interface only (127.0.0.1) so MongoDB is not exposed on all interfaces.

With authentication · Docker

$ docker run -d --name mongodb -p 27017:27017 -v mongodb_data:/data/db -e MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_USERNAME=admin -e MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD=secret mongo:8

Choose a strong password. Passing MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD in plaintext exposes it via docker inspect, docker ps and the shell history: prefer --env-file, Docker secrets, or the MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD_FILE variant that reads the password from a mounted file.

Verify the installation

Verify

$ docker exec mongodb mongosh --eval "db.runCommand({ ping: 1 })"

Service

Start

$ docker start mongodb

Stop

$ docker stop mongodb

Status

$ docker ps --filter name=mongodb

Restart

$ docker restart mongodb

Important files

Type	Path	Description
data	/data/db	Data directory inside the container (to be mounted on a volume).
config	/etc/mongod.conf.orig	Default configuration copied into the image, but NOT read at startup: mongod is launched via CMD ['mongod'] without --config. To apply a config, mount your own file AND override the command (command: ['mongod','--config','/etc/mongod.conf']).

Default ports

27017

Command-line tools

docker exec -it mongodb mongoshOpens the mongosh shell inside the container.

Uninstall

Remove (container + data)

docker rm -f mongodb
docker volume rm mongodb_data

Removing the volume permanently erases the data.

Good to know

Without a volume, data is lost when the container is removed.
The official image is mongo (Docker Hub); pin a major version (mongo:8) in production.

MongoDB with Docker

The official mongo image starts a ready-to-use server. Mount a named volume on /data/db to keep your data. Expose port 27017 to access it from the host.

For a deployment, define a root user via MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_USERNAME / MONGO_INITDB_ROOT_PASSWORD and pin a specific image version.