How To Deploy A NestJS App On AWS EC2 In 2025

So, you’ve built an awesome NestJS app. Now comes the fun part: making it live for the world to see! But let’s be real—deploying to AWS EC2 can feel like assembling IKEA furniture without the manual.

Don’t worry. I’ve burned my fingers so you don’t have to. By the end of this guide, your app will be humming on AWS EC2 like it’s hosting a Grammy after-party. Let’s go!’

Table of Contents

What You’ll Need

An AWS account (If you’re new, grab the free tier)
An EC2 instance
Your NestJS code on GitHub (if not available you can use mine one for now)

Update the System and Install Dependencies

First, log in to your EC2 instance using SSH and run the following command to update and upgrade your system

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Install Node.js and NPM using NVM

Since AWS EC2 doesn’t come with Node.js pre-installed, we will install Node Version Manager (NVM), which allows us to install and manage Node.js versions easily.

Switch to the root user and install NVM:

curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.40.1/install.sh | bash

This will loads nvm.

. ~/.nvm/nvm.sh

Now, install Node.js (version 20):

nvm i 20

Verify the installation:

node -v

npm -v

Install Git and Clone Your Repository

Git is needed to fetch your project from GitHub. Install it using:

sudo apt-get update -y

sudo apt-get install git -y

Check if Git is installed correctly:

git --version

Now, clone your NestJS project from GitHub (replace the URL with your repository link):

git clone https://github.com/AhmedFakharABbas/graphql-nest-api.git

Move into the project directory:

cd nodejs-on-ec2

Install project dependencies:

npm install

Start Your NestJS Project

Now, it’s time to start your application! Run the following command:

npm start

If everything is set up correctly, your application should now be running!

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Set Up Nginx as a Reverse Proxy

sudo apt update

sudo apt install nginx

systemctl status nginx

curl -4 icanhazip.com

sudo chown -R $USER:$USER /home/ubuntu/graphql-nest-api

sudo chmod -R 755 /home/ubuntu/graphql-nest-api

sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/gqlnestapi


server { 
        listen 80; 
        listen [::]:80;

        server_name 18.175.168.146;
        location / {
                 proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
                 }
 }

sudo ln -s /etc/nginx/sites-available/gqlnestapi /etc/nginx/s_tes-enabled/

sudo nano /etc/nginx/nginx.conf

server_names_hash_bucket_size 64;

sudo nginx -t

sudo systemctl restart nginx

Update inbound role

Allow trafic from any part of the world! from your inbut roles