diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 06e5466..9dd068c 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,6 +5,11 @@ All notable changes to RigDoctor are recorded here. Format follows
 (`MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH`, pre-1.0). `__version__` and `pyproject.toml` must match the git
 release tag (so the auto-updater, D18, can compare versions).
 
+## [0.2.0] - 2026-05-21
+### Added
+- **"Check for updates" button** in the sidebar — force an immediate version check instead of
+  waiting for the 30-minute poll.
+
 ## [0.1.1] - 2026-05-21
 ### Fixed
 - Dialogs (the update prompt and changelog) were light-on-light and unreadable — they now use
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 282a045..3021590 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
 
 [project]
 name = "rigdoctor"
-version = "0.1.1"
+version = "0.2.0"
 description = "Modular hardware monitoring & crash diagnostics for Linux gamers."
 readme = "README.md"
 requires-python = ">=3.11"
diff --git a/src/rigdoctor/__init__.py b/src/rigdoctor/__init__.py
index 23519c1..3744a94 100644
--- a/src/rigdoctor/__init__.py
+++ b/src/rigdoctor/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
 """RigDoctor — modular hardware monitoring & crash diagnostics for Linux gamers."""
 
-__version__ = "0.1.1"
+__version__ = "0.2.0"
diff --git a/src/rigdoctor/gui/main_window.py b/src/rigdoctor/gui/main_window.py
index 81a6904..02656b1 100644
--- a/src/rigdoctor/gui/main_window.py
+++ b/src/rigdoctor/gui/main_window.py
@@ -134,6 +134,11 @@ class MainWindow(QMainWindow):
         changelog_btn.setCursor(Qt.CursorShape.PointingHandCursor)
         changelog_btn.clicked.connect(self._show_changelog)
         v.addWidget(changelog_btn)
+        check_btn = QPushButton("Check for updates")
+        check_btn.setObjectName("LinkButton")
+        check_btn.setCursor(Qt.CursorShape.PointingHandCursor)
+        check_btn.clicked.connect(self._manual_check)
+        v.addWidget(check_btn)
 
         # Update state (filled in by the background check).
         self._update_label = QLabel("checking for updates…")
@@ -189,6 +194,12 @@ class MainWindow(QMainWindow):
             self._update_label.setText("update failed")
             self._update_btn.setEnabled(True)
 
+    def _manual_check(self) -> None:
+        if self._applied:
+            return
+        self._update_label.setText("checking for updates…")
+        self._start_update_check()
+
     def _start_update_check(self) -> None:
         threading.Thread(target=self._check_updates, daemon=True).start()