diff --git a/src/cli.rs b/src/cli.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e71c11e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/cli.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+use clap::{Args, Parser, Subcommand};
+use std::path::PathBuf;
+
+#[derive(Parser, Debug)]
+#[command(
+    name = "brokecrew",
+    version,
+    about = "A Rust-native multi-model AI team CLI with resilient OpenRouter fallback routing",
+    long_about = "BrokeCrew lets you interact with a coordinated team of AI personas backed by OpenRouter models.\nFeatures two-stage routing, automatic candidate fallbacks, budget tracking, and multi-agent handoff pipelines."
+)]
+pub struct Cli {
+    #[arg(long, global = true, help = "Path to config.toml file")]
+    pub config_file: Option<PathBuf>,
+
+    #[arg(long, global = true, help = "Path to personas.toml file")]
+    pub personas_file: Option<PathBuf>,
+
+    #[arg(long, global = true, env = "OPENROUTER_API_KEY", help = "OpenRouter API Key (overrides keyring & env)")]
+    pub api_key: Option<String>,
+
+    #[arg(long, global = true, help = "Output structured logs in JSON format to stderr")]
+    pub json_logs: bool,
+
+    #[arg(long, short, global = true, help = "Enable verbose debug logs")]
+    pub verbose: bool,
+
+    #[command(subcommand)]
+    pub command: Option<Commands>,
+}
+
+#[derive(Subcommand, Debug)]
+pub enum Commands {
+    #[command(about = "Chat with a persona or multi-agent pipeline")]
+    Chat(ChatArgs),
+
+    #[command(about = "Manage configuration and credentials")]
+    Config(ConfigArgs),
+
+    #[command(about = "List and inspect personas and pipelines")]
+    Personas(PersonasArgs),
+
+    #[command(about = "Display live model registry and rate-limit budget status")]
+    Status,
+}
+
+#[derive(Args, Debug, Default)]
+pub struct ChatArgs {
+    #[arg(help = "The message or prompt to send. If omitted, starts interactive chat REPL.")]
+    pub prompt: Option<String>,
+
+    #[arg(short, long, help = "Directly specify target persona (skips router)")]
+    pub persona: Option<String>,
+
+    #[arg(long, help = "Run a multi-agent pipeline (e.g. build-and-review)")]
+    pub pipeline: Option<String>,
+
+    #[arg(long, help = "Allow experimental stealth model candidates")]
+    pub allow_stealth: bool,
+
+    #[arg(long, help = "Force escalation to paid model candidates")]
+    pub escalate: bool,
+}
+
+#[derive(Args, Debug)]
+pub struct ConfigArgs {
+    #[command(subcommand)]
+    pub action: ConfigSubcommand,
+}
+
+#[derive(Subcommand, Debug)]
+pub enum ConfigSubcommand {
+    #[command(about = "Securely set and save OpenRouter API key to OS credential store")]
+    SetKey {
+        #[arg(help = "Optional key directly passed; if omitted, securely prompted")]
+        key: Option<String>,
+    },
+}
+
+#[derive(Args, Debug)]
+pub struct PersonasArgs {
+    #[command(subcommand)]
+    pub action: PersonasSubcommand,
+}
+
+#[derive(Subcommand, Debug)]
+pub enum PersonasSubcommand {
+    #[command(about = "List all configured personas, candidates, triggers, and pipelines")]
+    List,
+}
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index d63e2f3..47941bb 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -1,9 +1,522 @@
-//! BrokeCrew CLI Entrypoint
-//!
-//! A thin executable layer over the `brokecrew` library.
