diff --git a/internal/telemetry/telemetry.go b/internal/telemetry/telemetry.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..74d372b2a3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/telemetry/telemetry.go
@@ -0,0 +1,186 @@
+// Package telemetry records src-cli usage events to the Sourcegraph instance
+// the CLI is authenticated to, using the Telemetry V2 `recordEvents` GraphQL
+// mutation.
+//
+// Recording is strictly best-effort: a failure to record — whether a network
+// error, a GraphQL error, a timeout, or an instance too old to support the
+// mutation — must never affect the command the user actually ran. See
+// .context/TELEMETRY.md for the design and event schema.
+package telemetry
+
+import (
+	"context"
+	"fmt"
+	"io"
+	"sort"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/src-cli/internal/api"
+
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/sourcegraph/lib/errors"
+)
+
+const (
+	// ClientName identifies src-cli as the source of telemetry events.
+	ClientName = "SRC_CLI"
+
+	// eventParametersVersion is the schema version of the metadata we attach to
+	// each event. Bump it when the shape of the metadata changes.
+	eventParametersVersion = 1
+
+	// defaultTimeout bounds how long a single Record call may spend recording.
+	// It is deliberately short: telemetry is sent synchronously right before the
+	// process exits, so it must not add meaningful latency.
+	defaultTimeout = 2 * time.Second
+)
+
+// recordEventsMutation mirrors the mutation used by Sourcegraph's own clients.
+// The `telemetry` mutation only exists on Sourcegraph 5.2+, so on older
+// instances this returns GraphQL errors, which Record silently drops.
+const recordEventsMutation = `mutation RecordTelemetryEvents($events: [TelemetryEventInput!]!) {
+    telemetry {
+        recordEvents(events: $events) {
+            alwaysNil
+        }
+    }
+}`
+
+// Source identifies the client emitting events. It is constant for the lifetime
+// of a process.
+type Source struct {
+	// Client is the source client name, e.g. ClientName.
+	Client string
+	// ClientVersion is the src-cli version, e.g. "6.1.0" or "dev".
+	ClientVersion string
+}
+
+// Event is a single telemetry event.
+//
+// Feature and Action carry the event's identity and are always exported by
+// Sourcegraph, so command identity lives here (e.g. Feature "srcCli.search",
+// Action "succeeded"). Metadata values are numeric-only and are also always
+// exported; they must never contain user content. See .context/TELEMETRY.md.
+type Event struct {
+	// Feature is a noun describing what the event is about, e.g. "srcCli.search".
+	Feature string
+	// Action is a verb describing what happened, e.g. "succeeded" or "failed".
+	Action string
+	// Metadata holds numeric-only, PII-free facts about the event.
+	Metadata map[string]float64
+}
+
+// Recorder records events for a single Source through an api.Client.
+type Recorder struct {
+	client  api.Client
+	source  Source
+	timeout time.Duration
+	debug   io.Writer
+}
+
+// Option customizes a Recorder.
+type Option func(*Recorder)
+
+// WithTimeout overrides the default per-Record timeout.
+func WithTimeout(d time.Duration) Option {
+	return func(r *Recorder) {
+		if d > 0 {
+			r.timeout = d
+		}
+	}
+}
+
+// WithDebug sets a writer that receives a diagnostic line whenever an event is
+// dropped. Intended to be wired to verbose (-v) output; leave unset for silence.
+func WithDebug(w io.Writer) Option {
+	return func(r *Recorder) { r.debug = w }
+}
+
+// NewRecorder returns a Recorder that records events for source through client.
+func NewRecorder(client api.Client, source Source, opts ...Option) *Recorder {
+	r := &Recorder{
+		client:  client,
+		source:  source,
+		timeout: defaultTimeout,
+	}
+	for _, opt := range opts {
+		opt(r)
+	}
+	return r
+}
+
+// Record sends event on a best-effort basis. It never returns an error and
+// never panics: validation, network, GraphQL, timeout, and old-instance
+// failures are all silently dropped (written to the debug writer if one was set
+// via WithDebug). It applies its own timeout, so the caller's context need not
+// carry a deadline.
+func (r *Recorder) Record(ctx context.Context, event Event) {
+	if err := r.record(ctx, event); err != nil && r.debug != nil {
+		fmt.Fprintf(r.debug, "telemetry: dropping event %q/%q: %v\n", event.Feature, event.Action, err)
+	}
+}
+
+// record does the work behind Record and returns any error, so it can be tested
+// directly. Callers outside tests should use Record.
+func (r *Recorder) record(ctx context.Context, event Event) error {
+	if r.client == nil {
+		return errors.New("nil api client")
+	}
+	if err := Validate(event.Feature, event.Action); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+
+	ctx, cancel := context.WithTimeout(ctx, r.timeout)
+	defer cancel()
+
+	vars := map[string]any{
+		"events": []any{buildEventInput(r.source, event)},
+	}
+
+	// The recordEvents payload has no fields we care about; we only need to
+	// know whether the request succeeded.
