diff --git a/backend/alembic/versions/2a9b9873244a_add_presence_columns.py b/backend/alembic/versions/2a9b9873244a_add_presence_columns.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5926ed4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/alembic/versions/2a9b9873244a_add_presence_columns.py
@@ -0,0 +1,29 @@
+"""add presence columns to users
+
+Revision ID: 2a9b9873244a
+Revises: 0001_initial
+Create Date: 2026-08-18 15:59:09.298919
+"""
+from typing import Sequence, Union
+
+from alembic import op
+import sqlalchemy as sa
+
+
+# revision identifiers, used by Alembic.
+revision: str = '2a9b9873244a'
+down_revision: Union[str, None] = '0001_initial'
+branch_labels: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+depends_on: Union[str, Sequence[str], None] = None
+
+
+def upgrade() -> None:
+    """Add last_seen_at and status_message columns to users table."""
+    op.add_column('users', sa.Column('last_seen_at', sa.DateTime(timezone=True), nullable=True))
+    op.add_column('users', sa.Column('status_message', sa.Text(), nullable=True))
+
+
+def downgrade() -> None:
+    """Remove presence columns from users table."""
+    op.drop_column('users', 'status_message')
+    op.drop_column('users', 'last_seen_at')
diff --git a/backend/app/main.py b/backend/app/main.py
index 1260c12..db15dc9 100644
--- a/backend/app/main.py
+++ b/backend/app/main.py
@@ -6,7 +6,7 @@ from fastapi import FastAPI
 from fastapi.middleware.cors import CORSMiddleware
 
 from app.config import settings
-from app.routers import auth, users, worlds, assets
+from app.routers import auth, users, worlds, assets, presence
 
 
 @asynccontextmanager
@@ -38,6 +38,7 @@ app.include_router(auth.router, prefix="/api/auth", tags=["auth"])
 app.include_router(users.router, prefix="/api/users", tags=["users"])
 app.include_router(worlds.router, prefix="/api/worlds", tags=["worlds"])
 app.include_router(assets.router, prefix="/api/assets", tags=["assets"])
+app.include_router(presence.router, prefix="/api/presence", tags=["presence"])
 
 
 @app.get("/api/health")
diff --git a/backend/app/models/user.py b/backend/app/models/user.py
index ff48caa..1b752f7 100644
--- a/backend/app/models/user.py
+++ b/backend/app/models/user.py
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-from sqlalchemy import Column, Integer, String, Boolean, DateTime
+from sqlalchemy import Column, Integer, String, Boolean, DateTime, Text
 from sqlalchemy.orm import relationship
 from sqlalchemy.sql import func
 
@@ -16,6 +16,10 @@ class User(Base):
     created_at = Column(DateTime(timezone=True), server_default=func.now())
     updated_at = Column(DateTime(timezone=True), onupdate=func.now())
 
