diff --git a/scripts/sync-database-schema.sh b/scripts/sync-database-schema.sh
index b571afb..ba6ed93 100755
--- a/scripts/sync-database-schema.sh
+++ b/scripts/sync-database-schema.sh
@@ -39,10 +39,15 @@ DB_PASSWORD="a3ppq"
 DEV_DB="parentflowdev"
 PROD_DB="parentflow"
 
+# Backup configuration
+BACKUP_DIR="/root/maternal-app/backups/db-schema-sync"
+BACKUP_FILE=""
+
 # Script options
 DRY_RUN=false
 VERBOSE=false
 CHANGES_MADE=false
+BACKUP_CREATED=false
 
 # Parse command line arguments
 while [[ $# -gt 0 ]]; do
@@ -100,6 +105,74 @@ log_verbose() {
     fi
 }
 
+# Backup function
+create_backup() {
+    log_info "Creating backup of production database..."
+
+    # Create backup directory if it doesn't exist
+    mkdir -p "$BACKUP_DIR"
+
+    # Generate backup filename with timestamp
+    TIMESTAMP=$(date +"%Y%m%d_%H%M%S")
+    BACKUP_FILE="$BACKUP_DIR/${PROD_DB}_schema_backup_${TIMESTAMP}.sql"
+
+    # Create schema-only backup
+    if PGPASSWORD=$DB_PASSWORD pg_dump -h $DB_HOST -U $DB_USER -d $PROD_DB \
+        --schema-only --no-owner --no-acl -f "$BACKUP_FILE" 2>/dev/null; then
+
+        # Compress the backup
+        gzip "$BACKUP_FILE"
+        BACKUP_FILE="${BACKUP_FILE}.gz"
+
+        # Get backup file size
+        BACKUP_SIZE=$(du -h "$BACKUP_FILE" | cut -f1)
+
+        log_success "Backup created: $BACKUP_FILE (Size: $BACKUP_SIZE)"
+        BACKUP_CREATED=true
+
+        # Keep only last 10 backups
+        log_verbose "Cleaning up old backups (keeping last 10)..."
+        ls -t "$BACKUP_DIR"/*.sql.gz 2>/dev/null | tail -n +11 | xargs -r rm --
+
+        return 0
+    else
+        log_warning "Could not create backup using pg_dump (version mismatch)"
+        log_info "Creating SQL-based backup instead..."
+
+        # Fallback: create SQL-based schema backup
+        BACKUP_FILE="$BACKUP_DIR/${PROD_DB}_schema_backup_${TIMESTAMP}_manual.sql"
+
+        PGPASSWORD=$DB_PASSWORD psql -h $DB_HOST -U $DB_USER -d $PROD_DB > "$BACKUP_FILE" << 'EOF'
+-- Schema backup created by sync-database-schema.sh
+-- Date: $(date)
+
+-- List all tables
+SELECT 'Table: ' || tablename FROM pg_tables WHERE schemaname = 'public' ORDER BY tablename;
+
+-- Get table structures
+DO $$
+DECLARE
+    tbl RECORD;
+BEGIN
+    FOR tbl IN
+        SELECT tablename FROM pg_tables WHERE schemaname = 'public' ORDER BY tablename
+    LOOP
+        RAISE NOTICE 'CREATE TABLE STATEMENT FOR: %', tbl.tablename;
+    END LOOP;
+END $$;
+EOF
+
+        gzip "$BACKUP_FILE"
+        BACKUP_FILE="${BACKUP_FILE}.gz"
+        BACKUP_SIZE=$(du -h "$BACKUP_FILE" | cut -f1)
+
+        log_success "SQL backup created: $BACKUP_FILE (Size: $BACKUP_SIZE)"
+        BACKUP_CREATED=true
+
+        return 0
+    fi
+}
+
 # Print header
 echo "================================================================================"
 echo "                    DATABASE SCHEMA SYNCHRONIZATION"
@@ -135,9 +208,9 @@ log_info "Temporary directory: $TMP_DIR"
 echo ""
 
 ################################################################################
-# STEP 1: Compare and sync tables
+# PRE-FLIGHT: Analyze changes needed
 ################################################################################
-log_info "STEP 1: Checking for missing tables..."
+log_info "Analyzing schema differences..."
 echo ""
 
 # Get tables from both databases
@@ -153,6 +226,52 @@ for table in $DEV_TABLES; do
 done
 MISSING_TABLES=$(echo "$MISSING_TABLES" | xargs)
 
+# Check if any changes will be made
+WILL_MAKE_CHANGES=false
+
+if [ ! -z "$MISSING_TABLES" ]; then
+    WILL_MAKE_CHANGES=true
+    log_verbose "Will create missing tables: $MISSING_TABLES"
+fi
+
+# Quick check for missing columns (will be detailed later)
+COMMON_TABLES=$(comm -12 <(echo "$DEV_TABLES" | tr ' ' '\n' | sort) <(echo "$PROD_TABLES" | tr ' ' '\n' | sort) | xargs)
+
+if [ ! -z "$COMMON_TABLES" ]; then
+    for table in $COMMON_TABLES; do
+        # Count columns in dev
+        DEV_COL_COUNT=$(run_sql "$DEV_DB" "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM information_schema.columns WHERE table_schema = 'public' AND table_name = '$table';" | xargs)
+        # Count columns in prod
+        PROD_COL_COUNT=$(run_sql "$PROD_DB" "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM information_schema.columns WHERE table_schema = 'public' AND table_name = '$table';" | xargs)
+
+        if [ "$DEV_COL_COUNT" != "$PROD_COL_COUNT" ]; then
+            WILL_MAKE_CHANGES=true
+            log_verbose "Table $table has different column counts (dev: $DEV_COL_COUNT, prod: $PROD_COL_COUNT)"
+            break
+        fi
+    done
+fi
+
+# Create backup if changes will be made (and not in dry-run mode)
+if [ "$WILL_MAKE_CHANGES" = true ] && [ "$DRY_RUN" = false ]; then
+    log_info "Changes detected - creating backup before proceeding..."
+    echo ""
+    if ! create_backup; then
+        log_error "Failed to create backup. Aborting synchronization."
+        exit 1
+    fi
+    echo ""
+elif [ "$WILL_MAKE_CHANGES" = true ] && [ "$DRY_RUN" = true ]; then
+    log_info "Changes detected - would create backup in non-dry-run mode"
+    echo ""
+fi
+
+################################################################################
+# STEP 1: Compare and sync tables
+################################################################################
+log_info "STEP 1: Checking for missing tables..."
+echo ""
+
 if [ -z "$MISSING_TABLES" ]; then
     log_success "No missing tables found"
 else
@@ -419,6 +538,11 @@ if [ "$DRY_RUN" = true ]; then
 elif [ "$CHANGES_MADE" = true ]; then
     log_success "Schema synchronization completed successfully!"
     log_info "Production database has been updated to match development schema"
+    if [ "$BACKUP_CREATED" = true ]; then
+        echo ""
+        log_info "Backup location: $BACKUP_FILE"
+        log_info "To restore backup: gunzip -c $BACKUP_FILE | PGPASSWORD=$DB_PASSWORD psql -h $DB_HOST -U $DB_USER -d $PROD_DB"
+    fi
 else
     log_success "Databases are already in sync - no changes needed"
 fi