+	var result struct {
+		Telemetry struct {
+			RecordEvents struct {
+				AlwaysNil *string
+			}
+		}
+	}
+	if _, err := r.client.NewRequest(recordEventsMutation, vars).Do(ctx, &result); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+// buildEventInput builds a single TelemetryEventInput as a JSON-serializable map.
+func buildEventInput(source Source, event Event) map[string]any {
+	return map[string]any{
+		"feature": event.Feature,
+		"action":  event.Action,
+		"source": map[string]any{
+			"client":        source.Client,
+			"clientVersion": source.ClientVersion,
+		},
+		"parameters": map[string]any{
+			"version":  eventParametersVersion,
+			"metadata": buildMetadata(event.Metadata),
+		},
+	}
+}
+
+// buildMetadata converts numeric metadata into the list of {key, value} inputs
+// the API expects, sorted by key for deterministic output.
+func buildMetadata(metadata map[string]float64) []any {
+	out := make([]any, 0, len(metadata))
+	if len(metadata) == 0 {
+		return out
+	}
+	keys := make([]string, 0, len(metadata))
+	for k := range metadata {
+		keys = append(keys, k)
+	}
+	sort.Strings(keys)
+	for _, k := range keys {
+		out = append(out, map[string]any{"key": k, "value": metadata[k]})
+	}
+	return out
+}
diff --git a/internal/telemetry/telemetry_test.go b/internal/telemetry/telemetry_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..c17e603594
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/telemetry/telemetry_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,158 @@
+package telemetry
+
+import (
+	"bytes"
+	"context"
+	"testing"
+	"time"
+
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/src-cli/internal/api"
+	apimock "github.com/sourcegraph/src-cli/internal/api/mock"
+
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/sourcegraph/lib/errors"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/assert"
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/mock"
+)
+
+func testSource() Source {
+	return Source{Client: ClientName, ClientVersion: "6.1.0"}
+}
+
+func TestRecord_SendsWellFormedMutation(t *testing.T) {
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	req := &apimock.Request{}
+
+	var gotQuery string
+	var gotVars map[string]any
+	client.On("NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).
+		Run(func(args mock.Arguments) {
+			gotQuery = args.Get(0).(string)
+			gotVars = args.Get(1).(map[string]any)
+		}).
+		Return(req)
+	req.On("Do", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(true, nil)
+
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource())
+	rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{
+		Feature:  "srcCli.search",
+		Action:   "succeeded",
+		Metadata: map[string]float64{"durationMs": 12, "exitCode": 0},
+	})
+
+	assert.Equal(t, recordEventsMutation, gotQuery)
+
+	events, ok := gotVars["events"].([]any)
+	if !ok || len(events) != 1 {
+		t.Fatalf("expected 1 event, got %#v", gotVars["events"])
+	}
+	event := events[0].(map[string]any)
+	assert.Equal(t, "srcCli.search", event["feature"])
+	assert.Equal(t, "succeeded", event["action"])
+
+	source := event["source"].(map[string]any)
+	assert.Equal(t, ClientName, source["client"])
+	assert.Equal(t, "6.1.0", source["clientVersion"])
+
+	params := event["parameters"].(map[string]any)
+	assert.Equal(t, eventParametersVersion, params["version"])
+
+	metadata := params["metadata"].([]any)
+	// sorted by key: durationMs, exitCode
+	assert.Equal(t, []any{
+		map[string]any{"key": "durationMs", "value": float64(12)},
+		map[string]any{"key": "exitCode", "value": float64(0)},
+	}, metadata)
+
+	client.AssertExpectations(t)
+	req.AssertExpectations(t)
+}
+
+func TestRecord_EmptyMetadataSendsEmptyList(t *testing.T) {
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	req := &apimock.Request{}
+
+	var gotVars map[string]any
+	client.On("NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).
+		Run(func(args mock.Arguments) { gotVars = args.Get(1).(map[string]any) }).
+		Return(req)
+	req.On("Do", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(true, nil)
+
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource())
+	rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.version", Action: "succeeded"})
+
+	event := gotVars["events"].([]any)[0].(map[string]any)
+	params := event["parameters"].(map[string]any)
+	assert.Equal(t, []any{}, params["metadata"])
+}
+
+func TestRecord_ValidationFailsBeforeSending(t *testing.T) {
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	// No expectations set: NewRequest must never be called.
+
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource())
+	err := rec.record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "Bad_Feature", Action: "succeeded"})
+
+	assert.Error(t, err)
+	client.AssertNotCalled(t, "NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything)
+}
+
+func TestRecord_NetworkErrorSwallowed(t *testing.T) {
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	req := &apimock.Request{}
+	client.On("NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(req)
+	req.On("Do", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(false, errors.New("connection refused"))
+
+	var debug bytes.Buffer
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource(), WithDebug(&debug))
+
+	// Must not panic and must not surface the error.
