diff --git a/app/app/Services/LiveSqlImportService.php b/app/app/Services/LiveSqlImportService.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..7884066
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/app/Services/LiveSqlImportService.php
@@ -0,0 +1,328 @@
+<?php
+
+namespace App\Services;
+
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\DB;
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Schema;
+use Illuminate\Support\Str;
+use Symfony\Component\Console\Output\OutputInterface;
+
+class LiveSqlImportService
+{
+    private array $tableRename = [
+        'users' => 'legacy_users',
+        'sessions' => 'legacy_sessions',
+    ];
+
+    private array $tableColumnMap = [
+        'licenses' => [
+            'license_key' => 'license_key',
+            'source' => 'source',
+            'plan' => 'plan',
+            'product_id' => 'product_id',
+            'status' => 'status',
+            'expires_at' => 'expires_at',
+            'meta_json' => 'meta_json',
+            'last_verified_at' => 'last_verified_at',
+            'created_at' => 'created_at',
+            'updated_at' => 'updated_at',
+        ],
+        'license_activations' => [
+            'license_key' => 'license_key',
+            'user_id' => 'user_id',
+            'product' => 'product',
+            'device_id' => 'device_id',
+            'status' => 'status',
+            'created_at' => 'created_at',
+            'updated_at' => 'updated_at',
+        ],
+        'usage_logs' => [
+            'bucket_id' => 'bucket_id',
+            'date_key' => 'date_key',
+            'used' => 'used',
+            'limit_count' => 'limit_count',
+            'seen_signatures' => 'seen_signatures',
+            'created_at' => 'created_at',
+            'updated_at' => 'updated_at',
+        ],
+    ];
+
+    public function import(string $path, bool $truncate, int $batchSize, ?OutputInterface $output = null): void
+    {
+        if (!is_file($path)) {
+            throw new \RuntimeException("SQL file not found: {$path}");
+        }
+
+        DB::disableQueryLog();
+
+        if ($truncate) {
+            $this->truncateTargets($output);
+        }
+
+        $file = new \SplFileObject($path, 'r');
+        $statement = '';
+        $totalStatements = 0;
+        $totalRows = 0;
+
+        while (!$file->eof()) {
+            $line = $file->fgets();
+            if ($line === false) {
+                break;
+            }
+
+            if ($statement === '') {
+                if (!Str::startsWith(ltrim($line), 'INSERT INTO')) {
+                    continue;
+                }
+            }
+
+            $statement .= $line;
+            if (str_contains($line, ";\n") || str_ends_with(rtrim($line), ';')) {
+                $totalStatements++;
+                [$rowsInserted, $table] = $this->handleInsertStatement($statement, $batchSize);
+                $totalRows += $rowsInserted;
+
+                if ($output) {
+                    $output->writeln("Imported {$rowsInserted} rows into {$table}");
+                }
+
+                $statement = '';
+            }
+        }
+
+        if ($output) {
+            $output->writeln("Done. Statements: {$totalStatements}. Rows: {$totalRows}.");
+        }
+    }
+
+    private function truncateTargets(?OutputInterface $output): void
+    {
+        $targets = [
+            'ai_guard_logs',
+            'ai_judgments',
+            'ai_lang_cache',
+            'ai_provider_usage',
+            'contributor_rewards',
+            'email_queue',
+            'emojis',
+            'emoji_aliases',
+            'emoji_keywords',
+            'emoji_shortcodes',
+            'keyword_votes',
+            'license_bindings',
+            'magic_links',
+            'moderation_events',
+            'user_prefs',
+            'legacy_users',
+            'legacy_sessions',
+            'licenses',
+            'license_activations',
+            'usage_logs',
+        ];
+
+        foreach ($targets as $table) {
+            if (!Schema::hasTable($table)) {
+                continue;
+            }
+            DB::table($table)->truncate();
+            if ($output) {
+                $output->writeln("Truncated {$table}");
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    private function handleInsertStatement(string $statement, int $batchSize): array
+    {
+        $statement = trim($statement);
+        $pattern = '/^INSERT INTO `([^`]+)` \\(([^)]+)\\) VALUES\\s*(.+);$/s';
+
+        if (!preg_match($pattern, $statement, $matches)) {
+            return [0, 'unknown'];
+        }
+
+        $table = $matches[1];
+        $columnsRaw = $matches[2];
+        $valuesRaw = $matches[3];
+
+        $columns = array_map(
+            static fn (string $col): string => trim($col, " `"),
+            explode(',', $columnsRaw)
+        );
+
+        $targetTable = $this->tableRename[$table] ?? $table;
+
+        if (!Schema::hasTable($targetTable)) {
+            return [0, $targetTable];
+        }
