diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index ba53ac6..20b3c1d 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -45,11 +45,17 @@ MESHTENDER_TLS_CERT=./certs/dev.pem
 MESHTENDER_TLS_KEY=./certs/dev-key.pem
 
 # Outbound mail (Resend) — OPTIONAL, and used only for account recovery: verifying
-# an address a user added, and sending a password-reset link. Leave the API key
-# blank in dev: the server then LOGS each message (recipient, subject, full body)
-# instead of sending it, so the whole recovery flow is walkable from the terminal
-# with no provider, no verified domain, and no network. Recovery-by-email is hidden
-# in the UI while it's unset, rather than offering mail that would never arrive.
+# an address a user added, and sending a password-reset link.
+#
+# Two switches, deliberately separate:
+#   MAIL_FROM      turns the email FEATURE on (the account page's Email card, the
+#                  "Forgot password?" link). Unset ⇒ none of it is shown, so we never
+#                  offer recovery mail we couldn't deliver.
+#   RESEND_API_KEY turns real DELIVERY on. Without it — the dev default below — the
+#                  server LOGS each message (recipient, subject, full body) instead of
+#                  sending it, so the whole flow is walkable from the terminal with no
+#                  provider, no verified domain, and no network.
+MESHTENDER_MAIL_FROM=MeshTender <noreply@leighthaus.dev>
 #
 # Before setting a key in production:
 #   1. Add the sending domain in Resend and publish its SPF + DKIM records.
@@ -59,5 +65,4 @@ MESHTENDER_TLS_KEY=./certs/dev-key.pem
 # Free tier: 3,000 emails/month with a 100/day cap — the reset flow is rate limited
 # per IP and per address partly to stay inside that.
 # MESHTENDER_RESEND_API_KEY=
-# MESHTENDER_MAIL_FROM=MeshTender <noreply@example.com>
 # MESHTENDER_MAIL_REPLY_TO=
diff --git a/cmd/meshtender/main.go b/cmd/meshtender/main.go
index be075d2..287ced1 100644
--- a/cmd/meshtender/main.go
+++ b/cmd/meshtender/main.go
@@ -87,16 +87,18 @@ func run(logger *slog.Logger) error {
 	}
 	logger.Info("server identity ready", "pubkey", idSvc.PublicKeyHex())
 
-	// Outbound mail is optional. Without a provider the server logs messages
-	// instead of sending them, so account recovery is fully walkable in dev, and
-	// cfg.MailEnabled keeps the UI from offering mail that would never arrive.
+	// Delivery is keyed on the API key, not on cfg.MailEnabled: MailEnabled is the
+	// feature switch (is the email UI offered at all), while the key decides whether
+	// messages actually leave the process. Setting only MESHTENDER_MAIL_FROM is the
+	// dev configuration — the recovery flow is live and its links land in this log.
 	var sender mail.Sender
-	if cfg.MailEnabled {
+	if cfg.ResendAPIKey != "" {
 		sender = mail.NewResend(cfg.ResendAPIKey, cfg.MailFrom, cfg.MailReplyTo)
 		logger.Info("mail provider ready", "from", cfg.MailFrom)
 	} else {
 		sender = &mail.LogSender{Logger: logger}
-		logger.Warn("no mail provider configured — recovery messages will be logged, not sent")
+		logger.Warn("no mail provider configured — messages will be logged, not sent",
+			"email_features_offered", cfg.MailEnabled)
 	}
 
