diff --git a/internal/setup/flags.go b/internal/setup/flags.go
index e4fc58d6..c6ecb5cd 100644
--- a/internal/setup/flags.go
+++ b/internal/setup/flags.go
@@ -16,18 +16,28 @@ package setup
 
 import (
 	"flag"
+	"fmt"
+	"os"
 
+	"github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/internal"
 	"github.com/matrix-org/dendrite/internal/config"
-
 	"github.com/sirupsen/logrus"
 )
 
-var configPath = flag.String("config", "dendrite.yaml", "The path to the config file. For more information, see the config file in this repository.")
+var (
+	configPath = flag.String("config", "dendrite.yaml", "The path to the config file. For more information, see the config file in this repository.")
+	version    = flag.Bool("version", false, "Shows the current version and exits immediately.")
+)
 
 // ParseFlags parses the commandline flags and uses them to create a config.
 func ParseFlags(monolith bool) *config.Dendrite {
 	flag.Parse()
 
+	if *version {
+		fmt.Println(internal.VersionString())
+		os.Exit(0)
+	}
+
 	if *configPath == "" {
 		logrus.Fatal("--config must be supplied")
 	}