diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ab6eda9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+PAIRS=BTC-USD,CNYUSD
+INTERVAL=5000
+THRESHOLD=0.05
+POSTGRES_USER=uphold
+POSTGRES_PASSWORD=uphold
+POSTGRES_DB=uphold_events
diff --git a/Containerfile b/Containerfile
index e42a6f1..1a91a36 100644
--- a/Containerfile
+++ b/Containerfile
@@ -1,12 +1,11 @@
 FROM docker.io/node:20-alpine
 WORKDIR /app
 COPY package*.json ./
-# RUN npm ci --omit=dev
 RUN npm ci
 COPY src/ ./src/
 COPY index.js ./
 
-RUN addgroup -g 1001 nodejs && adduser -S -G nodejs -u 1001 nodejs
-USER nodejs
+RUN addgroup -g 1001 uphold && adduser -S -G uphold -u 1001 uphold
+USER uphold
 
 ENTRYPOINT ["node", "index.js"]
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index e69de29..20bfd70 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+# Uphold Price Alert Bot
+## Requirements
+
+- Node.js >= v20
+- Docker & Docker Compose (optional)
+- PostgreSQL (optional, runs in-memory without it)
+
+## Quick Start
+
+### 1. Install Dependencies
+
+```bash
+npm install
+```
+
+### 2. Run the Bot
+
+**Basic:**
+```bash
+node index.js
+```
+or 
+
+```bash
+npm start
+```
+
+**With custom parameters:**
+```bash
+node index.js --pairs BTC-USD,ETH-USD --interval 5000 --threshold 0.01
+```
+
+or 
+
+```bash
+npm start -- --pairs BTC-USD,ETH-USD --interval 5000 --threshold 0.01
+```
+
+**With environment file:**
+```bash
+node --env-file=.env.example index.js
+```
+
+### 3. Run with Docker Compose (includes PostgreSQL)
+
+```bash
+cp .env.example .env
+
+# Edit .env with your settings
+# POSTGRES_USER=uphold
+# POSTGRES_PASSWORD=uphold
+# POSTGRES_DB=uphold_db
+# PAIRS=BTC-USD,ETH-USD
+# INTERVAL=5000
+# THRESHOLD=0.01
+
+# Start services
+docker compose up -d
+
+# View logs
+docker compose logs -f bot
+```
+
+## Configuration
+
+| Parameter | Flag | Environment | Default | Description |
+|-----------|------|-------------|---------|-------------|
+| Pairs | `-p, --pairs` | `PAIRS` | `BTC-USD` | Comma-separated currency pairs |
+| Interval | `-i, --interval` | `INTERVAL` | `5000` | Check interval in milliseconds |
+| Threshold | `-t, --threshold` | `THRESHOLD` | `0.01` | Alert threshold percentage |
+| Stats | `--stats` | `STATS` | `false` | Show performance statistics |
+
+## Database Setup (Optional)
+
+The bot runs in-memory mode by default. To persist alerts:
+
+```bash
+# Set DATABASE_URL
+export DATABASE_URL="postgres://user:password@localhost:5432/uphold_db"
+
+# Run the bot
+node index.js
+```
+
+The `alerts` table is created automatically on first run.
+
+## Running Tests
+
+```bash
+npm test
+```
+
+## Example Output
+
+```
+[INFO] Uphold price alert bot starting...
+[INFO] [WATCHING] BTC-USD, ETH-USD | Every 5000ms | Threshold 0.01%
+[INFO] [BTC-USD] Initial price: 42350.50
+[INFO] [ETH-USD] Initial price: 2245.75
+[INFO] [ALERT] BTC-USD UP 0.0125% (42350.50 → 42355.79)
+[INFO] [DB] Event saved for BTC-USD
+```
+
+## Architecture
+
+- `index.js` - Entry point
+- `src/bot.js` - Bot monitoring logic
+- `src/api.js` - Uphold API client with rate limiting
+- `src/db.js` - PostgreSQL DB layer
+- `src/logger.js` - logging
+- `tests/bot.test.js` - Test suite
+
+## Stopping the Bot
+
+Press `Ctrl+C` or send `SIGTERM` for graceful shutdown.
+
+With Docker:
+```bash
+docker compose down
+```
+
+## License
+
+MIT