 	authSvc, err := auth.New(st, st.Pool(), auth.Config{
@@ -148,6 +150,9 @@ func run(logger *slog.Logger) error {
 		runJanitor(bgCtx, janitorInterval, logger,
 			janitorSweep{"auth codes", st.PruneAuthCodes},
 			janitorSweep{"share links", st.PruneInvites},
+			// Verification and reset links are deleted only when someone actually
+			// clicks one, so abandoned ones would otherwise pile up forever.
+			janitorSweep{"email tokens", st.PruneEmailTokens},
 			// A violation that stops recurring eventually ages out, so a fixed
 			// problem leaves the admin page on its own.
 			janitorSweep{"csp reports", func(ctx context.Context) (int64, error) {
diff --git a/internal/auth/account.go b/internal/auth/account.go
index bd99259..1c30e92 100644
--- a/internal/auth/account.go
+++ b/internal/auth/account.go
@@ -88,6 +88,15 @@ func (s *Handlers) renderAccount(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, uid int
 		"Platforms":   store.UserLinkPlatforms(),
 		"PlatformsJS": web.LinkPlatformsJS(store.UserLinkPlatforms()),
 		"HasPassword": u.PasswordHash != nil,
+		// Email state, rendered honestly rather than as a single "has email" flag:
+		// what an address does for this account depends on whether it's confirmed AND
+		// whether there's a password to reset (see store.User.CanResetPassword).
+		"Email":          u.Email, // nil when unset
+		"EmailVerified":  u.EmailVerified(),
+		"CanResetByMail": u.CanResetPassword(),
+		// False when no mail provider is configured, which hides the whole card:
+		// offering recovery we can't deliver is worse than not offering it.
+		"MailEnabled": s.Auth.MailEnabled(),
 		// Stated in the change-password form and used as minlength, so the client
 		// hint can't drift from the server's floor.
 		"MinPasswordLen": MinPasswordLen,
@@ -97,6 +106,8 @@ func (s *Handlers) renderAccount(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, uid int
 		"OK":             r.URL.Query().Get("ok"),
 		"PKMsg":          r.URL.Query().Get("pk"),
 		"PKErr":          r.URL.Query().Get("pkerr"),
+		"EmMsg":          r.URL.Query().Get(flashEmail),
+		"EmErr":          r.URL.Query().Get(flashEmailErr),
 	}
 	for k, v := range overrides {
 		data[k] = v
diff --git a/internal/auth/email.go b/internal/auth/email.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7ac0285
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/auth/email.go
@@ -0,0 +1,172 @@
+package auth
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"crypto/sha256"
+	"encoding/hex"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"log/slog"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/mail"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	mailer "github.com/jleight/meshtender/internal/mail"
+	"github.com/jleight/meshtender/internal/store"
+)
+
+// ErrTooManyEmails reports that an account has asked for more messages of one kind
+// than its budget allows. Surfaced to the user as "try again later" — the cap exists
+// so nobody can use us to flood a mailbox, and so a metered daily send quota can't
+// be drained by one account.
+var ErrTooManyEmails = errors.New("auth: too many email requests")
+
+// Per-account send budgets, counted over sendBudgetWindow. Both are generous for a
+// real person (a resend after a typo, a second attempt when the first mail is slow)
+// and useless for anyone trying to bury an inbox.
+const (
+	sendBudgetWindow = time.Hour
+	maxVerifySends   = 5
+	maxResetSends    = 3
+)
+
+// mailSendTimeout bounds the provider call a handler waits on.
+const mailSendTimeout = 15 * time.Second
+
+// MaxEmailLen bounds a stored address. RFC 5321 caps a path at 256 octets; this is
+// the same order and keeps an absurd paste out of the column and the mail body.
+const MaxEmailLen = 254
+
+// NormalizeEmailInput trims a submitted address. Case is preserved as typed — the
+// user sees their own capitalization back — while all comparison is
+// case-insensitive (store.NormalizeEmail).
+func NormalizeEmailInput(s string) string { return strings.TrimSpace(s) }
+
+// ValidEmail reports whether addr is a single, plausible address. It leans on
+// net/mail's parser rather than a hand-rolled regex, then rejects the display-name
+// form ("Someone <a@b>") that ParseAddress also accepts: we store a bare address,
+// and letting a display name through would put attacker-chosen text into a
+// To: header.
+func ValidEmail(addr string) bool {
+	if addr == "" || len(addr) > MaxEmailLen {
+		return false
+	}
+	parsed, err := mail.ParseAddress(addr)
+	if err != nil {
+		return false
+	}
+	return parsed.Name == "" && parsed.Address == addr
+}
+
+// SetAccountEmail stores a new address for the user and mails a confirmation link.
+// The address is unverified until that link is clicked, so nothing can be sent to it
+// beyond this one message.
+func (s *Service) SetAccountEmail(ctx context.Context, r *http.Request, userID int64, addr string) error {
+	if err := s.store.SetEmail(ctx, userID, addr); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	return s.SendEmailVerification(ctx, r, userID)
+}
+
+// SendEmailVerification mails a fresh confirmation link for the user's current
+// address. Used both when an address is first set and when the user asks for a
+// resend. A verified address is a no-op — there is nothing to confirm.
+func (s *Service) SendEmailVerification(ctx context.Context, r *http.Request, userID int64) error {
+	u, err := s.store.GetUserByID(ctx, userID)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if u.Email == nil || *u.Email == "" || u.EmailVerifiedAt != nil {
+		return nil
+	}
+	addr := *u.Email
+
+	n, err := s.store.CountRecentEmailTokens(ctx, userID, store.PurposeVerifyEmail, sendBudgetWindow)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	if n >= maxVerifySends {
+		return ErrTooManyEmails
+	}
+
+	token, err := s.store.CreateEmailToken(ctx, userID, store.PurposeVerifyEmail, addr, store.VerifyTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	link := s.authOrigin(r) + "/verify-email/" + token
+	return s.send(ctx, mailer.Message{
+		To:      addr,
+		Subject: "Confirm your email for MeshTender",
+		Kind:    mailer.KindVerifyEmail,
+		// Keyed on the token, so a double-submitted form can't mail twice.
+		IdempotencyKey: hashForIdempotency(token),
+		Text: fmt.Sprintf(`Hi %s,
+
+Confirm this address so it can be used to recover your MeshTender account:
+
+%s
+
+The link works once and expires in %s.
+
+If you didn't add this address to a MeshTender account, ignore this message —
+nothing will change, and the address won't be used for anything.
+`, atName(u), link, humanDuration(store.VerifyTokenTTL)),
+	})
+}
+
+// send delivers a message on a context detached from the request's.
+//
+// The token is already committed by the time we get here, so a visitor who closes
+// the tab mid-send must not abort delivery — that would leave a live token whose
+// link nobody ever received, and the user would have to start over for no visible
+// reason. The timeout keeps the detached call bounded.
+func (s *Service) send(ctx context.Context, m mailer.Message) error {
+	sendCtx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(context.WithoutCancel(ctx), mailSendTimeout)
+	defer cancel()
+	if err := s.mail.Send(sendCtx, m); err != nil {
+		// Logged here rather than only bubbling up, because the caller deliberately
+		// tells the user as little as possible (the reset flow must not confirm
+		// whether an address exists), and a quota wall is an operational problem the
+		// operator needs to see.
+		level := slog.LevelError
+		if errors.Is(err, mailer.ErrQuota) {
+			level = slog.LevelWarn
+		}
+		slog.Log(sendCtx, level, "mail send failed", "kind", string(m.Kind), "err", err)
+		return err
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+// hashForIdempotency derives the provider's de-duplication key from a token. The
+// token itself is already in the body we hand the provider, so this isn't about
+// secrecy — it's about not also placing a live credential in a header, which
+// providers log and retain on different terms than message bodies. Truncated
+// because collisions only matter across one account's in-flight sends.
+func hashForIdempotency(token string) string {
+	sum := sha256.Sum256([]byte("meshtender-idempotency:" + token))
+	return hex.EncodeToString(sum[:16])
+}
+
+// atName renders a user as "@username" for message bodies. Deliberately the
+// username, not the display name: it's what they type to sign in, and the reset mail
+// has to name accounts unambiguously when several share one address.
+func atName(u *store.User) string { return "@" + u.Username }
+
+// humanDuration renders a TTL the way copy should read it ("24 hours", "45
+// minutes"), so the stated shelf life can't drift from the constant that enforces it.
+func humanDuration(d time.Duration) string {
+	if d >= time.Hour {
+		h := int(d.Hours())
+		if h == 1 {
+			return "1 hour"
+		}
+		return fmt.Sprintf("%d hours", h)
+	}
+	m := int(d.Minutes())
+	if m == 1 {
+		return "1 minute"
+	}
+	return fmt.Sprintf("%d minutes", m)
+}
diff --git a/internal/auth/email_handlers.go b/internal/auth/email_handlers.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..ecc5d4d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/auth/email_handlers.go
@@ -0,0 +1,122 @@
+package auth
+
+import (
+	"errors"
+	"net/http"
+
+	"github.com/go-chi/chi/v5"
+
+	"github.com/jleight/meshtender/internal/store"
+	"github.com/jleight/meshtender/internal/web"
+)
+
+// Flash keys "em" (success) and "emerr" (failure) render inside the account page's
+// Email card rather than the top banner, so a message about an address stays next to
+// the controls that produced it — the same split the Passkeys card uses.
+const (
+	flashEmail    = "em"
+	flashEmailErr = "emerr"
+)
+
+// handleSetEmail stores or clears the account's email address.
+//
+// Setting an address always mails a confirmation link; until that link is clicked
+// the address is unverified and can't be used for recovery. Clearing is immediate
+// and takes any outstanding links with it.
+func (s *Handlers) handleSetEmail(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	ctx := r.Context()
+	uid := s.Auth.CurrentUserID(ctx)
+
+	if r.FormValue("remove") == "1" {
+		if err := s.Store.ClearEmail(ctx, uid); err != nil {
+			accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Could not remove your email address.")
+			return
+		}
+		accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmail, "Email address removed.")
+		return
+	}
+
+	addr := NormalizeEmailInput(r.FormValue("email"))
+	if !ValidEmail(addr) {
+		accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Enter a single email address, like you@example.com.")
+		return
+	}
+	if err := s.Auth.SetAccountEmail(ctx, r, uid, addr); err != nil {
+		// The address is stored either way — only the confirmation mail failed — so
+		// the message points at the resend button rather than implying nothing
+		// happened.
+		if errors.Is(err, ErrTooManyEmails) {
+			accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Too many confirmation emails requested. Try again in an hour.")
+			return
+		}
+		accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Saved your address, but the confirmation email could not be sent. Try resending it.")
+		return
+	}
+	accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmail, "Check "+addr+" for a link to confirm the address.")
+}
+
+// handleResendEmailVerification mails a fresh confirmation link for an address the
+// user has already saved.
+func (s *Handlers) handleResendEmailVerification(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	ctx := r.Context()
+	uid := s.Auth.CurrentUserID(ctx)
+
+	if err := s.Auth.SendEmailVerification(ctx, r, uid); err != nil {
+		if errors.Is(err, ErrTooManyEmails) {
+			accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Too many confirmation emails requested. Try again in an hour.")
+			return
+		}
+		accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmailErr, "Could not send the confirmation email. Try again shortly.")
+		return
+	}
+	accountRedirect(w, r, flashEmail, "Confirmation email sent.")
+}
+
+// handleVerifyEmail redeems a confirmation link.
+//
+// Registered without an authentication requirement on purpose: the link is opened
+// from a mailbox, which is often a different browser (or a phone) from the one that
+// added the address. The token is the proof, and it names exactly one account — so
+// requiring a session would only break the common case.
+func (s *Handlers) handleVerifyEmail(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
+	ctx := r.Context()
+	token := chi.URLParam(r, "token")
+
+	tok, ok, err := s.Store.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, store.PurposeVerifyEmail, token)
+	if err != nil {
+		s.ServerError(w, r, "could not verify email", err)
+		return
+	}
+	if !ok {
+		s.verifyResult(w, r, flashEmailErr, "That confirmation link is invalid or has expired. Sign in and send a new one.")
+		return
+	}
+	// Re-checked against the address the token was issued for, so a link minted for
+	// one address can't confirm a different one saved afterwards.
+	updated, err := s.Store.MarkEmailVerified(ctx, tok.UserID, tok.Email)
+	if err != nil {
+		s.ServerError(w, r, "could not verify email", err)
+		return
+	}
+	if !updated {
+		s.verifyResult(w, r, flashEmailErr, "That link was for a different address than the one on the account now. Send a new confirmation email.")
+		return
+	}
+	s.verifyResult(w, r, flashEmail, "Email confirmed. You can now reset your password by email if you ever need to.")
+}
+
+// verifyResult lands the visitor somewhere sensible after a verification attempt:
+// the account page when this browser is signed in (they can see the result in
+// context), otherwise the sign-in page, since the link may well have been opened on
+// a device with no session.
+func (s *Handlers) verifyResult(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request, key, msg string) {
+	if s.Auth.CurrentUserID(r.Context()) != 0 {
+		accountRedirect(w, r, key, msg)
+		return
+	}
+	loginKey := "ok"
+	if key == flashEmailErr {
+		loginKey = "error"
+	}
+	web.RedirectFlash(w, r, "/login", loginKey, msg)
+}
diff --git a/internal/auth/templates/account.html b/internal/auth/templates/account.html
index 69b7f90..9d2d3d9 100644
--- a/internal/auth/templates/account.html
+++ b/internal/auth/templates/account.html
@@ -53,6 +53,78 @@
   </div>
 </div>
 
+{{/* Email card. Hidden entirely when no mail provider is configured: an address we
+     can't send to would be a promise we can't keep. What the card SAYS depends on
+     three things — whether an address is set, whether it's confirmed, and whether
+     there's a password to reset — because a passkey-only account's address genuinely
+     can't recover it, and implying otherwise is the one thing worse than silence.
+
+     Placed here, with the account-identity fields, because that's where people look
+     for it — but it sits directly above the two PUBLIC cards, so the header carries
+     "(private)" the way Links carries "(public)". Position reads louder than body
+     copy, and an address nobody meant to publish is the one mistake worth this much
+     redundancy. */}}
+{{if .MailEnabled}}
+<div class="card mt-3">
+  <div class="card-header"><h2 class="card-title">Email <span class="text-secondary">(private)</span></h2></div>
+  <div class="card-body">
+    <p class="text-secondary">
+      Optional. Used to recover your account if you forget your password. It's never shown
+      on your public profile, and we only email you about your account — never marketing.
+    </p>
+    {{if .EmErr}}<div class="alert alert-danger">{{.EmErr}}</div>{{end}}
+    {{if .EmMsg}}<div class="alert alert-success">{{.EmMsg}}</div>{{end}}
+
+    {{if .Email}}
+    <div class="list-group list-group-flush mb-3">
+      <div class="list-group-item d-flex align-items-center gap-3 px-0">
+        <span class="text-secondary">{{template "icon-mail" ""}}</span>
+        <div class="flex-fill" style="min-width:0">
+          <div class="text-truncate">{{.Email}}</div>
+          <div class="text-secondary small">
+            {{if .EmailVerified}}
+              {{if .CanResetByMail}}
+              <span class="badge bg-success-lt">confirmed</span> You can reset your password by email.
+              {{else}}
+              <span class="badge bg-success-lt">confirmed</span>
+              This account has no password, so there's nothing to reset — sign-in is by passkey only.
+              To keep access if you lose your device, add a passkey on a second device in the Passkeys section below.
+              {{end}}
+            {{else}}
+            <span class="badge bg-yellow-lt">unconfirmed</span>
+            Check your inbox for the confirmation link. Until it's confirmed, this address can't recover your account.
+            {{end}}
+          </div>
+        </div>
+        {{if not .EmailVerified}}
+        <form method="post" action="/account/email/verify" class="m-0">
+          <button type="submit" class="btn btn-sm">Resend</button>
+        </form>
+        {{end}}
+        <form method="post" action="/account/email" class="m-0" data-confirm="Remove your email address? If you forget your password, it can't be reset without one.">
+          <input type="hidden" name="remove" value="1">
+          <button type="submit" class="btn btn-sm btn-ghost-danger">Remove</button>
+        </form>
+      </div>
+    </div>
+    {{end}}
+
+    <form method="post" action="/account/email">
+      <div class="row g-2 align-items-end">
+        <div class="col-sm">
+          <label class="form-label" for="email">{{if .Email}}Change address{{else}}Email address{{end}} <span class="form-label-description">optional</span></label>
+          <input type="email" class="form-control" id="email" name="email" autocomplete="email" autocapitalize="none" maxlength="254" placeholder="you@example.com" required>
+        </div>
+        <div class="col-sm-auto">
+          <button type="submit" class="btn btn-primary w-100">{{if .Email}}Save new address{{else}}Save address{{end}}</button>
+        </div>
+      </div>
+      <small class="form-hint mt-1">We'll send a confirmation link. A new address has to be confirmed before it can recover your account.</small>
+    </form>
+  </div>
+</div>
+{{end}}
+
 <div class="card mt-3">
   <div class="card-header"><h2 class="card-title">Time zone</h2></div>
   <div class="card-body">
@@ -249,7 +321,10 @@
         </form>
 
