diff --git a/cache/cache.go b/cache/cache.go
index 6e06a78..37b5c78 100644
--- a/cache/cache.go
+++ b/cache/cache.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"strings"
+	"sync"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/AccursedGalaxy/streakode/scan"
@@ -16,15 +17,38 @@ import (
 // -> Currently when a major version upgrade happens we need to manually delete cache file and do a refresh.
 
 // in-memory cache to hold repo metadata during runtime
-var Cache map[string]scan.RepoMetadata
+var (
+	Cache map[string]scan.RepoMetadata
+	metadata CacheMetadata
+	mutex sync.RWMutex
+)
+
+type CacheMetadata struct {
+	LastRefresh	time.Time
+	Version		string		// For Future Version Tracking
+}
 
 // InitCache - Initializes the in memory cache
 func InitCache() {
 	Cache = make(map[string]scan.RepoMetadata)
 }
 
+// check if refresh is needed
+func ShouldAutoRefresh(refreshInterval time.Duration) bool {
+	mutex.RLock()
+	defer mutex.RUnlock()
+
+	if metadata.LastRefresh.IsZero() {
+		return true
+	}
+	return time.Since(metadata.LastRefresh) > refreshInterval
+}
+
 // LoadCache - loads repository metadata from a JSON cache file into memory
 func LoadCache(filePath string) error {
+	mutex.Lock()
+	defer mutex.Unlock()
+
 	file, err := os.Open(filePath)
 	if os.IsNotExist(err) {
 		InitCache()
@@ -41,11 +65,32 @@ func LoadCache(filePath string) error {
 		return nil
 	}
 
+	// Load metadata from a separate file
+	metadataPath := filePath + ".meta"
+	metaFile, err := os.Open(metadataPath)
+	if os.IsNotExist(err) {
+		metadata = CacheMetadata{LastRefresh: time.Time{}}
+		return nil
+	}
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("error opening metadata file: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer metaFile.Close()
+
+	decoder = json.NewDecoder(metaFile)
+	if err := decoder.Decode(&metadata); err != nil {
+		metadata = CacheMetadata{LastRefresh: time.Time{}}
+		return nil
+	}
+
 	return nil
 }
 
 // SaveCache - saves the in-memory cache to a JSON file
 func SaveCache(filePath string) error {
+	mutex.Lock()
+	defer mutex.Unlock()
+
 	// Create directory if it doesn't exist
 	dir := filepath.Dir(filePath)
 	if err := os.MkdirAll(dir, 0755); err != nil {
@@ -63,6 +108,20 @@ func SaveCache(filePath string) error {
 		return fmt.Errorf("error encoding cache: %v", err)
 	}
 
+	// Save metadata to a separate file
+	metadataPath := filePath + ".meta"
+	metaFile, err := os.Create(metadataPath)
+	if err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("error creating metadata file: %v", err)
+	}
+	defer metaFile.Close()
+
+	metadata.LastRefresh = time.Now()
+	encoder = json.NewEncoder(metaFile)
+	if err := encoder.Encode(metadata); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("error encoding metadata: %v", err)
+	}
+
 	return nil
 }
 
@@ -138,3 +197,29 @@ func RefreshCache(dirs []string, author string, cacheFilePath string, excludedPa
 
 	return SaveCache(cacheFilePath)
 }
+
+// AsyncRefreshCache performs a non-blocking cache refresh
+func AsyncRefreshCache(dirs []string, author string, cacheFilePath string, excludedPatterns []string, excludedPaths []string) {
+	go func() {
+		if err := RefreshCache(dirs, author, cacheFilePath, excludedPatterns, excludedPaths); err != nil {
+			log.Printf("Background cache refresh failed: %v", err)
+		}
+	}()
+}
+
+// QuickNeedsRefresh performs a fast check if refresh is needed without scanning repositories
+func QuickNeedsRefresh(refreshInterval time.Duration) bool {
+	mutex.RLock()
+	defer mutex.RUnlock()
+	
+	if metadata.LastRefresh.IsZero() {
+		return true
+	}
+	
+	// Check if cache file exists and its modification time
+	if time.Since(metadata.LastRefresh) > refreshInterval {
+		return true
+	}
+	
+	return false
+}
diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index 4957f1d..80fe5d7 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import (
 	"os"
 	"os/exec"
 	"path/filepath"
+	"time"
 
 	"github.com/AccursedGalaxy/streakode/cache"
 	"github.com/AccursedGalaxy/streakode/cmd"
@@ -35,6 +36,54 @@ func getCacheFilePath(profile string) string {
 	return filepath.Join(home, fmt.Sprintf(".streakode_%s.cache", profile))
 }
 
+func ensureCacheRefresh() error {
+	// Skip if no refresh interval is configured
+	if config.AppConfig.RefreshInterval <= 0 {
+		return nil
+	}
+
+	interval := time.Duration(config.AppConfig.RefreshInterval) * time.Minute
+	
+	// Quick check if refresh is needed
+	if cache.QuickNeedsRefresh(interval) {
+		cacheFilePath := getCacheFilePath(config.AppState.ActiveProfile)
+		
+		// For commands that need fresh data, use sync refresh
+		if requiresFreshData() {
+			return cache.RefreshCache(
+				config.AppConfig.ScanDirectories,
+				config.AppConfig.Author,
+				cacheFilePath,
+				config.AppConfig.ScanSettings.ExcludedPatterns,
+				config.AppConfig.ScanSettings.ExcludedPaths,
+			)
+		}
+		
+		// For other commands, use async refresh
+		cache.AsyncRefreshCache(
+			config.AppConfig.ScanDirectories,
+			config.AppConfig.Author,
+			cacheFilePath,
+			config.AppConfig.ScanSettings.ExcludedPatterns,
+			config.AppConfig.ScanSettings.ExcludedPaths,
+		)
+	}
+	return nil
+}
+
+func requiresFreshData() bool {
+	// Get the command being executed
+	cmd := os.Args[1]
+	
+	// List of commands that need fresh data
+	freshDataCommands := map[string]bool{
+		"stats":  true,
+		"reload": true,
+	}
+	
+	return freshDataCommands[cmd]
+}
+
 func main() {
 	var profile string
 
@@ -55,6 +104,10 @@ func main() {
 				if err := cache.LoadCache(cacheFilePath); err != nil {
 					fmt.Printf("Error loading cache: %v\n", err)
 				}
+				
+				if err := ensureCacheRefresh(); err != nil {
+					fmt.Printf("Error refreshing cache: %v\n", err)
+				}
 			},
 	}