diff --git a/backend/src/main/resources/application.properties b/backend/src/main/resources/application.properties
index 713c7ff..d668f7a 100644
--- a/backend/src/main/resources/application.properties
+++ b/backend/src/main/resources/application.properties
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-spring.datasource.url=jdbc:postgresql://${DB_HOST}:5432/postgresdb
+spring.datasource.url=jdbc:postgresql://${DB_HOST:-localhost}:5432/postgresdb
 spring.datasource.username=postgres_user
 spring.datasource.password=postgres_pass
 server.port=8080