diff --git a/src/hooks/use-auth.tsx b/src/hooks/use-auth.tsx
index b187a93..b04970e 100644
--- a/src/hooks/use-auth.tsx
+++ b/src/hooks/use-auth.tsx
@@ -17,6 +17,13 @@ interface Profile {
   email: string;
   avatar_url: string | null;
   role: string | null;
+  /**
+   * Opted-in beta feature keys for this account (e.g. `'flows'`).
+   * Gates client-side UI surfaces like the sidebar Flows entry; the
+   * server consults the same column for API + webhook guards. See
+   * `src/lib/flows/feature-flag.ts` for the shared predicate.
+   */
+  beta_features: string[];
 }
 
 interface AuthContextValue {
@@ -50,7 +57,7 @@ export function AuthProvider({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) {
     try {
       const { data, error } = await supabase
         .from("profiles")
-        .select("id, full_name, email, avatar_url, role")
+        .select("id, full_name, email, avatar_url, role, beta_features")
         .eq("user_id", userId)
         .maybeSingle();
 
@@ -64,7 +71,16 @@ export function AuthProvider({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) {
         return;
       }
 
-      if (data) setProfile(data);
+      if (data) {
+        // `beta_features` is `NOT NULL DEFAULT ARRAY[]` in the DB, but
+        // narrow defensively in case the column hasn't been migrated yet
+        // (older deployments running 011 lazily) — `null` reads as no
+        // opt-ins, matching what `isFlowsEnabled()` expects.
+        setProfile({
+          ...data,
+          beta_features: data.beta_features ?? [],
+        });
+      }
     } catch (err) {
       console.error("[AuthProvider] fetchProfile threw:", err);
     }
diff --git a/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.test.ts b/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..23099b5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,76 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from "vitest";
+import {
+  isFlowsEnabled,
+  BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS,
+} from "./feature-flag";
+
+describe("isFlowsEnabled", () => {
+  it("returns false for a null profile", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled(null)).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns false for an undefined profile", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled(undefined)).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns false when beta_features is missing", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({})).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns false when beta_features is null (pre-migration row)", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: null })).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns false for an empty array", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: [] })).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns false when only other features are opted in", () => {
+    expect(
+      isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: ["ai_replies", "voice_notes"] }),
+    ).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("returns true when 'flows' is in the array", () => {
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: ["flows"] })).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it("returns true when 'flows' is in the array alongside others", () => {
+    expect(
+      isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: ["ai_replies", "flows", "voice_notes"] }),
+    ).toBe(true);
+  });
+
+  it("is case-sensitive — only lowercase 'flows' opts in", () => {
+    // Belt-and-suspenders: a typo'd 'Flows' or 'FLOWS' must NOT count.
+    // This prevents accidental opt-ins from manual SQL edits.
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: ["Flows"] })).toBe(false);
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: ["FLOWS"] })).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("guards against non-array values (defensive — DB schema disallows but JSON parsing might)", () => {
+    // If something ever feeds the helper a malformed profile (e.g. raw
+    // JSON from a webhook payload that bypassed the type system), we'd
+    // rather return false than throw mid-request.
+    expect(
+      isFlowsEnabled({
+        // @ts-expect-error — intentional bad input
+        beta_features: "flows",
+      }),
+    ).toBe(false);
+    expect(
+      isFlowsEnabled({
+        // @ts-expect-error — intentional bad input
+        beta_features: { flows: true },
+      }),
+    ).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it("BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS exports the canonical string", () => {
+    // Pinned so callers writing `beta_features.includes('flows')` and
+    // callers writing `beta_features.includes(BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS)` can
+    // never drift apart.
+    expect(BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS).toBe("flows");
+    expect(isFlowsEnabled({ beta_features: [BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS] })).toBe(true);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.ts b/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..70a7ed0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/lib/flows/feature-flag.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,46 @@
+/**
+ * Per-account beta gate for the Flows feature.
+ *
+ * The Flows feature ships dark — code lives in main, but no user-facing
+ * surface activates until the owner opts in by adding `'flows'` to their
+ * `profiles.beta_features` array. The intent is to dogfood the entire
+ * loop (build → trigger → tap → advance → handoff) on a single account
+ * before exposing it to teammates or downstream pullers of the OSS.
+ *
+ * Why this lives in its own module:
+ *   - Both client (sidebar nav, /flows page gate) and server (webhook
+ *     dispatcher, /api/flows route guards) need to call the same logic.
+ *     Pulling it into a single import target keeps the truth in one
+ *     place — no env vars, no DB query duplication.
+ *   - Once Flows reaches GA, removing the gate is grep-and-delete on a
+ *     single import path.
+ *
+ * The function takes a minimal shape (anything with an optional
+ * `beta_features` array of strings) rather than the full `Profile`
+ * type so it can be called from places that haven't loaded a full
+ * profile row — e.g. webhook handlers that only SELECT this one
+ * column.
+ */
+
+/** Stable string keys for beta features. Add new ones here. */
+export const BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS = "flows" as const;
+
+export interface BetaFeatureCarrier {
+  beta_features?: string[] | null;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Returns `true` if the supplied profile (or any compatible shape with
+ * a `beta_features` array) has opted into the Flows beta.
+ *
+ * Safe to call with `null` / `undefined` / a row that predates the
+ * migration — every absent value reads as "not opted in".
+ */
+export function isFlowsEnabled(
+  profile: BetaFeatureCarrier | null | undefined,
+): boolean {
+  if (!profile) return false;
+  const features = profile.beta_features;
+  if (!features || !Array.isArray(features)) return false;
+  return features.includes(BETA_FEATURE_FLOWS);
+}
diff --git a/src/types/index.ts b/src/types/index.ts
index 8d00e97..1cd1df3 100644
--- a/src/types/index.ts
+++ b/src/types/index.ts
@@ -5,6 +5,13 @@ export interface Profile {
   email: string;
   avatar_url?: string;
   role: string;
+  /**
+   * Opted-in beta feature keys for this account. Server reads + UI
+   * gates against this array (see `src/lib/flows/feature-flag.ts`).
+   * Defaults to `[]` for every profile; toggled per-account via a
+   * direct UPDATE on the `profiles` row.
+   */
+  beta_features?: string[];
   created_at: string;
 }
 
