diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 23a271e03..43748f839 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -144,6 +144,18 @@ Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License"); you may not use
 
 Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied. See the License for the specific language governing permissions and limitations under the License.
 
+## Project scope
+
+Malachite is focused on protocol research and reference implementations.
+It is not intended to be a plug-and-play SDK.
+
+The repository is best suited for:
+- protocol engineers
+- researchers
+- contributors exploring design and verification
+
+If you are looking for production-ready tooling, this repository may require additional integration work.
+
 [docs-main-image]: https://img.shields.io/badge/docs-main-blue?logo=googledocs&logoColor=white
 [docs-main-link]: https://informalsystems.github.io/malachite/
 [build-image]: https://github.com/circlefin/malachite/actions/workflows/rust.yml/badge.svg