Self-hosting Nitropage the easy way
Yulei ChenNitropage is an extensible, visual website builder that lets you create pages using a growing library of building blocks. It comes with focal-point image cropping, sovereign font management, and a clean editor experience. Best of all, it's open-source and self-hostable, so you stay in full control of your content and data.
Sliplane is a managed container platform that makes self-hosting painless. With one-click deployment, you can get Nitropage up and running in minutes - no server setup, no reverse proxy config, no infrastructure to maintain.
Prerequisites
Before deploying, ensure you have a Sliplane account (free trial available).
Quick start
Sliplane provides one-click deployment with presets.
Deploy Nitropage >- Click the deploy button above
- Select a project
- Select a server (If you just signed up you get a 48-hour free trial server)
- Click Deploy!
About the preset
The one-click deploy above uses Sliplane's Nitropage preset. Here's what it includes:
- Official
nitropage/nitropageDocker image (SQLite variant, version 0.70.1-sqlite) - SQLite database for zero-config storage
- Persistent volume mounted to
/app/.dataso your content survives restarts - Auth salt and password pre-generated for immediate use
- Healthcheck pointing to
/adminto verify the app is running
Next steps
Once Nitropage is running on Sliplane, open it using the domain Sliplane provided (e.g. nitropage-xxxx.sliplane.app). Navigate to /admin to access the admin panel and start building pages.
Default credentials
The preset generates a random NP_AUTH_PASSWORD for you. You can find it in your service's environment variables on the Sliplane dashboard. Use this password to log in to the admin panel.
Environment variables
Here are the key environment variables you might want to customize:
| Variable | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
NP_AUTH_PASSWORD | Password for the admin panel | Random (auto-generated) |
NP_AUTH_SALT | Salt for password hashing | Random (auto-generated) |
DATABASE_URL | SQLite database path | file:../.data/dev.db |
Logging
Nitropage logs to STDOUT by default, which works well with Sliplane's built-in log viewer. For general Docker log tips, check out our post on how to use Docker logs.
Troubleshooting
If the admin panel doesn't load, check the service logs in your Sliplane dashboard. Common issues include:
- Volume not mounted: Make sure the persistent volume is attached to
/app/.data - Port mismatch: Nitropage listens on port 3000 by default
Cost comparison
You can also self-host Nitropage with other cloud providers. Here is a pricing comparison for the most common ones:
| Provider | vCPU | RAM | Disk | Monthly Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sliplane | 2 | 2 GB | 40 GB | €9 (~$10.65) | Flat rate, 1 TB bandwidth, SSL included |
| Fly.io | 2 | 2 GB | 40 GB | ~$18 | Disk and bandwidth billed separately |
| Render | 1 | 2 GB | 40 GB | ~$35 | 100 GB bandwidth, Disk billed separately |
| Railway | 2 | 2 GB | 40 GB | ~$67 + $20 plan | Pro plan floor, usage-based, bandwidth billed separately |
Click here to see how these numbers were calculated.
(Assuming an always-on instance running 730 hrs/month)
- Sliplane: flat €9/month for the Base server. Unlimited services on the same server, 1 TB egress and SSL included.
- Fly.io:
shared-cpu-2x2 GB = $11.83/mo + 40 GB volume × $0.15/GB = $6 -> ~$17.83/mo. Egress billed separately ($0.02/GB in EU). - Render: closest match is Standard ($25, 1 vCPU / 2 GB) plus 40 GB disk × $0.25/GB = $10 -> ~$35/mo. Stepping up to Pro (2 vCPU / 4 GB) costs $85/mo + disk.
- Railway (Pro plan): CPU 2 × $0.00000772/s × 2,628,000 s = $40.57; RAM 2 × $0.00000386/s × 2,628,000 s = $20.29; volume 40 × $0.00000006/s × 2,628,000 s = $6.31 -> ~$67/mo compute, plus the $20/mo Pro plan floor and $0.05/GB egress.
Bandwidth costs can add up fast on usage-based providers. Use our bandwidth cost comparison tool to see what your egress would cost on each platform.
FAQ
What can I build with Nitropage?
Nitropage is a visual website builder. You can create landing pages, portfolios, blogs, and other content-driven websites using its drag-and-drop building blocks. It's great for people who want a WYSIWYG editor without being locked into a SaaS platform.
Can I add custom building blocks?
Yes, Nitropage is extensible. You can develop custom building blocks to extend the editor beyond the built-in library. Check the official documentation at nitropage.org for details on the block API.
How do I update Nitropage?
Change the image tag in your service settings on the Sliplane dashboard and redeploy. Check Docker Hub for the latest stable version. Your data is stored in a persistent volume, so updates won't affect your content.
Are there alternatives to Nitropage?
Yes, popular open-source CMS and website builder options include Directus (headless CMS with a visual data studio), Strapi (headless CMS for building APIs), and Payload CMS (code-first headless CMS). Each has a different approach, so pick what fits your workflow best.
Does Nitropage support SQLite only?
The default setup uses SQLite, which is perfect for small to medium sites and keeps things simple. SQLite needs no external database server, so everything runs in a single container. For most use cases, this is more than enough.
