How to Self-Host GitLab CE on Contabo (2026): Free 1-Click App on a Cloud VPS

GitLab is an open-source DevOps platform: Git repositories, merge requests, CI/CD pipelines, issue tracking and a container registry in one application. GitLab CE (Community Edition) is the free, self-hosted version. Contabo now offers it as a free 1-click app: you pick “GitLab Server” when you order a Cloud VPS, and Contabo deploys GitLab CE as a Docker-based instance on a fresh Ubuntu server, with a GitLab Runner container already wired in for CI/CD. This guide covers which plan to pick, how to order and set it up, what it costs and what to do right after the first login.

What Contabo’s 1-click GitLab includes, according to its help center:

• A ready-to-use GitLab CE instance running in Docker, including a pre-wired GitLab Runner container for CI/CD.
• Built-in NGINX and Let’s Encrypt for HTTPS access.
• Custom domain support: use the default hostname or your own domain.
• Security by default: public sign-ups and group creation are disabled out of the box.
• All application files and configuration under /opt/gitlab on your server.

Know what you’re signing up for. Contabo provides technical assistance for the VPS itself (network, hardware and the initial setup of 1-click add-ons). After installation, maintaining, updating and troubleshooting GitLab is your responsibility; for that, Contabo points to the official GitLab documentation.

Which Contabo plan for GitLab?

Contabo’s GitLab hosting page recommends four servers. Prices are EUR before VAT; the monthly-term price is what you pay on a 1-month contract, and the 24-month rate is the effective monthly price Contabo shows “for the first 24 months” of a 24-month subscription. Each plan’s Get Started button opens the order page with the GitLab image preselected.

On Contabo’s site, the Cloud VPS plans now sit under “Core VPS” in the menu and Cloud VPS Plus under “Performance VPS”; the plan names themselves are unchanged.

What GitLab actually needs

Contabo’s help center lists these requirements for its GitLab add-on:

• Operating system: Ubuntu 24.04, a fresh install on a Contabo VPS or Cloud instance.
• Ports: 80/443 on the host for HTTP/HTTPS to the GitLab container, and 2222 on the host mapped to 22 in the container for Git over SSH.
• Disk: enough space for repositories, Docker images and backups; all data is stored under /opt/gitlab/data.
• DNS: for a custom domain, an A/AAAA record pointing to the server’s IP, with ports 80 and 443 open.

Contabo doesn’t list a CPU or RAM minimum there, so it helps to compare with GitLab’s own installation requirements. For a single-node installation, GitLab gives 8 vCPU and 16 GB of memory as the baseline, and says GitLab can run with at least 8 GB of memory in memory-constrained environments (it has a separate guide for that). For storage it lists 40 GB for the application, at least as much again as all your repositories combined, and 5-12 GB for the PostgreSQL database, and recommends SSD-backed storage.

What that means for the four picks:

• Cloud VPS 4 (4 vCPU, 8 GB) meets only GitLab’s 8 GB memory-constrained minimum. It is the cheapest way to try GitLab for a few users, but expect to tune it or upgrade once pipelines run regularly.
• Cloud VPS 6 (6 vCPU, 12 GB) gives more headroom, still below GitLab’s 8 vCPU / 16 GB baseline.
• Cloud VPS 12 and Cloud VPS Plus 12 (12 vCPU, 48 GB each) clear GitLab’s baseline comfortably; Plus 12 adds 600 GB NVMe.

In between, Contabo’s Cloud VPS lineup also has Cloud VPS 8 (8 vCPU, 24 GB RAM, 300 GB SSD or 150 GB NVMe) at €14.00/mo on a monthly term or €11.20/mo on 24 months, which meets GitLab’s 8 vCPU / 16 GB baseline. It isn’t one of the four GitLab picks on Contabo’s GitLab page, so check that GitLab Server is offered in the Image options before you pay.

