basecamp / kamal

git clone https://github.com/basecamp/kamal.git v2.12.0 · 4mo ago 🔥 on GitHub Trending today

Deploys Docker-containerized web apps to bare metal or cloud VMs over SSH with zero-downtime switchover.

Why you might care

Useful if you want Capistrano-style deploys without a PaaS: it runs from your machine, targets any servers you can SSH into, and uses kamal-proxy to shift traffic between containers. Originally built for Rails but works with any web app that runs in Docker.

Alternatives

CapistranoDokkuCoolifyHeroku

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15k

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763

forks · 163 open issues

Star history (as recorded here)

2026-10-20 · 14,664 ★ 2026-10-23 · 14,678 ★

LanguageRuby

LicenseMIT

Created2023-01-07 (3y ago)

Last push2d ago

Watchers98

OwnerOrganization

Seen on GitHub Trending

2026-10-23 — #17 daily in ruby · +6 ★
2026-10-22 — #6 daily in ruby · +5 ★

Links

GitHub: github.com/basecamp/kamal
Homepage: https://kamal-deploy.org
Releases · Issues · Hacker News mentions

README excerpt

# Kamal: Deploy web apps anywhere
From bare metal to cloud VMs, deploy web apps anywhere with zero downtime. Kamal uses kamal-proxy to seamlessly switch requests between containers. Works seamlessly across multiple servers, using SSHKit to execute commands. Originally built for Rails apps, Kamal will work with any type of web app that can be containerized with Docker.
➡️ See kamal-deploy.org for documentation on installation, configuration, and commands.
## Contributing to the documentation
Please help us improve Kamal's documentation on the basecamp/kamal-site repository.
## License
Kamal is released under the MIT License.