Try it locally

Want to evaluate Specbench before deciding anything? The self-host stack runs fine on a laptop (this page assumes your own machine on a trusted network — for anything internet-reachable, see Installing on a server), and throwing it away is one command. This is the same stack as a real install — trying it out is the install, just one you're allowed to discard.

Start it

mkdir specbench && cd specbench
curl -LO https://github.com/specbench-io/specbench/releases/latest/download/docker-compose.yml
docker compose up -d

Browse to http://localhost:5173, create the first account (which claims the Instance — on a trial that just means it's yours), and follow the Quick start. Point your coding agent at the local MCP server on port 8081 and sign in when it asks to try the agent loop too.

Throw it away

docker compose down -v

-v removes the Postgres volume — the only place anything lives. The next up is a fresh Instance with a fresh first-user claim.

Keep it

Nothing to migrate: the trial is already a real Instance. Leave the volume in place and carry on — when it outgrows your laptop, back up the postgres-data volume, restore it on the server, and work through Configuration for identity, origins, and the GitHub App.