+    # Presence / status
+    last_seen_at = Column(DateTime(timezone=True), nullable=True)
+    status_message = Column(Text, nullable=True)
+
     sessions = relationship("Session", back_populates="user", cascade="all, delete-orphan")
     worlds = relationship("World", back_populates="owner")
     assets = relationship("Asset", back_populates="owner")
diff --git a/backend/app/routers/presence.py b/backend/app/routers/presence.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..769c669
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/app/routers/presence.py
@@ -0,0 +1,155 @@
+"""Presence & status router.
+
+Endpoints:
+- POST /api/presence/heartbeat  – record a heartbeat (sets Redis TTL key)
+- GET  /api/presence/presence   – query presence for a list of user ids
+- PATCH /api/presence/status    – update the authenticated user's status message
+"""
+
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+from typing import Annotated
+
+from fastapi import APIRouter, Depends, HTTPException, status
+from pydantic import BaseModel, Field, field_validator
+from sqlalchemy import select
+from sqlalchemy.ext.asyncio import AsyncSession
+
+from app.config import settings
+from app.database import get_db
+from app.dependencies import CurrentUser
+from app.models.user import User
+from app.services.presence import PresenceStore
+
+router = APIRouter()
+
+# ──────────────────────────── Pydantic schemas ────────────────────────────────
+
+_STATUS_MAX_LEN = 140
+
+
+class HeartbeatRequest(BaseModel):
+    """Empty body – the caller's identity comes from the JWT."""
+
+
+class PresenceUser(BaseModel):
+    user_id: int
+    is_online: bool
+    last_seen_at: datetime | None
+    status_message: str | None
+
+
+class PresenceResponse(BaseModel):
+    users: list[PresenceUser]
+
+
+class StatusUpdate(BaseModel):
+    status_message: str | None = Field(default=None, max_length=_STATUS_MAX_LEN)
+
+    @field_validator("status_message")
+    @classmethod
+    def strip_message(cls, v: str | None) -> str | None:
+        if v is not None:
+            v = v.strip()
+        return v
+
+
+# ──────────────────────────────── Endpoints ───────────────────────────────────
+
+# The presence store is created once (singleton) so it shares the same Redis
+# connection pool across all requests.
+_presence_store = PresenceStore()
+
+
+@router.post("/heartbeat", response_model=dict)
+async def heartbeat(
+    _req: HeartbeatRequest,
+    current_user: CurrentUser,
+    db: Annotated[AsyncSession, Depends(get_db)],
+):
+    """Record a heartbeat for the authenticated user.
+
+    Sets a Redis key with a TTL so the server can derive online/offline
+    status without trusting client claims.  Also persists last_seen_at to
+    the database.
+    """
+    # Update Redis TTL (presence heartbeat)
+    await _presence_store.heartbeat(current_user.id)
+
+    # Persist last_seen_at to the database
+    now = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
+    result = await db.execute(
+        select(User).where(User.id == current_user.id)
+    )
+    user = result.scalar_one_or_none()
+    if user:
+        user.last_seen_at = now
+        await db.commit()
+
+    return {"status": "ok", "user_id": current_user.id}
+
+
+@router.get("/presence", response_model=PresenceResponse)
+async def get_presence(
+    user_ids: str,
+    current_user: CurrentUser,
+    db: Annotated[AsyncSession, Depends(get_db)],
+):
+    """Return presence info for a comma-separated list of user ids.
+
+    Online/offline is derived from the Redis heartbeat TTL.
+    last_seen_at and status_message come from the database.
+    """
+    ids = [int(uid.strip()) for uid in user_ids.split(",") if uid.strip()]
+    if not ids:
+        raise HTTPException(
+            status_code=status.HTTP_400_BAD_REQUEST,
+            detail="user_ids must contain at least one integer",
+        )
+
+    # Check Redis for online status
+    online_ids = await _presence_store.is_online_batch(ids)
+
+    # Fetch DB records for last_seen_at and status_message
+    result = await db.execute(
+        select(User).where(User.id.in_(ids))
+    )
+    users = {u.id: u for u in result.scalars().all()}
+
+    presence_users = []
+    for uid in ids:
+        user = users.get(uid)
+        if user is None:
+            continue
+        presence_users.append(
+            PresenceUser(
+                user_id=uid,
+                is_online=uid in online_ids,
+                last_seen_at=user.last_seen_at,
+                status_message=user.status_message,
+            )
+        )
+
+    return PresenceResponse(users=presence_users)
+
+
+@router.patch("/status", response_model=dict)
+async def update_status(
+    body: StatusUpdate,
+    current_user: CurrentUser,
+    db: Annotated[AsyncSession, Depends(get_db)],
+):
+    """Update the authenticated user's status message (length-limited)."""
+    result = await db.execute(
+        select(User).where(User.id == current_user.id)
+    )
+    user = result.scalar_one_or_none()
+    if not user:
+        raise HTTPException(
+            status_code=status.HTTP_404_NOT_FOUND,
+            detail="User not found",
+        )
+
+    user.status_message = body.status_message
+    await db.commit()
+
+    return {"status": "ok", "status_message": body.status_message}
diff --git a/backend/app/services/__init__.py b/backend/app/services/__init__.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/backend/app/services/presence.py b/backend/app/services/presence.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2faa2dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/app/services/presence.py
@@ -0,0 +1,196 @@
+"""Redis-backed presence store.
+
+Presence is determined by a heartbeat TTL key in Redis:
+- heartbeat(key) sets a TTL key per user (default 60 s).
+- is_online(user_id) checks whether the key exists.
+- get_presence(user_ids) returns online/offline + last_seen + status_message
+  for a list of user ids.
+
+The status_message is also persisted in the users table and updated via
+update_status_message().
+"""
+
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import logging
