Apache-2.0 · macOS 13+ · Apple Silicon

container‑compose

Docker Compose, on Apple’s container. Run your compose.yaml with one command.

Download .pkg View on GitHub

One layer. No magic.

A thin CLI plugin that parses a Compose file and orchestrates the stable public container CLI — no private or XPC APIs. Install it once and run container compose up.

Quick start

Install the signed .pkg, then run it from any directory with a compose.yaml.

# install: download the .pkg from Releases, then
sudo installer -pkg ~/Downloads/container-compose-*.pkg -target /
container system stop && container system start   # reload plugins

# from a directory with compose.yaml
container compose up            # create networks/volumes, start in order
container compose up --wait      # ...and wait until healthy
container compose ps
container compose logs web --follow
container compose down -v       # stop + remove, including named volumes

container compose update        # self-update to the latest release

Commands

The familiar Compose surface, mapped to native container operations.

up
Create networks & volumes, start services in dependency order. --wait blocks until healthy.
down
Stop and remove containers, networks, and named volumes.
ps
List the project’s containers.
logs
Show or follow container logs; --tail N limits the output.
exec
Run a command in a running service container (-it, --workdir/--user/--env).
pull
Pre-fetch images for the project’s services.
stop / start
Stop or start containers without recreating them.
restart
Stop then start the selected services.
kill
Send a signal (default KILL) to the project’s containers.
config
Validate and print the resolved project plan.
update
Self-update to the latest signed release.

Compose, translated

Supported and mapped to container run/build/network/volume.

image & build command / entrypoint environment & env_file ports volumes & tmpfs networks & IPAM depends_on + health gating healthcheck profiles extends & include configs & secrets deploy limits (cpus / memory) ${VAR} & .env interpolation

Ecosystem

Built on a reusable Swift engine — and there’s an IDE plugin too.

ComposeKit →
The runtime-agnostic Swift engine that parses, interpolates, and plans Compose projects. Reusable on its own.
JetBrains plugin →
Apple Container support inside IntelliJ-based IDEs, on the JetBrains Marketplace.
Apple container →
The underlying CLI this plugin orchestrates — lightweight Linux containers on macOS.