diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 37c4fb9..62dddc1 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -1,12 +1,13 @@
 [package]
 name = "image-helper-wordpress"
-version = "0.1.1"
+version = "0.1.2"
 edition = "2021"
 license = "GPLv3"
 authors = ["Falko Zurell <falko@zurell.de>"]
 description = "A tool to upload images to WordPress with AI-generated descriptions"
 
 [dependencies]
+dirs = "5.0"  # or whatever the latest version is
 tokio = { version = "1.0", features = ["full"] }
 reqwest = { version = "0.11", features = ["json", "multipart"] }
 dotenv = "0.15"
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9f2dc7b..59fb9f3 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ The script will take the URL of the Wordpress site, the username and application
 
 Install Rust on your machine. Copy the `.env.example` to `.env`
 
+The `.env` file is either expected in the current working directory OR in `$HOME/.image-helper-wordpress/.env`
+
 # testing
 
 
@@ -25,5 +27,3 @@ Generated description: Aerial view of a circular lake surrounded by dense forest
 Successfully uploaded image to WordPress with description
 Image URL: https://example.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/DJI_0247-scaled.jpg
 ```
-
-Hint: make sure that the `.env` file is located in $PWD when calling the program
diff --git a/src/main.rs b/src/main.rs
index d45cf4c..c043738 100644
--- a/src/main.rs
+++ b/src/main.rs
@@ -19,8 +19,29 @@ struct Config {
 
 impl Config {
     fn from_env() -> Result<Self, Box<dyn Error>> {
-        dotenv()?;
+        // Try to load .env from current directory first
+        match dotenv() {
+            Ok(_) => return Config::load_env_vars(),
+            Err(_) => {
+                // If that fails, try the home directory
+                if let Some(home_dir) = dirs::home_dir() {
+                    let config_dir = home_dir.join(".image-helper-wordpress");
+                    let env_path = config_dir.join(".env");
+                    
+                    if env_path.exists() {
+                        match dotenv::from_path(&env_path) {
+                            Ok(_) => return Config::load_env_vars(),
+                            Err(e) => println!("Failed to load .env from home directory: {}", e),
+                        }
+                    }
+                }
+            }
+        }
         
+        // If we get here, neither location worked
+        Err("Could not find .env file in current directory or ~/.image-helper-wordpress/.env".into())
+    }
+    fn load_env_vars() -> Result<Self, Box<dyn Error>> {
         Ok(Config {
             wp_url: env::var("WP_URL")?,
             wp_username: env::var("WP_USERNAME")?,