diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index aa3326ec..5fb7c264 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -86,6 +86,7 @@ The following environment variables can be configured at build time or runtime:
 | `POSTHOG_API_ENDPOINT` | Build-time | Empty | PostHog analytics endpoint (disables analytics if empty) |
 | `BACKEND_PORT` | Runtime | `0` (auto-assign) | Backend server port |
 | `FRONTEND_PORT` | Runtime | `3000` | Frontend development server port |
+| `HOST` | Runtime | `127.0.0.1` | Backend server host |
 | `DISABLE_WORKTREE_ORPHAN_CLEANUP` | Runtime | Not set | Disable git worktree cleanup (for debugging) |
 
 **Build-time variables** must be set when running `pnpm run build`. **Runtime variables** are read when the application starts.
@@ -100,4 +101,4 @@ By default, Vibe Kanban uses Bloop AI's GitHub OAuth app for authentication. To
 4. Build with your client ID:
    ```bash
    GITHUB_CLIENT_ID=your_client_id_here pnpm run build
-   ```
\ No newline at end of file
+   ```
diff --git a/backend/src/main.rs b/backend/src/main.rs
index d5d7ff14..992c8fc9 100644
--- a/backend/src/main.rs
+++ b/backend/src/main.rs
@@ -233,10 +233,11 @@ fn main() -> anyhow::Result<()> {
                     0
                 }); // Use 0 to find free port if no specific port provided
 
-            let listener = tokio::net::TcpListener::bind(format!("127.0.0.1:{port}")).await?;
+            let host = std::env::var("HOST").unwrap_or_else(|_| "127.0.0.1".to_string());
+            let listener = tokio::net::TcpListener::bind(format!("{host}:{port}")).await?;
             let actual_port = listener.local_addr()?.port(); // get → 53427 (example)
 
-            tracing::info!("Server running on http://127.0.0.1:{actual_port}");
+            tracing::info!("Server running on http://{host}:{actual_port}");
 
             if !cfg!(debug_assertions) {
                 tracing::info!("Opening browser...");