diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
index aaf6c92..7763656 100644
--- a/.env.example
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -27,6 +27,10 @@ RECORD_FEED=false
 
 # Observability — https://sentry.io (project: arbpulse)
 SENTRY_DSN=
+# Tracing/spans gate — default off. Error monitoring is always on when SENTRY_DSN
+# is set; spans are only created/exported when SENTRY_TRACING is enabled. Kept off
+# by default so 24/7 operation stays within Sentry's free-tier span quota.
+SENTRY_TRACING=false
 # Structured logs (pino); correlation IDs on REST, SSE, and WS hot path
 LOG_LEVEL=info
 
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 71d194f..3bc5a3d 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ Eso no indica que el bot “no funcione”: indica que el filtro económico es e
 
 - **Pre-commit:** Husky runs lint-staged (`eslint --fix`, `prettier --write`) on staged `*.ts` / `*.tsx` in `src/` and `web/src/`.
 - **API contracts:** Zod schemas per REST endpoint → OpenAPI via `@asteasolutions/zod-to-openapi` → Scalar UI at `/api-docs`. Request bodies validated with Zod in route handlers.
-- **Observability:** `@sentry/node` captures REST, WebSocket feed, and SSE errors; `pino` JSON logs with `correlationId` (from `x-request-id` or per book tick); OpenTelemetry spans (`ws.message` → `orderbook.process` → `arbitrage.evaluate` → `sse.broadcast`) export to Sentry via `@sentry/opentelemetry` when `SENTRY_DSN` is set. Dev probe: `GET /api/debug/sentry`; verify with `npm run test:observability`.
+- **Observability:** `@sentry/node` captures REST, WebSocket feed, and SSE errors (always on when `SENTRY_DSN` is set); `pino` JSON logs with `correlationId` (from `x-request-id` or per book tick); OpenTelemetry spans (`ws.message` → `orderbook.process` → `arbitrage.evaluate` → `sse.broadcast`) export to Sentry via `@sentry/opentelemetry` **only when `SENTRY_TRACING` is enabled** (default off, so 24/7 operation stays within the free-tier span quota). With tracing off the tracer is a no-op — no spans are created or exported — but errors are still captured. Dev probe: `GET /api/debug/sentry`; verify with `npm run test:observability`.
 - **Rate limiting & cache:** Upstash sliding-window limits per IP on read/write/SSE routes (`429` + `Retry-After`). Latest `StateSnapshot` cached in Redis (~1s TTL) for `GET /api/state` and refreshed on SSE broadcast. Set `UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_URL` and `UPSTASH_REDIS_REST_TOKEN`. Verify with `npm run test:rate-limit`.
 - **CI:** GitHub Actions quality pipeline (typecheck, unit tests, build); Playwright smoke on PRs — dashboard loads and SSE connects (`npm run test:e2e`, workflow `e2e.yml`, `DEMO_MODE=true` in CI).
 - **Security scanning:** CodeQL (`.github/workflows/codeql.yml`); Dependabot for npm (root + `web/`) and GitHub Actions.
diff --git a/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/.openspec.yaml b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/.openspec.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cd2ce7e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/.openspec.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+schema: spec-driven
+created: 2026-07-16
diff --git a/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/design.md b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/design.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..25b4b0e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/design.md
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+## Context
+
+`src/instrumentation/otel.ts` builds a tracer that, when `SENTRY_DSN` is set, registers a `NodeTracerProvider` with `SentrySpanProcessor`/`SentryPropagator`, so every `withSpan(...)` call on the hot path creates and exports a span to Sentry. `src/instrumentation/sentry.ts` sets `tracesSampleRate` unconditionally. Running 24/7 on a VPS multiplies span volume against Sentry's free-tier quota (5M spans/month), while error events stay small. We want tracing to remain a debugging option but be off by default.
+
+## Goals / Non-Goals
+
+**Goals:**
+- Add a single boolean env var (`SENTRY_TRACING`, default `false`) that turns span creation/export on or off.
+- Default behavior emits zero spans and zero hot-path span allocation.
+- Preserve error monitoring exactly as-is regardless of the flag.
+- No dependency changes; no API/wire changes.
+
+**Non-Goals:**
+- Removing OpenTelemetry or the `withSpan` abstraction.
+- Making `tracesSampleRate` itself env-configurable (kept as current 0.1 prod / 1 dev when enabled).
+- Changing which operations are wrapped.
+
+## Decisions
+