         {{if .HasPassword}}
-        <form method="post" action="/account/password" class="mt-3" data-confirm="Remove your password? You will only be able to sign in with a passkey.">
+        {{/* The confirm text names the recovery consequence, not just the sign-in one:
+             email reset only ever sets a password on an account that HAS one, so
+             removing it silently turns a working recovery path into a dead end. */}}
+        <form method="post" action="/account/password" class="mt-3" data-confirm="Remove your password? You'll sign in with a passkey only — and email recovery will no longer apply to this account, since there'd be no password to reset.">
           <input type="hidden" name="remove" value="1">
           <button type="submit" class="btn btn-ghost-danger">Remove password</button>
           <small class="form-hint mt-1">Only available if you have at least one passkey.</small>
diff --git a/internal/auth/web.go b/internal/auth/web.go
index a2e0e32..6374162 100644
--- a/internal/auth/web.go
+++ b/internal/auth/web.go
@@ -83,6 +83,8 @@ func (s *Handlers) Routes() chi.Router {
 			r.Post("/account/profile-fields", s.handleSetProfileFields)
 			r.Post("/account/links", s.handleSetUserLinks)
 			r.Post("/account/password", s.handleChangePassword)
+			r.Post("/account/email", s.handleSetEmail)
+			r.Post("/account/email/verify", s.handleResendEmailVerification)
 			r.Post("/account/passkeys/rename", s.handleRenamePasskey)
 			r.Post("/account/passkeys/delete", s.handleDeletePasskey)
 		})
@@ -100,6 +102,12 @@ func (s *Handlers) Routes() chi.Router {
 func (s *Handlers) credentialRoutes(r chi.Router) {
 	r.Get("/login", s.pageLogin)
 	r.Get("/signup", s.pageSignup)
+	// Confirming an email address is deliberately session-free: the link is opened
+	// from a mailbox, frequently on a different device than the one that added the
+	// address. The single-use token names the account, so a session would add nothing
+	// but a failure mode. It sits here (inside the session-loading group but outside
+	// RequireSSO) so the page chrome still renders signed-in-aware.
+	r.Get("/verify-email/{token}", s.handleVerifyEmail)
 	// Throttle credential submission per client IP to blunt password guessing
 	// and signup spam. Allows a burst (e.g. fat-fingered retries), then ~1 try
 	// every 6s; bcrypt's cost is the second line of defense.
diff --git a/internal/config/config.go b/internal/config/config.go
index 517d198..d299d5b 100644
--- a/internal/config/config.go
+++ b/internal/config/config.go
@@ -124,7 +124,12 @@ func Load() (*Config, error) {
 	if c.ResendAPIKey != "" && c.MailFrom == "" {
 		return nil, fmt.Errorf("MESHTENDER_MAIL_FROM is required when MESHTENDER_RESEND_API_KEY is set")
 	}
-	c.MailEnabled = c.ResendAPIKey != "" && c.MailFrom != ""
+	// MailFrom is the switch for the FEATURE; the API key is the switch for real
+	// DELIVERY. Keeping them separate is what makes the flow walkable in dev: set only
+	// MailFrom and the recovery UI is live while messages go to the log. Gating the
+	// feature on the API key instead would hide every email control locally, which
+	// would make the logging sender useless for the case it exists to serve.
+	c.MailEnabled = c.MailFrom != ""
 
 	// MeshTender runs across three hosts (auth + app + root). Require the two that
 	// have no sane default (PrimaryHost falls back to RPID above).
diff --git a/internal/config/config_test.go b/internal/config/config_test.go
index 11d8685..4d9929d 100644
--- a/internal/config/config_test.go
+++ b/internal/config/config_test.go
@@ -26,9 +26,8 @@ func validEnv(t *testing.T) {
 	t.Setenv("MESHTENDER_MAIL_REPLY_TO", "")
 }
 
-// TestLoadMailDisabledByDefault: no API key means no delivery path, and the flag
-// that gates the recovery-by-email UI must say so rather than the UI offering mail
-// that would never arrive.
+// TestLoadMailDisabledByDefault: with nothing configured there's no from-address, so
+// the recovery-by-email UI stays hidden rather than offering mail that can't be sent.
 func TestLoadMailDisabledByDefault(t *testing.T) {
 	validEnv(t)
 	c, err := Load()
@@ -36,7 +35,26 @@ func TestLoadMailDisabledByDefault(t *testing.T) {
 		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
 	}
 	if c.MailEnabled {
-		t.Fatal("MailEnabled = true with no API key configured")
+		t.Fatal("MailEnabled = true with nothing configured")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestLoadMailEnabledWithoutAPIKey is the dev path, and the reason the feature switch
+// and the delivery switch are separate: MAIL_FROM alone turns the recovery UI on
+// while messages go to the log. If this required an API key, none of the email UI
+// would be reachable locally and the logging sender would be useless.
+func TestLoadMailEnabledWithoutAPIKey(t *testing.T) {
+	validEnv(t)
+	t.Setenv("MESHTENDER_MAIL_FROM", "MeshTender <noreply@example.dev>")
+	c, err := Load()
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("Load: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !c.MailEnabled {
+		t.Error("MailEnabled = false with a from-address set")
+	}
+	if c.ResendAPIKey != "" {
+		t.Error("an API key appeared from nowhere")
 	}
 }
 
@@ -51,7 +69,7 @@ func TestLoadMailKeyWithoutFromFailsFast(t *testing.T) {
 	}
 }
 
