diff --git a/scripts/print_compose_status.sh b/scripts/print_compose_status.sh
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..a278cc5d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/print_compose_status.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+set -euo pipefail
+
+# Small helper script to show the status of Base node Docker services.
+
+COMPOSE_FILE="${COMPOSE_FILE:-docker-compose.yml}"
+
+echo "Using compose file: ${COMPOSE_FILE}"
+echo
+
+if ! command -v docker >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  echo "docker is not installed or not on PATH."
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+if ! command -v docker compose >/dev/null 2>&1 && ! command -v docker-compose >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  echo "docker compose (or docker-compose) is not available."
+  exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ -f "${COMPOSE_FILE}" ]; then
+  echo "Listing services from ${COMPOSE_FILE}:"
+else
+  echo "Warning: ${COMPOSE_FILE} not found in the current directory."
+fi
+
+if command -v docker compose >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+  docker compose ps || true
+else
+  docker-compose ps || true
+fi