docker compose run Command Reference

Run a one-off command against a service.

docker compose run starts a new container for a service and runs a command in it, separate from the long-running service started by up. In CI it executes test suites, migrations, or scripts using the service image and its dependencies.

Common flags

--rm - remove the container after the command exits
-e KEY=value - set an environment variable for the run
--no-deps - do not start linked services
-T - disable pseudo-TTY allocation (use in CI)
-w, --workdir - working directory inside the container

Example

shell

docker compose run --rm -T -e CI=true app npm run test

In CI

Pass -T to disable the pseudo-TTY (the "the input device is not a TTY" fix for compose) and --rm so the throwaway container is cleaned up. Use --no-deps when the dependencies are already running from a prior compose up to avoid starting duplicates.

Key takeaways

-T disables the TTY so compose run works in non-interactive CI.
--rm cleans up the one-off container after the command exits.
--no-deps avoids re-starting services already brought up by compose up.