+	assert.NotPanics(t, func() {
+		rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.search", Action: "failed"})
+	})
+	assert.Contains(t, debug.String(), "connection refused")
+
+	// record itself reports the error for callers that want it.
+	err := rec.record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.search", Action: "failed"})
+	assert.Error(t, err)
+}
+
+func TestRecord_GraphQLErrorSwallowed(t *testing.T) {
+	// Simulates an instance too old to have the telemetry mutation: the server
+	// returns GraphQL errors, which must be dropped silently.
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	req := &apimock.Request{}
+	client.On("NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(req)
+	req.On("Do", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).
+		Return(false, api.GraphQlErrors{})
+
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource())
+	assert.NotPanics(t, func() {
+		rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.search", Action: "succeeded"})
+	})
+}
+
+func TestRecord_NilClientDoesNotPanic(t *testing.T) {
+	rec := NewRecorder(nil, testSource())
+	assert.NotPanics(t, func() {
+		rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.search", Action: "succeeded"})
+	})
+}
+
+func TestRecord_AppliesTimeout(t *testing.T) {
+	client := &apimock.Client{}
+	req := &apimock.Request{}
+
+	var hadDeadline bool
+	client.On("NewRequest", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).Return(req)
+	req.On("Do", mock.Anything, mock.Anything).
+		Run(func(args mock.Arguments) {
+			ctx := args.Get(0).(context.Context)
+			_, hadDeadline = ctx.Deadline()
+		}).
+		Return(true, nil)
+
+	rec := NewRecorder(client, testSource(), WithTimeout(50*time.Millisecond))
+	rec.Record(context.Background(), Event{Feature: "srcCli.search", Action: "succeeded"})
+
+	assert.True(t, hadDeadline, "expected Record to apply a context deadline")
+}
diff --git a/internal/telemetry/validate.go b/internal/telemetry/validate.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..b71f3acf9e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/telemetry/validate.go
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+package telemetry
+
+import (
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/src-cli/internal/lazyregexp"
+
+	"github.com/sourcegraph/sourcegraph/lib/errors"
+)
+
+// maxNameLength is the maximum length Sourcegraph accepts for a feature or
+// action name.
+const maxNameLength = 64
+
+// featureActionRegex matches the names Sourcegraph accepts for feature and
+// action: they must start with a lowercase letter and contain only letters,
+// dashes, and dots (no digits, underscores, or whitespace). It mirrors the
+// server-side validation in the Sourcegraph monorepo.
+var featureActionRegex = lazyregexp.New(`^[a-z][a-zA-Z\-.]+$`)
+
+// Validate reports whether feature and action satisfy Sourcegraph's naming
+// rules. Events that fail validation are rejected before any request is made.
+func Validate(feature, action string) error {
+	if err := validateName("feature", feature); err != nil {
+		return err
+	}
+	return validateName("action", action)
+}
+
+func validateName(kind, name string) error {
+	if name == "" {
+		return errors.Newf("telemetry %s must not be empty", kind)
+	}
+	if len(name) > maxNameLength {
+		return errors.Newf("telemetry %s %q exceeds %d characters", kind, name, maxNameLength)
+	}
+	if !featureActionRegex.MatchString(name) {
+		return errors.Newf("telemetry %s %q must match %s", kind, name, featureActionRegex.Re().String())
+	}
+	return nil
+}
diff --git a/internal/telemetry/validate_test.go b/internal/telemetry/validate_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..bf73648dba
--- /dev/null
+++ b/internal/telemetry/validate_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+package telemetry
+
+import "testing"
+
+func TestValidate(t *testing.T) {
+	tests := []struct {
+		name    string
+		feature string
+		action  string
+		wantErr bool
+	}{
+		{name: "valid simple", feature: "srcCli", action: "succeeded"},
+		{name: "valid dotted feature", feature: "srcCli.batch.apply", action: "failed"},
+		{name: "valid dashed feature", feature: "srcCli.code-intel", action: "succeeded"},
+		{name: "empty feature", feature: "", action: "succeeded", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "empty action", feature: "srcCli", action: "", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "digit in feature", feature: "srcCli2", action: "succeeded", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "underscore in action", feature: "srcCli", action: "did_it", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "leading uppercase", feature: "SrcCli", action: "succeeded", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "whitespace", feature: "srcCli search", action: "succeeded", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "single char feature (too short for +)", feature: "s", action: "succeeded", wantErr: true},
+		{name: "too long", feature: longName(70), action: "ok", wantErr: true},
+	}
+
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			err := Validate(tt.feature, tt.action)
+			if tt.wantErr && err == nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Validate(%q, %q) = nil, want error", tt.feature, tt.action)
+			}
+			if !tt.wantErr && err != nil {
+				t.Fatalf("Validate(%q, %q) = %v, want nil", tt.feature, tt.action, err)
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func longName(n int) string {
+	b := make([]byte, n)
+	for i := range b {
+		b[i] = 'a'
+	}
+	return string(b)
+}