diff --git a/supabase/migrations/011_profile_beta_features.sql b/supabase/migrations/011_profile_beta_features.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..b81df91
--- /dev/null
+++ b/supabase/migrations/011_profile_beta_features.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+-- ============================================================
+-- Per-account beta feature flag column on `profiles`.
+--
+-- Adds an array of opted-in beta feature keys to each profile row.
+-- Currently used to gate the Flows feature (`'flows'`); shape is
+-- generic so subsequent betas (e.g. `'ai_replies'`, `'voice_notes'`)
+-- can land in this column without another migration.
+--
+-- Why a per-account flag rather than a global env var:
+--   - Self-hosted wacrm instances are multi-user (small teams, shared
+--     workspaces). A global flag would force every account on the
+--     instance to opt into a not-yet-stable feature simultaneously.
+--   - The owner wanted to dogfood the feature on their own account
+--     before exposing it to teammates. Flipping a column via
+--     Supabase Studio (`UPDATE profiles SET beta_features = ...
+--     WHERE user_id = '<theirs>'`) is the lowest-friction toggle.
+--   - DB-managed flags survive env rotation, deploy-restart timing,
+--     and (since beta_features is a TEXT[]) extend naturally to
+--     additional features without further schema work.
+--
+-- Default is the empty array, so every existing profile row opts
+-- out of every beta feature on apply. NOT NULL keeps callers from
+-- having to defend against `beta_features == null` at every site.
+--
+-- Idempotent — safe to run multiple times.
+-- ============================================================
+
+ALTER TABLE profiles
+  ADD COLUMN IF NOT EXISTS beta_features TEXT[]
+    NOT NULL
+    DEFAULT ARRAY[]::TEXT[];
+
+-- No new RLS policy needed: the existing `Users can view own profile` /
+-- `Users can update own profile` policies (migration 001) already gate
+-- access to this column. Server-side reads via service_role bypass RLS
+-- as they do for every other column.
+--
+-- No index needed: the column is read on the login codepath (one row
+-- lookup by primary key / user_id, both already indexed) and very
+-- rarely written.