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Free & open source · Windows, macOS and Linux

A Local alternative for Laravel and PHP

Beyond WordPress, without leaving it behind.

Flock is a free alternative to Local for developers who build more than WordPress. Laravel, Symfony, Statamic and WordPress all run from your own folders on .test domains with HTTPS, next to PostgreSQL, Valkey and Meilisearch.

Download Flock Flock vs Local

Windows, macOS and Linux · No account, no license key

Why people switch

Where Local gets in the way.

WordPress only

Local creates WordPress sites. Flock serves any PHP project, with Laravel as the first-class case.

MySQL only

Laravel apps often need PostgreSQL, Valkey for queues or Meilisearch for Scout. Flock has them all.

No Node for your app

Flock picks the Node version from .nvmrc, so npm run dev and Vite match each project.

What changes

Moving from Local to Flock.

The 7 things you gain. Everything else works the way you're used to.

  • Trusted HTTPS One-click trust, manual on macOS Root limited to .test, no warnings
  • Databases MySQL only PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, MongoDB
  • Cache, search, storage Not included Valkey, Meilisearch, Typesense, RustFS
  • Dumps and logs Not included Per-request timeline and Laravel log
  • Node.js Headless add-on only Per project from .nvmrc
  • FrankenPHP and Octane nginx or Apache Per site, with Octane worker mode
  • AI agentic development Third-party MCP only Built-in MCP server

See all 18 rows, and where Local still shines

Switching

Four steps, about five minutes.

  1. 01

    Export your site

    Export the database from Local, for example with WP-CLI in the site shell.

    wp db export blog.sql
  2. 02

    Install Flock

    Run the installer for macOS, Windows or Linux, then install MySQL or MariaDB.

  3. 03

    Link the site

    Link the site's public folder under the name you want.

    flock link blog
  4. 04

    Import and rename

    Import the dump, then replace the old .local address with the new .test one.

    wp search-replace blog.local blog.test

FAQ

Before you leave Local.

Yes. Any WordPress folder runs on Flock with MySQL or MariaDB. Update the site URL with WP-CLI after importing the database.

No. Flock is a local environment only. Deploy the way you usually do, with Git, SFTP or your host's tools.

Yes. Point your SMTP plugin at 127.0.0.1:2525, and every email lands in Flock's inbox.

Join the flock.

Install Flock, park your code folder and open https://your-app.test.

Download Flock Star on GitHub