diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9566eec..d2604ea 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ Hackdex is a community hub for discovering and sharing Pokémon romhack patches.
 - **Discover**: curated hacks with screenshots, tags, versions, and summaries
 - **Submit**: metadata, screenshots, social links, and a BPS patch file
 - **Patch in the browser**: Powered by [RomPatcher.js](https://github.com/marcrobledo/RomPatcher.js); linked base roms stay on the user's device
-- **Safe delivery**: short-lived signed URLs for assets and downloads; no rom storage required
+- **Safe delivery**: public urls for cover images, short-lived signed URLs for patch downloads and other assets; no rom storage required
 
 ## Tech stack
 
@@ -28,7 +28,7 @@ Hackdex is a community hub for discovering and sharing Pokémon romhack patches.
 ## High-level architecture
 
 - UI: Next.js App Router with a mix of server and client components
-- Data: Supabase tables for hacks, tags, covers, patches; signed URLs for `hack-covers`
+- Data: Supabase tables for hacks, tags, patches; cover images stored in `covers` S3-compatible bucket
 - Patches: stored in an S3-compatible bucket `patches`; downloads use short-lived signed URLs via an API route
 - Auth: Supabase SSR helpers manage cookies; client SDK for browser calls
 
@@ -66,6 +66,8 @@ NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_PUBLISHABLE_KEY=
 NEXT_PUBLIC_SITE_URL=
 NEXT_PUBLIC_SITE_DOMAIN=
 
+NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN=
+
 S3_ENDPOINT=
 S3_PORT=
 S3_ACCESS_KEY_ID=
@@ -84,12 +86,15 @@ Typical flow:
 1) Initialize and start services using the CLI
 2) Note the printed API URL and publishable key; set them in `.env.local` as shown above
 3) Apply this repository’s migrations in `supabase/migrations`
-4) Create a Supabase Storage bucket named `hack-covers` (private is fine; the app uses signed URLs)
+4) Create a Supabase Storage bucket named `hack-covers` and make it public. Set the `NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN` environment variable to the public URL of your covers bucket (e.g., `https://your-project.supabase.co/storage/v1/object/public/hack-covers`)
 
-### S3‑compatible storage for patches
+### S3‑compatible storage for patches and covers
 
-- Create a bucket named `patches`
+- Create a bucket named `patches` and a public bucket named `covers`
 - Point the `S3_*` environment variables to your S3 endpoint (Minio locally or your vendor)
+- Set the `COVERS_BUCKET` environment variable to the name of your covers bucket (e.g., `covers`)
+- Set the `PATCHES_BUCKET` environment variable to the name of your patches bucket (e.g., `patches`)
+- Set the `NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN` environment variable to the public URL of your covers bucket (e.g., `http://localhost:9000/covers`)
 
 ### Install & run
 
diff --git a/src/app/hack/[slug]/edit/page.tsx b/src/app/hack/[slug]/edit/page.tsx
index f29d0da..b17fba0 100644
--- a/src/app/hack/[slug]/edit/page.tsx
+++ b/src/app/hack/[slug]/edit/page.tsx
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ import HackForm from "@/components/Hack/HackForm";
 import { createClient } from "@/utils/supabase/server";
 import { FaChevronLeft, FaChevronRight } from "react-icons/fa6";
 import Link from "next/link";
-import { getCoverSignedUrls } from "@/app/hack/actions";
+import { getCoverUrls } from "@/utils/format";
 import { checkEditPermission } from "@/utils/hack";
 
 interface EditPageProps {
@@ -42,7 +42,7 @@ export default async function EditHackPage({ params }: EditPageProps) {
     .order("position", { ascending: true });
   if (covers && covers.length > 0) {
     coverKeys = covers.map((c: any) => c.url);
-    signedCoverUrls = await getCoverSignedUrls(coverKeys);
+    signedCoverUrls = getCoverUrls(coverKeys);
   }
 
   const { data: tagRows } = await supabase
diff --git a/src/app/hack/[slug]/page.tsx b/src/app/hack/[slug]/page.tsx
index 660ff63..8db968f 100644
--- a/src/app/hack/[slug]/page.tsx
+++ b/src/app/hack/[slug]/page.tsx
@@ -18,9 +18,8 @@ import serialize from "serialize-javascript";
 import { headers } from "next/headers";
 import { MenuItem } from "@headlessui/react";
 import { FaCircleCheck } from "react-icons/fa6";
-import { sortOrderedTags } from "@/utils/format";
+import { sortOrderedTags, getCoverUrls } from "@/utils/format";
 import { RiArchiveStackFill } from "react-icons/ri";
-import { getCoverSignedUrls } from "@/app/hack/actions";
 import { isInformationalArchiveHack, isDownloadableArchiveHack, isArchiveHack, checkEditPermission } from "@/utils/hack";
 import Avatar from "@/components/Account/Avatar";
 