+- **Boolean gate over sample-rate gate.** A boolean `SENTRY_TRACING` that makes the tracer a no-op avoids hot-path span allocation entirely when off (aligns with the "no unnecessary alloc on the hot path" convention). A `tracesSampleRate=0` approach would still register the provider and create spans that are dropped later — more overhead. Alternative considered and rejected.
+- **Gate lives in `otel.ts` init.** `initOpenTelemetry()` returns the no-op `trace.getTracer("arbpulse")` unless both `SENTRY_DSN` and `SENTRY_TRACING` are truthy. This keeps `withSpan`'s signature and all call sites unchanged; its `catch` still calls `Sentry.captureException`, so errors are captured even with a no-op span.
+- **Conditional `tracesSampleRate` in `sentry.ts`.** Only set `tracesSampleRate` when tracing is enabled; omit it otherwise so Sentry performance is fully off. A shared helper `isTracingEnabled()` reads the flag so both files agree.
+- **Parsing.** Reuse the existing truthy convention (`"1"` or `"true"`, case-insensitive) used by `config.ts`'s `bool()` for consistency; implement locally in the instrumentation module since it initializes before `config` import.
+
+## Risks / Trade-offs
+
+- [Someone enables tracing in prod and hits the quota] → Documented in `.env.example`/README that it is off by default and why; enabling is an explicit opt-in.
+- [Flag read in two files could drift] → Centralize in one `isTracingEnabled()` helper exported from the instrumentation layer.
+- [No-op tracer still wraps hot path in a promise] → Accepted: `withSpan` remains async as today; the change only removes span export, matching prior behavior when `SENTRY_DSN` was unset.
+
+## Migration Plan
+
+- Deploy with `SENTRY_TRACING` unset → tracing off (safe default), errors still reported.
+- To debug, set `SENTRY_TRACING=true` (with `SENTRY_DSN`) temporarily; unset to roll back. No data migration.
diff --git a/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/proposal.md b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/proposal.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..07e7aed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/proposal.md
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+## Why
+
+Arb Pulse is moving to a 24/7 VPS (Hetzner), where the engine runs continuously and emits OpenTelemetry spans on the hot path (`ws.message` → `orderbook.process` → `arbitrage.evaluate` → `sse.broadcast`). At that volume the app can approach or exceed Sentry's free-tier span quota (5M spans/month), while error monitoring stays well within limits. We want to keep tracing available for debugging but off by default so continuous operation is free-tier safe.
+
+## What Changes
+
+- Introduce an environment variable (`SENTRY_TRACING`, boolean, default `false`) that gates OpenTelemetry span creation and export to Sentry.
+- When `SENTRY_TRACING` is disabled (default), the tracer is a no-op: no spans are created or exported, and no hot-path span allocation occurs. Error capture (`Sentry.captureException`, `unhandledRejection`, `uncaughtException`) remains fully active.
+- When `SENTRY_TRACING` is enabled **and** `SENTRY_DSN` is set, spans are created and exported to Sentry as today, and `tracesSampleRate` is applied.
+- Document the new variable in `.env.example` and `README.md`.
+
+## Capabilities
+
+### New Capabilities
+- `observability`: error monitoring and optional distributed tracing behavior — how Sentry error capture is always on, and how OpenTelemetry span emission is conditioned on an environment flag.
+
+### Modified Capabilities
+<!-- None: no existing specs under openspec/specs/. -->
+
+## Impact
+
+- Code: `src/instrumentation/otel.ts` (gate span provider/export), `src/instrumentation/sentry.ts` (conditional `tracesSampleRate`), possibly `src/instrumentation/index.ts`.
+- Config/docs: `.env.example`, `README.md` (observability section + env var table).
+- Dependencies: none added or removed (OTel packages stay for the enabled path).
+- Behavior: default runtime emits zero spans; error monitoring unchanged. No API or wire-format changes.
diff --git a/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/specs/observability/spec.md b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/specs/observability/spec.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..db1245f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/specs/observability/spec.md
@@ -0,0 +1,43 @@
+## ADDED Requirements
+
+### Requirement: Error monitoring is always active
+
+The system SHALL report runtime errors to Sentry whenever `SENTRY_DSN` is configured, independent of any tracing configuration. This includes REST, WebSocket feed, and SSE errors captured via `Sentry.captureException`, plus process-level `unhandledRejection` and `uncaughtException` handlers.