+
+        $rows = $this->parseValues($valuesRaw, count($columns));
+        $total = 0;
+        $batch = [];
+
+        foreach ($rows as $rowValues) {
+            $row = array_combine($columns, $rowValues);
+            $mapped = $this->mapRow($table, $row);
+            if ($mapped === null) {
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            $batch[] = $mapped;
+            if (count($batch) >= $batchSize) {
+                DB::table($targetTable)->insert($batch);
+                $total += count($batch);
+                $batch = [];
+            }
+        }
+
+        if ($batch !== []) {
+            DB::table($targetTable)->insert($batch);
+            $total += count($batch);
+        }
+
+        return [$total, $targetTable];
+    }
+
+    private function mapRow(string $table, array $row): ?array
+    {
+        if (isset($this->tableColumnMap[$table])) {
+            $mapped = [];
+            foreach ($this->tableColumnMap[$table] as $from => $to) {
+                $mapped[$to] = $row[$from] ?? null;
+            }
+
+            if ($table === 'licenses') {
+                $mapped['owner_user_id'] = null;
+            }
+
+            return $mapped;
+        }
+
+        if ($table === 'users') {
+            return [
+                'user_id' => $row['user_id'] ?? null,
+                'email' => $row['email'] ?? null,
+                'username' => $row['username'] ?? null,
+                'opted_in' => $row['opted_in'] ?? 0,
+                'created_at' => $row['created_at'] ?? null,
+                'updated_at' => $row['updated_at'] ?? null,
+            ];
+        }
+
+        if ($table === 'sessions') {
+            return [
+                'session_id' => $row['session_id'] ?? null,
+                'user_id' => $row['user_id'] ?? null,
+                'ip_hash' => $row['ip_hash'] ?? null,
+                'ua_hash' => $row['ua_hash'] ?? null,
+                'expires_at' => $row['expires_at'] ?? null,
+                'created_at' => $row['created_at'] ?? null,
+            ];
+        }
+
+        return $row;
+    }
+
+    private function parseValues(string $valuesRaw, int $columnCount): array
+    {
+        $rows = [];
+        $currentRow = [];
+        $buffer = '';
+        $inString = false;
+        $escape = false;
+        $valueIsString = false;
+        $inRow = false;
+        $length = strlen($valuesRaw);
+
+        for ($i = 0; $i < $length; $i++) {
+            $ch = $valuesRaw[$i];
+
+            if ($inString) {
+                if ($escape) {
+                    $buffer .= $this->unescapeChar($ch);
+                    $escape = false;
+                    continue;
+                }
+
+                if ($ch === '\\\\') {
+                    $escape = true;
+                    continue;
+                }
+
+                if ($ch === '\'') {
+                    $inString = false;
+                    continue;
+                }
+
+                $buffer .= $ch;
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if ($ch === '(') {
+                $inRow = true;
+                $currentRow = [];
+                $buffer = '';
+                $valueIsString = false;
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if ($ch === '\'') {
+                $inString = true;
+                $valueIsString = true;
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if ($ch === ',' && $inRow) {
+                $currentRow[] = $this->convertValue($buffer, $valueIsString);
+                $buffer = '';
+                $valueIsString = false;
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if ($ch === ')' && $inRow) {
+                $currentRow[] = $this->convertValue($buffer, $valueIsString);
+                if (count($currentRow) === $columnCount) {
+                    $rows[] = $currentRow;
+                }
+                $buffer = '';
+                $valueIsString = false;
+                $inRow = false;
+                continue;
+            }
+
+            if ($inRow) {
+                $buffer .= $ch;
+            }
+        }
+
+        return $rows;
+    }
+
+    private function convertValue(string $buffer, bool $valueIsString): mixed
+    {
+        $value = trim($buffer);
+
+        if (!$valueIsString) {
+            if ($value === '' || strtoupper($value) === 'NULL') {
+                return null;
+            }
+
+            if (is_numeric($value)) {
+                return $value + 0;
+            }
+        }
+
+        return $value;
+    }
+
+    private function unescapeChar(string $ch): string
+    {
+        return match ($ch) {
+            'n' => "\n",
+            'r' => "\r",
+            't' => "\t",
+            '0' => "\0",
+            'Z' => "\x1A",
+            default => $ch,
+        };
+    }
+}
diff --git a/app/database/migrations/2026_02_06_000000_create_live_import_tables.php b/app/database/migrations/2026_02_06_000000_create_live_import_tables.php
