diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 03a7150..9f77912 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -5,6 +5,13 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+## Unreleased
+
+### Features
+
+ - Allow specifying a `--target` triple when running `cargo smart-release`, forwarding it to `cargo publish` so crates that don't
+   compile for the host can still be released ([#89](https://github.com/GitoxideLabs/cargo-smart-release/issues/89)).
+
 ## 0.21.8 (2025-08-03)
 
 ### Bug Fixes
@@ -2776,4 +2783,3 @@ For more information, run `cargo changelog -h`.
 ## v0.1.0 (2021-08-13)
 
 - initial release
-
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 18f75b7..0a45485 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -26,7 +26,8 @@ When developing various crates in a workspace, when committing changes and if th
 change I want to see in changelogs, [conventional] git messages will be used. This helps building changelog scaffolding automatically later.
 
 When ready for releasing a particular crate or set of crates of interest, run `cargo smart-release [<crate-name> ...]` to simulate a release. For particularly thorough
-but error-prone simulations (as in false positives) one could run `cargo smart-release --dry-run-cargo-publish`. To polish changelogs, run `cargo changelog --write <crate-name>`
+but error-prone simulations (as in false positives) one could run `cargo smart-release --dry-run-cargo-publish`. Crates that don't compile for the host can be released by
+passing `--target <triple>`, which is forwarded to every `cargo publish` invocation (including dry runs). To polish changelogs, run `cargo changelog --write <crate-name>`
 to update the scaffolding and edit it by hand until it fits.
 
 After evaluating the release procedure and following instructions,
diff --git a/src/cli/main.rs b/src/cli/main.rs
index 37116d1..476539b 100644
--- a/src/cli/main.rs
+++ b/src/cli/main.rs
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@ fn main() -> anyhow::Result<()> {
             no_isolate_dependencies_from_breaking_changes,
             capitalize_commit,
             registry,
+            target,
             signoff,
             commit_prefix,
         } => {
@@ -95,6 +96,7 @@ fn main() -> anyhow::Result<()> {
                     allow_changelog_github_release: !no_changelog_github_release,
                     capitalize_commit,
                     registry,
+                    target,
                     signoff,
                     commit_prefix,
                 },
diff --git a/src/cli/options.rs b/src/cli/options.rs
index 6128979..2371994 100644
--- a/src/cli/options.rs
+++ b/src/cli/options.rs
@@ -152,6 +152,12 @@ pub enum SubCommands {
         #[clap(long, help_heading = Some("CUSTOMIZATION"))]
         registry: Option<String>,
 
+        /// Build and package the crate for the given target triple when invoking `cargo publish`.
+        ///
+        /// This flag is forwarded to all `cargo publish` invocations, including dry runs.
+        #[clap(long, help_heading = Some("CUSTOMIZATION"))]
+        target: Option<String>,
+
         /// Pass --no-verify to 'cargo publish' which should only be a last resort when fixing up packages that
         /// otherwise wouldn't publish, but need to be publish to resolve the situation.
         #[clap(long, help_heading = Some("EXPERT"))]
diff --git a/src/command/mod.rs b/src/command/mod.rs
index 428be0a..9635758 100644
--- a/src/command/mod.rs
+++ b/src/command/mod.rs
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@ pub mod release {
         pub allow_changelog_github_release: bool,
         pub capitalize_commit: bool,
         pub registry: Option<String>,
+        pub target: Option<String>,
         pub signoff: bool,
         pub commit_prefix: Option<String>,
     }
diff --git a/src/command/release/cargo.rs b/src/command/release/cargo.rs
index 414b05d..0be2708 100644
--- a/src/command/release/cargo.rs
+++ b/src/command/release/cargo.rs
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ pub(in crate::command::release_impl) fn publish_crate(
         no_verify,
         verbose,
         registry,
+        target,
         ..
     }: Options,
 ) -> anyhow::Result<()> {
@@ -33,6 +34,9 @@ pub(in crate::command::release_impl) fn publish_crate(
         if let Some(ref registry) = registry {
             c.arg("--registry").arg(registry);
         }
+        if let Some(ref target) = target {
+            c.arg("--target").arg(target);
+        }
 
         if allow_dirty {
             c.arg("--allow-dirty");