diff --git a/.dockerignore b/.dockerignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07f6a2d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.dockerignore
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+# Python
+__pycache__/
+*.py[cod]
+.venv/
+*.egg-info/
+.pytest_cache/
+
+# Node
+frontend/node_modules/
+frontend/dist/
+
+# Data
+data/
+*.db
+
+# Git
+.git/
+.gitignore
+
+# IDE
+.idea/
+.vscode/
+*.swp
+
+# Tests
+tests/
+frontend/src/test/
+
+# Docs
+*.md
+!README.md
+
+# Other
+references/
+*.pem
+.env*
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5ab2f49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+# Stage 1: Build frontend
+FROM node:20-slim AS frontend-builder
+
+WORKDIR /build
+
+COPY frontend/package*.json ./
+RUN npm ci
+
+COPY frontend/ ./
+RUN npm run build
+
+
+# Stage 2: Python runtime
+FROM python:3.12-slim
+
+WORKDIR /app
+
+# Install uv
+COPY --from=ghcr.io/astral-sh/uv:latest /uv /usr/local/bin/uv
+
+# Copy dependency files first for layer caching
+COPY pyproject.toml uv.lock ./
+
+# Install dependencies (no dev/test deps)
+RUN uv sync --frozen --no-dev
+
+# Copy application code
+COPY app/ ./app/
+
+# Copy built frontend from first stage
+COPY --from=frontend-builder /build/dist ./frontend/dist
+
+# Create data directory for SQLite database
+RUN mkdir -p /app/data
+
+EXPOSE 8000
+
+# Run the application
+CMD ["uv", "run", "uvicorn", "app.main:app", "--host", "0.0.0.0", "--port", "8000"]
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 8214d42..eae822a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ For real, this code is bad and totally LLM generated. If you insist on extending
 - UV (Python package manager): `curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh`
 - MeshCore-compatible radio connected via USB serial
 
+*Prefer Docker? See the [Docker section](#docker) below.*
+
 ## Quick Start
 
 ### Backend
@@ -187,6 +189,58 @@ npm test
 ```
 </details>
 
+<details>
+<summary>Docker</summary>
+
+Build and run with Docker, passing through your serial device:
+
+```bash
+# Build the image
+docker build -t remoteterm-meshcore .
+
+# Run with serial passthrough (replace /dev/ttyUSB0 with your device)
+docker run -d \
+  --name remoteterm \
+  --device=/dev/ttyUSB0 \
+  -e MESHCORE_SERIAL_PORT=/dev/ttyUSB0 \
+  -v remoteterm-data:/app/data \
+  -p 8000:8000 \
+  remoteterm-meshcore
+
+# View logs
+docker logs -f remoteterm
+```
+
+**Finding your serial device:**
+
+```bash
+# Linux
+ls /dev/ttyUSB* /dev/ttyACM*
+
+# macOS
+ls /dev/cu.usbserial-* /dev/cu.usbmodem*
+```
+
+**Persistent data:** The `-v remoteterm-data:/app/data` flag creates a named volume for the SQLite database, so your messages and contacts persist across container restarts.
+
+**HTTPS with Docker:** For WebGPU cracking support over non-localhost connections:
+
+```bash
+openssl req -x509 -newkey rsa:4096 -keyout key.pem -out cert.pem -days 365 -nodes -subj '/CN=localhost'
+
+docker run -d \
+  --name remoteterm \
+  --device=/dev/ttyUSB0 \
+  -e MESHCORE_SERIAL_PORT=/dev/ttyUSB0 \
+  -v remoteterm-data:/app/data \
+  -v $(pwd)/cert.pem:/app/cert.pem:ro \
+  -v $(pwd)/key.pem:/app/key.pem:ro \
+  -p 8000:8000 \
+  remoteterm-meshcore \
+  uv run uvicorn app.main:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8000 --ssl-keyfile=/app/key.pem --ssl-certfile=/app/cert.pem
+```
+</details>
+
 ## API Docs
 
 With the backend running, visit http://localhost:8000/docs for interactive API documentation.