See current Contabo Cloud VPS prices

Step by step: order and install

1. Pick the server. Open Contabo (for example via the Cloud VPS page), go to Apps & Panels > GitLab CE and choose one of the GitLab plans, or choose your desired VPS/VDS and select the configuration options you want.
2. Choose the GitLab image. In the order form, scroll down to Image, click “New: Apps” and choose GitLab Server (already selected if you came through a Get Started button on the GitLab page). Contabo’s price data lists the GitLab Server add-on at €0.
3. Set the password. Contabo says the password you choose when setting up the server is used both for the VPS and for the application itself.
4. Place the order. New customers fill in the Personal Data tab and choose a payment method; existing customers log in. Continue to Confirmation and click “Order & Pay”. Processing can take a few minutes, after which Contabo emails your login credentials.
5. Wait for the app. Log in to the Customer Panel and open Servers & Hosting > VPS/VDS. Contabo says it may take up to 30 minutes for the application to be installed and activated; once it is, you can open GitLab directly from its logo under Quick Action.

Already have a Contabo VPS or VDS? In the VPS/VDS section choose the instance, click the three dots under More > Reinstall, select Application Installation, choose GitLab from the Application list, set your password and click Install; the GitLab button appears under Quick Action (again, allow up to 30 minutes). A reinstall replaces what is on that server, so back it up first.

First login and setup

1. (Optional) Use your own domain

The setup uses the server’s hostname by default. To use a domain such as gitlab.example.com, Contabo’s steps are:

1. Create an A/AAAA record for the domain pointing to your server’s IP address (with external DNS servers, propagation may take up to 48 hours; ping the domain to check it resolves).
2. Set it in /opt/gitlab/.env as DOMAIN=gitlab.example.com.
3. Start the stack from /opt/gitlab:

cd /opt/gitlab
docker compose up -d

Let’s Encrypt issues the certificate automatically once DNS is set up.

2. Log in as root and change the password

Open https://<DOMAIN> (or the default hostname) and log in as root with the password from /opt/gitlab/.env. Contabo’s help center flags this as important: change the root password immediately after logging in.

3. Register the bundled runner

Contabo’s image includes a GitLab Runner container; it needs a token from the GitLab UI (Admin area or project settings) before it can pick up CI/CD jobs. Note that GitLab’s runner documentation marks the old runner registration tokens as deprecated and scheduled for removal in GitLab 20.0; it recommends creating an instance, group or project runner in the UI and registering with the runner authentication token it gives you (it starts with glrt-). Follow the official runner registration guide for the Docker variant of the command.

4. Set up email

Contabo’s default setup uses a basic Postfix relay for outbound notifications. For reliable delivery (password resets, for example), configure SPF/DKIM/DMARC for your domain and/or switch to a reputable SMTP provider in docker-compose.yml.

Everyday management commands

From /opt/gitlab, per Contabo’s help center:

docker compose up -d     # start
docker compose down      # stop
docker compose ps        # status
docker logs -f gitlab    # container logs

Service logs are in /opt/gitlab/logs/.

After install: hardening and backups

• Link an email to the admin account. Contabo says it doesn’t store or see your application password. If you change it and haven’t linked an email for “I forgot my password”, the only way back in is a reinstall or new installation, which means data loss.
• Keep the secure defaults. Public sign-ups and group creation are disabled on Contabo’s image; create accounts for your team yourself.
• Back up GitLab’s data. GitLab’s documentation for Docker installs creates a backup with the command below (Contabo’s image names the container gitlab):

docker exec -t gitlab gitlab-backup create

• Back up the configuration and secrets separately. GitLab’s docs say the backup task does not store configuration files: the secrets file holds the database encryption key, and without it GitLab can’t decrypt values such as two-factor authentication data and CI/CD variables. Back up the configuration volume (on Contabo’s image everything lives under /opt/gitlab) and keep it apart from the data backups. Contabo also sells Auto Backup as a paid add-on (listed as “Auto Backup available” on all four GitLab picks); the price shows in the order options.
• Keep GitLab and Ubuntu updated. Updates are your job after the install, per Contabo; use the official GitLab documentation for the upgrade path and take a backup first.

