diff --git a/.env b/.env
index 955eecd127..ace9464317 100644
--- a/.env
+++ b/.env
@@ -45,8 +45,18 @@ LOCAL_PHP_XDEBUG=false
 # Whether or not to enable Memcached.
 LOCAL_PHP_MEMCACHED=false
 
-# The MySQL version to use. See https://hub.docker.com/_/mysql/ for valid versions.
-LOCAL_MYSQL=5.7
+# The database software to use.
+#
+# Supported values are `mysql` and `mariadb`.
+LOCAL_DB_TYPE=mysql
+
+# The database version to use.
+#
+# Defaults to 5.7 with the assumption that LOCAL_DB_TYPE is set to `mysql` above.
+#
+# When using `mysql`, see https://hub.docker.com/_/mysql/ for valid versions.
+# When using `mariadb`, see https://hub.docker.com/_/mariadb for valid versions.
+LOCAL_DB_VERSION=5.7
 
 # The debug settings to add to `wp-config.php`.
 LOCAL_WP_DEBUG=true
diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index 56c994337f..9f598714d8 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -53,7 +53,7 @@ services:
   # The MySQL container.
   ##
   mysql:
-    image: mysql:${LOCAL_MYSQL-latest}
+    image: ${LOCAL_DB_TYPE-mysql}:${LOCAL_DB_VERSION-latest}
 
     networks:
       - wpdevnet