+mod cli;
+
+use brokecrew::budget::BudgetTracker;
+use brokecrew::client::OpenRouterClient;
+use brokecrew::config::AppConfig;
+use brokecrew::persona::Tier;
+use brokecrew::pipeline::{PipelineConfig, PipelineEvent, PipelineExecutor};
+use brokecrew::registry::ModelRegistry;
+use brokecrew::router::{RouteStage, Router};
+use clap::Parser;
+use cli::{ChatArgs, Cli, Commands, ConfigSubcommand, PersonasSubcommand};
+use indicatif::{ProgressBar, ProgressStyle};
+use owo_colors::OwoColorize;
+use std::io::{self, BufRead, Write};
+use std::sync::Arc;
+use std::time::Duration;
+use tokio::sync::mpsc;
+use tracing_subscriber::{layer::SubscriberExt, util::SubscriberInitExt, EnvFilter};
+
+fn init_logging(json_logs: bool, verbose: bool) {
+    let filter = if verbose {
+        EnvFilter::new("brokecrew=debug,reqwest=debug")
+    } else {
+        EnvFilter::new("brokecrew=info")
+    };
+
+    if json_logs {
+        tracing_subscriber::registry()
+            .with(filter)
+            .with(tracing_subscriber::fmt::layer().json())
+            .init();
+    } else {
+        tracing_subscriber::registry()
+            .with(filter)
+            .with(
+                tracing_subscriber::fmt::layer()
+                    .with_writer(io::stderr)
+                    .without_time()
+                    .with_target(false),
+            )
+            .init();
+    }
+}
+
+fn get_persona_color_tag(persona: &str) -> String {
+    match persona.to_lowercase().as_str() {
+        "coder" => format!("[{}]", persona).bright_green().bold().to_string(),
+        "reviewer" => format!("[{}]", persona).bright_yellow().bold().to_string(),
+        "architect" => format!("[{}]", persona).bright_blue().bold().to_string(),
+        "general" | "assistant" => format!("[{}]", persona).bright_magenta().bold().to_string(),
+        _ => format!("[{}]", persona).bright_cyan().bold().to_string(),
+    }
+}
+
+fn create_spinner(message: &'static str) -> ProgressBar {
+    let pb = ProgressBar::new_spinner();
+    pb.set_style(
+        ProgressStyle::default_spinner()
+            .tick_chars("⠋⠙⠹⠸⠼⠴⠦⠧⠇⠏ ")
+            .template("{spinner:.cyan} {msg}")
+            .expect("valid template"),
+    );
+    pb.set_message(message);
+    pb.enable_steady_tick(Duration::from_millis(80));
+    pb
+}
 
 #[tokio::main]
 async fn main() -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
-    println!("BrokeCrew CLI v{}", env!("CARGO_PKG_VERSION"));
+    let cli = Cli::parse();
+    init_logging(cli.json_logs, cli.verbose);
+
+    let config = AppConfig::load_from_paths(
+        cli.config_file.as_deref(),
+        cli.personas_file.as_deref(),
+        cli.api_key.clone(),
+    )
+    .map_err(|e| format!("Configuration error: {e}"))?;
+
+    let budget_path = config.config_dir.join("budget.json");
+    let mut budget_tracker = BudgetTracker::new(Some(budget_path), config.credit_tier);
+    let model_registry = Arc::new(ModelRegistry::new());
+
+    // Check subcommand
+    match cli.command {
+        Some(Commands::Config(config_args)) => match config_args.action {
+            ConfigSubcommand::SetKey { key } => {
+                let api_key = match key {
+                    Some(k) if !k.trim().is_empty() => k.trim().to_string(),
+                    _ => {
+                        eprint!("Enter OpenRouter API Key: ");
+                        io::stderr().flush()?;
+                        let mut input = String::new();
+                        io::stdin().read_line(&mut input)?;
+                        let trimmed = input.trim().to_string();
+                        if trimmed.is_empty() {
+                            eprintln!("{}", "Error: API key cannot be empty.".red().bold());
+                            std::process::exit(1);
+                        }
+                        trimmed
+                    }
+                };
+
+                AppConfig::save_api_key_to_keyring(&api_key)
+                    .map_err(|e| format!("Failed to save API key to OS credential store: {e}"))?;
+                println!("{}", "✔ OpenRouter API key saved securely in OS credential store.".bright_green().bold());
+                return Ok(());
+            }
+        },
+
+        Some(Commands::Personas(personas_args)) => match personas_args.action {
+            PersonasSubcommand::List => {
+                println!("\n{}", "BrokeCrew Personas:".bold().underline());
+                for persona in config.persona_registry.list() {
+                    let badge = get_persona_color_tag(&persona.name);
+                    println!("\n  {} - {}", badge, persona.system_prompt.dimmed());