-// TestLoadMailEnabled: both halves present ⇒ mail is on.
+// TestLoadMailEnabled: both halves present ⇒ mail is on and delivers for real.
 func TestLoadMailEnabled(t *testing.T) {
 	validEnv(t)
 	t.Setenv("MESHTENDER_RESEND_API_KEY", "re_live_key")
diff --git a/internal/core/email_recovery_test.go b/internal/core/email_recovery_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c2f5094
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/core/email_recovery_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,445 @@
+package core
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"io"
+	"net/http"
+	"net/http/cookiejar"
+	"net/http/httptest"
+	"net/url"
+	"regexp"
+	"strings"
+	"sync"
+	"testing"
+
+	"golang.org/x/crypto/bcrypt"
+
+	mailer "github.com/jleight/meshtender/internal/mail"
+)
+
+// Black-box coverage for the optional account email: setting it, confirming it, and
+// what the UI promises about it. The reset flow itself is covered separately.
+
+// fakeSender captures outbound mail instead of delivering it.
+type fakeSender struct {
+	mu   sync.Mutex
+	sent []mailer.Message
+}
+
+func (f *fakeSender) Send(_ context.Context, m mailer.Message) error {
+	f.mu.Lock()
+	defer f.mu.Unlock()
+	f.sent = append(f.sent, m)
+	return nil
+}
+
+func (f *fakeSender) count() int {
+	f.mu.Lock()
+	defer f.mu.Unlock()
+	return len(f.sent)
+}
+
+// last returns the most recent message, failing the test if nothing was sent.
+func (f *fakeSender) last(t *testing.T) mailer.Message {
+	t.Helper()
+	f.mu.Lock()
+	defer f.mu.Unlock()
+	if len(f.sent) == 0 {
+		t.Fatal("no mail was sent")
+	}
+	return f.sent[len(f.sent)-1]
+}
+
+func (f *fakeSender) reset() {
+	f.mu.Lock()
+	defer f.mu.Unlock()
+	f.sent = nil
+}
+
+// tokenPathRe pulls a token out of a link in a message body, so tests follow the
+// same URL a recipient would click rather than reaching into the store.
+var tokenPathRe = regexp.MustCompile(`https?://[^/\s]+(/(?:verify-email|reset)/[A-Za-z0-9_-]+)`)
+
+// linkPath extracts the first recovery link's path from a message body.
+func linkPath(t *testing.T, m mailer.Message) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	match := tokenPathRe.FindStringSubmatch(m.Text)
+	if match == nil {
+		t.Fatalf("no recovery link in message body:\n%s", m.Text)
+	}
+	return match[1]
+}
+
+// setEmail posts an address to the account page with the given SSO session.
+func setEmail(t *testing.T, ts *httptest.Server, h hostEnv, sso *http.Cookie, addr string) *http.Response {
+	t.Helper()
+	return post(t, ts, h.auth, "/account/email", url.Values{"email": {addr}}, sso)
+}
+
+// TestSetEmailStartsUnverifiedAndMailsLink: saving an address must not trust it.
+// Confirmation is what stops a typo from pointing recovery at a stranger's mailbox.
+func TestSetEmailStartsUnverifiedAndMailsLink(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "emailuser")
+
+	resp := setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "user@example.test")
+	resp.Body.Close()
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusSeeOther {
+		t.Fatalf("set email = %d, want 303", resp.StatusCode)
+	}
+
+	u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "emailuser")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if u.Email == nil || *u.Email != "user@example.test" {
+		t.Fatalf("stored email = %v", u.Email)
+	}
+	if u.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Error("address is verified straight from the form, with nothing proving the user owns it")
+	}
+
+	msg := sender.last(t)
+	if msg.Kind != mailer.KindVerifyEmail {
+		t.Errorf("Kind = %q, want %q", msg.Kind, mailer.KindVerifyEmail)
+	}
+	if msg.To != "user@example.test" {
+		t.Errorf("To = %q", msg.To)
+	}
+	if msg.IdempotencyKey == "" {
+		t.Error("no idempotency key, so a resubmitted form can mail the link twice")
+	}
+	// The raw token must not be reused as the provider-facing key.
+	if strings.Contains(msg.Text, msg.IdempotencyKey) {
+		t.Error("idempotency key is the token itself; it should be derived")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestVerifyEmailLinkConfirmsAddress walks the confirmation the way a recipient
+// does — following the link from the message body, with no session, since the
+// mailbox is usually open in another browser or on a phone.
+func TestVerifyEmailLinkConfirmsAddress(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "verifyuser")
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "verify@example.test").Body.Close()
+
+	path := linkPath(t, sender.last(t))
+	// No cookie: a link opened in a different browser must still work.
+	resp := do(t, ts, h.auth, path)
+	resp.Body.Close()
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusSeeOther {
+		t.Fatalf("verify = %d, want 303", resp.StatusCode)
+	}
+
+	u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "verifyuser")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !u.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Fatal("address still unverified after following the confirmation link")
+	}
+	if !u.CanResetPassword() {
+		t.Error("a password account with a confirmed address still can't be reset by email")
+	}
+
+	// Single-use: the same link must not confirm anything a second time.
+	again := do(t, ts, h.auth, path)
+	again.Body.Close()
+	loc, _ := url.Parse(again.Header.Get("Location"))
+	if loc.Query().Get("emerr") == "" && loc.Query().Get("error") == "" {
+		t.Error("a spent confirmation link reported success on replay")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestVerifyEmailRejectsGarbageToken: an unknown token is an invalid link, never a
+// server error and never a silent success.
+func TestVerifyEmailRejectsGarbageToken(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	_, _, ts, h, _ := splitServerMail(t)
+
+	resp := do(t, ts, h.auth, "/verify-email/not-a-real-token")
+	resp.Body.Close()
+	if resp.StatusCode != http.StatusSeeOther {
+		t.Fatalf("verify with garbage token = %d, want 303", resp.StatusCode)
+	}
+	loc, _ := url.Parse(resp.Header.Get("Location"))
+	if loc.Query().Get("emerr") == "" && loc.Query().Get("error") == "" {
+		t.Error("a bogus token produced no error message")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestStaleVerifyLinkCannotConfirmNewAddress closes the swap window: ask for a link
+// for one address, change the address, then click the old link. Without the
+// address re-check, the stale mail would confirm an address its recipient never
+// approved.
+func TestStaleVerifyLinkCannotConfirmNewAddress(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "swapuser")
+
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "first@example.test").Body.Close()
+	stale := linkPath(t, sender.last(t))
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "second@example.test").Body.Close()
+
+	resp := do(t, ts, h.auth, stale)
+	resp.Body.Close()
+
+	u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "swapuser")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if u.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Fatal("a link issued for the previous address confirmed the current one")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSetEmailRejectsBadAddresses: the stored value ends up in a To: header, so a
+// display-name form or a bare word must not get through.
+func TestSetEmailRejectsBadAddresses(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "badaddr")
+
+	for _, bad := range []string{
+		"",
+		"not-an-address",
+		"Someone <someone@example.test>", // display-name form
+		"a@example.test, b@example.test", // two addresses
+		"a@example.test\nBcc: victim@example.test", // header injection attempt
+	} {
+		resp := setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, bad)
+		resp.Body.Close()
+		loc, _ := url.Parse(resp.Header.Get("Location"))
+		if loc.Query().Get("emerr") == "" {
+			t.Errorf("address %q was accepted", bad)
+		}
+	}
+	u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "badaddr")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if u.Email != nil {
+		t.Errorf("stored email = %v after only invalid submissions", u.Email)
+	}
+	if sender.count() != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("%d messages sent for invalid addresses", sender.count())
+	}
+}
+
+// TestRemoveEmailIsImmediateAndKillsLinks: "optional" has to mean removable, and
+// removal must invalidate links already sitting in a mailbox the user may no longer
+// control.
+func TestRemoveEmailIsImmediateAndKillsLinks(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "removeuser")
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "gone@example.test").Body.Close()
+	stale := linkPath(t, sender.last(t))
+
+	resp := post(t, ts, h.auth, "/account/email", url.Values{"remove": {"1"}}, sso)
+	resp.Body.Close()
+
+	u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "removeuser")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if u.Email != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Email = %v after removal, want nil", u.Email)
+	}
+	// The outstanding confirmation link must be dead.
+	do(t, ts, h.auth, stale).Body.Close()
+	after, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "removeuser")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if after.Email != nil || after.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Error("a link from before removal resurrected the address")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestVerificationResendIsCapped: the per-account budget is what stops us being used
+// to bury someone's inbox (and stops one account draining a metered daily quota).
+func TestVerificationResendIsCapped(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	_, _, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "resenduser")
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "resend@example.test").Body.Close()
+	sender.reset()
+
+	var capped bool
+	// The first send already spent one token, so the budget runs out inside this loop.
+	for range 10 {
+		resp := post(t, ts, h.auth, "/account/email/verify", url.Values{}, sso)
+		resp.Body.Close()
+		loc, _ := url.Parse(resp.Header.Get("Location"))
+		if strings.Contains(strings.ToLower(loc.Query().Get("emerr")), "too many") {
+			capped = true
+			break
+		}
+	}
+	if !capped {
+		t.Fatal("resend was never capped; an account can mail its address without limit")
+	}
+	if sender.count() >= 10 {
+		t.Errorf("%d messages sent before the cap bit", sender.count())
+	}
+}
+
+// TestAccountPageStatesAreHonest is the anti-false-promise test. What the Email card
+// claims must match what the account can actually do — in particular, a passkey-only
+// account must be told plainly that its address cannot recover it, rather than being
+// shown reassuring copy that only applies to password holders.
+func TestAccountPageStatesAreHonest(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+
+	t.Run("password account with a confirmed address is told reset works", func(t *testing.T) {
+		sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "honest-pw")
+		setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "honest-pw@example.test").Body.Close()
+		do(t, ts, h.auth, linkPath(t, sender.last(t))).Body.Close()
+
+		page := authPageHTML(t, ts, h, "/account", sso)
+		if !strings.Contains(page, "reset your password by email") {
+			t.Error("a resettable account isn't told it can reset by email")
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("passkey-only account is told its address cannot recover it", func(t *testing.T) {
+		sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "honest-pk")
+		setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, "honest-pk@example.test").Body.Close()
+		do(t, ts, h.auth, linkPath(t, sender.last(t))).Body.Close()
+
+		u, err := st.GetUserByUsername(ctx, "honest-pk")
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+		}
+		// Drop the password directly: the UI route requires a passkey first, and this
+		// test is about the resulting state, not that guard.
+		if err := st.ClearPassword(ctx, u.ID); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("clear password: %v", err)
+		}
+
+		page := authPageHTML(t, ts, h, "/account", sso)
+		if !strings.Contains(page, "no password, so there's nothing to reset") {
+			t.Error("a passkey-only account isn't told its address can't recover it")
+		}
+		if strings.Contains(page, "You can reset your password by email") {
+			t.Error("a passkey-only account is promised email reset it will never get")
+		}
+	})
+}
+
+// TestEmailNeverAppearsOnPublicProfile: the address is recovery data, not profile
+// data. Leaking it on /u/{username} would publish something users gave us for one
+// narrow purpose.
+func TestEmailNeverAppearsOnPublicProfile(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	_, _, ts, h, sender := splitServerMail(t)
+	const addr = "private@example.test"
+	sso := authSSO(t, ts, h, "publicuser")
+	setEmail(t, ts, h, sso, addr).Body.Close()
+	do(t, ts, h.auth, linkPath(t, sender.last(t))).Body.Close()
+
+	for _, page := range []struct{ host, path string }{
+		{h.root, "/u/publicuser"},
+		{h.app, "/u/publicuser"},
+	} {
+		resp := do(t, ts, page.host, page.path)
+		body := readAll(t, resp)
+		if strings.Contains(body, addr) {
+			t.Errorf("%s%s leaks the account's email address", page.host, page.path)
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// TestRecoveryEmailChecklistStepTargetsPasswordUsers: the nudge is only meaningful
+// for accounts that can actually use it. Asking a passkey-only user for an address we
+// would never send a reset to is asking for data we can't use.
+func TestRecoveryEmailChecklistStepTargetsPasswordUsers(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, _ := splitServerMail(t)
+
+	t.Run("password user with no address sees the step", func(t *testing.T) {
+		jar := newJar(t)
+		u := seedSession(t, ts, st, ctx, jar, "checklist-pw")
+		if err := st.SetPassword(ctx, u.ID, testBcryptHash(t)); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("set password: %v", err)
+		}
+		page := dashboardHTML(t, ts, h.app, jar.Cookies(mustURL(t, ts.URL)))
+		if !strings.Contains(page, "Add a recovery email") {
+			t.Error("password account isn't nudged to add a recovery email")
+		}
+		if !strings.Contains(page, "Add email") {
+			t.Error("the step renders no CTA, so it reads as already satisfied")
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("passkey-only user is not asked", func(t *testing.T) {
+		jar := newJar(t)
+		seedSession(t, ts, st, ctx, jar, "checklist-pk") // no password
+		page := dashboardHTML(t, ts, h.app, jar.Cookies(mustURL(t, ts.URL)))
+		if strings.Contains(page, "Add a recovery email") {
+			t.Error("a passkey-only account is asked for an address that could never recover it")
+		}
+	})
+
+	t.Run("step is satisfied once the address is confirmed", func(t *testing.T) {
+		jar := newJar(t)
+		u := seedSession(t, ts, st, ctx, jar, "checklist-done")
+		if err := st.SetPassword(ctx, u.ID, testBcryptHash(t)); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("set password: %v", err)
+		}
+		if err := st.SetEmail(ctx, u.ID, "done@example.test"); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("set email: %v", err)
+		}
+		if ok, err := st.MarkEmailVerified(ctx, u.ID, "done@example.test"); err != nil || !ok {
+			t.Fatalf("mark verified: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+		}
+		page := dashboardHTML(t, ts, h.app, jar.Cookies(mustURL(t, ts.URL)))
+		if strings.Contains(page, "Add email") {
+			t.Error("the step still shows its CTA for someone with a confirmed address")
+		}
+	})
+
+}
+
+// authPageHTML fetches an auth-host page with the given session and returns its body.
+func authPageHTML(t *testing.T, ts *httptest.Server, h hostEnv, path string, sso *http.Cookie) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	resp := do(t, ts, h.auth, path, sso)
+	return readAll(t, resp)
+}
+
+// readAll drains and closes a response body.
+func readAll(t *testing.T, resp *http.Response) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	defer resp.Body.Close()
+	body, err := io.ReadAll(resp.Body)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("read body: %v", err)
+	}
+	return string(body)
+}
+
+// newJar returns a cookie jar for driving app-host sessions.
+func newJar(t *testing.T) *cookiejar.Jar {
+	t.Helper()
+	jar, err := cookiejar.New(nil)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("cookiejar: %v", err)
+	}
+	return jar
+}
+
+// testBcryptHash is a stored password hash for fixtures that only need "this account
+// has a password", without going through the sign-up form.
+func testBcryptHash(t *testing.T) string {
+	t.Helper()
+	h, err := bcrypt.GenerateFromPassword([]byte(testPassword), bcrypt.MinCost)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("bcrypt: %v", err)
+	}
+	return string(h)
+}
diff --git a/internal/core/handoff_test.go b/internal/core/handoff_test.go
index a30024f..6053d79 100644
--- a/internal/core/handoff_test.go
+++ b/internal/core/handoff_test.go
@@ -40,15 +40,27 @@ func TestFixturePasswordMeetsFloor(t *testing.T) {
 }
 
