Running N8N Locally With Orbstack

1. Create the Project Directory

Create a new n8n folder:

mkdir -p ~/n8n
cd ~/n8n

2. Create docker-compose.yml 

# version: "3.8"
# this file uses the prebuilt image from Docker Hub

services:
  n8n:
    image: n8nio/n8n
    container_name: n8n
    ports:
      - "5678:5678"
    volumes:
      - ~/.n8n:/home/node/.n8n
      # - ./n8n:/data # Map the 'n8n' subdirectory in the current host directory to '/data' in the container
      - ./:/data # Map the entire project directory to /data in the container
    environment:
      - GENERIC_TIMEZONE=
      - TZ=
      - WEBHOOK_TUNNEL_URL=http://localhost:5678
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_ACTIVE=true
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_USER=
      - N8N_BASIC_AUTH_PASSWORD=
      - N8N_SECURE_COOKIE=false # Disable secure cookies (not recommended, but fine for local development)
      # Disabling secure cookies may pose a risk when deployed publicly; for local testing only.

3. Start the Service

For the first run, pull the image first，then start the service. Run in the project root directory, can open it directly in VS Code.

docker compose pull
docker compose up

4. Access n8n in the Browser

Open browser and visit: http://localhost:5678

5. Manage the Container with OrbStack GUI

OrbStack → Containers:

  • n8n
  • Status: Running
  • ▶ Start / ⏹ Stop / View Logs

Example Project Directory Structure

~/n8n/
├── docker-compose.yml
└──