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6a02b6a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/app/database/migrations/2026_02_06_000000_create_live_import_tables.php
@@ -0,0 +1,202 @@
+<?php
+
+use Illuminate\Database\Migrations\Migration;
+use Illuminate\Database\Schema\Blueprint;
+use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Schema;
+
+return new class extends Migration
+{
+    public function up(): void
+    {
+        Schema::create('ai_guard_logs', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->string('emoji_slug', 64);
+            $table->string('lang', 8);
+            $table->string('region', 8)->nullable();
+            $table->string('keyword', 128);
+            $table->string('decision', 16);
+            $table->string('reason', 32);
+            $table->string('detected_lang', 8)->nullable();
+            $table->string('detail_en', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->string('detail_local', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('ai_judgments', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->unsignedBigInteger('keyword_id')->nullable();
+            $table->string('emoji_slug', 190);
+            $table->string('lang', 16);
+            $table->string('keyword', 64);
+            $table->string('model', 64)->default('gemini-free');
+            $table->string('verdict', 16);
+            $table->decimal('confidence', 5, 4)->nullable();
+            $table->longText('raw_response')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('ai_lang_cache', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('keyword', 128)->primary();
+            $table->string('detected_lang', 8);
+            $table->timestamp('last_seen')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('ai_provider_usage', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('provider', 96);
+            $table->string('period', 7);
+            $table->unsignedBigInteger('tokens_used')->default(0);
+            $table->primary(['provider', 'period']);
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('contributor_rewards', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->string('user_id', 64);
+            $table->string('type', 32);
+            $table->string('reason', 128);
+            $table->string('issued_by', 64)->default('system');
+            $table->timestamp('issued_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('redeemed_at')->nullable();
+            $table->longText('meta')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('email_queue', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->string('user_id', 64)->nullable();
+            $table->string('to_email', 255);
+            $table->string('template', 64);
+            $table->longText('payload')->nullable();
+            $table->string('provider', 32)->default('elastic_email');
+            $table->string('status', 32)->default('queued');
+            $table->string('last_error', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('sent_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('emojis', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->unsignedInteger('emoji_id')->primary();
+            $table->string('slug', 191);
+            $table->string('emoji_char', 64);
+            $table->string('name', 191);
+            $table->string('category', 128);
+            $table->string('subcategory', 128);
+            $table->string('unified', 128);
+            $table->string('default_presentation', 16);
+            $table->string('version', 16);
+            $table->boolean('supports_skin_tone')->default(false);
+            $table->string('permalink', 255);
+            $table->text('description')->nullable();
+            $table->string('meta_title', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->string('meta_description', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->string('title', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('updated_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('emoji_aliases', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->unsignedInteger('emoji_id');
+            $table->string('alias', 191);
+            $table->unique(['emoji_id', 'alias']);
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('emoji_keywords', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->string('emoji_slug', 190);
+            $table->string('lang', 2);
+            $table->string('region', 2)->default('');
+            $table->string('keyword', 64);
+            $table->string('status', 16)->default('private');
+            $table->string('owner_user_id', 64)->nullable();
+            $table->string('visibility', 32)->default('private');
+            $table->string('public_key', 900)->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('updated_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('emoji_shortcodes', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->unsignedInteger('emoji_id');
+            $table->string('shortcode', 191);
+            $table->string('kind', 16)->default('primary');
