diff --git a/cmd/api/main.go b/cmd/api/main.go
index 9cfdab1..d9fad17 100644
--- a/cmd/api/main.go
+++ b/cmd/api/main.go
@@ -40,24 +40,25 @@ func main() {
 		Str("redis_url", cfg.Redis.URL).
 		Msg("Starting MyCrib API server")
 
-	// Connect to database (retry with shorter backoff for container health checks)
+	// Connect to database (retry with backoff)
 	var db *gorm.DB
+	var dbErr error
 	for i := 0; i < 3; i++ {
-		db, err = database.Connect(&cfg.Database, cfg.Server.Debug)
-		if err == nil {
+		db, dbErr = database.Connect(&cfg.Database, cfg.Server.Debug)
+		if dbErr == nil {
 			break
 		}
-		log.Warn().Err(err).Int("attempt", i+1).Msg("Failed to connect to database, retrying...")
+		log.Warn().Err(dbErr).Int("attempt", i+1).Msg("Failed to connect to database, retrying...")
 		time.Sleep(time.Duration(i+1) * time.Second)
 	}
-	if err != nil {
-		log.Fatal().Err(err).Msg("Failed to connect to database after retries")
-	}
-	defer database.Close()
-
-	// Run database migrations
-	if err := database.Migrate(); err != nil {
-		log.Fatal().Err(err).Msg("Failed to run database migrations")
+	if dbErr != nil {
+		log.Error().Err(dbErr).Msg("Failed to connect to database - API will start but database operations will fail")
+	} else {
+		defer database.Close()
+		// Run database migrations only if connected
+		if err := database.Migrate(); err != nil {
+			log.Error().Err(err).Msg("Failed to run database migrations")
+		}
 	}
 
 	// Connect to Redis (optional - don't fail if unavailable)