How to Self-Host Linkwarden with Docker

What Is Linkwarden?

Linkwarden is a self-hosted collaborative bookmark manager. It saves your bookmarks, archives the pages (so they survive link rot), and makes everything searchable. Think of it as a self-hosted alternative to Pocket, Raindrop.io, and Pinboard — but with team collaboration features, automatic page archiving, full-text search via Meilisearch, and a clean modern UI. Linkwarden supports browser extensions, collections, tags, and multiple users with sharing.

Prerequisites

A Linux server (Ubuntu 22.04+ recommended)
Docker and Docker Compose installed (guide)
1 GB of free RAM (2 GB recommended with Meilisearch)
5 GB of free disk space (archives grow over time)
A domain name (optional, for remote access)

Docker Compose Configuration

Create a docker-compose.yml file:

services:
  linkwarden:
    image: ghcr.io/linkwarden/linkwarden:v2.13.5
    container_name: linkwarden
    restart: unless-stopped
    ports:
      - "3000:3000"
    environment:
      DATABASE_URL: "postgresql://linkwarden:change_this_strong_password@linkwarden_db:5432/linkwarden"
      NEXTAUTH_SECRET: "change_this_to_random_string"    # CHANGE THIS — generate with: openssl rand -hex 32
      NEXTAUTH_URL: "http://localhost:3000"               # Set to your public URL
      MEILI_ADDR: "http://meilisearch:7700"
      MEILI_MASTER_KEY: "change_this_meili_key"           # CHANGE THIS — must match Meilisearch
      NEXT_PUBLIC_DISABLE_REGISTRATION: "false"           # Set to "true" after creating your account
    volumes:
      - linkwarden_data:/data/data
    depends_on:
      linkwarden_db:
        condition: service_healthy
      meilisearch:
        condition: service_healthy

  linkwarden_db:
    image: postgres:16-alpine
    container_name: linkwarden_db
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      POSTGRES_USER: linkwarden
      POSTGRES_PASSWORD: change_this_strong_password      # Must match DATABASE_URL
      POSTGRES_DB: linkwarden
    volumes:
      - linkwarden_pgdata:/var/lib/postgresql/data
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U linkwarden"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

  meilisearch:
    image: getmeili/meilisearch:v1.12.8
    container_name: linkwarden_meili
    restart: unless-stopped
    environment:
      MEILI_MASTER_KEY: "change_this_meili_key"           # Must match MEILI_MASTER_KEY above
      MEILI_NO_ANALYTICS: "true"
    volumes:
      - linkwarden_meili:/meili_data
    healthcheck:
      test: ["CMD", "curl", "-f", "http://localhost:7700/health"]
      interval: 10s
      timeout: 5s
      retries: 5

volumes:
  linkwarden_data:
  linkwarden_pgdata:
  linkwarden_meili:

Start the stack:

docker compose up -d

Initial Setup

Open http://your-server-ip:3000 in your browser
Click Register and create your account
After creating your account, set NEXT_PUBLIC_DISABLE_REGISTRATION: "true" in your Compose file and restart to prevent others from signing up
Install the browser extension (available for Chrome, Firefox, Safari) for one-click bookmarking

Configuration

Browser Extensions

Linkwarden has browser extensions for all major browsers:

Chrome/Edge: Chrome Web Store
Firefox: Firefox Add-ons
Safari: Mac App Store

After installing, enter your Linkwarden URL and log in.

Collections and Tags

Organize bookmarks with:

Collections: Folders with sharing permissions. Nest collections for hierarchy.
Tags: Cross-cutting labels for any bookmark.
Sub-collections: Create nested organization within collections.

Automatic Archiving

Linkwarden automatically creates archived copies of bookmarked pages:

Screenshot archive: Captures how the page looks
PDF archive: Full-page PDF for offline reading
Single-file archive: Complete HTML page with embedded assets

Configure archive formats under Settings → Archiving.

