parse-community/parse-server

What is it?

Key features

• 01Auto-generated REST and GraphQL APIs for saving and querying objects
• 02User authentication with email verification and password reset
• 03Cloud Code functions, triggers and scheduled jobs
• 04Live Query for real-time data updates
• 05File storage adapters for GridFS, S3, Google Cloud Storage and local disk
• 06Push notifications for APNS and FCM

Use cases

• Backend for mobile or web apps that need user accounts and a data store without writing a custom API
• Migrating an existing Parse-hosted app to a self-managed server
• Adding a Parse backend to an existing Express website

Quick start

1. 1

   Install Parse Server and mongodb-runner globally with npm

   npm install -g parse-server mongodb-runner
2. 2

   Start a local MongoDB instance

   mongodb-runner start
3. 3

   Run Parse Server with your app ID, master key and database URI

   parse-server --appId APPLICATION_ID --masterKey MASTER_KEY --databaseURI mongodb://localhost/test

Things to know

• !Requires a separate MongoDB or PostgreSQL database to be running.
• !You must deploy, secure and maintain the server yourself.

Topics

FAQ

What is parse-server?

Open source Node.js backend that provides REST and GraphQL APIs, user auth, file storage and push notifications on MongoDB or PostgreSQL. Parse Server is an open source backend that runs on any infrastructure capable of running Node.js. It works with Express and can either be mounted into an existing web application or run as a standalone server. It is the server side of the Parse Platform, and is compatible with Parse SDKs for major client platforms.

Is parse-server free to use? What license does it have?

parse-server is open source under the Apache-2.0 license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.

Is parse-server still maintained?

Actively maintained. The last commit to parse-server was on Oct 20, 2026.

What can I use parse-server for?

Backend for mobile or web apps that need user accounts and a data store without writing a custom API Migrating an existing Parse-hosted app to a self-managed server Adding a Parse backend to an existing Express website

How do I install parse-server?

Install Parse Server and mongodb-runner globally with npm: npm install -g parse-server mongodb-runner Start a local MongoDB instance: mongodb-runner start Run Parse Server with your app ID, master key and database URI: parse-server --appId APPLICATION_ID --masterKey MASTER_KEY --databaseURI mongodb://localhost/test

Where can I get parse-server?

The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/parse-community/parse-server