diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 98f12f4..eaff0e0 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -321,9 +321,25 @@ scripts/gen_icons.py   Regenerates src-tauri/icons/ from the real logo mark
 ## Building
 
 Prerequisites: Rust (stable) + Cargo, Node.js 18+, and Tauri's platform prerequisites
-(see https://v2.tauri.app/start/prerequisites/ — on Linux this means
-`libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev libgtk-3-dev libayatana-appindicator3-dev librsvg2-dev` and a C
-toolchain; macOS/Windows need Xcode / the VS Build Tools + WebView2 respectively).
+(see https://v2.tauri.app/start/prerequisites/ for the full, up-to-date list).
+
+**Linux:** `libwebkit2gtk-4.1-dev libgtk-3-dev libayatana-appindicator3-dev
+librsvg2-dev` plus a C toolchain (`build-essential` on Debian/Ubuntu). Bundling the
+installers additionally needs `patchelf` (for the `.deb`/`.rpm`) — `npm run tauri build`
+will also download a few small `linuxdeploy` helper tools from GitHub the first time it
+builds an `.AppImage`, so a network connection is needed for that step.
+
+**macOS:** Xcode (or at least the Xcode Command Line Tools — `xcode-select --install`).
+No other system packages are needed.
+
+**Windows:** Rust via [rustup](https://rustup.rs/), using the default MSVC toolchain
+(not the GNU one). [Visual Studio Build Tools](https://visualstudio.microsoft.com/downloads/#build-tools-for-visual-studio)
+(or full Visual Studio) with the **"Desktop development with C++"** workload, which
+provides the linker Rust's MSVC toolchain needs. The **WebView2 Runtime** — this is
+already preinstalled on any up-to-date Windows 10/11 machine, so you usually don't need
+to do anything; if you hit a WebView2-related error, grab the Evergreen bootstrapper from
+Microsoft. You do **not** need to separately install NSIS or WiX — Tauri's bundler
+downloads NSIS automatically the first time it builds the `.exe` installer.
 
 ```sh
 # Rust core (no UI deps needed):
@@ -337,14 +353,20 @@ npm run tauri dev
 npm run tauri build
 ```
 
-Verified in the environment this was built in: `cargo test --workspace` (all 160
-passing, including the TMDB, TVmaze, OMDb, and OpenSubtitles client tests — those run
-against a local mock HTTP server via `mockito`, no live network or API key needed to
-build/test), `cargo
-check -p aurora-curator` (compiles clean against real Tauri + GTK/WebKit system
-libraries), and `npm run build` (TypeScript type-checks, Vite bundles). The actual GUI
-window has **not** been visually verified anywhere yet — that sandbox has no display.
-Run `npm run tauri dev` on your machine to see and click through it for the first time.
+`npm run tauri build` produces a native installer for whichever OS you run it on — there
+is no cross-compilation; build on Windows to get a `.exe`/`.msi`, on Linux for
+`.deb`/`.rpm`/`.AppImage`, on macOS for a `.app`/`.dmg`.
+
+Verified so far: `cargo test --workspace` (199 tests passing, including the TMDB,
+TVmaze, OMDb, and OpenSubtitles client tests — those run against a local mock HTTP
+server via `mockito`, no live network or API key needed to build/test), `cargo check -p
+aurora-curator` (compiles clean against real Tauri + GTK/WebKit system libraries), and
+`npm run build` (TypeScript type-checks, Vite bundles). The production build
+(`npm run tauri build`) has been run end-to-end and the resulting app **launches and
+runs correctly outside of dev mode** on both macOS (`.app`, confirmed by hand) and Linux
+(`.deb`/`.rpm`/`.AppImage`, built and smoke-tested in a real Ubuntu environment). Windows
+is the one platform not yet built/verified — if you hit anything building there, please
+open an issue.
 
 ### Setting up metadata sources (for "Fetch Data")