diff --git a/.github/workflows/release.yml b/.github/workflows/release.yml
index c2273395..a7eed6af 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/release.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/release.yml
@@ -4,6 +4,11 @@ on:
   push:
     branches:
       - main
+    paths-ignore:
+      - ".husky/**"
+      - ".github/workflows/deploy-docs.yml"
+      - ".github/workflows/release.yml"
+      - "site/**"
 
 env:
   # Bump this when Tauri/Rust target artifacts capture stale absolute paths.
diff --git a/.husky/pre-commit b/.husky/pre-commit
index 330b8388..4310a7e7 100755
--- a/.husky/pre-commit
+++ b/.husky/pre-commit
@@ -40,8 +40,36 @@ ensure_node_tooling
 
 echo "🔍 Pre-commit checks..."
 
+STAGED_FILES=$(git diff --cached --name-only)
+APP_CHANGED=false
+SITE_CHANGED=false
+
+for FILE in $STAGED_FILES; do
+  case "$FILE" in
+    site/*)
+      SITE_CHANGED=true
+      ;;
+    .github/workflows/*|.husky/*|docs/*|*.md)
+      ;;
+    *)
+      APP_CHANGED=true
+      ;;
+  esac
+done
+
+if [ "$APP_CHANGED" = false ]; then
+  if [ "$SITE_CHANGED" = true ]; then
+    echo "  → docs build..."
+    pnpm docs:build
+  else
+    echo "  → app checks skipped (docs/workflow/hooks only)"
+  fi
+  echo "✅ Pre-commit passed"
+  exit 0
+fi
+
 # Lint + types (only if TS files staged)
-STAGED_TS=$(git diff --cached --name-only | grep -E '\.(ts|tsx)$' || true)
+STAGED_TS=$(echo "$STAGED_FILES" | grep -E '\.(ts|tsx)$' || true)
 if [ -n "$STAGED_TS" ]; then
   echo "  → lint + tsc..."
   pnpm lint --quiet
diff --git a/.husky/pre-push b/.husky/pre-push
index 2d76af4b..9c4b8e91 100755
--- a/.husky/pre-push
+++ b/.husky/pre-push
@@ -95,12 +95,43 @@ echo "================================================"
 # ── Detect what changed ─────────────────────────────────────────────────
 PUSH_TARGET=$(git rev-parse @{push} 2>/dev/null || echo "")
 RUST_CHANGED=true
+APP_CHANGED=true
+SITE_CHANGED=false
 
 if [ -n "$PUSH_TARGET" ]; then
   CHANGED=$(git diff --name-only "$PUSH_TARGET"..HEAD)
+  APP_CHANGED=false
   if ! echo "$CHANGED" | grep -qE '^(src-tauri/|Cargo)'; then
     RUST_CHANGED=false
   fi
+  for FILE in $CHANGED; do
+    case "$FILE" in
+      site/*)
+        SITE_CHANGED=true
+        ;;
+      .github/workflows/*|.husky/*|docs/*|*.md)
+        ;;
+      *)
+        APP_CHANGED=true
+        ;;
+    esac
+  done
+fi
+
+if [ "$APP_CHANGED" = false ]; then
+  if [ "$SITE_CHANGED" = true ]; then
+    echo ""
+    echo "📚 Docs-only push detected; running docs build..."
+    pnpm docs:build
+    echo "  ✅ Docs build OK"
+  else
+    echo ""
+    echo "⏭️  App checks skipped (docs/workflow/hooks only)"
+  fi
+  ELAPSED=$(($(date +%s) - START_TIME))
+  echo ""
+  echo "✅ Pre-push passed in ${ELAPSED}s"
+  exit 0
 fi
 
 # ── 0. TypeScript + Vite build ──────────────────────────────────────────
diff --git a/site/.vitepress/theme/Layout.vue b/site/.vitepress/theme/Layout.vue
index 1fde4cb6..09233088 100644
--- a/site/.vitepress/theme/Layout.vue
+++ b/site/.vitepress/theme/Layout.vue
@@ -1,10 +1,22 @@
 <script setup lang="ts">
 import DefaultTheme from "vitepress/theme";
-import { onBeforeUnmount, onMounted, watchEffect } from "vue";
+import { onBeforeUnmount, onMounted, ref, watchEffect } from "vue";
 import { useData } from "vitepress";
 
 const { frontmatter } = useData();
-const githubStars = "9,946";
+const fallbackGithubStars = "9,946";
+const githubStars = ref(fallbackGithubStars);
+const githubStarsCacheKey = "tolaria:github-stars";
+const githubStarsCacheTtlMs = 60 * 60 * 1000;
+const githubRepoApiUrl = "https://api.github.com/repos/refactoringhq/tolaria";
+
+type GithubStarsCache = {
+  stars: number;
+  savedAt: number;
+};
+
+const formatGithubStars = (stars: number) =>
+  new Intl.NumberFormat("en-US").format(stars);
 
 const scrollClass = "tolaria-scrolled";
 const landingPageClass = "tolaria-landing-page";
@@ -12,6 +24,70 @@ const updateScrollClass = () => {
   document.documentElement.classList.toggle(scrollClass, window.scrollY > 8);
 };
 
+const readCachedGithubStars = (): GithubStarsCache | null => {
+  try {
+    const rawCache = window.localStorage.getItem(githubStarsCacheKey);
+    if (!rawCache) {
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    const parsedCache = JSON.parse(rawCache) as Partial<GithubStarsCache>;
+    if (
+      typeof parsedCache.stars !== "number" ||
+      typeof parsedCache.savedAt !== "number" ||
+      !Number.isFinite(parsedCache.stars) ||
+      !Number.isFinite(parsedCache.savedAt)
+    ) {
+      return null;
+    }
+
+    return {
+      stars: parsedCache.stars,
+      savedAt: parsedCache.savedAt,
+    };
+  } catch {
+    return null;
+  }
+};
+
+const updateGithubStars = async () => {
+  const cachedStars = readCachedGithubStars();
+  if (cachedStars) {
+    githubStars.value = formatGithubStars(cachedStars.stars);
+    if (Date.now() - cachedStars.savedAt < githubStarsCacheTtlMs) {
+      return;
+    }
+  }
+
+  try {
+    const response = await fetch(githubRepoApiUrl, {
+      headers: { Accept: "application/vnd.github+json" },
+    });
+    if (!response.ok) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    const repo = (await response.json()) as { stargazers_count?: unknown };
+    if (
+      typeof repo.stargazers_count !== "number" ||
+      !Number.isFinite(repo.stargazers_count)
+    ) {
+      return;
+    }
+
+    window.localStorage.setItem(
+      githubStarsCacheKey,
+      JSON.stringify({
+        stars: repo.stargazers_count,
+        savedAt: Date.now(),
+      } satisfies GithubStarsCache),
+    );
+    githubStars.value = formatGithubStars(repo.stargazers_count);
+  } catch {
+    // Keep the cached or bundled fallback count.
+  }
+};
+
 watchEffect(() => {
   if (typeof document === "undefined") {
     return;
@@ -25,6 +101,7 @@ watchEffect(() => {
 
 onMounted(() => {
   updateScrollClass();
+  void updateGithubStars();
   window.addEventListener("scroll", updateScrollClass, { passive: true });
 });