@@ -132,7 +131,7 @@ export default async function HackDetail({ params }: HackDetailProps) {
     .eq("hack_slug", slug)
     .order("position", { ascending: true });
   if (covers && covers.length > 0) {
-    images = await getCoverSignedUrls(covers.map(c => c.url));
+    images = getCoverUrls(covers.map(c => c.url));
   }
 
   const { data: tagRows } = await supabase
diff --git a/src/app/hack/actions.ts b/src/app/hack/actions.ts
index dc75a76..e98ae0d 100644
--- a/src/app/hack/actions.ts
+++ b/src/app/hack/actions.ts
@@ -265,21 +265,6 @@ export async function presignCoverUpload(args: { slug: string; objectKey: string
   return { ok: true, presignedUrl: url } as const;
 }
 
-export async function getCoverSignedUrl(objectKey: string) {
-  const client = getMinioClient();
-  // 5 minutes expiry for viewing
-  const url = await client.presignedGetObject(COVERS_BUCKET, objectKey, 60 * 5);
-  return url;
-}
-
-export async function getCoverSignedUrls(objectKeys: string[]) {
-  const client = getMinioClient();
-  // 5 minutes expiry for viewing
-  const urls = await Promise.all(
-    objectKeys.map(key => client.presignedGetObject(COVERS_BUCKET, key, 60 * 5))
-  );
-  return urls;
-}
 
 export async function approveHack(slug: string) {
   const supabase = await createClient();
diff --git a/src/app/page.tsx b/src/app/page.tsx
index 42288e8..0ebda2b 100644
--- a/src/app/page.tsx
+++ b/src/app/page.tsx
@@ -4,8 +4,7 @@ import { FaArrowRightLong } from "react-icons/fa6";
 import { createClient } from "@/utils/supabase/server";
 import HackCard from "@/components/HackCard";
 import Button from "@/components/Button";
-import { sortOrderedTags } from "@/utils/format";
-import { getCoverSignedUrls } from "@/app/hack/actions";
+import { sortOrderedTags, getCoverUrls } from "@/utils/format";
 import { HackCardAttributes } from "@/components/HackCard";
 
 export const metadata: Metadata = {
@@ -42,7 +41,7 @@ export default async function Home() {
 
     const coversBySlug = new Map<string, string[]>();
     if (coverRows && coverRows.length > 0) {      const coverKeys = coverRows.map((c) => c.url);
-      const signedUrls = await getCoverSignedUrls(coverKeys);
+      const signedUrls = getCoverUrls(coverKeys);
       const urlToSignedUrl = new Map<string, string>();
       coverKeys.forEach((key, idx) => {
         urlToSignedUrl.set(key, signedUrls[idx]);
diff --git a/src/components/Discover/DiscoverBrowser.tsx b/src/components/Discover/DiscoverBrowser.tsx
index 7d784ae..adc9c92 100644
--- a/src/components/Discover/DiscoverBrowser.tsx
+++ b/src/components/Discover/DiscoverBrowser.tsx
@@ -11,8 +11,7 @@ import { MdTune } from "react-icons/md";
 import { BsSdCardFill } from "react-icons/bs";
 import { CATEGORY_ICONS } from "@/components/Icons/tagCategories";
 import { useBaseRoms } from "@/contexts/BaseRomContext";
-import { sortOrderedTags, OrderedTag } from "@/utils/format";
-import { getCoverSignedUrls } from "@/app/hack/actions";
+import { sortOrderedTags, OrderedTag, getCoverUrls } from "@/utils/format";
 import { HackCardAttributes } from "@/components/HackCard";
 
 const HACKS_PER_PAGE = 9;
@@ -82,7 +81,7 @@ export default function DiscoverBrowser() {
       const coversBySlug = new Map<string, string[]>();
       if (coverRows && coverRows.length > 0) {
         const coverKeys = coverRows.map(c => c.url);
-        const urls = await getCoverSignedUrls(coverKeys);
+        const urls = getCoverUrls(coverKeys);
         // Map: storage object url -> signedUrl
         const urlToSignedUrl = new Map<string, string>();
         coverKeys.forEach((key, idx) => {
diff --git a/src/utils/format.ts b/src/utils/format.ts
index 1508b9f..41db23f 100644
--- a/src/utils/format.ts
+++ b/src/utils/format.ts
@@ -31,3 +31,25 @@ export function slugify(text: string) {
     .replace(/[^a-z0-9]+/g, "-")
     .replace(/^-+|-+$/g, "");
 }
+
+/**
+ * Get the public URL for a single cover image
+ */
+export function getCoverUrl(objectKey: string): string {
+  const domain = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN;
+  if (!domain) {
+    throw new Error("NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN environment variable is not set");
+  }
+  return `${domain}/${objectKey}`;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Get public URLs for multiple cover images
+ */
+export function getCoverUrls(objectKeys: string[]): string[] {
+  const domain = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN;
+  if (!domain) {
+    throw new Error("NEXT_PUBLIC_HACK_COVERS_DOMAIN environment variable is not set");
+  }
+  return objectKeys.map(key => `${domain}/${key}`);
+}