diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-standalone.yml b/.github/workflows/publish-standalone.yml
index 8e052b63c..db3e9b1a2 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/publish-standalone.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-standalone.yml
@@ -1,16 +1,18 @@
-name: Build and Publish Standalone Docker Image
-
+name: Build and Publish Stakgraph Standalone
 on:
-  release:
-    types: [published]
+  push:
+    branches:
+      - main
+    paths:
+      - "standalone/**"
+      - "ast/**"
+      - "lsp/**"
+      - "Dockerfile.standalone"
 
 jobs:
-  build-and-push:
+  build-and-publish:
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    permissions:
-      contents: read
-      packages: write
-
+    name: Build and Publish Docker Image
     steps:
       - name: Checkout code
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
@@ -18,23 +20,38 @@ jobs:
       - name: Set up Docker Buildx
         uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
 
-      - name: Log in to GitHub Container Registry
+      - name: Login to GitHub Container Registry
         uses: docker/login-action@v3
         with:
           registry: ghcr.io
           username: ${{ github.actor }}
           password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
 
-      - name: Build and push Docker image
+      # Setup cache
+      - name: Cache Docker layers
+        uses: actions/cache@v3
+        with:
+          path: /tmp/.buildx-cache
+          key: ${{ runner.os }}-buildx-${{ github.sha }}
+          restore-keys: |
+            ${{ runner.os }}-buildx-
+
+      # Build and push the image
+      - name: Build and Push Docker Image
         uses: docker/build-push-action@v5
         with:
           context: .
-          file: Dockerfile.standalone
-          platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64
+          file: ./Dockerfile.standalone
           push: true
-          # Use registry cache which is more reliable for multi-platform
-          cache-from: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/stakwork/stakgraph-standalone:buildcache
-          cache-to: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/stakwork/stakgraph-standalone:buildcache,mode=max
           tags: |
-            ghcr.io/stakwork/stakgraph-standalone:${{ github.ref_name }}
             ghcr.io/stakwork/stakgraph-standalone:latest
+            ghcr.io/stakwork/stakgraph-standalone:${{ github.sha }}
+          cache-from: type=local,src=/tmp/.buildx-cache
+          cache-to: type=local,dest=/tmp/.buildx-cache-new,mode=max
+          platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64
+          build-args: |
+            BUILDKIT_INLINE_CACHE=1
+      - name: Move cache
+        run: |
+          rm -rf /tmp/.buildx-cache
+          mv /tmp/.buildx-cache-new /tmp/.buildx-cache
diff --git a/Dockerfile.standalone b/Dockerfile.standalone
index 09d1e91a0..55b84e80f 100644
--- a/Dockerfile.standalone
+++ b/Dockerfile.standalone
@@ -1,36 +1,48 @@
-FROM rust:1.87.0 AS builder
-
-WORKDIR /app
-
+FROM rust:1.87.0 AS planner
+WORKDIR /plan
 # Create a temporary workspace with only the 3 crates we need
 RUN echo '[workspace]' > Cargo.toml && \
     echo 'members = ["ast", "lsp", "standalone"]' >> Cargo.toml && \
     echo 'resolver = "2"' >> Cargo.toml
 
-# Copy ONLY the Cargo.toml files for our 3 crates
+# Copy only files needed for dependency calculations to create a stable dependency layer
 COPY ast/Cargo.toml ast/Cargo.toml
 COPY lsp/Cargo.toml lsp/Cargo.toml
 COPY standalone/Cargo.toml standalone/Cargo.toml
+COPY Cargo.lock .
 
-# Create dummy src files for all 3 crates
+# Create a dummy project structure (minimal files needed for cargo to calculate dependencies)
 RUN mkdir -p ast/src lsp/src standalone/src && \
-    echo "fn main() {}" > ast/src/main.rs && \
-    echo "fn main() {}" > lsp/src/main.rs && \
-    echo "fn main() {}" > standalone/src/main.rs
+    echo 'fn main() {}' > ast/src/lib.rs && \
+    echo 'fn main() {}' > lsp/src/lib.rs && \
+    echo 'fn main() {}' > standalone/src/main.rs
 
-# Build dependencies for standalone (this will pull in ast/lsp as workspace deps)
-RUN cargo build --release --bin standalone --features neo4j
+FROM rust:1.87.0 AS cacher
+WORKDIR /app
+COPY --from=planner /plan .
+
+# Build dependencies only (leveraging cargo's dependency caching)
+RUN cargo build --release --bin standalone --features neo4j && \
+    rm -rf ast/src lsp/src standalone/src
+
+FROM rust:1.87.0 AS builder
+WORKDIR /app
 
-# Remove dummy files and temp workspace
-RUN rm -rf ast/src lsp/src standalone/src
+COPY --from=cacher /app/target target
+COPY --from=cacher /usr/local/cargo /usr/local/cargo
+COPY --from=cacher /app/Cargo.toml .
+COPY --from=cacher /app/Cargo.lock .
+COPY --from=cacher /app/ast/Cargo.toml ./ast/
+COPY --from=cacher /app/lsp/Cargo.toml ./lsp/
+COPY --from=cacher /app/standalone/Cargo.toml ./standalone/
 
-# Copy actual source code
+# Now copy the actual source code
 COPY ast/src ast/src
 COPY lsp/src lsp/src
 COPY standalone/src standalone/src
 COPY standalone/static standalone/static
 
-# Build the actual application (only this rebuilds when source changes)
+# Build the application with the actual source (much faster now with all dependencies pre-built)
 RUN cargo build --release --bin standalone --features neo4j
 
 FROM sphinxlightning/stakgraph-lsp:latest