+
+#### Scenario: Error captured with DSN set
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_DSN` is set and a handled error occurs on the WebSocket, REST, or SSE path
+- **THEN** the error is sent to Sentry as an error event
+
+#### Scenario: No DSN configured
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_DSN` is empty or unset
+- **THEN** Sentry is not initialized and no events are sent, and the application continues running normally
+
+### Requirement: Tracing spans are gated by an environment flag
+
+The system SHALL only create and export OpenTelemetry spans when the `SENTRY_TRACING` environment variable is enabled AND `SENTRY_DSN` is set. The flag SHALL default to disabled so that continuous 24/7 operation emits zero spans by default.
+
+#### Scenario: Tracing disabled by default
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_TRACING` is unset or falsy (default)
+- **THEN** the tracer is a no-op, no spans are created on the hot path, and no spans are exported to Sentry
+
+#### Scenario: Tracing enabled with DSN
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_TRACING` is truthy and `SENTRY_DSN` is set
+- **THEN** hot-path spans (`ws.message`, `orderbook.process`, `arbitrage.evaluate`, `sse.broadcast`) are created and exported to Sentry, and `tracesSampleRate` is applied
+
+#### Scenario: Tracing enabled without DSN
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_TRACING` is truthy but `SENTRY_DSN` is empty or unset
+- **THEN** the tracer is a no-op and no spans are exported, since export requires a DSN
+
+### Requirement: Error capture is preserved when tracing is disabled
+
+The system SHALL continue to report exceptions thrown inside hot-path work wrappers to Sentry even when tracing is disabled, so disabling spans never reduces error visibility.
+
+#### Scenario: Exception in hot-path wrapper with tracing off
+
+- **WHEN** `SENTRY_TRACING` is disabled and code wrapped by the hot-path span helper throws
+- **THEN** the exception is still captured and reported to Sentry (as an error), and re-thrown to preserve existing control flow
diff --git a/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/tasks.md b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/tasks.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d130556
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/changes/gate-sentry-spans/tasks.md
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+## 1. Tracing gate
+
+- [x] 1.1 Add `isTracingEnabled()` helper (reads `SENTRY_TRACING`, truthy = `"1"`/`"true"` case-insensitive) exported from the instrumentation layer
+- [x] 1.2 In `src/instrumentation/otel.ts`, return the no-op tracer unless both `SENTRY_DSN` and `SENTRY_TRACING` are truthy (keep `withSpan` signature and its `Sentry.captureException` in catch)
+- [x] 1.3 In `src/instrumentation/sentry.ts`, only set `tracesSampleRate` when tracing is enabled (omit it otherwise)
+
+## 2. Documentation
+
+- [x] 2.1 Add `SENTRY_TRACING` (default `false`) to `.env.example` with a note it gates spans for free-tier safety
+- [x] 2.2 Update the README observability section to describe the flag and default-off behavior
+
+## 3. Verification
+
+- [x] 3.1 `npm run typecheck` passes
+- [x] 3.2 `npm test` passes
+- [x] 3.3 Manually confirm: with `SENTRY_TRACING` unset, no spans are emitted; error capture path unaffected
diff --git a/openspec/config.yaml b/openspec/config.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..392946c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/openspec/config.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+schema: spec-driven
+
+# Project context (optional)
+# This is shown to AI when creating artifacts.
+# Add your tech stack, conventions, style guides, domain knowledge, etc.
+# Example:
+#   context: |
+#     Tech stack: TypeScript, React, Node.js
+#     We use conventional commits
+#     Domain: e-commerce platform
+
+# Per-artifact rules (optional)
+# Add custom rules for specific artifacts.
+# Example:
+#   rules:
+#     proposal:
+#       - Keep proposals under 500 words
+#       - Always include a "Non-goals" section
+#     tasks:
+#       - Break tasks into chunks of max 2 hours
diff --git a/src/instrumentation/otel.ts b/src/instrumentation/otel.ts
index 5119d36..85affac 100644
--- a/src/instrumentation/otel.ts
+++ b/src/instrumentation/otel.ts
@@ -2,17 +2,20 @@ import * as Sentry from "@sentry/node";
 import { trace, type Span, type Tracer } from "@opentelemetry/api";
 import { NodeTracerProvider } from "@opentelemetry/sdk-trace-node";
 import { SentrySpanProcessor, SentryPropagator } from "@sentry/opentelemetry";
+import { isTracingEnabled } from "./tracing.js";
 