+                    if !persona.trigger_words.is_empty() {
+                        println!("    Triggers: {}", persona.trigger_words.join(", ").italic());
+                    }
+                    println!("    Candidates:");
+                    for (i, c) in persona.candidates.iter().enumerate() {
+                        let tier_tag = match c.tier {
+                            Tier::Free => "FREE".bright_green().to_string(),
+                            Tier::Paid => "PAID".bright_yellow().to_string(),
+                        };
+                        let stealth_tag = if c.is_stealth {
+                            format!(" {}", "[stealth]".bright_magenta())
+                        } else {
+                            String::new()
+                        };
+                        println!("      {}. {} ({}){}", i + 1, c.id.bold(), tier_tag, stealth_tag);
+                    }
+                }
+
+                if !config.pipelines.is_empty() {
+                    println!("\n{}", "Configured Pipelines:".bold().underline());
+                    for pipe in &config.pipelines {
+                        let steps_str: Vec<String> = pipe
+                            .steps
+                            .iter()
+                            .map(|s| {
+                                if s.pass_previous_output {
+                                    format!("{} (with context)", s.persona.bold())
+                                } else {
+                                    s.persona.bold().to_string()
+                                }
+                            })
+                            .collect();
+                        println!("  • {} ➔ {}", pipe.name.bright_cyan().bold(), steps_str.join(" ➔ "));
+                    }
+                }
+                println!();
+                return Ok(());
+            }
+        },
+
+        Some(Commands::Status) => {
+            println!("\n{}", "BrokeCrew Status & Rate Limits:".bold().underline());
+            // Fetch live registry for status count
+            let spinner = create_spinner("Fetching live OpenRouter model catalog...");
+            let model_count = match model_registry.fetch_live(&config.openrouter_base_url).await {
+                Ok(count) => {
+                    spinner.finish_and_clear();
+                    count
+                }
+                Err(e) => {
+                    spinner.finish_and_clear();
+                    println!("  Live catalog: {}", format!("Offline / Error: {e}").red());
+                    0
+                }
+            };
+
+            if model_count > 0 {
+                println!("  Live catalog: {} available models cached", model_count.to_string().bright_green().bold());
+            }
+
+            match budget_tracker.check_budget() {
+                Ok(status) => {
+                    let pct = (status.daily_requests * 100) / status.daily_limit;
+                    let daily_color = if pct >= 80 {
+                        format!("{}/{} ({}%)", status.daily_requests, status.daily_limit, pct).yellow().bold().to_string()
+                    } else {
+                        format!("{}/{} ({}%)", status.daily_requests, status.daily_limit, pct).green().bold().to_string()
+                    };
+
+                    println!("  Account tier: {:?}", config.credit_tier);
+                    println!("  Rolling 1-min requests: {}/{}", status.minute_requests.to_string().bold(), status.minute_limit);
+                    println!("  Daily requests today: {}", daily_color);
+                    if status.approaching_daily_limit {
+                        println!("  {}", "⚠ Notice: Approaching daily free-tier limit. Non-urgent calls may be deferred.".yellow().bold());
+                    }
+                }
+                Err(e) => {
+                    println!("  Budget status: {}", e.to_string().red().bold());
+                }
+            }
+            println!();
+            return Ok(());
+        }
+
+        Some(Commands::Chat(args)) => {
+            run_chat(args, &config, &mut budget_tracker, model_registry).await?;
+        }
+
+        None => {
+            // Default to chat if no subcommand passed
+            run_chat(ChatArgs::default(), &config, &mut budget_tracker, model_registry).await?;
+        }
+    }
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+async fn run_chat(
+    args: ChatArgs,
+    config: &AppConfig,
+    budget_tracker: &mut BudgetTracker,
+    model_registry: Arc<ModelRegistry>,
+) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
+    let api_key = match config.api_key.clone() {