+from datetime import datetime, timezone
+from typing import Any
+
+import redis.asyncio as aioredis
+
+from app.config import settings
+
+logger = logging.getLogger(__name__)
+
+# Key prefix for heartbeat entries
+_PRESENCE_KEY_PREFIX = "presence:heartbeat:"
+
+# Default heartbeat TTL in seconds (1 minute).
+# Clients should heartbeat at least once per interval.
+_DEFAULT_HEARTBEAT_TTL = 60
+
+# Maximum length for status messages (characters).
+_MAX_STATUS_MESSAGE_LENGTH = 200
+
+
+class PresenceStore:
+    """Redis-backed presence store with async operations."""
+
+    def __init__(self, redis_url: str = settings.REDIS_URL, heartbeat_ttl: int = _DEFAULT_HEARTBEAT_TTL):
+        self._redis_url = redis_url
+        self._heartbeat_ttl = heartbeat_ttl
+        self._client: aioredis.Redis | None = None
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Lifecycle
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    async def connect(self) -> None:
+        """Connect to Redis."""
+        self._client = aioredis.from_url(
+            self._redis_url,
+            encoding="utf-8",
+            decode_responses=True,
+        )
+        # Verify connectivity
+        try:
+            await self._client.ping()
+        except Exception as exc:
+            logger.warning("Redis ping failed: %s", exc)
+            raise
+
+    async def close(self) -> None:
+        """Close the Redis connection."""
+        if self._client is not None:
+            await self._client.close()
+            self._client = None
+
+    @property
+    def client(self) -> aioredis.Redis:
+        """Return the Redis client, raising if not connected."""
+        if self._client is None:
+            raise RuntimeError("PresenceStore is not connected. Call connect() first.")
+        return self._client
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Heartbeat
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    async def heartbeat(self, user_id: int) -> None:
+        """Record a heartbeat for *user_id*.
+
+        Sets a TTL key so that the user is considered online as long as
+        heartbeats arrive at least once per heartbeat_ttl seconds.
+        """
+        key = self._heartbeat_key(user_id)
+        await self.client.set(key, "1", ex=self._heartbeat_ttl)
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Online check
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    async def is_online(self, user_id: int) -> bool:
+        """Return True if the user has a valid heartbeat key."""
+        key = self._heartbeat_key(user_id)
+        exists = await self.client.exists(key)
+        return bool(exists)
+
+    async def is_online_batch(self, user_ids: list[int]) -> set[int]:
+        """Return the subset of user_ids that currently have a valid
+        heartbeat key. Uses MGET (one round trip) rather than one EXISTS
+        per user."""
+        if not user_ids:
+            return set()
+        keys = [self._heartbeat_key(uid) for uid in user_ids]
+        values = await self.client.mget(keys)
+        return {uid for uid, v in zip(user_ids, values) if v is not None}
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Presence lookup
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    async def get_presence(
+        self,
+        user_ids: list[int],
+        db: Any,  # AsyncSession — imported here to avoid circular imports
+    ) -> dict[int, dict[str, Any]]:
+        """Return presence info for a list of user ids.
+
+        Returns a dict keyed by user_id with:
+            online: bool
+            last_seen_at: datetime | None
+            status_message: str | None
+        """
+        from app.models.user import User
+        from sqlalchemy import select
+
+        result = await db.execute(select(User).where(User.id.in_(user_ids)))
+        users = result.scalars().all()
+        user_map = {u.id: u for u in users}
+
+        presence: dict[int, dict[str, Any]] = {}
+        for uid in user_ids:
+            user = user_map.get(uid)
+            online = await self.is_online(uid) if user else False
+            presence[uid] = {
+                "user_id": uid,
+                "online": online,
+                "last_seen_at": user.last_seen_at if user else None,
+                "status_message": user.status_message if user else None,
+            }
+        return presence
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Status message
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    async def update_status_message(
+        self,
+        user_id: int,
+        message: str | None,
+        db: Any,  # AsyncSession
+    ) -> None:
+        """Update the status_message for *user_id* in the database."""
+        from app.models.user import User
+        from sqlalchemy import select
+
+        if message is not None and len(message) > _MAX_STATUS_MESSAGE_LENGTH:
+            raise ValueError(
+                f"Status message exceeds maximum length of {_MAX_STATUS_MESSAGE_LENGTH} characters"
+            )
+
+        result = await db.execute(select(User).where(User.id == user_id))
+        user = result.scalar_one_or_none()
+        if user is None:
+            raise ValueError(f"User {user_id} not found")
+
+        user.status_message = message
+        user.last_seen_at = datetime.now(timezone.utc)
+        await db.commit()
+
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+    # Helpers
+    # ------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+    @staticmethod
+    def _heartbeat_key(user_id: int) -> str:
+        return f"{_PRESENCE_KEY_PREFIX}{user_id}"
+
+
+# Singleton instance — initialised by the lifespan handler
+presence_store: PresenceStore | None = None
+
+
+async def init_presence_store() -> None:
+    """Create and connect the global presence store."""
+    global presence_store
+    presence_store = PresenceStore()
+    await presence_store.connect()
+
+
+async def shutdown_presence_store() -> None:
+    """Close the global presence store."""
+    global presence_store
+    if presence_store is not None:
+        await presence_store.close()
+        presence_store = None