diff --git a/docker-compose.yml b/docker-compose.yml
index d311691..d1e7e0e 100644
--- a/docker-compose.yml
+++ b/docker-compose.yml
@@ -67,6 +67,8 @@ services:
       Ai__Mode: ${AI_MODE:-Disabled}
       # Points at the compose 'ollama' service when the ai profile is up; harmless otherwise.
       Ai__OllamaBaseUrl: ${OLLAMA_BASE_URL:-http://ollama:11434}
+      # OTLP export activates only when set (e.g. http://lgtm:4317 with the observability profile).
+      OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT: ${OTEL_ENDPOINT:-}
       # Dev mode shows the dev banner and caps the initial sync. Set DEV_MODE=true
       # and MAX_MESSAGES=1000 in deploy/.env to exercise it in this Docker setup.
       App__DevMode: ${DEV_MODE:-false}
@@ -109,6 +111,16 @@ services:
     #           count: all
     #           capabilities: [gpu]
 
+  # Observability (RECOMMENDATIONS #5): all-in-one Grafana+Tempo+Prometheus+Loki.
+  # Enable with: docker compose --profile observability up -d
+  # then set OTEL_ENDPOINT=http://lgtm:4317 in deploy/.env and restart the api.
+  # Grafana UI: http://localhost:3000 (admin/admin on first run).
+  lgtm:
+    image: grafana/otel-lgtm
+    profiles: ["observability"]
+    ports:
+      - "127.0.0.1:3000:3000"
+
   # Optional reverse proxy. Enable with: docker compose --profile proxy up
   nginx:
     image: nginx:alpine
diff --git a/src/InboxIntel.Api/InboxIntel.Api.csproj b/src/InboxIntel.Api/InboxIntel.Api.csproj
index 8b126b4..42a0fe2 100644
--- a/src/InboxIntel.Api/InboxIntel.Api.csproj
+++ b/src/InboxIntel.Api/InboxIntel.Api.csproj
@@ -15,6 +15,11 @@
     <PackageReference Include="Asp.Versioning.Mvc" Version="8.1.0" />
     <PackageReference Include="Asp.Versioning.Mvc.ApiExplorer" Version="8.1.0" />
     <PackageReference Include="FluentValidation.AspNetCore" Version="11.3.0" />
+    <PackageReference Include="Npgsql.OpenTelemetry" Version="10.0.3" />
+    <PackageReference Include="OpenTelemetry.Exporter.OpenTelemetryProtocol" Version="1.16.0" />
+    <PackageReference Include="OpenTelemetry.Extensions.Hosting" Version="1.16.0" />
+    <PackageReference Include="OpenTelemetry.Instrumentation.AspNetCore" Version="1.16.0" />
+    <PackageReference Include="OpenTelemetry.Instrumentation.Http" Version="1.16.0" />
     <PackageReference Include="Serilog.AspNetCore" Version="8.0.1" />
     <PackageReference Include="Serilog.Sinks.Console" Version="5.0.1" />
     <PackageReference Include="Swashbuckle.AspNetCore" Version="6.6.2" />
diff --git a/src/InboxIntel.Api/Program.cs b/src/InboxIntel.Api/Program.cs
index d1d58ce..38a1592 100644
--- a/src/InboxIntel.Api/Program.cs
+++ b/src/InboxIntel.Api/Program.cs
@@ -16,6 +16,10 @@ using Microsoft.AspNetCore.HttpOverrides;
 using Microsoft.AspNetCore.RateLimiting;
 using Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore;
 using Microsoft.Extensions.Options;
+using Npgsql;
+using OpenTelemetry.Metrics;
+using OpenTelemetry.Resources;
+using OpenTelemetry.Trace;
 using Serilog;
 
 var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);
@@ -122,6 +126,28 @@ builder.Services.AddAuthentication(options =>
 
 builder.Services.AddAuthorization();
 
+// RECOMMENDATIONS #5: OpenTelemetry traces + metrics (ASP.NET, outbound HTTP, Npgsql).
+// The OTLP exporter only activates when Otel:Endpoint (or the standard
+// OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT env var) is configured — zero overhead otherwise.
+// Logs stay on Serilog. Pair with the compose "observability" profile (grafana/otel-lgtm).
+var otlpEndpoint = builder.Configuration["Otel:Endpoint"]
+    ?? Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("OTEL_EXPORTER_OTLP_ENDPOINT");
+if (!string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(otlpEndpoint))
+{
+    builder.Services.AddOpenTelemetry()
+        .ConfigureResource(r => r.AddService("inboxintel-api"))
+        .WithTracing(t => t
+            .AddAspNetCoreInstrumentation()
+            .AddHttpClientInstrumentation()
+            .AddNpgsql()
+            .AddOtlpExporter(o => o.Endpoint = new Uri(otlpEndpoint)))
+        .WithMetrics(m => m
+            .AddAspNetCoreInstrumentation()
+            .AddHttpClientInstrumentation()
+            .AddNpgsqlInstrumentation()
+            .AddOtlpExporter(o => o.Endpoint = new Uri(otlpEndpoint)));
+}
+
 builder.Services.AddApiVersioning(o =>
 {
     o.DefaultApiVersion = new ApiVersion(1, 0);