Compose file

Reference and guidelines

These topics describe the Docker Compose implementation of the Compose format. Docker Compose 1.27.0+ implements the format defined by the Compose Specification. Previous Docker Compose versions have support for several Compose file formats – 2, 2.x, and 3.x. The Compose specification is an unified 2.x and 3.x file format, aggregating properties across these formats.

Compose and Docker compatibility matrix

There are several versions of the Compose file format – 2, 2.x, and 3.x. The table below provides a snapshot of various versions. For full details on what each version includes and how to upgrade, see About versions and upgrading.

This table shows which Compose file versions support specific Docker releases.

Compose file format	Docker Engine release
Compose specification	19.03.0+
3.8	19.03.0+
3.7	18.06.0+
3.6	18.02.0+
3.5	17.12.0+
3.4	17.09.0+
3.3	17.06.0+
3.2	17.04.0+
3.1	1.13.1+
3.0	1.13.0+
2.4	17.12.0+
2.3	17.06.0+
2.2	1.13.0+
2.1	1.12.0+
2.0	1.10.0+

In addition to Compose file format versions shown in the table, the Compose itself is on a release schedule, as shown in Compose releases, but file format versions do not necessarily increment with each release. For example, Compose file format 3.0 was first introduced in Compose release 1.10.0, and versioned gradually in subsequent releases.

The latest Compose file format is defined by the Compose Specification and is implemented by Docker Compose 1.27.0+.

Compose documentation

fig, composition, compose, docker