 func splitServer(t *testing.T) (*store.Store, context.Context, *httptest.Server, hostEnv) {
+	t.Helper()
+	st, ctx, ts, h, _ := splitServerMail(t)
+	return st, ctx, ts, h
+}
+
+// splitServerMail is splitServer plus the captured outbound mail. Every test server
+// gets a capturing sender (never a real provider, and never the log sender — which
+// would print recovery links into test output), with mail reported as configured so
+// the recovery UI is exercised rather than hidden.
+func splitServerMail(t *testing.T) (*store.Store, context.Context, *httptest.Server, hostEnv, *fakeSender) {
 	t.Helper()
 	st, ctx := coreStore(t)
 
 	masterKey := testMasterKey
 	idSvc, _ := identity.LoadOrCreate(ctx, st, masterKey)
+	sender := &fakeSender{}
 	authSvc, err := auth.New(st, st.Pool(), auth.Config{
 		RPID: "localhost", RPDisplayName: "test",
 		RPOrigins: []string{"http://auth.localhost", "http://app.localhost"},
 		AppHost:   testAppHost, AuthHost: testAuthHost, RootHost: testRootHost,
+		Mail: sender, MailEnabled: true,
 	})
 	if err != nil {
 		t.Fatalf("auth: %v", err)
@@ -61,7 +73,7 @@ func splitServer(t *testing.T) (*store.Store, context.Context, *httptest.Server,
 	t.Cleanup(ts.Close)
 	port := mustURL(t, ts.URL).Port()
 	hp := func(h string) string { return h + ":" + port }
-	return st, ctx, ts, hostEnv{auth: hp(testAuthHost), app: hp(testAppHost), root: hp(testRootHost), www: hp(testWWWHost)}
+	return st, ctx, ts, hostEnv{auth: hp(testAuthHost), app: hp(testAppHost), root: hp(testRootHost), www: hp(testWWWHost)}, sender
 }
 
