diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 9180cc025..8f1b01407 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -49,3 +49,4 @@ gradle.properties
 /bin/
 *.db
 *.iff
+mongo_data
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9a86391de..a980bcee1 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -25,21 +25,22 @@ by running `java -version`.
 The project uses submodules. Get them by running: git submodule update --init
 
 ## MongoDB ##
-User information is read from a MongoDB database that can be run on any machine on your network. Default is the machine that Holocore is running on.
+A MongoDB instance can be bootstrapped by running `docker-compose up -d`.
 
-1. Create database: `use cu`
-2. Create your game user: `db.users.insert({"username": "user", "password": "pass", "accessLevel": "dev", "banned": false, "characters": []})`
+This will run and initialize a MongoDB instance with a default game server user.
+* Username: user
+* Password: pass
 
-Enabling the Character Builder Terminals:
-1. Switch to the relevant database: `use cu`
-2. Enable the character builder: `db.config.insertOne({ "package": "support.data.dev", "characterBuilder": true })`
+This will also run a web UI, which can be accessed in the browser at: http://localhost:8081
+
+You can stop both with: `docker-compose down`.
 
 ## Running Holocore ##
-Compile and run Holocores main code using Gradle: `./gradlew run`
+Compile and run Holocores main code using Gradle: `./gradlew runDevelopment`
 
 ## Running automated tests ##
 Compile and run Holocores automated tests using Gradle: `./gradlew test --info`
 
 # Running your own server #
-If you're interesting in running your own server, you should use the provided
+If you're interested in running your own server, you should use the provided
 Docker image.
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c863ef728
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+version: '3.1'
+
+services:
+
+  mongo:
+    image: mongo:5.0.14
+    restart: always
+    ports:
+      - "27017:27017"
+    environment:
+      MONGO_INITDB_DATABASE: cu
+    volumes:
+      - ./mongo_data:/data/db
+      - ./mongo_init_scripts:/docker-entrypoint-initdb.d
+
+  mongo-express:
+    image: mongo-express:0.54.0
+    restart: always
+    depends_on:
+      - mongo
+    ports:
+      - "8081:8081"
+    environment:
+      ME_CONFIG_MONGODB_URL: mongodb://mongo:27017/
diff --git a/mongo_init_scripts/blue_frog.js b/mongo_init_scripts/blue_frog.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..22bc6e112
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mongo_init_scripts/blue_frog.js
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+db.config.insertOne({
+	package: "support.data.dev",
+	characterBuilder: true
+});
diff --git a/mongo_init_scripts/default_user.js b/mongo_init_scripts/default_user.js
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..c28885036
--- /dev/null
+++ b/mongo_init_scripts/default_user.js
@@ -0,0 +1,7 @@
+db.users.insert({
+	username: "user",
+	password: "pass",
+	accessLevel: "dev",
+	banned: false, 
+	characters: []
+});