diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9eb9c9540..ad4ac60da 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,5 +1,25 @@
 [![codecov](https://codecov.io/gh/danbooru/danbooru/branch/master/graph/badge.svg)](https://codecov.io/gh/danbooru/danbooru) [![Discord](https://img.shields.io/discord/310432830138089472?label=Discord)](https://discord.gg/eSVKkUF)
 
+## Quickstart
+
+Clone this repository and run `bin/danbooru` to start a basic Danbooru instance:
+
+```sh
+git clone https://github.com/danbooru/danbooru
+cd danbooru
+./bin/danbooru
+```
+
+This will install [Docker Compose](https://docs.docker.com/compose/) and use it
+to start Danbooru. This will take several minutes and produce lots of output.
+When it's done, Danbooru will be running at http://localhost.
+
+Alternatively, if you already have Docker Compose installed, you can just do:
+
+```sh
+docker-compose -f config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml up
+```
+
 ## Installation
 
 It is recommended that you install Danbooru on a Debian-based system
diff --git a/bin/danbooru b/bin/danbooru
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..5922dbc5d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/bin/danbooru
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+#
+# This script starts Danbooru by installing Docker and Docker Compose, then
+# starting Danbooru in a container. Danbooru will be available at http://localhost.
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#     bin/danbooru up   # start Danbooru
+#     bin/danbooru down # stop and remove Danbooru container.
+#     bin/danbooru help # show Docker Compose help
+#
+# Alternatively, if you already have Docker installed, you can just do:
+#
+#     docker-compose -f config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml up
+#
+# This script is just a wrapper for that command.
+
+install_docker_compose() {
+  if docker-compose version > /dev/null; then
+    return
+  fi
+
+  if apt --version; then
+    sudo apt install docker docker-compose
+  elif dnf --version; then
+    sudo dnf install docker docker-compose
+  elif pacman --version; then
+    sudo pacman -Sy docker docker-compose
+  else
+    echo "Error: Couldn't automatically install docker-compose. Install docker-compose manually."
+    exit 1
+  fi
+}
+
+start_docker() {
+  if docker version > /dev/null; then
+    return
+  fi
+
+  sudo systemctl start docker
+}
+
+docker_compose() {
+  COMPOSE_FILE="$(dirname "$(realpath "$0")")/../config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml"
+  docker-compose -f "$COMPOSE_FILE" "$@"
+}
+
+install_docker_compose
+start_docker
+docker_compose "${@:-up}"
diff --git a/config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml b/config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..495526bca
--- /dev/null
+++ b/config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+# A Docker Compose file that launches a minimal Danbooru instance. This is
+# suitable as a quick demo or for personal use, not for public-facing sites.
+#
+# Usage:
+#
+#     $ docker-compose -f config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml up
+#     $ docker-compose -f config/docker/docker-compose.simple.yaml down
+
+version: "3.7"
+services:
+  danbooru:
+    # image: evazion/danbooru
+    build:
+      context: ../..
+      dockerfile: config/docker/Dockerfile.danbooru
+    ports:
+      - "80:3000"
+    environment:
+      - RAILS_ENV=development
+      - DATABASE_URL=postgresql://danbooru@postgres/danbooru
+      - DANBOORU_CANONICAL_URL=http://localhost
+    volumes:
+      - "danbooru-images:/home/danbooru/app/public/data"
+    depends_on:
+      - postgres
+    entrypoint: ["bash", "-c", "bin/rails db:setup 2> /dev/null; bin/rails server -b 0.0.0.0"]
+    user: root
+
+  postgres:
+    # image: evazion/postgres
+    build:
+      context: .
+      dockerfile: Dockerfile.postgres
+    environment:
+      POSTGRES_USER: danbooru
+      POSTGRES_HOST_AUTH_METHOD: trust
+    volumes:
+      - "danbooru-data:/var/lib/postgresql/data"
+
+volumes:
+  danbooru-images:
+    name: danbooru-images
+  danbooru-data:
+    name: danbooru-data