 // seedSession creates a user and establishes an authenticated app-host session
diff --git a/internal/core/web.go b/internal/core/web.go
index 1703b92..e45c0c1 100644
--- a/internal/core/web.go
+++ b/internal/core/web.go
@@ -419,6 +419,20 @@ func (s *Handlers) pageDashboard(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 			Done:   len(orgs) > 0,
 		},
 	}
+	// Only password holders are nudged, and only while mail is configured. A
+	// passkey-only account genuinely gains no recovery from an address (reset sets a
+	// password on accounts that have one), so asking would be asking for data we
+	// can't use — the right advice for them is a second passkey, which the step
+	// above already covers.
+	if user.PasswordHash != nil && s.Auth.MailEnabled() {
+		steps = append(steps, onboardingStep{
+			Title:  "Add a recovery email",
+			Desc:   "Optional, but without one a forgotten password can't be reset.",
+			Action: "Add email",
+			Href:   s.Origin(r, s.Cfg.AuthHost) + "/account",
+			Done:   user.EmailVerified(),
+		})
+	}
 	// People listed publicly (org admins, public repeater owners/stewards) should
 	// give visitors a way to reach them. Only nudge those users, and only until
 	// they set a primary contact link.
diff --git a/internal/store/email.go b/internal/store/email.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6945abd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/store/email.go
@@ -0,0 +1,255 @@
+package store
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"crypto/sha256"
+	"encoding/hex"
+	"errors"
+	"fmt"
+	"strings"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/jackc/pgx/v5"
+)
+
+// TokenPurpose distinguishes the two emailed-token flows. It's filtered on at
+// redemption, so a verification link can never be replayed as a password reset.
+type TokenPurpose string
+
+const (
+	// PurposeVerifyEmail proves an address belongs to the account that set it.
+	PurposeVerifyEmail TokenPurpose = "verify"
+	// PurposeResetPassword authorizes setting a new password on one account.
+	PurposeResetPassword TokenPurpose = "reset"
+)
+
+// VerifyTokenTTL is how long an address-confirmation link stays usable. Generous:
+// people check mail hours later, and the worst case of a stale link is a resend.
+const VerifyTokenTTL = 24 * time.Hour
+
+// ResetTokenTTL is how long a password-reset link stays usable. Deliberately much
+// shorter than VerifyTokenTTL — this one is a live credential for taking over an
+// account, and the legitimate user acts on it within minutes of asking.
+const ResetTokenTTL = 45 * time.Minute
+
+// hashToken is the one-way transform applied before a token touches the database.
+// Only the hash is stored, so a leaked email_tokens table yields nothing
+// replayable. Hex of SHA-256: tokens are 256 bits of randomness from randomToken,
+// so there is no dictionary to attack and no salt/stretching needed.
+func hashToken(raw string) string {
+	sum := sha256.Sum256([]byte(raw))
+	return hex.EncodeToString(sum[:])
+}
+
+// NormalizeEmail trims an address and lowercases it for comparison.
+//
+// The local part is technically case-sensitive per RFC 5321, but no mail provider
+// in practice treats it that way, and someone typing "Me@Example.com" at the reset
+// form means the address they registered. Deliberately NOT doing Gmail-style dot or
+// +tag stripping: that's provider-specific, wrong elsewhere, and surprising.
+func NormalizeEmail(addr string) string {
+	return strings.ToLower(strings.TrimSpace(addr))
+}
+
+// SetEmail stores the account's address and marks it unverified, since the new
+// address hasn't been proven yet. Passing an empty address clears both columns.
+// Format validation is the caller's responsibility (see auth's mail.ParseAddress
+// check).
+func (s *Store) SetEmail(ctx context.Context, userID int64, addr string) error {
+	addr = strings.TrimSpace(addr)
+	if addr == "" {
+		return s.ClearEmail(ctx, userID)
+	}
+	_, err := s.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`UPDATE users SET email = $2, email_verified_at = NULL WHERE id = $1`,
+		userID, addr)
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("set email: %w", err)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+// ClearEmail removes the account's address. Outstanding tokens for it go too:
+// leaving a live reset link pointing at an address the user just disowned would
+// keep a mailbox they may no longer control able to take the account over.
+func (s *Store) ClearEmail(ctx context.Context, userID int64) error {
+	err := s.inTx(ctx, func(tx pgx.Tx) error {
+		if _, err := tx.Exec(ctx,
+			`UPDATE users SET email = NULL, email_verified_at = NULL WHERE id = $1`,
+			userID); err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("clear email: %w", err)
+		}
+		if _, err := tx.Exec(ctx, `DELETE FROM email_tokens WHERE user_id = $1`, userID); err != nil {
+			return fmt.Errorf("clear email tokens: %w", err)
+		}
+		return nil
+	})
+	return err
+}
+
+// MarkEmailVerified confirms the account's address, but only if it still matches
+// addr — the address the redeemed token was issued for. Someone who requests a link
+// for one address and then changes it to another must not have the old link confirm
+// the new one. Reports whether the row was updated.
+func (s *Store) MarkEmailVerified(ctx context.Context, userID int64, addr string) (bool, error) {
+	tag, err := s.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`UPDATE users SET email_verified_at = now()
+		 WHERE id = $1 AND email IS NOT NULL AND lower(email) = lower($2)`,
+		userID, addr)
+	if err != nil {
+		return false, fmt.Errorf("mark email verified: %w", err)
+	}
+	return tag.RowsAffected() > 0, nil
+}
+
+// CreateEmailToken mints a single-use token for userID and returns it in the clear
+// — the only time it exists outside the recipient's mailbox, since the database
+// keeps just its hash. addr records which address a verify token was issued for and
+// should be empty for a reset token.
+func (s *Store) CreateEmailToken(ctx context.Context, userID int64, purpose TokenPurpose, addr string, ttl time.Duration) (string, error) {
+	raw, err := randomToken()
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", err
+	}
+	var addrArg *string
+	if addr != "" {
+		addrArg = &addr
+	}
+	_, err = s.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`INSERT INTO email_tokens (user_id, purpose, token_hash, email, expires_at)
+		 VALUES ($1, $2, $3, $4, now() + $5)`,
+		userID, string(purpose), hashToken(raw), addrArg, ttl)
+	if err != nil {
+		return "", fmt.Errorf("create email token: %w", err)
+	}
+	return raw, nil
+}
+
+// EmailToken is a redeemed or inspected token.
+type EmailToken struct {
+	UserID int64
+	// Email is the address a verify token was issued for, "" for a reset token.
+	Email     string
+	ExpiresAt time.Time
+}
+
+// PeekEmailToken looks a token up without consuming it, so a GET can render a form
+// (and name the account it belongs to) while leaving the token spendable for the
+// POST that follows. ok is false when the token is unknown, expired, or of another
+// purpose — all of which the caller should treat as "invalid link", not an error.
+func (s *Store) PeekEmailToken(ctx context.Context, purpose TokenPurpose, raw string) (EmailToken, bool, error) {
+	var t EmailToken
+	var addr *string
+	err := s.pool.QueryRow(ctx,
+		`SELECT user_id, email, expires_at FROM email_tokens
+		 WHERE token_hash = $1 AND purpose = $2 AND expires_at > now()`,
+		hashToken(raw), string(purpose)).Scan(&t.UserID, &addr, &t.ExpiresAt)
+	if errors.Is(err, pgx.ErrNoRows) {
+		return EmailToken{}, false, nil
+	}
+	if err != nil {
+		return EmailToken{}, false, fmt.Errorf("peek email token: %w", err)
+	}
+	if addr != nil {
+		t.Email = *addr
+	}
+	return t, true, nil
+}
+
+// ConsumeEmailToken atomically redeems a token, deleting it so it can be spent
+// exactly once (the DELETE … RETURNING pattern the login handoff uses). ok is false
+// when the token is unknown, expired, already spent, or of another purpose — an
+// auth failure for the caller to report generically, not an error.
+func (s *Store) ConsumeEmailToken(ctx context.Context, purpose TokenPurpose, raw string) (EmailToken, bool, error) {
+	var t EmailToken
+	var addr *string
+	err := s.pool.QueryRow(ctx,
+		`DELETE FROM email_tokens
+		 WHERE token_hash = $1 AND purpose = $2 AND expires_at > now()
+		 RETURNING user_id, email, expires_at`,
+		hashToken(raw), string(purpose)).Scan(&t.UserID, &addr, &t.ExpiresAt)
+	if errors.Is(err, pgx.ErrNoRows) {
+		return EmailToken{}, false, nil
+	}
+	if err != nil {
+		return EmailToken{}, false, fmt.Errorf("consume email token: %w", err)
+	}
+	if addr != nil {
+		t.Email = *addr
+	}
+	return t, true, nil
+}
+
+// DeleteEmailTokens drops every outstanding token of one purpose for a user. Called
+// after a successful reset so the other links from the same request (or from an
+// earlier one) die with the password they were minted to change.
+func (s *Store) DeleteEmailTokens(ctx context.Context, userID int64, purpose TokenPurpose) error {
+	_, err := s.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`DELETE FROM email_tokens WHERE user_id = $1 AND purpose = $2`, userID, string(purpose))
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("delete email tokens: %w", err)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+// CountRecentEmailTokens reports how many tokens of one purpose were minted for a
+// user within window. It backs the per-account cap: without it, anyone who knows an
+// address could have us mail its owner repeatedly, and a metered daily send quota
+// would be trivial to exhaust.
+func (s *Store) CountRecentEmailTokens(ctx context.Context, userID int64, purpose TokenPurpose, window time.Duration) (int, error) {
+	var n int
+	err := s.pool.QueryRow(ctx,
+		`SELECT count(*) FROM email_tokens
+		 WHERE user_id = $1 AND purpose = $2 AND created_at > now() - $3::interval`,
+		userID, string(purpose), window).Scan(&n)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, fmt.Errorf("count recent email tokens: %w", err)
+	}
+	return n, nil
+}
+
+// FindUsersByVerifiedEmail returns every account holding addr as a VERIFIED
+// address, matched case-insensitively.
+//
+// It returns a slice rather than one user because the address column is
+// deliberately not unique (see migration 0043): one person may run a personal and
+// an ops account on the same mailbox. The caller mails one message listing each
+// match with its own link — a token names exactly one account, so which account to
+// reset is never ambiguous. An unknown address yields an empty slice, not
+// ErrNotFound: "no accounts here" is an ordinary outcome the caller must not
+// distinguish to the visitor.
+func (s *Store) FindUsersByVerifiedEmail(ctx context.Context, addr string) ([]*User, error) {
+	rows, err := s.pool.Query(ctx,
+		`SELECT `+userCols+` FROM users
+		 WHERE email IS NOT NULL AND email_verified_at IS NOT NULL AND lower(email) = lower($1)
+		 ORDER BY username`,
+		NormalizeEmail(addr))
+	if err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("find users by email: %w", err)
+	}
+	defer rows.Close()
+	var out []*User
+	for rows.Next() {
+		u, err := scanUser(rows)
+		if err != nil {
+			return nil, fmt.Errorf("scan user by email: %w", err)
+		}
+		out = append(out, u)
+	}
+	if err := rows.Err(); err != nil {
+		return nil, fmt.Errorf("find users by email: %w", err)
+	}
+	return out, nil
+}
+
+// PruneEmailTokens deletes tokens whose expiry has passed, returning how many went.
+// Redemption only removes tokens that are actually spent, so without this the
+// abandoned ones accumulate forever — each holding a user_id and, for verify
+// tokens, an address. Index-assisted by email_tokens_expiry_idx.
+func (s *Store) PruneEmailTokens(ctx context.Context) (int64, error) {
+	tag, err := s.pool.Exec(ctx, `DELETE FROM email_tokens WHERE expires_at < now()`)
+	if err != nil {
+		return 0, fmt.Errorf("prune email tokens: %w", err)
+	}
+	return tag.RowsAffected(), nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/store/email_test.go b/internal/store/email_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..f47b0e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/store/email_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,505 @@
+package store
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+)
+
+// emailTestStore returns a Store on a fresh, throwaway database (see internal/testdb).
+func emailTestStore(t *testing.T) (*Store, context.Context) {
+	t.Helper()
+	return orgTestStore(t)
+}
+
+// mkUser creates a user, optionally with a password hash and a verified address.
+func mkUser(t *testing.T, st *Store, ctx context.Context, name, addr string, verified, withPassword bool) *User {
+	t.Helper()
+	u, err := st.CreateUser(ctx, name, "")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create user %q: %v", name, err)
+	}
+	if withPassword {
+		if err := st.SetPassword(ctx, u.ID, "$2a$10$notarealhashjustplaceholdervalue000000000000000000000"); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("set password: %v", err)
+		}
+	}
+	if addr != "" {
+		if err := st.SetEmail(ctx, u.ID, addr); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("set email: %v", err)
+		}
+		if verified {
+			ok, err := st.MarkEmailVerified(ctx, u.ID, addr)
+			if err != nil || !ok {
+				t.Fatalf("mark verified: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	reloaded, err := st.GetUserByID(ctx, u.ID)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("reload user: %v", err)
+	}
+	return reloaded
+}
+
+// expireToken backdates a token so it reads as just-lapsed, without waiting out the
+// real TTL.
+func expireToken(t *testing.T, st *Store, ctx context.Context, raw string) {
+	t.Helper()
+	if _, err := st.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`UPDATE email_tokens SET expires_at = now() - interval '1 minute' WHERE token_hash = $1`,
+		hashToken(raw)); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("expire token: %v", err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestSetEmailStartsUnverified: a newly-set address is never trusted on the word of
+// whoever typed it. If it were, a typo would silently point recovery at a stranger's
+// mailbox — or nobody's.
+func TestSetEmailStartsUnverified(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", false, true)
+
+	if u.Email == nil || *u.Email != "alice@example.test" {
+		t.Fatalf("Email = %v, want alice@example.test", u.Email)
+	}
+	if u.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Error("EmailVerified() = true for a freshly set address")
+	}
+	if u.CanResetPassword() {
+		t.Error("CanResetPassword() = true on an unverified address")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestChangingEmailRevokesVerification: an address that was verified, then replaced,
+// must go back to unverified — otherwise typing a new address would inherit the old
+// one's trust and immediately be able to receive reset links.
+func TestChangingEmailRevokesVerification(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+	if !u.CanResetPassword() {
+		t.Fatal("precondition: verified address with a password should be resettable")
+	}
+
+	if err := st.SetEmail(ctx, u.ID, "attacker@example.test"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("set email: %v", err)
+	}
+	after, err := st.GetUserByID(ctx, u.ID)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if after.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Error("EmailVerified() = true after the address changed")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestMarkEmailVerifiedRequiresMatchingAddress closes the swap window: request a
+// link for address A, change the address to B, then click the old link. The stale
+// link must not confirm B.
+func TestMarkEmailVerifiedRequiresMatchingAddress(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", false, true)
+
+	if err := st.SetEmail(ctx, u.ID, "second@example.test"); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("set email: %v", err)
+	}
+	// The old link was issued for the first address.
+	ok, err := st.MarkEmailVerified(ctx, u.ID, "alice@example.test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("mark verified: %v", err)
+	}
+	if ok {
+		t.Error("a link issued for the previous address verified the current one")
+	}
+	after, err := st.GetUserByID(ctx, u.ID)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if after.EmailVerified() {
+		t.Error("address ended up verified")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestMarkEmailVerifiedIsCaseInsensitive: mail providers don't distinguish case, so
+// a link issued for "Alice@Example.test" must confirm the stored "alice@example.test".
+func TestMarkEmailVerifiedIsCaseInsensitive(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", false, true)
+
+	ok, err := st.MarkEmailVerified(ctx, u.ID, "Alice@Example.TEST")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("mark verified: %v", err)
+	}
+	if !ok {
+		t.Fatal("case-differing address failed to verify")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestConsumeEmailTokenSingleUse: a reset link is a credential, so redeeming it must
+// spend it. A replayable link means a leaked mailbox archive stays dangerous forever.
+func TestConsumeEmailTokenSingleUse(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	tok, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw)
+	if err != nil || !ok {
+		t.Fatalf("first consume: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+	if tok.UserID != u.ID {
+		t.Errorf("UserID = %d, want %d", tok.UserID, u.ID)
