diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index ec3cff4..09a66f7 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -93,6 +93,11 @@ https://hub.docker.com/r/scsibug/nostr-rs-relay
 
 Building `nostr-rs-relay` requires an installation of Cargo & Rust: https://www.rust-lang.org/tools/install
 
+The following OS packages will be helpful; on Debian/Ubuntu:
+```console
+$ sudo apt-get install build-essentials cmake protobuf-compiler pkg-config libssl-dev
+```
+
 Clone this repository, and then build a release version of the relay:
 
 ```console