diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index 8380370..c1a78da 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -2,12 +2,19 @@ FROM node:18-alpine
 
 WORKDIR /app
 
-COPY package*.json ./
+# Install curl for healthcheck
+RUN apk add --no-cache curl
 
+# Copy package files first for layer caching
+COPY package*.json ./
 RUN npm install --production
 
+# Copy app code (changes more often — below the cached layer)
 COPY . .
 
 EXPOSE 3000
 
+HEALTHCHECK --interval=10s --timeout=3s --start-period=5s --retries=2 \
+  CMD curl -f http://localhost:3000/health || exit 1
+
 CMD ["node", "server.js"]