diff --git a/apps/hq/build-server.mjs b/apps/hq/build-server.mjs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..227ff31
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/hq/build-server.mjs
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+import { build } from 'esbuild'
+
+await build({
+  entryPoints: ['src/server.ts'],
+  outfile: 'dist/server.cjs',
+  bundle: true,
+  platform: 'node',
+  format: 'cjs',
+  // Native module (better-sqlite3) and puppeteer (locates its browser relative
+  // to its own package dir) must stay outside the bundle.
+  external: ['better-sqlite3', 'puppeteer'],
+  // server.ts falls back to import.meta.url only when __dirname is missing (ESM
+  // under vitest/tsx); in this CJS bundle that branch is dead, so the warning is noise.
+  logOverride: { 'empty-import-meta': 'silent' },
+})
+console.log('hq built')
diff --git a/apps/hq/src/server.ts b/apps/hq/src/server.ts
index a009c68..bfd164a 100644
--- a/apps/hq/src/server.ts
+++ b/apps/hq/src/server.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,18 @@
 import express from 'express'
+import fs from 'node:fs'
 import type http from 'node:http'
+import path from 'node:path'
+import { fileURLToPath } from 'node:url'
 import { apiRouter } from './api'
 import { openDb } from './db'
 import { seedIfEmpty } from './seed'
 
+// dist/server.cjs (esbuild CJS bundle) has __dirname; vitest/tsx run this file as ESM.
+// Both src/ and dist/ sit one level under apps/hq, so ../../hq-web/dist works from either.
+const moduleDir = typeof __dirname === 'undefined'
+  ? path.dirname(fileURLToPath(import.meta.url))
+  : __dirname
+
 export function startServer(port: number): http.Server {
   const app = express()
   const db = openDb(process.env['HQ_DATA_DIR'])
@@ -11,6 +20,8 @@ export function startServer(port: number): http.Server {
   app.locals['db'] = db
   app.use(express.json({ limit: '2mb' }))
   app.use('/api', apiRouter(db))
+  const webDist = path.resolve(moduleDir, '../../hq-web/dist')
+  if (fs.existsSync(webDist)) app.use('/', express.static(webDist))
   return app.listen(port)
 }
 
diff --git a/apps/hq/test/e2e.test.ts b/apps/hq/test/e2e.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c104ae9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/hq/test/e2e.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+// apps/hq/test/e2e.test.ts
+import { describe, it, expect, afterAll } from 'vitest'
+import express from 'express'
+import { openDb } from '../src/db'
+import { seedIfEmpty } from '../src/seed'
+import { createStaff } from '../src/auth'
+import { apiRouter } from '../src/api'
+
+const db = openDb(':memory:')
+seedIfEmpty(db)
+createStaff(db, { email: 'e2e@test.in', displayName: 'E2E', role: 'owner', password: 'e2e-password' })
+const app = express(); app.use(express.json()); app.locals['db'] = db; app.use('/api', apiRouter(db))
+const server = app.listen(0)
+const base = `http://localhost:${(server.address() as { port: number }).port}/api`
+let token = ''
+const call = async (method: string, path: string, body?: unknown) => {
+  const res = await fetch(base + path, { method,
+    headers: { 'content-type': 'application/json', authorization: `Bearer ${token}` },
+    ...(body ? { body: JSON.stringify(body) } : {}) })
+  return { status: res.status, json: await res.json() as any }
+}
+
+describe('hq end to end', () => {
+  afterAll(() => server.close())
+  it('walks quotation → invoice → payment → paid', async () => {
+    token = (await call('POST', '/auth/login', { email: 'e2e@test.in', password: 'e2e-password' })).json.token
+    const client = (await call('POST', '/clients', { name: 'Flow Mart', stateCode: '32' })).json.client
+    const mod = (await call('POST', '/modules', { code: 'POS', name: 'POS Billing' })).json.module
+    await call('POST', `/modules/${mod.id}/prices`, { kind: 'yearly', pricePaise: 10_000_00, effectiveFrom: '2026-04-01' })
+    const qt = (await call('POST', '/documents', { docType: 'QUOTATION', clientId: client.id,
+      lines: [{ moduleId: mod.id, qty: 1, kind: 'yearly' }] })).json.document
+    await call('POST', `/documents/${qt.id}/issue`)
+    const inv = (await call('POST', `/documents/${qt.id}/convert`, { to: 'INVOICE' })).json.document
+    await call('POST', `/documents/${inv.id}/issue`)
+    await call('POST', '/payments', { clientId: client.id, receivedOn: '2026-07-10', mode: 'bank', amountPaise: 11_800_00 })
+    const after = (await call('GET', `/documents/${inv.id}`)).json.document
+    expect(after.status).toBe('paid')
+    const ledger = (await call('GET', `/clients/${client.id}/ledger`)).json
+    expect(ledger.advancePaise).toBe(0)
+  })
+})