diff --git a/CONTRIBUTING.md b/CONTRIBUTING.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0500d36
--- /dev/null
+++ b/CONTRIBUTING.md
@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+# Contributing
+
+This guide covers local development for `posit-cli`. End-user installation and CLI usage are documented in [README.md](README.md).
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+Install these tools before starting:
+
+- Git
+- Python 3.8 or newer
+- [uv](https://docs.astral.sh/uv/)
+- [just](https://github.com/casey/just)
+
+The project uses uv for dependency management and virtual environments. The supported Python versions are 3.8 through 3.14, which are tested in CI.
+
+## Set Up
+
+Clone the repository and change into its directory:
+
+```console
+git clone https://github.com/posit-dev/posit-cli.git
+cd posit-cli
+```
+
+Sync the project, test, and lint dependencies:
+
+```console
+just deps
+```
+
+This runs `uv sync --all-extras`, using `uv.lock` to create or update the project environment in `.venv`. You do not need to activate `.venv` when using the `just` recipes.
+
+To put an editable `posit` command on your `PATH`, run:
+
+```console
+just dev
+posit --help
+```
+
+`just dev` installs the checkout as an editable uv tool. Changes to the source are therefore available through `posit` without rebuilding or reinstalling the package. If the command is not found, add the directory printed by `uv tool dir --bin` to your `PATH`, or run `uv tool update-shell`.
+
+## Common Commands
+
+Run these commands from the repository root:
+
+| Command | Purpose |
+| --- | --- |
+| `just deps` | Sync runtime, test, and lint dependencies from `uv.lock`. |
+| `just dev` | Install the checkout as an editable uv tool. |
+| `just test` | Run tests against Python 3.13. |
+| `just test 3.8` | Run tests against a specific Python version. |
+| `just lint` | Check formatting and run Ruff. |
+| `just fmt` | Format files and apply Ruff fixes. |
+| `just build` | Build the wheel and source distribution in `dist/`. |
+| `just smoke` | Run `posit --help` from the latest built wheel. |
+| `just install` | Install the latest built wheel as a non-editable uv tool. |
+| `just uninstall` | Remove the uv-managed `posit-cli` tool. |
+| `just clean` | Remove build, test, and lint artifacts. |
+
+`just smoke` expects a wheel to exist in `dist/`, so run `just build` first unless another command has already built one.
+
+## Dependency Changes
+
+Runtime dependencies and optional test/lint dependencies are declared in `pyproject.toml`. When changing them:
+
+1. Update `pyproject.toml`.
+2. Run `uv lock` to update `uv.lock`.
+3. Run `just deps` to sync the local environment.
+4. Include both `pyproject.toml` and `uv.lock` in the change.
+
+CI checks that the lockfile is current with `uv lock --locked`.
+
+## Before Opening A Pull Request
+
+Run the checks relevant to your change. The normal local validation sequence is:
+
+```console
+just deps
+just lint
+just test
+just build
+just smoke
+```
+
+CI also runs the test suite against Python 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.11, 3.12, 3.13, and 3.14. Add or update tests when changing behavior, and update user-facing documentation in `README.md` when the CLI changes.
+
+Keep commits focused and use Conventional Commit messages, such as `fix: handle expired Connect tokens` or `docs: clarify local setup`.
+
+## Releases
+
+Release preparation and publishing are documented in [RELEASE.md](RELEASE.md). In particular, do not add a hard-coded version to `pyproject.toml`; release versions come from Git tags through `hatch-vcs`.
diff --git a/Justfile b/Justfile
index c9860f2..f520037 100644
--- a/Justfile
+++ b/Justfile
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 # posit-cli task runner. Run `just --list` to see recipes.
 
+# Sync project and development dependencies into the project environment
+deps:
+    uv sync --all-extras
+
 # Run the test suite against a single Python version (default 3.13)
 test py="3.13":
     uv run --python {{py}} --extra test pytest tests
@@ -25,9 +29,17 @@ smoke:
     WHL=$(ls -t dist/*.whl | head -1)
     uv run --no-project --with "$WHL" posit --help
 
-# Install the most recently built wheel into the active environment
+# Install the most recently built wheel as a standalone uv tool
 install: build
-    uv pip install "$(ls -t dist/*.whl | head -1)"
+    uv tool install --force "$(ls -t dist/*.whl | head -1)"
+
+# Install the project as an editable standalone uv tool
+dev:
+    uv tool install --editable --force .
+
+# Remove the installed standalone uv tool
+uninstall:
+    uv tool uninstall posit-cli
 
 # Print the version that a build gets from the current git state
 version: