With Cloudflare Tunnel, you can securely publish your local n8n instance over HTTPS in just a few minutes. Cloudflare handles SSL certificates, encrypted connections, and public access—without requiring a public IP address.

In this guide, you'll learn how to run n8n locally using Docker Compose and Cloudflare Tunnel.

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Why Use Cloudflare Tunnel?

Cloudflare Tunnel creates a secure outbound connection from your computer to Cloudflare's network.

Benefits include:

• ✅ No port forwarding
• ✅ No public IP required
• ✅ Automatic HTTPS
• ✅ Secure encrypted connection
• ✅ Works behind NAT and CGNAT
• ✅ Easy to set up
• ✅ Perfect for development and small production workloads

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Architecture

                Internet
                    │
                    ▼
          Cloudflare Network
                    │
                    ▼
          Cloudflare Tunnel
                    │
                    ▼
      Docker Container (cloudflared)
                    │
                    ▼
           Docker Container (n8n)
                    │
                    ▼
            Local Docker Volume

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Prerequisites

Before you begin, you'll need:

• A Cloudflare account
• A domain added to Cloudflare
• Docker installed
• Docker Compose installed

Verify Docker is installed:

docker --version
docker compose version

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Step 1 — Add Your Domain to Cloudflare

If you haven't already:

1. Create a Cloudflare account.
2. Add your domain.
3. Update your domain's nameservers to Cloudflare.
4. Wait for the domain to become active.

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Step 2 — Create a Cloudflare Tunnel

1. Log in to the Cloudflare Dashboard.

2. Open the sidebar on the lef

3. Open:

Networks
→ Tunnels

4. Click: Create Tunnel

5. Give your tunnel a name, for example:

n8n-local

Cloudflare will generate a Tunnel Token.

It looks similar to:

eyJhIjoiMjk3NzQ5Zm...

Copy this token—you'll use it in your Docker Compose file.

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Step 3 — Configure a Public Hostname

Inside your tunnel configuration, create a Public Hostname.

Example:

Setting	Value
Subdomain	n8n
Domain	yourdomain.com
Type	HTTP
URL	n8n:5678

Your public URL will become:

https://n8n.yourdomain.com

Cloudflare will automatically provision an SSL certificate.

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Step 4 — Create the Project Directory

mkdir n8n
cd n8n

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Step 5 — Create docker-compose.yml

Create the compose file:

nano docker-compose.yml

Paste the following configuration:

version: '3.8'

services:
  n8n:
    image: docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n
    container_name: n8n
    restart: always

    ports:
      - "5678:5678"

    environment:
      - N8N_HOST=n8n.yourdomain.com
      - N8N_PORT=5678
      - N8N_PROTOCOL=https
      - NODE_ENV=production
      - WEBHOOK_URL=https://n8n.yourdomain.com/

    volumes:
      - n8n_data:/home/node/.n8n

  cloudflared:
    image: cloudflare/cloudflared:latest
    container_name: cloudflared
    restart: always

    command: tunnel --no-autoupdate run

    environment:
      - TUNNEL_TOKEN=YOUR_CLOUDFLARE_TUNNEL_TOKEN_HERE

volumes:
  n8n_data:

Replace:

• n8n.yourdomain.com
• YOUR_CLOUDFLARE_TUNNEL_TOKEN_HERE

with your own values.

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Step 6 — Start Everything

Launch both containers:

docker compose up -d

Docker will automatically download the required images.

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Step 7 — Verify the Containers

Check that everything is running:

docker ps

You should see something similar to:

n8n
cloudflared

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Step 8 — Open n8n

Visit:

https://n8n.yourdomain.com

On the first launch, n8n will prompt you to create the owner account.

After that, you're ready to start building workflows.

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Updating n8n

To upgrade to the latest version:

docker compose pull
docker compose up -d

Your workflows will remain intact because they are stored in a Docker volume.

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Viewing Logs

View logs for all services:

docker compose logs -f

View only n8n logs:

docker logs -f $(docker ps -qf "ancestor=docker.n8n.io/n8nio/n8n")

View Cloudflare Tunnel logs:

docker compose logs -f cloudflared

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Restart the Stack

docker compose restart

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Stop Everything

docker compose down

Your workflows and credentials will remain safe in the persistent Docker volume.

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Backup Your Workflows

Your n8n data is stored in the Docker volume:

n8n_data

Create a backup:

docker run --rm \
-v n8n_data:/volume \
-v $(pwd):/backup \
busybox \
tar czf /backup/n8n-backup.tar.gz /volume

Regular backups are recommended before upgrades or major changes.

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Advantages of Cloudflare Tunnel

Compared to exposing your local server directly:

Traditional Port Forwarding	Cloudflare Tunnel
Requires opening router ports	No router changes
Needs a public IP	Works behind NAT/CGNAT
SSL setup is manual	Automatic HTTPS
More exposed to the internet	Encrypted outbound connection
Can be blocked by ISPs	Usually works without issues

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Troubleshooting

Tunnel isn't connecting

Check the logs:

docker compose logs cloudflared

Ensure your TUNNEL_TOKEN is correct and the tunnel is active in the Cloudflare dashboard.

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n8n isn't loading

Verify the n8n container:

docker compose logs n8n

Ensure the N8N_HOST and WEBHOOK_URL values match your public hostname exactly.

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Webhooks aren't working

Double-check:

• WEBHOOK_URL
• N8N_HOST
• Public Hostname configuration in Cloudflare
• Tunnel status is healthy

Most webhook issues are caused by mismatched URLs.

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Check Running Containers

docker ps

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Security Tips

For a safer deployment:

• Keep Docker updated.
• Protect your Cloudflare account with two-factor authentication (2FA).
• Store your tunnel token securely.
• Use a strong password for your n8n owner account.
• Back up your workflows regularly.
• Restrict access using Cloudflare Zero Trust policies if needed.

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Final Thoughts

Running n8n locally with Cloudflare Tunnel is one of the easiest and most secure ways to make your automation workflows accessible from anywhere. You don't need a VPS, a public IP address, or router configuration—Cloudflare handles secure HTTPS access for you.

This setup is ideal for developers, hobbyists, and small teams who want the flexibility of self-hosting while keeping deployment simple. As your automation needs grow, you can later migrate the same Docker-based setup to a VPS with minimal changes.