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Introduction

To develop and host on Square Cloud, it’s essential to follow a structured sequence of configurations and prerequisites. This technical guide will cover the entire process, from initial setup to production deployment.

Prerequisites

  • Square Cloud Account: Register through the signup page using your email.
  • Active Paid Plan: Ensures dedicated resources and optimized performance for your application. Check our available plans and choose the most suitable for your needs.

Creating project

To create an Express application, you need to have Node.js and npm installed on your system before following the steps.

Installing library

To use Express, you need to install it on your system. Run the following command:
This command installs the express package on your system, allowing you to use Express in your application.

Developing project

To create a new Express project, you can start by creating a new file and writing the following code:
app.js

Deploying

After preparing your project files, you can now upload them to Square Cloud and host your project. To do so, create a ZIP file containing all your project files.

Via dashboard

1

Access the Upload Page

Access the upload page and upload your project zip file.
2

Configure Your Environment

After uploading your zip, you will need to configure the name, main file or runtime environment and other settings for your project.
If you are uploading a web project, make sure to select “Web Publication” and set a subdomain to your project.
3

Deploy Your Project

Finally, click on the “Deploy” button to host your project on Square Cloud.
After deployment, you can monitor your project’s status and logs from the dashboard.
Uploading application to Square Cloud
4

Confirm Your App Is Live

Your first deploy usually takes less than a minute. In the dashboard, wait for your application status to show as running and check the logs for any startup errors.
If you deployed a website or API, open https://<your-subdomain>.squareweb.app in your browser — you should see your application responding. If you deployed a bot, send it a command to confirm it is online.
App not starting? See the Troubleshooting guide for the most common causes and fixes.

Via CLI

To use this method, you need to create a config file named squarecloud.app in the root directory of your project. This file will contain the necessary configuration for your project.

Configuration file guide

Learn how to create the squarecloud.app configuration file that defines your application’s environment.
1

Install the CLI

First, you need to have the CLI installed in your environment. If you don’t have it yet, run the following command in your terminal:
If you already have it, we recommend updating it. To do this, run the following command in your terminal:
2

Authenticate

Now, to authenticate and use other CLI commands, you will find your authorization key here by clicking on “Request API Key”. After obtaining your authorization key, run the following command:
3

Upload Your Project

Finally, to deploy your application to Square Cloud using the CLI, you need to run the following command:
Or if you created the zip manually, you can use:
4

Confirm Your App Is Live

Your first deploy usually takes less than a minute. Check your application status and logs directly from the terminal:
If you deployed a website or API, open https://<your-subdomain>.squareweb.app in your browser — you should see your application responding. If you deployed a bot, send it a command to confirm it is online.
App not starting? See the Troubleshooting guide for the most common causes and fixes.

Troubleshooting

Custom Domain

To use a custom domain (e.g., mysite.com) instead of the default URL mysite.squareweb.app, you need the Standard plan or higher. The subdomain is defined by the SUBDOMAIN field in the configuration file.

Minimum RAM Requirements

Minimum: 512MB RAM for simple websites/APIs. For sites with frameworks (Next.JS, React, Vue, Angular, etc.), we always recommend at least 1GB RAM. For larger applications, allocate more RAM to prevent the application from running out of memory and crashing.

Could not find this site.

Check if the subdomain/domain matches what’s configured in the SUBDOMAIN field or in the custom domain settings. If you just uploaded the site, wait up to 60 seconds for Square to enable first access.

Site took too long to respond…

Check if you correctly configured port 80 and host 0.0.0.0 in the application. We recommend using Square’s forced environment variables: PORT and HOST from the .env file.

Additional Resources

For more information about Express and its tools, visit the official Express documentation. There, you will find detailed guides, tutorials, and API documentation to help you make the most of Express.

Contact us

If you continue facing technical difficulties, our specialized support team is available to assist you. Contact us and we’ll be happy to help you resolve any issue — support quality is a big part of why developers rate Square Cloud 4.9/5 across 402 reviews on Google and Trustpilot.