diff --git a/docs/source/reference/cli/index.md b/docs/source/reference/cli/index.md
index e4d931e..8c79c26 100644
--- a/docs/source/reference/cli/index.md
+++ b/docs/source/reference/cli/index.md
@@ -17,6 +17,8 @@ for the full option list.
 ## Notes
 
 - Global CLI options are documented in {doc}`base`.
+- Use `--log-file path/to/cli.log` to save CLI logs to a file while still
+  showing them in the terminal.
 - Paths with spaces should be wrapped in quotes.
 - Input audio is expected to be mono.
 - `process` uses the optional `--detection-threshold` override.
diff --git a/docs/source/tutorials/run-inference-on-folder.md b/docs/source/tutorials/run-inference-on-folder.md
index 48f647c..6056a11 100644
--- a/docs/source/tutorials/run-inference-on-folder.md
+++ b/docs/source/tutorials/run-inference-on-folder.md
@@ -97,6 +97,23 @@ What this does:
 - runs the model on each recording,
 - saves the results in `path/to/outputs`.
 
+```{eval-rst}
+.. admonition:: Save CLI logs to a file
+   :collapsible: closed
+   :class: tip dropdown
+
+   If you want to keep a copy of the CLI logs, add ``--log-file`` before the
+   subcommand:
+
+   .. code-block:: bash
+
+      batdetect2 --log-file path/to/cli.log process directory \
+        path/to/audio \
+        path/to/outputs
+
+   This writes the same CLI logs to ``path/to/cli.log`` and to the terminal.
+```
+
 You do not need to choose a model for this first run.
 If you do nothing, BatDetect2 uses the built-in default UK model.
 
diff --git a/src/batdetect2/cli/base.py b/src/batdetect2/cli/base.py
index 9a991e5..bb88f81 100644
--- a/src/batdetect2/cli/base.py
+++ b/src/batdetect2/cli/base.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """BatDetect2 command line interface."""
 
+from pathlib import Path
+
 import click
 
 from batdetect2.cli.ascii import BATDETECT_ASCII_ART
@@ -22,8 +24,17 @@ BatDetect2
     count=True,
     help="Increase verbosity. -v for INFO, -vv for DEBUG.",
 )
+@click.option(
+    "--log-file",
+    type=click.Path(path_type=Path),
+    help="Write CLI logs to a file in addition to the terminal.",
+)
 @click.pass_context
-def cli(ctx: click.Context, verbose: int = 0):
+def cli(
+    ctx: click.Context,
+    verbose: int = 0,
+    log_file: Path | None = None,
+) -> None:
     """Run the BatDetect2 CLI.
 
     Use subcommands to run processing, training, evaluation, and dataset
@@ -37,4 +48,4 @@ def cli(ctx: click.Context, verbose: int = 0):
 
     from batdetect2.logging import enable_logging
 
-    enable_logging(verbose)
+    enable_logging(verbose, log_file=log_file)
diff --git a/src/batdetect2/logging.py b/src/batdetect2/logging.py
index 5837407..b128451 100644
--- a/src/batdetect2/logging.py
+++ b/src/batdetect2/logging.py
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ __all__ = [
 ]
 
 
-def enable_logging(level: int):
+def enable_logging(level: int, log_file: Path | None = None) -> None:
     logger.remove()
 
     if level == 0:
@@ -61,6 +61,11 @@ def enable_logging(level: int):
         log_level = "DEBUG"
 
     logger.add(sys.stderr, level=log_level)
+
+    if log_file is not None:
+        log_file.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
+        logger.add(log_file, level=log_level)
+
     logger.enable("batdetect2")
 
 
diff --git a/tests/test_cli/test_base.py b/tests/test_cli/test_base.py
index a96a600..54918e3 100644
--- a/tests/test_cli/test_base.py
+++ b/tests/test_cli/test_base.py
@@ -1,9 +1,13 @@
 """Behavior-focused tests for top-level CLI command discovery."""
 
+from pathlib import Path
+
 from click.testing import CliRunner
 
 from batdetect2.cli import cli
 
+BASE_DIR = Path(__file__).parent.parent.parent
+
 
 def test_cli_base_help_lists_main_commands() -> None:
     """User story: discover available workflows from top-level help."""
@@ -11,8 +15,43 @@ def test_cli_base_help_lists_main_commands() -> None:
     result = CliRunner().invoke(cli, ["--help"])
 
     assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "--log-file" in result.output
     assert "process" in result.output
     assert "train" in result.output
     assert "evaluate" in result.output
     assert "data" in result.output
     assert "detect" in result.output
+
+
+def test_cli_writes_logs_to_file_and_terminal(
+    tmp_path: Path,
+    tiny_checkpoint_path: Path,
+) -> None:
+    """User story: save CLI logs to a file while keeping terminal output."""
+
+    output_dir = tmp_path / "eval_out"
+    log_file = tmp_path / "logs" / "cli.log"
+
+    result = CliRunner().invoke(
+        cli,
+        [
+            "--log-file",
+            str(log_file),
+            "-v",
+            "evaluate",
+            str(BASE_DIR / "example_data" / "dataset.yaml"),
+            "--model",
+            str(tiny_checkpoint_path),
+            "--base-dir",
+            str(BASE_DIR),
+            "--workers",
+            "0",
+            "--output-dir",
+            str(output_dir),
+        ],
+    )
+
+    assert result.exit_code == 0
+    assert "Initiating evaluation process..." in result.output
+    assert log_file.exists()
+    assert "Initiating evaluation process..." in log_file.read_text()