--- title: "Deploy Self-Host 2,000+ Format File Converter on Railway — Transmute" description: "Self-host 2,000+ format file converter. No per-conversion fees." category: "Automation" url: https://railway.com/deploy/transmute-file-converter --- # Deploy Self-Host 2,000+ Format File Converter on Railway — Transmute Self-host 2,000+ format file converter. No per-conversion fees. **[Deploy Self-Host 2,000+ Format File Converter on Railway — Transmute on Railway](https://railway.com/template/transmute-file-converter)** - **Creator:** SilverBanana - **Category:** Automation ## Template content ### Transmute - **Image:** ghcr.io/transmute-app/transmute ## Documentation # Deploy and Host Transmute — Self-Hosted File Converter on Railway ![Transmute File Converter](YOUR_TRANSMUTE_SCREENSHOT_URL_HERE) Transmute is a free, open-source, self-hosted file converter with **2,000+ supported format conversions** — images, video, audio, documents, spreadsheets, subtitles, fonts, and structured data — served through a polished web UI and a fully documented REST API. No file size limits. No watermarks. No files uploaded to third-party servers. No per-conversion billing. Deploy once on Railway and run unlimited conversions at a flat ~$5/month — versus CloudConvert at $0.016 per conversion minute or Convertio at $9.99/month with format restrictions. --- ## What This Template Deploys | Service | Purpose | |---|---| | **Transmute** | The file conversion engine — web UI for interactive use, REST API for programmatic access, built-in auth, and per-user data isolation served on port `3000` | | **Persistent Volume** | Stores uploaded files during conversion and user data — files are processed locally and never leave your Railway instance | Single-service architecture. No database service, no Redis, no inter-service networking. --- ## About Hosting Transmute Cloud file conversion services like CloudConvert and Convertio process your files on their own servers — your documents, media, and data leave your infrastructure on every conversion. Credit-based billing means costs scale unpredictably: a single PDF-to-Office conversion costs 4 CloudConvert credits, and high-volume usage compounds quickly. Transmute runs entirely on Railway's managed infrastructure. Every conversion happens inside your own container — files never leave your instance. The built-in REST API makes it straightforward to integrate with n8n, Make, or any backend service. Built-in authentication with per-user data isolation means you can safely deploy for a team without cross-user file access. Typical cost: **~$5/month** on Railway's Hobby plan — flat, unlimited conversions with no credit system, no format surcharges, and no file size caps. --- ## Deploy in Under 3 Minutes 1. Click **Deploy on Railway** — Transmute builds and deploys automatically (~2–3 minutes) 2. Open your Railway-assigned URL — the Transmute web UI loads immediately 3. Create your admin account on first launch 4. Start converting files via the browser UI or API No SSH. No Docker configuration. No dependencies to install. ![Transmute web UI conversion interface](YOUR_TRANSMUTE_UI_SCREENSHOT_URL_HERE) --- ## Common Use Cases - **Self-hosted alternative to CloudConvert** — run unlimited conversions at ~$5/month flat instead of paying $0.016 per conversion minute; no credit caps, no PDF surcharges, no files uploaded to CloudConvert's servers - **Self-hosted alternative to Convertio** — get 2,000+ format support versus Convertio's 300 formats, with no monthly conversion cap and full data ownership - **Automated file conversion pipeline** — call the REST API from n8n, Make, or any backend workflow to convert files programmatically without a third-party API key or credit system - **Private document conversion for teams** — deploy for your organisation with built-in user accounts and per-user data isolation; converted files never leave your Railway instance - **Media processing for developers** — integrate image, video, and audio conversion directly into your application via the OpenAPI-documented REST endpoint - **Batch format migration** — convert large volumes of legacy documents, spreadsheets, or media files in bulk through the API without triggering per-conversion billing --- ## Supported Conversions Transmute supports 2,000+ conversion combinations across these file categories: | Category | Examples | |---|---| | **Images** | JPG, PNG, WebP, AVIF, TIFF, SVG, HEIC, BMP, GIF | | **Video** | MP4, WebM, MKV, AVI, MOV, M4V | | **Audio** | MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, OGG, M4A | | **Documents** | PDF, DOCX, ODT, TXT, RTF, EPUB | | **Spreadsheets** | XLSX, CSV, ODS, TSV | | **Structured Data** | JSON, XML, YAML, TOML, CSV | | **Subtitles** | SRT, VTT, ASS, SSA | | **Fonts** | TTF, OTF, WOFF, WOFF2 | Full conversion compatibility matrix: [transmute.sh/conversions](https://transmute.sh/conversions) --- ## Configuration | Variable | Required | Description | |---|---|---| | `PORT` | Auto-set | Railway injects the port automatically — do not set manually | | `AUTH_ENABLED` | Optional | Set to `false` to disable authentication for single-user private deployments | | `DEFAULT_ADMIN_EMAIL` | Optional | Pre-configure the first admin account email at deploy time | | `DEFAULT_ADMIN_PASSWORD` | Optional | Pre-configure the first admin account password at deploy time | | `MAX_FILE_SIZE` | Optional | Maximum file size in bytes per upload — no limit by default | --- ## Transmute vs. Cloud File Conversion Services | | Transmute (Railway) | CloudConvert | Convertio | ConvertHub | |---|---|---|---|---| | **Monthly cost** | ~$5 flat | From $8 (credit-based) | From $9.99/month | From $9/month | | **Per-conversion fee** | ✅ None | ❌ $0.016/minute | ❌ Capped by plan | ❌ Capped by plan | | **File size limits** | ✅ None | ❌ Plan-dependent | ❌ 100MB on free | ❌ Plan-dependent | | **Supported formats** | ✅ 2,000+ combinations | ⚠️ 200+ formats | ⚠️ 300+ formats | ⚠️ 800+ formats | | **Data ownership** | ✅ Your infrastructure | ❌ CloudConvert servers | ❌ Convertio servers | ❌ Third-party | | **REST API** | ✅ OpenAPI documented | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | | **Self-hostable** | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ No | ❌ No | | **Watermarks** | ✅ None | ❌ On free plan | ❌ On free plan | ⚠️ Plan-dependent | | **Built-in auth** | ✅ Users + API tokens | N/A | N/A | N/A | --- ## Dependencies for Transmute Hosting - Railway account — Hobby plan (~$5/month) is all that's required - No external API keys, no database, no third-party services ### Deployment Dependencies - [Transmute GitHub Repository](https://github.com/transmute-app/transmute) — source and releases - [Transmute Documentation](https://transmute.sh) — full configuration reference - [Conversion Compatibility Matrix](https://transmute.sh/conversions) — all 2,000+ supported formats - [Transmute OpenAPI Spec](https://github.com/transmute-app/openapi-specifications) — REST API reference - [Railway Volumes Documentation](https://docs.railway.com/volumes) — persistent storage setup ### Implementation Details This template deploys Transmute from the official container image at `ghcr.io/transmute-app/transmute` with a Railway persistent volume for file handling during conversions. All processing happens inside the container — files are never transmitted to external services. The web UI and REST API are served on the same port behind Railway's automatic HTTPS proxy. Built-in authentication supports user account creation, password management, and API token generation — making it suitable for both personal single-user deployments and shared team instances with per-user data isolation. The OpenAPI-documented REST endpoint accepts file uploads and returns converted output, making it straightforward to integrate with any HTTP client, n8n workflow, or backend service. --- ## Frequently Asked Questions **How much does Transmute cost on Railway vs CloudConvert?** Transmute on Railway runs at ~$5/month flat with unlimited conversions and no file size caps. CloudConvert charges $0.016 per conversion minute — PDF-to-Office conversions cost 4 credits minimum, so at moderate volume costs escalate quickly. Convertio starts at $9.99/month with format restrictions. Transmute gives you 2,000+ format support at a flat compute cost. **Do my files leave my infrastructure during conversion?** No. Every conversion happens inside your Railway container. Files are uploaded to your instance, converted locally, and returned to you. No file data is transmitted to any third-party service. This makes Transmute suitable for sensitive documents, internal business files, and privacy-regulated data. **Can I use Transmute's API from n8n or Make?** Yes. Transmute exposes a fully documented REST API (OpenAPI spec available). Use any HTTP request node in n8n or Make to POST a file to your Railway URL and receive the converted output. Authenticate API calls using the token generated in your Transmute account settings. **Is there a file size limit?** No hard limit is set by default. Practical limits depend on your Railway service's memory allocation — larger video and document conversions require more RAM. Increase your Railway service's memory in the service settings if you're converting large files regularly. **How do I restrict access to my Transmute instance?** Built-in authentication is enabled by default — users must create an account and log in before converting files. Set `DEFAULT_ADMIN_EMAIL` and `DEFAULT_ADMIN_PASSWORD` at deploy time to pre-configure the first admin account. Disable open registration in the admin panel to prevent new signups. **How do I update Transmute to a newer version?** Update the image tag in your Railway service settings to the latest release (e.g. `ghcr.io/transmute-app/transmute:latest` or a pinned version tag) and trigger a redeploy. Check the GitHub releases page for breaking changes before updating. --- ## Why Deploy Transmute 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 Transmute on Railway, you get a private file conversion service with 2,000+ supported formats, a REST API for automation, built-in user authentication, and zero per-conversion fees — all for ~$5/month with full ownership of your files and data. ## Similar templates - [N8N Main + Worker](https://railway.com/deploy/n8n-main-worker) — Deploy and Host N8N with Inactive worker. - [Evolution API with n8n](https://railway.com/deploy/evolution-api-with-n8n) — [Jul'26] WhatsApp automation platform using Evolution API, n8n & PostgreSQL - [Postgres Backup](https://railway.com/deploy/postgres-s3-backups) — Cron-based PostgreSQL backup to bucket storage Open this page in a browser: https://railway.com/deploy/transmute-file-converter