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); err != nil || ok {
+		t.Errorf("second consume: ok=%v err=%v, want ok=false", ok, err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestPeekEmailTokenDoesNotConsume: the GET that renders the reset form must leave
+// the token spendable for the POST that follows, or every link would die on being
+// opened (and mail clients that prefetch links would burn them sight unseen).
+func TestPeekEmailTokenDoesNotConsume(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	for i := range 2 {
+		tok, ok, err := st.PeekEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw)
+		if err != nil || !ok {
+			t.Fatalf("peek %d: ok=%v err=%v", i, ok, err)
+		}
+		if tok.UserID != u.ID {
+			t.Errorf("peek %d: UserID = %d, want %d", i, tok.UserID, u.ID)
+		}
+	}
+	if _, ok, _ := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); !ok {
+		t.Error("token was not spendable after being peeked")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestEmailTokenPurposeIsolation: a verification link must not be redeemable as a
+// password reset. Without the purpose filter, the low-value token (mailed to an
+// unverified, possibly mistyped address) would authorize taking over the account.
+func TestEmailTokenPurposeIsolation(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", false, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeVerifyEmail, "alice@example.test", VerifyTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); err != nil || ok {
+		t.Errorf("verify token redeemed as a reset: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+	// Still good for what it was minted for.
+	if _, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeVerifyEmail, raw); err != nil || !ok {
+		t.Errorf("verify token failed for its own purpose: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestConsumeEmailTokenRejectsExpired: the short reset TTL is only real if expiry is
+// enforced at redemption, not merely displayed.
+func TestConsumeEmailTokenRejectsExpired(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	expireToken(t, st, ctx, raw)
+
+	if _, ok, err := st.PeekEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); err != nil || ok {
+		t.Errorf("peek of expired token: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); err != nil || ok {
+		t.Errorf("consume of expired token: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestEmailTokensStoreNoPlaintext: the point of hashing. If the raw token were
+// stored, a leaked table would be a pile of live account-takeover links.
+func TestEmailTokensStoreNoPlaintext(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	var n int
+	if err := st.pool.QueryRow(ctx,
+		`SELECT count(*) FROM email_tokens WHERE token_hash = $1`, raw).Scan(&n); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("query: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 0 {
+		t.Error("the raw token is stored in token_hash")
+	}
+	if err := st.pool.QueryRow(ctx,
+		`SELECT count(*) FROM email_tokens WHERE token_hash = $1`, hashToken(raw)).Scan(&n); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("query: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("hashed token rows = %d, want 1", n)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailFanout: the address column is deliberately not unique
+// (one person, a personal plus an ops account), so a lookup must return every match.
+// Dropping any of them would make one account silently unrecoverable.
+func TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailFanout(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	const addr = "jon@example.test"
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "jleight", addr, true, true)
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "meshtender-ops", addr, true, true)
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "someone-else", "other@example.test", true, true)
+
+	found, err := st.FindUsersByVerifiedEmail(ctx, addr)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("find: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(found) != 2 {
+		t.Fatalf("found %d accounts, want 2", len(found))
+	}
+	if found[0].Username != "jleight" || found[1].Username != "meshtender-ops" {
+		t.Errorf("usernames = %q/%q", found[0].Username, found[1].Username)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailIgnoresUnverified: an address nobody has proven must
+// never receive recovery mail — that's what makes a typo (or an address someone
+// else owns) harmless.
+func TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailIgnoresUnverified(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "shared@example.test", false, true)
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "bob", "shared@example.test", true, true)
+
+	found, err := st.FindUsersByVerifiedEmail(ctx, "shared@example.test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("find: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(found) != 1 || found[0].Username != "bob" {
+		t.Fatalf("found %d accounts (%v), want only bob", len(found), usernames(found))
+	}
+}
+
+// TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailCaseInsensitive: people type their address however
+// they remember it. A case-sensitive lookup would tell a legitimate user "no
+// account here" and leave them stuck.
+func TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailCaseInsensitive(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "Alice@Example.test", true, true)
+
+	for _, probe := range []string{"alice@example.test", "ALICE@EXAMPLE.TEST", "  Alice@Example.test  "} {
+		found, err := st.FindUsersByVerifiedEmail(ctx, probe)
+		if err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("find %q: %v", probe, err)
+		}
+		if len(found) != 1 {
+			t.Errorf("find %q returned %d accounts, want 1", probe, len(found))
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailUnknownIsEmpty: an unknown address is an ordinary
+// outcome, not an error — the caller must not be able to tell it apart from a hit
+// when reporting to the visitor.
+func TestFindUsersByVerifiedEmailUnknownIsEmpty(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+
+	found, err := st.FindUsersByVerifiedEmail(ctx, "nobody@example.test")
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("find: %v", err)
+	}
+	if len(found) != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("found %d accounts, want 0", len(found))
+	}
+}
+
+// TestCanResetPasswordRequiresPassword is the regression test for the rule that
+// keeps a passkey-only account's security floor off the mailbox: email recovery only
+// ever sets a password on an account that already has one. Relaxing this quietly
+// would demote the strongest accounts to whoever controls the inbox.
+func TestCanResetPasswordRequiresPassword(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	passkeyOnly := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "passkey-only", "pk@example.test", true, false)
+	withPassword := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "has-password", "pw@example.test", true, true)
+
+	if passkeyOnly.CanResetPassword() {
+		t.Error("a passkey-only account reports itself resettable by email")
+	}
+	if !withPassword.CanResetPassword() {
+		t.Error("a password account with a verified address is not resettable")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestClearEmailDropsOutstandingTokens: disowning an address must kill links already
+// sent to it, or a mailbox the user no longer controls keeps a live way in.
+func TestClearEmailDropsOutstandingTokens(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	raw, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	if err := st.ClearEmail(ctx, u.ID); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("clear email: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, ok, err := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, raw); err != nil || ok {
+		t.Errorf("token still live after the address was cleared: ok=%v err=%v", ok, err)
+	}
+	after, err := st.GetUserByID(ctx, u.ID)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("get user: %v", err)
+	}
+	if after.Email != nil {
+		t.Errorf("Email = %v after clear, want nil", after.Email)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestDeleteEmailTokensScopedToPurpose: a completed reset invalidates the other
+// reset links from that request, but must not sweep away an unrelated pending
+// address verification.
+func TestDeleteEmailTokensScopedToPurpose(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	reset, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create reset token: %v", err)
+	}
+	verify, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeVerifyEmail, "alice@example.test", VerifyTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create verify token: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if err := st.DeleteEmailTokens(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("delete: %v", err)
+	}
+	if _, ok, _ := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, reset); ok {
+		t.Error("reset token survived")
+	}
+	if _, ok, _ := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeVerifyEmail, verify); !ok {
+		t.Error("verification token was swept away with the reset tokens")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestCountRecentEmailTokens backs the per-account cap that keeps us from being used
+// to flood someone's inbox. Only tokens inside the window count.
+func TestCountRecentEmailTokens(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	for range 3 {
+		if _, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL); err != nil {
+			t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+		}
+	}
+	// A verify token must not count against the reset budget.
+	if _, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeVerifyEmail, "alice@example.test", VerifyTokenTTL); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create verify token: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	n, err := st.CountRecentEmailTokens(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, time.Hour)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("count: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 3 {
+		t.Errorf("count = %d, want 3", n)
+	}
+
+	// Backdate them out of the window; the budget refills.
+	if _, err := st.pool.Exec(ctx,
+		`UPDATE email_tokens SET created_at = now() - interval '2 hours' WHERE user_id = $1`, u.ID); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("backdate: %v", err)
+	}
+	n, err = st.CountRecentEmailTokens(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, time.Hour)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("count: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("count after backdating = %d, want 0", n)
+	}
+}
+
+// TestPruneEmailTokens: redemption only deletes tokens someone actually clicked, so
+// the janitor is the only thing keeping abandoned ones from accumulating forever.
+func TestPruneEmailTokens(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+
+	stale, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	live, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+	expireToken(t, st, ctx, stale)
+
+	n, err := st.PruneEmailTokens(ctx)
+	if err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("prune: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 1 {
+		t.Errorf("pruned %d, want 1", n)
+	}
+	if _, ok, _ := st.ConsumeEmailToken(ctx, PurposeResetPassword, live); !ok {
+		t.Error("prune took an unexpired token")
+	}
+}
+
+// TestUserDeletionCascadesEmailTokens: the tokens reference users, so removing an
+// account (the --reset sweep today, account deletion later) must not leave orphans.
+func TestUserDeletionCascadesEmailTokens(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	st, ctx := emailTestStore(t)
+	u := mkUser(t, st, ctx, "alice", "alice@example.test", true, true)
+	if _, err := st.CreateEmailToken(ctx, u.ID, PurposeResetPassword, "", ResetTokenTTL); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("create token: %v", err)
+	}
+
+	if _, err := st.pool.Exec(ctx, `DELETE FROM users WHERE id = $1`, u.ID); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("delete user: %v", err)
+	}
+	var n int
+	if err := st.pool.QueryRow(ctx, `SELECT count(*) FROM email_tokens WHERE user_id = $1`, u.ID).Scan(&n); err != nil {
+		t.Fatalf("count: %v", err)
+	}
+	if n != 0 {
+		t.Errorf("%d orphaned tokens remain", n)
+	}
+}
+
+func usernames(us []*User) []string {
+	out := make([]string, 0, len(us))
+	for _, u := range us {
+		out = append(out, u.Username)
+	}
+	return out
+}
diff --git a/internal/store/migrations/0043_account_email.sql b/internal/store/migrations/0043_account_email.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8995c70
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/store/migrations/0043_account_email.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,65 @@
+-- +goose Up
+-- Optional account email, plus the single-use emailed tokens that make account
+-- recovery possible. Before this, a user who signed up with a password and forgot
+-- it was locked out permanently (audit finding B1).
+--
+-- The address is OPTIONAL and stays that way: signup never asks for one, nothing
+-- is gated on having one, and clearing it is one click. Recovery is its only use
+-- today; security notifications (a passkey was added, an invite was accepted) are
+-- expected later, which is why nothing here is named "recovery_email".
+ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN email TEXT;
+
+-- NULL means the address is unconfirmed — set but not yet proven to belong to the
+-- account. Only a verified address can receive recovery mail, so a typo can't
+-- silently redirect someone's reset link (or mail a stranger).
+ALTER TABLE users ADD COLUMN email_verified_at TIMESTAMPTZ;
+
+-- Deliberately NOT unique. Two reasons:
+--   1. A unique constraint turns account creation into an email-enumeration
+--      oracle ("that address is already in use" tells an attacker who's here).
+--   2. One person legitimately runs several accounts on one address — a personal
+--      one plus a club/ops one. The reset flow handles the fan-out by listing each
+--      account with its own link, so ambiguity is presentational, never a question
+--      of which account a token belongs to (a token names exactly one user).
+--
+-- Partial + functional: the reset lookup is always a case-insensitive match against
+-- a VERIFIED address, so the index covers exactly that and stays off the rows
+-- (unverified, or no address at all) it would never serve.
+CREATE INDEX users_email_lower_verified_idx ON users (lower(email))
+    WHERE email IS NOT NULL AND email_verified_at IS NOT NULL;
+
+-- One table for both emailed-token flows. They're the same primitive — a
+-- single-use token bound to a user with a TTL — so they share one consume path and
+-- one prune sweep rather than duplicating both.
+CREATE TABLE email_tokens (
+    id BIGSERIAL PRIMARY KEY,
+    user_id BIGINT NOT NULL REFERENCES users (id) ON DELETE CASCADE,
+    -- 'verify' proves an address belongs to the account; 'reset' authorizes setting
+    -- a new password. Filtered on at consume time, so a verification link can never
+    -- be replayed as a password reset.
+    purpose TEXT NOT NULL CHECK (purpose IN ('verify', 'reset')),
+    -- The SHA-256 of the token, never the token itself. Unlike repeater_invites
+    -- (which stores its token raw), these land in a mailbox and authorize taking
+    -- over an account, so a database leak must not hand over live credentials.
+    token_hash TEXT NOT NULL UNIQUE,
+    -- The address a 'verify' token was issued for, re-checked on redemption so a
+    -- link minted for one address can't confirm a different one the user typed
+    -- afterwards. NULL for 'reset' (which targets the account, not an address).
+    email TEXT,
+    expires_at TIMESTAMPTZ NOT NULL,
+    created_at TIMESTAMPTZ NOT NULL DEFAULT now()
+);
+
+-- The janitor sweep deletes by expiry. Redemption deletes the row it consumes, so
+-- without this the abandoned ones would accumulate forever.
+CREATE INDEX email_tokens_expiry_idx ON email_tokens (expires_at);
+
+-- Per-account throttling counts a user's recent tokens of one purpose, so nobody
+-- can be used to flood someone else's inbox (or burn a metered daily send quota).
+CREATE INDEX email_tokens_user_purpose_idx ON email_tokens (user_id, purpose, created_at DESC);
+
+-- +goose Down
+DROP TABLE email_tokens;
+DROP INDEX users_email_lower_verified_idx;
+ALTER TABLE users DROP COLUMN email_verified_at;
+ALTER TABLE users DROP COLUMN email;
diff --git a/internal/store/users.go b/internal/store/users.go
index adaacdd..53bd15f 100644
--- a/internal/store/users.go
+++ b/internal/store/users.go
@@ -33,6 +33,13 @@ type User struct {
 	// Timezone is the user's preferred IANA zone name (e.g. "America/New_York")
 	// for date/time display, or "" when unset (the browser auto-detects).
 	Timezone string
+	// Email is the account's optional email address, nil when unset. It is never
+	// public — it exists for account recovery (and, later, security notices) and
+	// must not be rendered on any page but the owner's own account settings.
+	// EmailVerifiedAt is nil until the address has been confirmed; only a verified
+	// address receives mail.
+	Email           *string
+	EmailVerifiedAt *time.Time
 	// Instance-level capability flags.
 	CapManageUsers   bool
 	CapManageCatalog bool
@@ -50,17 +57,36 @@ func (u *User) Name() string {
 	return u.Username
 }
 