+        Some(k) if !k.trim().is_empty() => k,
+        _ => {
+            eprintln!(
+                "{}\nRun: {}\nOr set: {}",
+                "Error: OpenRouter API key not configured.".red().bold(),
+                "brokecrew config set-key".bright_green().bold(),
+                "export OPENROUTER_API_KEY=\"sk-or-v1-...\"".cyan()
+            );
+            std::process::exit(1);
+        }
+    };
+
+    let client = OpenRouterClient::with_base_url(api_key, config.openrouter_base_url.clone());
+
+    // Start background sync for model registry
+    let reg_clone = model_registry.clone();
+    let base_url = config.openrouter_base_url.clone();
+    tokio::spawn(async move {
+        let _ = reg_clone.fetch_live(&base_url).await;
+    });
+
+    let router = Router::new(
+        config.default_persona.clone(),
+        config.router_model.clone(),
+        config.complexity_threshold,
+    );
+
+    // If prompt passed directly as CLI argument, execute single-shot
+    if let Some(ref prompt) = args.prompt {
+        execute_prompt(
+            prompt,
+            &args,
+            config,
+            budget_tracker,
+            &model_registry,
+            &router,
+            &client,
+        )
+        .await?;
+        return Ok(());
+    }
+
+    // Otherwise, run interactive REPL loop
+    println!("\n{}", "BrokeCrew Interactive Team Chat".bright_cyan().bold());
+    println!("{}", "Type your request and press Enter. Type 'exit' or Ctrl+C to quit.\n".dimmed());
+
+    let stdin = io::stdin();
+    let mut reader = stdin.lock();
+
+    loop {
+        print!("{} ", "you ❯".bright_white().bold());
+        io::stdout().flush()?;
+
+        let mut line = String::new();
+        if reader.read_line(&mut line)? == 0 {
+            break;
+        }
+
+        let trimmed = line.trim();
+        if trimmed.is_empty() {
+            continue;
+        }
+        if trimmed.eq_ignore_ascii_case("exit") || trimmed.eq_ignore_ascii_case("quit") {
+            break;
+        }
+
+        execute_prompt(
+            trimmed,
+            &args,
+            config,
+            budget_tracker,
+            &model_registry,
+            &router,
+            &client,
+        )
+        .await?;
+        println!();
+    }
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+async fn execute_prompt(
+    prompt: &str,
+    args: &ChatArgs,
+    config: &AppConfig,
+    budget_tracker: &mut BudgetTracker,
+    model_registry: &ModelRegistry,
+    router: &Router,
+    client: &OpenRouterClient,
+) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
+    // 1. Budget check
+    match budget_tracker.check_budget() {
+        Ok(status) => {
+            if status.approaching_daily_limit {
+                eprintln!(
+                    "{} Daily usage: {}/{}",
+                    "⚠ Budget notice: Approaching daily ceiling.".yellow(),
+                    status.daily_requests,
+                    status.daily_limit
+                );
+            }
+        }
+        Err(e) => {
+            eprintln!("{} {}", "Rate limit warning:".red().bold(), e);
+            return Ok(());
+        }
+    }
+
+    let allow_stealth = args.allow_stealth || config.allow_stealth;
+    let require_paid = args.escalate;
+
+    // 2. Check if running a multi-agent pipeline
+    if let Some(ref pipe_name) = args.pipeline {
+        let pipeline = config
+            .pipelines
+            .iter()
+            .find(|p| p.name == *pipe_name)
+            .ok_or_else(|| format!("Pipeline '{pipe_name}' not found in configuration"))?;
+
+        run_pipeline(
+            pipeline,
+            config,
+            budget_tracker,
+            model_registry,
+            client,
+            prompt,
+            allow_stealth,
+            require_paid,
+        )
+        .await?;
+        return Ok(());
+    }
+
+    // 3. Single persona dispatch
+    let (target_persona, route_info) = if let Some(ref p) = args.persona {
+        (p.clone(), None)
+    } else {
+        let spinner = create_spinner("Routing message...");
+        // Record budget call if LLM router is invoked
+        let decision = router
+            .route(&config.persona_registry, client, prompt, require_paid)
+            .await;
+        spinner.finish_and_clear();
+
+        match decision {
+            Ok(dec) => {
+                if dec.stage_used == RouteStage::StageBLlm {
+                    let _ = budget_tracker.record_call(false);
+                }
+                let info = match dec.stage_used {
+                    RouteStage::StageAKeyword => "routed via keyword pre-filter".to_string(),
