diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index ec0645c..320d499 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -27,3 +27,6 @@ next-env.d.ts
 
 # uploads
 /public/uploads/
+
+# db backups
+/backups/
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index ad50729..aa14bd8 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -15,7 +15,9 @@
     "db:migrate:deploy": "prisma migrate deploy",
     "db:seed": "tsx prisma/seed.ts",
     "db:studio": "prisma studio",
-    "db:reset": "prisma migrate reset --force"
+    "db:reset": "prisma migrate reset --force",
+    "db:backup": "sh scripts/db-backup.sh",
+    "db:restore": "sh scripts/db-restore.sh"
   },
   "dependencies": {
     "@hookform/resolvers": "^3.9.1",
diff --git a/scripts/db-backup.sh b/scripts/db-backup.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..92a7e3d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/db-backup.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# Usage: ./scripts/db-backup.sh [output-file]
+# Uses DATABASE_URL from environment (or .env if present).
+# Example — local:  DATABASE_URL="postgresql://bonnamoon@localhost:5432/moonbase_dev" ./scripts/db-backup.sh
+# Example — remote: ssh into NAS and run via docker exec (see README)
+
+set -e
+
+# Load .env if present and DATABASE_URL not already set
+if [ -z "$DATABASE_URL" ] && [ -f ".env" ]; then
+  export $(grep -v '^#' .env | grep DATABASE_URL | xargs)
+fi
+
+if [ -z "$DATABASE_URL" ]; then
+  echo "Error: DATABASE_URL is not set."
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+OUTFILE="${1:-backups/moonbase-$(date +%Y%m%d-%H%M%S).sql}"
+mkdir -p "$(dirname "$OUTFILE")"
+
+echo "Backing up to $OUTFILE ..."
+pg_dump "$DATABASE_URL" --no-owner --no-privileges -f "$OUTFILE"
+echo "Done. $(du -sh "$OUTFILE" | cut -f1) written to $OUTFILE"
diff --git a/scripts/db-restore.sh b/scripts/db-restore.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..959f4e9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/db-restore.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# Usage: ./scripts/db-restore.sh <backup-file>
+# Uses DATABASE_URL from environment (or .env if present).
+# WARNING: drops and recreates the public schema — all existing data is replaced.
+
+set -e
+
+if [ -z "$1" ]; then
+  echo "Usage: $0 <backup-file.sql>"
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+INFILE="$1"
+
+if [ ! -f "$INFILE" ]; then
+  echo "Error: file not found: $INFILE"
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+# Load .env if present and DATABASE_URL not already set
+if [ -z "$DATABASE_URL" ] && [ -f ".env" ]; then
+  export $(grep -v '^#' .env | grep DATABASE_URL | xargs)
+fi
+
+if [ -z "$DATABASE_URL" ]; then
+  echo "Error: DATABASE_URL is not set."
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+echo "Restoring from $INFILE ..."
+echo "  -> dropping and recreating public schema..."
+psql "$DATABASE_URL" -c "DROP SCHEMA public CASCADE; CREATE SCHEMA public;"
+echo "  -> loading backup..."
+psql "$DATABASE_URL" -f "$INFILE" -q
+echo "Done."