-const userCols = `id, username, display_name, password_hash, bio, location, callsign, timezone, cap_manage_users, cap_manage_catalog, last_login_at, created_at`
+const userCols = `id, username, display_name, password_hash, bio, location, callsign, timezone, email, email_verified_at, cap_manage_users, cap_manage_catalog, last_login_at, created_at`
 
 func scanUser(row pgx.Row) (*User, error) {
 	var u User
 	if err := row.Scan(&u.ID, &u.Username, &u.DisplayName, &u.PasswordHash,
-		&u.Bio, &u.Location, &u.Callsign, &u.Timezone, &u.CapManageUsers, &u.CapManageCatalog, &u.LastLoginAt, &u.CreatedAt); err != nil {
+		&u.Bio, &u.Location, &u.Callsign, &u.Timezone, &u.Email, &u.EmailVerifiedAt,
+		&u.CapManageUsers, &u.CapManageCatalog, &u.LastLoginAt, &u.CreatedAt); err != nil {
 		return nil, err
 	}
 	return &u, nil
 }
 
+// EmailVerified reports whether the account has a confirmed address — the
+// precondition for sending it anything.
+func (u *User) EmailVerified() bool {
+	return u.Email != nil && *u.Email != "" && u.EmailVerifiedAt != nil
+}
+
+// CanResetPassword reports whether this account can be recovered by email.
+//
+// Both halves are required, and the password half is the load-bearing one: reset
+// only ever SETS a password on an account that already has one. A passkey-only
+// account is deliberately not recoverable this way — allowing it would silently
+// demote a phishing-resistant credential to "whoever controls the mailbox", which
+// is the opposite of why someone chose a passkey. Such users are pointed at adding
+// a second passkey instead.
+func (u *User) CanResetPassword() bool {
+	return u.PasswordHash != nil && u.EmailVerified()
+}
+
 // TouchLastLogin stamps the user's most recent sign-in time. Best-effort
 // telemetry — callers should not fail a login if this errors.
 func (s *Store) TouchLastLogin(ctx context.Context, userID int64) error {