diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index d5edc82..9d29791 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@ NODE_ENV="development"
 VITE_API_BASE_URL="http://localhost:4000/api"
 VITE_GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY="YOUR_BROWSER_MAPS_KEY"
 
-# Local backend env vars
+# Backend env vars
+# For Docker Compose deployments, point DATABASE_URL at the internal "db" host.
 # If your password contains special characters, URL-encode it in DATABASE_URL.
 DATABASE_URL="postgres://postgres:postgres@localhost:5432/leads4less"
 COOKIE_SECRET="CHANGE_ME_IN_LOCAL_ENV"
@@ -20,3 +21,6 @@ GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY="YOUR_SERVER_MAPS_KEY"
 POSTGRES_DB="leads4less"
 POSTGRES_USER="postgres"
 POSTGRES_PASSWORD="CHANGE_ME_IN_LOCAL_ENV"
+
+# Example Compose DATABASE_URL
+# DATABASE_URL="postgres://postgres:CHANGE_ME_IN_LOCAL_ENV@db:5432/leads4less"
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 273c2e0..18abe56 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -6,12 +6,15 @@ The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.1.0/).
 
 ## [Unreleased]
 
+## [2026-05-01]
+
 ### Added
 - Added a multi-stage `Dockerfile` and `docker-compose.yml` for running the web app, API, worker, and PostGIS database as a local container stack.
 
 ### Changed
 - Updated the Docker Compose deployment config to read app secrets and Vite build settings from environment variables, and added a `.dockerignore` to keep container builds leaner.
 - Aligned the Docker Compose and example environment settings so local and deployment configs use the same variable names and document URL-encoded database passwords when needed.
+- Simplified container deployment by adding a dedicated migration image and Compose startup ordering so the database becomes healthy, migrations run automatically, and the API, worker, and web services start afterward.
 
 ## [2026-04-19]
 
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 016d018..d2e0863 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ RUN npm run build && npm run build:api
 FROM nginx:alpine AS web
 COPY --from=build /app/dist /usr/share/nginx/html
 
-FROM node:22-alpine AS api
+FROM node:22-alpine AS runtime-base
 WORKDIR /app
 
 COPY package*.json ./
@@ -24,14 +24,11 @@ RUN npm ci --omit=dev
 
 COPY --from=build /app/dist-server ./dist-server
 
-CMD ["node", "dist-server/server/src/index.js"]
+FROM runtime-base AS api
+CMD ["npm", "run", "start:api"]
 
-FROM node:22-alpine AS worker
-WORKDIR /app
+FROM runtime-base AS worker
+CMD ["npm", "run", "start:worker"]
 
-COPY package*.json ./
-RUN npm ci --omit=dev
-
-COPY --from=build /app/dist-server ./dist-server
-
-CMD ["node", "dist-server/server/src/worker.js"]
+FROM runtime-base AS migrate
+CMD ["node", "dist-server/db/scripts/migrate.js"]
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 49cb576..24dadbf 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -35,6 +35,22 @@ If you open the app from another machine on your LAN, set `VITE_API_BASE_URL` an
 4. Start the worker:
    `npm run dev:worker`
 
+## Docker Deployment
+
+1. Copy `.env.example` to `.env` and set at least:
+   - `DATABASE_URL` to the Compose database host, for example `postgres://postgres:YOUR_PASSWORD@db:5432/leads4less`
+   - `POSTGRES_DB`
+   - `POSTGRES_USER`
+   - `POSTGRES_PASSWORD`
+   - `COOKIE_SECRET`
+   - `GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY`
+   - `VITE_API_BASE_URL`
+   - `VITE_GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY`
+2. Build and start the full stack:
+   `docker compose up --build`
+
+The Compose stack starts PostGIS, waits for the database to become healthy, runs migrations automatically, and then starts the API, worker, and web containers.
+
 ## Database Layout
 
 - `db/migrations/0001_local_core.sql` creates the local-first schema.
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 094165e..aaa757c 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -1,19 +1,42 @@
 services:
   db:
     image: postgis/postgis:16-3.4
+    restart: unless-stopped
     environment:
       POSTGRES_DB: ${POSTGRES_DB}
       POSTGRES_USER: ${POSTGRES_USER}
       POSTGRES_PASSWORD: ${POSTGRES_PASSWORD}
+    healthcheck:
+      test: ["CMD-SHELL", "pg_isready -U $$POSTGRES_USER -d $$POSTGRES_DB"]
+      interval: 5s
+      timeout: 5s
+      retries: 10
+      start_period: 10s
     volumes:
       - leads4less-db:/var/lib/postgresql/data
 
+  migrate:
+    build:
+      context: .
+      target: migrate
+    depends_on:
+      db:
+        condition: service_healthy
+    environment:
+      NODE_ENV: ${NODE_ENV}
+      DATABASE_URL: ${DATABASE_URL}
+      PG_BOSS_SCHEMA: ${PG_BOSS_SCHEMA}
+    restart: "no"
+
   api:
     build:
       context: .
       target: api
     depends_on:
-      - db
+      db:
+        condition: service_healthy
+      migrate:
+        condition: service_completed_successfully
     environment:
       NODE_ENV: ${NODE_ENV}
       APP_HOST: ${APP_HOST}
@@ -24,6 +47,7 @@ services:
       GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY: ${GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY}
       PG_BOSS_SCHEMA: ${PG_BOSS_SCHEMA}
       SESSION_TTL_DAYS: ${SESSION_TTL_DAYS}
+    restart: unless-stopped
     expose:
       - ${APP_PORT}
 
@@ -32,7 +56,10 @@ services:
       context: .
       target: worker
     depends_on:
-      - db
+      db:
+        condition: service_healthy
+      migrate:
+        condition: service_completed_successfully
     environment:
       NODE_ENV: ${NODE_ENV}
       DATABASE_URL: ${DATABASE_URL}
@@ -40,6 +67,7 @@ services:
       GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY: ${GOOGLE_MAPS_SERVER_KEY}
       PG_BOSS_SCHEMA: ${PG_BOSS_SCHEMA}
       SESSION_TTL_DAYS: ${SESSION_TTL_DAYS}
+    restart: unless-stopped
 
   web:
     build:
@@ -49,7 +77,9 @@ services:
         VITE_API_BASE_URL: ${VITE_API_BASE_URL}
         VITE_GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY: ${VITE_GOOGLE_MAPS_PLATFORM_KEY}
     depends_on:
-      - api
+      api:
+        condition: service_started
+    restart: unless-stopped
     expose:
       - "80"