diff --git a/.Rprofile b/.Rprofile
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3edd97567
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.Rprofile
@@ -0,0 +1,37 @@
+# R Configuration for teal.code development
+
+# Set up library paths
+if (Sys.getenv("RSTUDIO") == "1" || file.exists("/.dockerenv")) {
+  # In dev container - use mounted volume for persistence
+  user_lib <- "/usr/local/lib/R/site-library"
+} else {
+  # Local development - use user library
+  user_lib <- "~/R/library"
+}
+
+# Ensure library directory exists
+if (!dir.exists(user_lib)) {
+  dir.create(user_lib, recursive = TRUE, showWarnings = FALSE)
+}
+
+# Set library paths
+.libPaths(c(user_lib, .libPaths()))
+
+# Set CRAN mirror
+options(repos = c(CRAN = "https://cran.rstudio.com/"))
+
+# Set other useful options for development
+options(
+  # Increase download timeout for large packages
+  timeout = 300,
+  # Use multiple cores for package installation
+  Ncpus = parallel::detectCores(),
+  # Better error handling
+  error = recover,
+  # Show warnings immediately
+  warn = 1
+)
+
+# Print library paths on startup
+cat("R library paths:\n")
+cat(paste(.libPaths(), collapse = "\n"), "\n\n")
diff --git a/.devcontainer/README.md b/.devcontainer/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..dafddcb2c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.devcontainer/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+# Dev Container Setup for teal.code
+
+This directory contains the development container configuration for the teal.code R package.
+
+## What gets installed automatically:
+
+1. **Base Environment**: Ubuntu 24.04 with R 4.3.3 (via rocker/verse image)
+2. **System Dependencies**: All required libraries for R package development
+3. **R Packages**: 
+   - Core development packages: devtools, testthat, roxygen2, pkgdown, remotes, renv, usethis
+   - Project-specific packages: dplyr, random.cdisc.data, nestcolor
+   - Dependencies for teal.code package
+
+## Persistence:
+
+- **R packages** are installed to `/usr/local/lib/R/site-library` which is mounted to `.devcontainer/r-packages/` on your host
+- This means packages will persist between container rebuilds
+- The first setup may take a few minutes, but subsequent starts will be faster
+
+## Usage:
+
+1. Open this repository in VS Code
+2. When prompted, click "Reopen in Container" or use Command Palette > "Dev Containers: Reopen in Container"
+3. Wait for the container to build and setup script to complete
+4. Start developing!
+
+## Customization:
+
+- Modify `setup.sh` to add additional R packages or system dependencies
+- Update `devcontainer.json` to change VS Code extensions or settings
+- The `.Rprofile` is configured to work optimally with this setup
+
+## Troubleshooting:
+
+If you encounter issues:
+1. Rebuild the container: Command Palette > "Dev Containers: Rebuild Container"
+2. Check the setup script logs in the terminal
+3. Ensure Docker has sufficient resources (4GB+ RAM recommended)
diff --git a/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json b/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0dc062256
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.devcontainer/devcontainer.json
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+{
+  "name": "R Development Environment for teal.code",
+  "image": "rocker/verse:4.3.3",
+  
+  "features": {
+    "ghcr.io/rocker-org/devcontainer-features/r-packages:1": {
+      "packages": "devtools,testthat,roxygen2,pkgdown,remotes,renv,usethis"
+    },
+    "ghcr.io/devcontainers/features/git:1": {
+      "ppa": true,
+      "version": "latest"
+    }
+  },
+  
+  "postCreateCommand": "bash .devcontainer/setup.sh",
+  
+  "customizations": {
+    "vscode": {
+      "extensions": [
+        "REditorSupport.r",
+        "ms-vscode.vscode-json",
+        "ms-vscode.vscode-typescript-next",
+        "github.copilot"
+      ],
+      "settings": {
+        "r.rterm.linux": "/usr/local/bin/R",
+        "r.rpath.linux": "/usr/local/bin/R",
+        "r.bracketedPaste": true,
+        "r.plot.useHttpgd": true,
+        "r.sessionWatcher": true,
+        "r.rtermSendDelay": 8
+      }
+    }
+  },
+  
+  "mounts": [
+    "source=${localWorkspaceFolder}/.devcontainer/r-packages,target=/usr/local/lib/R/site-library,type=bind,consistency=cached"
+  ],
+  
+  "remoteUser": "rstudio"
+}
diff --git a/.devcontainer/r-packages/.gitkeep b/.devcontainer/r-packages/.gitkeep
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..3ca08a071
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.devcontainer/r-packages/.gitkeep
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+# This file ensures the r-packages directory is preserved in git
+# R packages will be installed here and persisted via dev container mount
diff --git a/.devcontainer/setup.sh b/.devcontainer/setup.sh
new file mode 100755
index 000000000..f87a799ff
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.devcontainer/setup.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+#!/bin/bash
+
+# R Package Installation Script for teal.code development
+set -e
+
+echo "Setting up R environment for teal.code development..."
+
+# Update package list
+sudo apt-get update
+
+# Install additional system dependencies if needed
+sudo apt-get install -y \
+    libcurl4-openssl-dev \
+    libssl-dev \
+    libxml2-dev \
+    libgit2-dev \
+    libharfbuzz-dev \
+    libfribidi-dev \
+    libfreetype6-dev \
+    libpng-dev \
+    libtiff5-dev \
+    libjpeg-dev
+
+# Install essential R packages
+echo "Installing R packages..."
+R -e "
+# Set CRAN mirror
+options(repos = c(CRAN = 'https://cran.rstudio.com/'))
+
+# Install essential packages for development
+install.packages(c(
+  'devtools',
+  'testthat', 
+  'roxygen2',
+  'pkgdown',
+  'remotes',
+  'renv',
+  'usethis',
+  'dplyr',
+  'random.cdisc.data',
+  'nestcolor'
+), dependencies = TRUE)
+
+# Try to install teal.data if available
+tryCatch({
+  install.packages('teal.data')
+}, error = function(e) {
+  message('teal.data package not available from CRAN, will need to install from GitHub')
+})
+"
+
+# Install the current package in development mode
+echo "Installing teal.code package dependencies..."
+R -e "
+if (file.exists('DESCRIPTION')) {
+  devtools::install_deps(dependencies = TRUE)
+}
+"
+
+echo "R environment setup completed!"
diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index cf72c037b..9c7e132b4 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -28,5 +28,9 @@ vignettes/*.R
 vignettes/*.html
 vignettes/*.md
 tests/testthat/Rplots.pdf
-tests/testthat/_snaps/**/*.new.md
-tests/testthat/_snaps/**/*.new.svg
+tests/testthat/_snaps/**/*.new.md
+tests/testthat/_snaps/**/*.new.svg
+
+# Dev container R packages (will be persistent via mount)
+.devcontainer/r-packages/*
+!.devcontainer/r-packages/.gitkeep