diff --git a/install.sh b/install.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5713b1e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/install.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,148 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Mado installer: sets up a Python virtualenv, installs dependencies, checks the
+# programs ani-cli needs and (optionally) installs ani-cli and a systemd service.
+#
+#   ./install.sh                 set up in ./.venv and print how to start it
+#   ./install.sh -y              answer "yes" to every question (non-interactive)
+#   ./install.sh --service       also install + start a systemd service (needs root)
+#   ./install.sh --port 8080     port used by the service / printed start command
+#   ./install.sh --https         service sets ANIWEB_HTTPS=1 (use behind HTTPS)
+#   ./install.sh --host 0.0.0.0  address the service listens on (default 127.0.0.1)
+set -euo pipefail
+
+DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
+VENV="$DIR/.venv"
+ANI_CLI_URL="https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pystardust/ani-cli/master/ani-cli"
+
+ASSUME_YES=0; SERVICE=0; HTTPS=0; PORT=8000; HOST=127.0.0.1
+
+while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do
+  case "$1" in
+    -y|--yes) ASSUME_YES=1 ;;
+    --service) SERVICE=1 ;;
+    --https) HTTPS=1 ;;
+    --port) PORT="${2:?--port needs a value}"; shift ;;
+    --host) HOST="${2:?--host needs a value}"; shift ;;
+    -h|--help) sed -n '2,12p' "$0" | sed 's/^# \{0,1\}//'; exit 0 ;;
+    *) echo "Unknown option: $1 (try --help)" >&2; exit 2 ;;
+  esac
+  shift
+done
+
+say()  { printf '\033[1;35m==>\033[0m %s\n' "$*"; }
+warn() { printf '\033[1;33m!!\033[0m  %s\n' "$*" >&2; }
+die()  { printf '\033[1;31mxx\033[0m  %s\n' "$*" >&2; exit 1; }
+
+ask() {  # ask "question" -> 0 for yes
+  [ "$ASSUME_YES" = 1 ] && return 0
+  [ -t 0 ] || return 1
+  read -r -p "$1 [y/N] " reply
+  case "$reply" in y|Y|yes|YES) return 0 ;; *) return 1 ;; esac
+}
+
+[ -f "$DIR/app.py" ] && [ -f "$DIR/static/index.html" ] \
+  || die "app.py or static/index.html is missing. Run this script from the Mado folder."
+
+# ---- Python ---------------------------------------------------------------
+say "Checking Python"
+command -v python3 >/dev/null || die "python3 not found. Install Python 3.9 or newer."
+python3 - <<'EOF' || die "Python 3.9 or newer is required."
+import sys; sys.exit(0 if sys.version_info >= (3, 9) else 1)
+EOF
+echo "    $(python3 --version)"
+
+say "Creating virtualenv in .venv"
+if [ ! -x "$VENV/bin/python" ]; then
+  python3 -m venv "$VENV" 2>/dev/null || die "Couldn't create a virtualenv. On Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install python3-venv"
+fi
+
+say "Installing Python dependencies"
+"$VENV/bin/python" -m pip install --quiet --upgrade pip || warn "pip upgrade failed, continuing"
+"$VENV/bin/python" -m pip install --quiet -r "$DIR/requirements.txt"
+# waitress is a sturdier server than Flask's built-in one; failing to get it is fine
+"$VENV/bin/python" -m pip install --quiet waitress \
+  || warn "waitress not installed; Mado will use Flask's built-in server."
+
+# ---- Programs ani-cli depends on ------------------------------------------
+say "Checking programs ani-cli needs"
+missing=()
+for tool in curl sed grep od; do command -v "$tool" >/dev/null || missing+=("$tool"); done
+command -v base64 >/dev/null || command -v openssl >/dev/null || missing+=("base64 (or openssl)")
+if [ ${#missing[@]} -gt 0 ]; then
+  warn "Missing: ${missing[*]}"
+  warn "Install them with your package manager (e.g. sudo apt install curl sed grep coreutils openssl)."
+fi
+
+# ---- ani-cli --------------------------------------------------------------
+say "Checking ani-cli"
+if command -v ani-cli >/dev/null; then
+  echo "    found: $(command -v ani-cli)"
+else
+  warn "ani-cli is not installed."
+  if ask "Download ani-cli from GitHub now?"; then
+    if [ "$(id -u)" = 0 ]; then target=/usr/local/bin; else target="$HOME/.local/bin"; fi
+    mkdir -p "$target"
+    curl -fsSL "$ANI_CLI_URL" -o "$target/ani-cli" || die "Download failed. Install ani-cli manually: https://github.com/pystardust/ani-cli"
+    chmod +x "$target/ani-cli"
+    echo "    installed: $target/ani-cli"
+    case ":$PATH:" in *":$target:"*) ;; *) warn "$target is not on your PATH; add it to your shell profile." ;; esac
+    ANI_DIR="$target"
+  else
+    warn "Install it before starting Mado: https://github.com/pystardust/ani-cli"
+  fi
+fi
+
+# ---- Start script ---------------------------------------------------------
+say "Writing run.sh"
+cat > "$DIR/run.sh" <<EOF
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+# Starts Mado. Override with HOST=..., PORT=..., ANIWEB_HTTPS=1 in the environment.
+cd "\$(dirname "\${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")"
+export PATH="\$HOME/.local/bin:\$PATH"
+export HOST="\${HOST:-$HOST}" PORT="\${PORT:-$PORT}"
+exec .venv/bin/python app.py
+EOF
+chmod +x "$DIR/run.sh"
+
+# ---- systemd service (optional) -------------------------------------------
+if [ "$SERVICE" = 1 ]; then
+  say "Installing systemd service"
+  [ "$(id -u)" = 0 ] || die "--service needs root. Re-run with: sudo ./install.sh --service"
+  command -v systemctl >/dev/null || die "systemctl not found; this system doesn't use systemd."
+  RUN_USER="${SUDO_USER:-root}"
+  RUN_HOME="$(getent passwd "$RUN_USER" | cut -d: -f6)"
+  chown -R "$RUN_USER" "$DIR"
+  cat > /etc/systemd/system/mado.service <<EOF
+[Unit]
+Description=Mado (ani-cli web player)
+After=network-online.target
+Wants=network-online.target
+
+[Service]
+User=$RUN_USER
+WorkingDirectory=$DIR
+Environment=HOST=$HOST
+Environment=PORT=$PORT
+Environment=ANIWEB_HTTPS=$HTTPS
+Environment=PATH=$RUN_HOME/.local/bin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/bin:/bin
+ExecStart=$VENV/bin/python $DIR/app.py
+Restart=on-failure
+RestartSec=3
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=multi-user.target
+EOF
+  systemctl daemon-reload
+  systemctl enable --now mado.service
+  echo "    service running: systemctl status mado"
+fi
+
+# ---- Done -----------------------------------------------------------------
+say "Done"
+if [ "$SERVICE" = 1 ]; then
+  echo "    Mado is running at http://$HOST:$PORT  (logs: journalctl -u mado -f)"
+else
+  echo "    Start it with:  ./run.sh      then open http://$HOST:$PORT"
+fi
+[ "$HOST" = 127.0.0.1 ] && echo "    It only listens on this machine; put a reverse proxy in front of it to reach it elsewhere."
+exit 0
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