diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 234914d..9e45d4f 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -83,6 +83,9 @@ BroCode Spot is a full-stack web application designed to streamline group orderi
    VITE_SUPABASE_URL=your_supabase_project_url
    VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY=your_supabase_anon_key
    ```
+   ### Environment Validation
+   The backend validates environment variables at startup.
+   If required variables are missing or invalid, the server will stop immediately with a clear error message.
 
 4. **Set up Supabase**
    
diff --git a/backend/env.js b/backend/env.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b2358c9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backend/env.js
@@ -0,0 +1,24 @@
+const dotenv = require("dotenv");
+const { z } = require("zod");
+
+dotenv.config();
+
+const envSchema = z.object({
+  VITE_SUPABASE_URL: z.string().url(),
+  VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY: z.string().min(10),
+  PORT: z.string().optional()
+});
+
+const result = envSchema.safeParse(process.env);
+
+if (!result.success) {
+  console.error("\n❌ Invalid environment configuration:\n");
+
+  result.error.errors.forEach((err) => {
+    console.error(`- ${err.path.join(".")}: ${err.message}`);
+  });
+
+  process.exit(1); // 🔥 FAIL FAST
+}
+
+module.exports = result.data;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/backend/server.js b/backend/server.js
index d4a0843..96f5af8 100644
--- a/backend/server.js
+++ b/backend/server.js
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import { createServer } from 'node:http';
 import { URL } from 'node:url';
 import { database, dbPath } from './db.js';
+require("./env"); 
 
 const port = Number(process.env.PORT || 4000);
 
diff --git a/services/supabase.ts b/services/supabase.ts
index 94fa17e..a160b88 100644
--- a/services/supabase.ts
+++ b/services/supabase.ts
@@ -4,11 +4,16 @@ import { createClient, RealtimeChannel } from '@supabase/supabase-js';
 const supabaseUrl = import.meta.env.VITE_SUPABASE_URL || '';
 const supabaseAnonKey = import.meta.env.VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY || '';
 
-if (!supabaseUrl || !supabaseAnonKey) {
-    console.warn(`Supabase credentials are not configured. 
-    Please create a .env.local file with:
-    VITE_SUPABASE_URL=your_supabase_url
-    VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY=your_supabase_anon_key`);
+if (!supabaseUrl) {
+    throw new Error(
+        "Missing environment variable: VITE_SUPABASE_URL. Create a .env.local file."
+    );
+}
+
+if (!supabaseAnonKey) {
+    throw new Error(
+        "Missing environment variable: VITE_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY. Create a .env.local file."
+    );
 }
 
 export const supabase = createClient(supabaseUrl, supabaseAnonKey, {