diff --git a/src/drivers/database/rqlite.test.ts b/src/drivers/database/rqlite.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..13e47a12
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/drivers/database/rqlite.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,139 @@
+import { RqliteQueryable, transformRawResult } from "./rqlite";
+
+// Mock global fetch
+const mockFetch = jest.fn();
+global.fetch = mockFetch;
+
+afterEach(() => {
+  mockFetch.mockReset();
+});
+
+describe("transformRawResult", () => {
+  it("maps columns and values to rows", () => {
+    const result = transformRawResult({
+      columns: ["id", "name"],
+      types: ["integer", "text"],
+      values: [
+        [1, "Alice"],
+        [2, "Bob"],
+      ],
+      rows_affected: 0,
+      time: 1.5,
+    });
+
+    expect(result.headers).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(result.rows).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(result.rows[0]).toEqual({ id: 1, name: "Alice" });
+    expect(result.stat.rowsAffected).toBe(0);
+    expect(result.stat.queryDurationMs).toBe(1.5);
+  });
+
+  it("handles missing values (non-SELECT statements)", () => {
+    const result = transformRawResult({
+      rows_affected: 3,
+      last_insert_id: 42,
+    });
+
+    expect(result.rows).toEqual([]);
+    expect(result.stat.rowsAffected).toBe(3);
+    expect(result.lastInsertRowid).toBe(42);
+  });
+});
+
+describe("RqliteQueryable.testConnection", () => {
+  it("resolves when X-Rqlite-Version header is present", async () => {
+    mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+      headers: { get: (h: string) => (h === "X-Rqlite-Version" ? "v8.0.0" : null) },
+    });
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001");
+    await expect(q.testConnection()).resolves.toBeUndefined();
+
+    expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledWith("http://localhost:4001/", {
+      method: "GET",
+      redirect: "manual",
+    });
+  });
+
+  it("throws when X-Rqlite-Version header is absent", async () => {
+    mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+      headers: { get: () => null },
+    });
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001");
+    await expect(q.testConnection()).rejects.toThrow(
+      "does not appear to be an rqlite node"
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("throws with a descriptive message when fetch fails", async () => {
+    mockFetch.mockRejectedValueOnce(new Error("ECONNREFUSED"));
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001");
+    await expect(q.testConnection()).rejects.toThrow(
+      "Unable to reach rqlite at http://localhost:4001"
+    );
+  });
+});
+
+describe("RqliteQueryable.transaction", () => {
+  it("calls testConnection before the first transaction", async () => {
+    // testConnection fetch
+    mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+      headers: { get: (h: string) => (h === "X-Rqlite-Version" ? "v8.0.0" : null) },
+    });
+    // transaction fetch
+    mockFetch.mockResolvedValueOnce({
+      json: async () => ({
+        results: [{ columns: ["n"], types: ["integer"], values: [[1]] }],
+      }),
+    });
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001");
+    const results = await q.transaction(["SELECT 1 AS n"]);
+
+    expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(2);
+    expect(results[0].rows[0]).toEqual({ n: 1 });
+  });
+
+  it("skips testConnection on subsequent calls", async () => {
+    // First testConnection + first transaction
+    mockFetch
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        headers: { get: (h: string) => (h === "X-Rqlite-Version" ? "v8.0.0" : null) },
+      })
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        json: async () => ({ results: [{ rows_affected: 0 }] }),
+      })
+      // Second transaction — no testConnection call
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        json: async () => ({ results: [{ rows_affected: 0 }] }),
+      });
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001");
+    await q.transaction(["SELECT 1"]);
+    await q.transaction(["SELECT 2"]);
+
+    // Only 3 total calls (1 test + 2 transactions), not 4
+    expect(mockFetch).toHaveBeenCalledTimes(3);
+  });
+
+  it("adds Basic auth header when credentials are provided", async () => {
+    mockFetch
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        headers: { get: (h: string) => (h === "X-Rqlite-Version" ? "v8.0.0" : null) },
+      })
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce({
+        json: async () => ({ results: [{ rows_affected: 0 }] }),
+      });
+
+    const q = new RqliteQueryable("http://localhost:4001", "admin", "secret");
+    await q.transaction(["DELETE FROM t WHERE 1=0"]);
+
+    const transactionCall = mockFetch.mock.calls[1];
+    const headers = transactionCall[1].headers;
+    expect(headers["Authorization"]).toBe(
+      "Basic " + btoa("admin:secret")
+    );
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/drivers/database/rqlite.ts b/src/drivers/database/rqlite.ts
index 410bf098..4dd7fb0c 100644
--- a/src/drivers/database/rqlite.ts
+++ b/src/drivers/database/rqlite.ts
@@ -68,13 +68,42 @@ export function transformRawResult(raw: RqliteResult): DatabaseResultSet {
 }
 
 export class RqliteQueryable implements QueryableBaseDriver {
+  private connectionVerified = false;
+
   constructor(
     protected endpoint: string,
     protected username?: string,
     protected password?: string
   ) {}
 
+  // Verifies the endpoint is an rqlite node by checking for the X-Rqlite-Version
+  // response header on the root path, as described in rqlite docs.
+  async testConnection(): Promise<void> {
+    let response: Response;
+    try {
+      response = await fetch(this.endpoint + "/", {
+        method: "GET",
+        redirect: "manual",
+      });
+    } catch (e) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `Unable to reach rqlite at ${this.endpoint}: ${(e as Error).message}`
+      );
+    }
+
+    if (!response.headers.get("X-Rqlite-Version")) {
+      throw new Error(
+        `${this.endpoint} does not appear to be an rqlite node (missing X-Rqlite-Version header)`
+      );
+    }
+  }
+
   async transaction(stmts: string[]): Promise<DatabaseResultSet[]> {
+    if (!this.connectionVerified) {
+      await this.testConnection();
+      this.connectionVerified = true;
+    }
+
     let headers: HeadersInit = {
       "Content-Type": "application/json",
     };