Deploy and Host PostgREST on Railway

PostgREST turns a PostgreSQL database into a RESTful API straight from its schema, with JWT authentication and role-based access. This template deploys it together with its own Postgres database, with the JWT secret and database password generated for you.

About Hosting PostgREST

The template starts two services: postgrest (the API server, public HTTPS domain) and postgres (private, on a persistent volume). PostgREST connects to Postgres over Railway's private network. A demo public.todos table, an anon role (read only) and an authenticated role (full access) are created on first boot, so the API answers something useful immediately. PGRST_JWT_SECRET is generated per deploy; sign a JWT with it and a role claim to write.

Machine-readable contract:

public_url:     https://${RAILWAY_PUBLIC_DOMAIN of service postgrest}
internal_url:   http://postgrest.railway.internal:8080
openapi:        GET /  (OpenAPI document, 200 when ready)
tables:         GET/POST/PATCH/DELETE /
health:         GET /  (200 when ready)
credentials:    PGRST_JWT_SECRET (service postgrest, HS256), POSTGRES_PASSWORD (service postgres)
database_url:   PGRST_DB_URI (service postgrest)
roles:          anon (read), authenticated (read/write) - JWT claim "role"
port:           8080 (HTTP)

Working checks, run them after the deploy turns green:

curl -s https:///todos
# [{"id":1,"task":"hello","done":false}]

# write: sign an HS256 JWT with PGRST_JWT_SECRET and payload {"role":"authenticated"}
curl -s -X POST https:///todos \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $JWT" -H 'content-type: application/json' \
  -H 'Prefer: return=representation' -d '{"task":"agent-write"}'
# [{"id":2,"task":"agent-write","done":false}]

An anonymous write is rejected with 401 permission denied. Data lives on a volume mounted at /var/lib/postgresql, so it survives redeploys.

Why Deploy PostgREST on Railway?

Railway is a singular platform to deploy your infrastructure stack. Railway will host your infrastructure so you don't have to deal with configuration, while allowing you to vertically and horizontally scale it.

By deploying PostgREST on Railway, you are one step closer to supporting a complete full-stack application with minimal burden. Host your servers, databases, AI agents, and more on Railway.

REST API and Postgres in one click
JWT secret and database password generated automatically
Data kept on a persistent volume
Images pinned by digest, so redeploys do not change versions

Common Use Cases

Instant REST API over a new or existing Postgres schema
Backend for web and mobile apps with row-level security
Data API for AI agents that need an authenticated HTTP surface
Replacing hand-written CRUD services

Dependencies for PostgREST Hosting

Deployment Dependencies

Implementation Details

The service runs a thin wrapper image (ghcr.io/bon5co/postgrest-railway) over the official postgrest/postgrest image, pinned by digest; it only sets environment defaults and binds port 8080. Rotate the JWT secret by editing PGRST_JWT_SECRET on the postgrest service and redeploying.