SMTP for Invitations

To invite users via email:

environment:
  EMAIL_FROM: "linkwarden@example.com"
  EMAIL_SERVER: "smtp://user:password@smtp.example.com:587"

Advanced Configuration (Optional)

SSO/OIDC Authentication

Linkwarden supports multiple authentication providers:

environment:
  # Keycloak/OIDC example
  NEXT_PUBLIC_OIDC_ENABLED: "true"
  OIDC_CLIENT_ID: "linkwarden"
  OIDC_CLIENT_SECRET: "your-client-secret"
  OIDC_ISSUER: "https://auth.example.com/realms/master"

S3 Storage for Archives

For large deployments, store archives in S3-compatible storage:

environment:
  STORAGE_FOLDER: "s3"
  S3_ENDPOINT: "https://s3.example.com"
  S3_BUCKET_NAME: "linkwarden"
  S3_ACCESS_KEY: "your-access-key"
  S3_SECRET_KEY: "your-secret-key"
  S3_REGION: "us-east-1"

Reverse Proxy

Set NEXTAUTH_URL to your public-facing domain:

NEXTAUTH_URL: "https://bookmarks.example.com"

Nginx Proxy Manager config:

Scheme: http
Forward Hostname: linkwarden
Forward Port: 3000

See Reverse Proxy Setup for full configuration.

Backup

Back up three things:

PostgreSQL database:

docker compose exec linkwarden_db pg_dump -U linkwarden linkwarden > linkwarden-backup-$(date +%Y%m%d).sql

Linkwarden data volume (archived pages):

docker run --rm -v linkwarden_data:/data -v $(pwd):/backup alpine \
  tar czf /backup/linkwarden-data-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /data

Meilisearch data (search index — can be rebuilt but slow):

docker run --rm -v linkwarden_meili:/data -v $(pwd):/backup alpine \
  tar czf /backup/linkwarden-meili-$(date +%Y%m%d).tar.gz /data

See Backup Strategy for a complete backup approach.

Troubleshooting

Search Not Working

Symptom: Bookmarks save but search returns no results. Fix: Check that Meilisearch is running and MEILI_ADDR and MEILI_MASTER_KEY match between the Linkwarden and Meilisearch containers. Restart Linkwarden after fixing configuration.

Archives Not Being Created

Symptom: Bookmarks save but no screenshots or PDFs are generated. Fix: Archive generation needs a headless Chrome service. Verify the container has enough memory (at least 1 GB). Check Linkwarden logs for archival errors:

docker compose logs linkwarden | grep -i archive

Registration Page Not Showing

Symptom: Going to the registration page redirects to login. Fix: Set NEXT_PUBLIC_DISABLE_REGISTRATION: "false" and restart the container. Note: this environment variable requires a container rebuild since it’s a build-time variable in some versions.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between Linkwarden and Linkding?

Linkwarden is a full-featured bookmark manager with automatic page archiving (screenshots, PDFs), team collaboration, collections, and full-text search via Meilisearch. Linkding is a minimal bookmark manager focused on simplicity — fast tag-based bookmarking without archival or team features. Choose Linkwarden if you need page preservation and team sharing. Choose Linkding if you want a lightweight, fast personal bookmark tool. See our Linkding vs Linkwarden comparison.

Does Linkwarden work offline?

No. Linkwarden is a web application that requires a running server and database. However, it archives pages automatically, so you can view saved content (screenshots, PDFs) even if the original page goes offline. If you need offline access to saved articles, consider Wallabag which has native mobile apps with offline reading.

How much storage does page archiving use?

Archived pages (screenshots + PDFs) average 2-5 MB each. A collection of 1,000 bookmarks with full archiving uses roughly 2-5 GB. You can disable archiving for specific bookmarks or configure collection-level archiving rules. If storage is a concern, archive only important bookmarks and keep others as links only.

Can I import bookmarks from Chrome, Firefox, or Pocket?

Yes. Linkwarden supports importing from browser bookmark HTML exports (Chrome, Firefox, Safari), Pocket exports, and Linkding exports. Go to Settings → Data in the web UI to access the import feature. Tags and folder structures are preserved where possible.

Is Meilisearch required for Linkwarden to work?

No. Linkwarden works without Meilisearch, but you lose full-text search across your bookmarks. Without it, search only matches bookmark titles and URLs. With Meilisearch, you can search the full content of archived pages. For large bookmark collections, Meilisearch makes a significant difference in usability.

Resource Requirements

RAM: ~300 MB for Linkwarden, ~200 MB for Meilisearch, ~100 MB for PostgreSQL
CPU: Low idle, moderate during archiving operations
Disk: ~200 MB for the application, archives grow based on bookmarking activity (plan for 1-5 GB)

Verdict

Linkwarden is the best self-hosted bookmark manager for users who want archival and team collaboration. The automatic page archiving means your bookmarks survive even when the original pages disappear. If you want something simpler and lighter — just bookmarks without archival — look at Linkding. If you want a read-later app focused on article reading, Wallabag is better suited. But for a full-featured, team-friendly bookmark manager, Linkwarden is the top choice.