expose vs port

Think of Docker Compose as a city and its networking features as the city’s road network system. In this city, ‘ports’ act as the highways connecting the city to the outside world, while ‘expose’ functions as the local roads within the city. This analogy simplifies the complex world of Docker Compose networking and helps us understand its key components.

Unlike ‘ports’, ‘expose’ doesn’t map to the host machine’s ports. Instead, it establishes a communication line among the containers.

Docker Compose: Ports vs Expose Explained