+                    RouteStage::StageBLlm => "routed via LLM classifier".to_string(),
+                };
+                (dec.persona, Some(info))
+            }
+            Err(e) => {
+                eprintln!("Router warning: {}, falling back to {}", e, config.default_persona);
+                (config.default_persona.clone(), None)
+            }
+        }
+    };
+
+    if let Some(info) = route_info {
+        eprintln!("{}", format!("⚡ [BrokeCrew: {info} ➔ {}]", target_persona).dimmed());
+    }
+
+    let (chunk_tx, mut chunk_rx) = mpsc::channel::<String>(100);
+    let persona_tag = get_persona_color_tag(&target_persona);
+    let spinner = create_spinner("Thinking...");
+
+    let dispatch_future = PipelineExecutor::dispatch_persona(
+        &target_persona,
+        &config.persona_registry,
+        model_registry,
+        client,
+        prompt,
+        allow_stealth,
+        require_paid,
+        Some(chunk_tx),
+    );
+
+    let printer = tokio::spawn(async move {
+        let mut first = true;
+        while let Some(chunk) = chunk_rx.recv().await {
+            if first {
+                spinner.finish_and_clear();
+                println!("\n{}", persona_tag);
+                first = false;
+            }
+            print!("{chunk}");
+            let _ = io::stdout().flush();
+        }
+    });
+
+    let dispatch_result = dispatch_future.await;
+    let _ = printer.await;
+
+    match dispatch_result {
+        Ok(res) => {
+            println!();
+            if res.fell_back {
+                eprintln!(
+                    "{}",
+                    format!("⚠ Candidate fallback: served by {}", res.model_used).yellow()
+                );
+            }
+            let _ = budget_tracker.record_call(res.tier_used == Tier::Paid);
+        }
+        Err(e) => {
+            eprintln!("\n{} {}", "Error dispatching to persona:".red().bold(), e);
+        }
+    }
+
+    Ok(())
+}
+
+async fn run_pipeline(
+    pipeline: &PipelineConfig,
+    config: &AppConfig,
+    budget_tracker: &mut BudgetTracker,
+    model_registry: &ModelRegistry,
+    client: &OpenRouterClient,
+    prompt: &str,
+    allow_stealth: bool,
+    require_paid: bool,
+) -> Result<(), Box<dyn std::error::Error>> {
+    println!(
+        "\n{} Starting pipeline '{}' ({} steps)",
+        "⚡".bright_cyan(),
+        pipeline.name.bold(),
+        pipeline.steps.len()
+    );
+
+    let (event_tx, mut event_rx) = mpsc::channel::<PipelineEvent>(100);
+
+    let exec_future = PipelineExecutor::execute(
+        pipeline,
+        &config.persona_registry,
+        model_registry,
+        client,
+        prompt,
+        allow_stealth,
+        require_paid,
+        Some(event_tx),
+    );
+
+    let event_handler = tokio::spawn(async move {
+        let mut current_spinner: Option<ProgressBar> = None;
+
+        while let Some(event) = event_rx.recv().await {
+            match event {
+                PipelineEvent::StepStarted {
+                    step_index,
+                    total_steps,
+                    persona,
+                    model,
+                    ..
+                } => {
+                    if let Some(sp) = current_spinner.take() {
+                        sp.finish_and_clear();
+                    }
+                    let badge = get_persona_color_tag(&persona);
+                    println!(
+                        "\n--- Step {}/{} {} ({}) ---",
+                        step_index + 1,
+                        total_steps,
+                        badge,
+                        model.dimmed()
+                    );
+                    let sp = create_spinner("Thinking...");
+                    current_spinner = Some(sp);
+                }
+                PipelineEvent::Chunk { delta, .. } => {
+                    if let Some(sp) = current_spinner.take() {
+                        sp.finish_and_clear();
+                    }
+                    print!("{delta}");
+                    let _ = io::stdout().flush();
+                }
+                PipelineEvent::StepCompleted { fell_back, .. } => {
+                    if let Some(sp) = current_spinner.take() {
+                        sp.finish_and_clear();
+                    }
+                    println!();
+                    if fell_back {
+                        eprintln!("{}", "⚠ Fallback occurred during step execution".yellow());
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    });
+
+    let results = exec_future.await?;
+    let _ = event_handler.await;
+
+    for r in &results {
+        let _ = budget_tracker.record_call(r.tier_used == Tier::Paid);
+    }
+
     Ok(())
 }