 let tracer: Tracer | null = null;
 
 /**
- * OpenTelemetry spans export to Sentry via @sentry/opentelemetry when SENTRY_DSN is set.
- * Without a DSN, spans are no-ops (safe for local dev and tests).
+ * OpenTelemetry spans export to Sentry via @sentry/opentelemetry only when
+ * SENTRY_DSN is set AND SENTRY_TRACING is enabled. Otherwise spans are no-ops
+ * (default; safe for 24/7 operation, local dev, and tests). Error capture in
+ * `withSpan` is preserved regardless.
  */
 export function initOpenTelemetry(): Tracer {
   if (tracer) return tracer;
 
-  if (!process.env.SENTRY_DSN?.trim()) {
+  if (!process.env.SENTRY_DSN?.trim() || !isTracingEnabled()) {
     tracer = trace.getTracer("arbpulse");
     return tracer;
   }
diff --git a/src/instrumentation/sentry.ts b/src/instrumentation/sentry.ts
index 4edf1ba..30a430b 100644
--- a/src/instrumentation/sentry.ts
+++ b/src/instrumentation/sentry.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
 import * as Sentry from "@sentry/node";
+import { isTracingEnabled } from "./tracing.js";
 
 const dsn = process.env.SENTRY_DSN?.trim();
 
@@ -8,8 +9,13 @@ export function initSentry(): void {
   Sentry.init({
     dsn,
     environment: process.env.NODE_ENV ?? "development",
-    tracesSampleRate: process.env.NODE_ENV === "production" ? 0.1 : 1,
     integrations: [Sentry.httpIntegration(), Sentry.expressIntegration()],
+    // Tracing/spans are gated by SENTRY_TRACING (default off) to stay within
+    // the Sentry free-tier span quota during 24/7 operation. Error monitoring
+    // is always on.
+    ...(isTracingEnabled()
+      ? { tracesSampleRate: process.env.NODE_ENV === "production" ? 0.1 : 1 }
+      : {}),
   });
 
   process.on("unhandledRejection", (reason) => {
diff --git a/src/instrumentation/tracing.ts b/src/instrumentation/tracing.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e4eb5c8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/instrumentation/tracing.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+/**
+ * Single source of truth for the tracing gate. OpenTelemetry spans are only
+ * created and exported to Sentry when `SENTRY_TRACING` is truthy (and a
+ * `SENTRY_DSN` is set). Defaults to disabled so 24/7 operation stays off the
+ * Sentry free-tier span quota. Error monitoring is unaffected by this flag.
+ */
+export function isTracingEnabled(): boolean {
+  const raw = process.env.SENTRY_TRACING;
+  if (raw === undefined) return false;
+  return raw === "1" || raw.toLowerCase() === "true";
+}