diff --git a/.pre-commit-config.yaml b/.pre-commit-config.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..dfab309
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.pre-commit-config.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,33 @@
+repos:
+  # Go formatting and imports
+  - repo: https://github.com/dnephin/pre-commit-golang
+    rev: v0.5.1
+    hooks:
+      # Format Go code with gofmt
+      - id: go-fmt
+      # Organize Go imports
+      - id: go-imports
+      # Run go mod tidy
+      - id: go-mod-tidy
+      # Run go vet
+      - id: go-vet-mod
+      # Build the project to catch compilation errors
+      - id: go-build-mod
+
+  # General hooks for all files
+  - repo: https://github.com/pre-commit/pre-commit-hooks
+    rev: v4.4.0
+    hooks:
+      # Remove trailing whitespace
+      - id: trailing-whitespace
+      # Ensure files end with newline
+      - id: end-of-file-fixer
+      # Check YAML files are valid
+      - id: check-yaml
+      # Check JSON files are valid
+      - id: check-json
+      # Check for merge conflict markers
+      - id: check-merge-conflict
+      # Prevent committing large files
+      - id: check-added-large-files
+        args: ['--maxkb=1000']
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index b70aa83..e11d568 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -195,6 +195,42 @@ sudo mv cwt /usr/local/bin/
 3. **State Tracking**: CWT monitors session status and git changes
 4. **TUI Interface**: Real-time dashboard built with terminal UI components
 
+## Development
+
+### Setting Up Pre-commit Hooks
+
+This project uses pre-commit hooks to catch linting and formatting issues before they reach CI:
+
+```bash
+# Install pre-commit (one-time setup)
+pip install pre-commit
+
+# Install the git hook scripts
+pre-commit install
+
+# (Optional) Run hooks on all files
+pre-commit run --all-files
+```
+
+### Available Make Targets
+
+```bash
+make help      # Show available targets
+make test      # Run tests
+make build     # Build binary
+make lint      # Run basic linting
+make clean     # Clean build artifacts
+```
+
+### Pre-commit Hooks
+
+The pre-commit configuration includes:
+- **gofmt**: Code formatting
+- **goimports**: Import organization 
+- **go mod tidy**: Dependency management
+- **go vet**: Basic linting
+- **General checks**: trailing whitespace, file endings, YAML/JSON validation
+
 ## Contributing
 
 See [workflows.md](workflows.md) for detailed workflow documentation.