+            $table->unique(['emoji_id', 'shortcode', 'kind']);
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('keyword_votes', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->unsignedBigInteger('keyword_id');
+            $table->string('user_id', 64);
+            $table->string('vote', 8);
+            $table->tinyInteger('value');
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->primary(['keyword_id', 'user_id']);
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('license_bindings', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('license_key', 64);
+            $table->string('user_id', 64);
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->unique(['license_key', 'user_id']);
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('magic_links', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('token_hash', 64)->primary();
+            $table->string('user_id', 64);
+            $table->string('purpose', 32)->default('login');
+            $table->timestamp('expires_at');
+            $table->timestamp('used_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('moderation_events', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->bigIncrements('id');
+            $table->unsignedBigInteger('keyword_id');
+            $table->string('old_status', 16)->nullable();
+            $table->string('new_status', 16);
+            $table->string('reason', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->string('actor', 64)->default('system');
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('user_prefs', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('user_id', 64)->primary();
+            $table->longText('preferred_languages');
+            $table->timestamp('updated_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('legacy_users', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('user_id', 64)->primary();
+            $table->string('email', 255)->nullable();
+            $table->string('username', 32);
+            $table->boolean('opted_in')->default(false);
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('updated_at')->nullable();
+        });
+
+        Schema::create('legacy_sessions', function (Blueprint $table): void {
+            $table->string('session_id', 64)->primary();
+            $table->string('user_id', 64);
+            $table->string('ip_hash', 64)->nullable();
+            $table->string('ua_hash', 64)->nullable();
+            $table->timestamp('expires_at');
+            $table->timestamp('created_at')->nullable();
+        });
+    }
+
+    public function down(): void
+    {
+        Schema::dropIfExists('legacy_sessions');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('legacy_users');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('user_prefs');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('moderation_events');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('magic_links');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('license_bindings');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('keyword_votes');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('emoji_shortcodes');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('emoji_keywords');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('emoji_aliases');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('emojis');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('email_queue');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('contributor_rewards');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('ai_provider_usage');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('ai_lang_cache');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('ai_judgments');
+        Schema::dropIfExists('ai_guard_logs');
+    }
+};
diff --git a/app/routes/console.php b/app/routes/console.php
index 3c9adf1..71c153c 100644
--- a/app/routes/console.php
+++ b/app/routes/console.php
@@ -2,7 +2,17 @@
 
 use Illuminate\Foundation\Inspiring;
 use Illuminate\Support\Facades\Artisan;
+use App\Services\LiveSqlImportService;
 
 Artisan::command('inspire', function () {
     $this->comment(Inspiring::quote());
 })->purpose('Display an inspiring quote');
+
+Artisan::command('dewemoji:import-live-sql {path : Absolute path to dewemojiAPI_DB.sql} {--truncate : Truncate target tables first} {--batch=500 : Insert batch size}', function () {
+    $path = (string) $this->argument('path');
+    $truncate = (bool) $this->option('truncate');
+    $batch = (int) $this->option('batch');
+
+    $importer = app(LiveSqlImportService::class);
+    $importer->import($path, $truncate, $batch, $this->output);
+})->purpose('Import live SQL dump into the current database');
diff --git a/current-local-db.md b/current-local-db.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2b8d510
--- /dev/null
+++ b/current-local-db.md
@@ -0,0 +1,74 @@
+# Current Local Database (SQLite)
+
+This describes what exists **right now** in the rebuild app (`app/database/database.sqlite`).