What it really costs

• The server: from €5.50 per month (Cloud VPS 4) on a monthly term, or €4.40 per month on a 24-month term; Cloud VPS 12, which clears GitLab’s hardware baseline, is €25.00 per month (€20.00 on 24 months).
• VAT: these prices exclude VAT; Contabo adds your country’s rate at checkout (its site lists, for example, 19% Germany, 20% United Kingdom and 21% Romania).
• Location: the prices above are for the EU location; other regions add a monthly surcharge that depends on the plan (on Cloud VPS 4, for example, Contabo’s price data on October 16, 2026 listed €1.05 for the UK or US Central up to €2.55 for Japan). Our full Contabo price guide has the regional details.
• The GitLab software: GitLab CE is the free self-hosted edition and the GitLab Server add-on is listed at €0. Contabo’s GitLab page says you pay one flat monthly fee for the server, with no per-user fees, and advertises unlimited repositories and users.
• Traffic: Contabo lists incoming traffic as unlimited and unmetered, and outgoing traffic as unlimited under a fair usage policy.
• Extras: Auto Backup and other add-ons are paid; check the order summary before you pay.

Which plan should you pick?

• Trying GitLab for yourself or a couple of people: Cloud VPS 4, knowing it sits at GitLab’s 8 GB minimum.
• A small team with regular CI/CD: Cloud VPS 6 for headroom, or Cloud VPS 8 if you want GitLab’s full 8 vCPU / 16 GB baseline (check the GitLab image is offered for it).
• Production pipelines, container registry, several runners: Cloud VPS 12, or Cloud VPS Plus 12 for NVMe storage.

Order a Contabo Cloud VPS for GitLab · Contabo home page

Automating the rest of your stack too? Contabo also offers n8n and Nextcloud as free 1-click apps; see our guides to self-hosting n8n on a Contabo VPS and self-hosting Nextcloud on Contabo.

FAQ

What is the cheapest server Contabo recommends for GitLab?
Cloud VPS 4 (4 vCPU, 8 GB RAM, 100 GB SSD): €5.50 per month on a monthly term or €4.40 per month on a 24-month term, before VAT. Contabo labels it “GitLab Small Teams”. Its 8 GB matches the minimum GitLab gives for memory-constrained environments, not GitLab’s 16 GB baseline.

Is the GitLab app on Contabo free?
Yes. Contabo’s price data lists the GitLab Server add-on at €0, and GitLab CE is the free self-hosted edition. You pay for the server and any paid extras you choose.

How long does the 1-click install take?
Contabo says it may take up to 30 minutes for the application to be installed and activated; the login credentials arrive by email once the order is processed.

What are the requirements for Contabo’s GitLab add-on?
Ubuntu 24.04 (fresh install), ports 80/443 and 2222 (Git over SSH, mapped to 22 in the container), enough disk under /opt/gitlab/data for repositories, Docker images and backups, and an A/AAAA record if you use your own domain.

Can I use my own domain?
Yes. Point an A/AAAA record to the server, set DOMAIN= in /opt/gitlab/.env, run docker compose up -d from /opt/gitlab, and Let’s Encrypt issues the certificate automatically.

Does it include CI/CD runners?
Yes. Contabo’s image includes a pre-wired GitLab Runner container. You register it with a token from the GitLab UI; GitLab now recommends runner authentication tokens over the deprecated registration tokens.

Where do I find the root password?
Contabo’s help center says to log in as root with the password from /opt/gitlab/.env, and to change it immediately after the first login.

Sources

All checked on October 17, 2026 (Europe/Bucharest).

• Contabo – GitLab Hosting: https://contabo.com/en/gitlab-hosting/
• Contabo – Cloud VPS: https://contabo.com/en/vps/
• Contabo – Performance VPS (Cloud VPS Plus): https://contabo.com/en/vps-performance/
• Contabo Help Center – What is GitLab and how do I use it on Contabo?: https://help.contabo.com/en/support/solutions/articles/103000374366-what-is-gitlab-and-how-do-i-use-it-on-contabo-
• GitLab Docs – Installation requirements: https://docs.gitlab.com/install/requirements/
• GitLab Docs – Back up GitLab running in a Docker container: https://docs.gitlab.com/install/docker/backup/
• GitLab Docs – Back up GitLab (configuration files): https://docs.gitlab.com/administration/backup_restore/backup_gitlab/
• GitLab Docs – Registering runners: https://docs.gitlab.com/runner/register/