+
+## Local DB engine
+
+- SQLite (file: `app/database/database.sqlite`)
+
+## Tables present
+
+Framework defaults:
+- `cache`
+- `cache_locks`
+- `failed_jobs`
+- `job_batches`
+- `jobs`
+- `migrations`
+- `password_reset_tokens`
+- `sessions`
+- `users`
+
+Dewemoji core tables:
+- `licenses`
+- `license_activations`
+- `usage_logs`
+
+## Current row counts (local)
+
+- `emojis`: 2131
+- `emoji_keywords`: 13420
+- `emoji_aliases`: 0
+- `emoji_shortcodes`: 0
+- `licenses`: 7
+- `license_activations`: 1
+- `usage_logs`: 88
+- `ai_guard_logs`: 54
+- `ai_judgments`: 0
+- `ai_lang_cache`: 6
+- `ai_provider_usage`: 4
+- `legacy_users`: 0
+- `legacy_sessions`: 0
+
+## What is *not* in local DB yet (from live SQL)
+
+From `dewemoji-live-backend/dewemojiAPI_DB.sql`, these tables exist in live but are **still empty locally**:
+
+- `emoji_aliases`
+- `emoji_shortcodes`
+- `ai_judgments`
+- `legacy_users` (live users)
+- `legacy_sessions` (live sessions)
+
+## Why emojis still work locally
+
+The rebuild app currently reads emojis from a **JSON dataset** (not DB):
+- `app/data/emojis.json`
+
+That’s why the UI works even though emoji tables aren’t present yet.
+
+## Next step (if you want to migrate live SQL)
+
+Migrations + importer are now in place. To sync everything locally (SQLite), run:
+
+```bash
+cd /Users/dwindown/Developments/dewemoji/app
+php artisan migrate
+php artisan dewemoji:import-live-sql /Users/dwindown/Developments/dewemoji-live-backend/dewemojiAPI_DB.sql --truncate
+```
+
+Notes:
+- Live `users` + `sessions` go into `legacy_users` + `legacy_sessions` (so Laravel auth/session tables stay safe).
+- Licenses/activations/usage_logs are mapped into the current tables for parity.
+
+Just tell me which subset to migrate first.
diff --git a/staging-sync-checklist.md b/staging-sync-checklist.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..bcebd29
--- /dev/null
+++ b/staging-sync-checklist.md
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+# Staging Sync Checklist (MySQL)
+
+This is the exact, minimal checklist to sync **live SQL → staging MySQL**.
+
+## 1) Point app to MySQL
+
+Edit `app/.env` (or set in Coolify ENV):
+
+```
+DB_CONNECTION=mysql
+DB_HOST=YOUR_MYSQL_HOST
+DB_PORT=3306
+DB_DATABASE=YOUR_DB
+DB_USERNAME=YOUR_USER
+DB_PASSWORD=YOUR_PASS
+```
+
+## 2) Run migrations + import
+
+```bash
+cd /Users/dwindown/Developments/dewemoji/app
+php artisan migrate
+php artisan dewemoji:import-live-sql /Users/dwindown/Developments/dewemoji-live-backend/dewemojiAPI_DB.sql --truncate
+```
+
+## 3) Quick sanity checks
+
+```bash
+php artisan tinker --execute="echo DB::table('emojis')->count().PHP_EOL;"
+php artisan tinker --execute="echo DB::table('emoji_keywords')->count().PHP_EOL;"
+```
+
+Expected: `emojis` ~ 2131, `emoji_keywords` ~ 13420.
+
+## Notes
+
+- Live `users` + `sessions` are imported into `legacy_users` + `legacy_sessions`.
+- Licenses/activations/usage logs are imported into current tables for parity.