diff --git a/.changes/unreleased/+app-command-piped-stdin.yaml b/.changes/unreleased/+app-command-piped-stdin.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..2dc080cd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changes/unreleased/+app-command-piped-stdin.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+kind: Fixed
+body: Preserve piped and redirected stdin for app commands, including when output is captured, without allocating a nonterminal TTY.
diff --git a/internal/dockerdeploy/config.go b/internal/dockerdeploy/config.go
index 4359fae1..d50cc12e 100644
--- a/internal/dockerdeploy/config.go
+++ b/internal/dockerdeploy/config.go
@@ -117,6 +117,7 @@ func AppCommand(options AppCommandOptions) error {
 	if terminalOutput == nil {
 		terminalOutput = os.Stdout
 	}
+	stdin, _, tty := shellCommandIO(os.Stdin, terminalOutput)
 	stateSchema, err := runtimeStateSchema(options.Dir)
 	if err != nil {
 		return err
@@ -136,8 +137,8 @@ func AppCommand(options AppCommandOptions) error {
 	return runCurrentAppCommand(ctx, CurrentAppCommandRunInputV1{
 		DeploymentDir: options.Dir, Arguments: append([]string(nil), options.CommandArgs...),
 		DeployedOnly: options.DeployedOnly, OutputDir: options.OutputDir, OutputFile: options.OutputFile,
-		Wait: options.Wait, Runtime: runtime, TTY: writerLooksTerminal(terminalOutput),
-		RunOptions: RunOptions{Stdin: appCommandStdin(terminalOutput), Stdout: options.Stdout, Stderr: options.Stderr, DockerPreflightTimeout: options.DockerPreflightTimeout},
+		Wait: options.Wait, Runtime: runtime, TTY: tty,
+		RunOptions: RunOptions{Stdin: stdin, Stdout: options.Stdout, Stderr: options.Stderr, DockerPreflightTimeout: options.DockerPreflightTimeout},
 	})
 }
 
@@ -158,13 +159,6 @@ func validateCurrentAppCommandRequestV1(dir string, arguments []string, deployed
 	return err
 }
 
-func appCommandStdin(output io.Writer) io.Reader {
-	if !writerLooksTerminal(output) || !readerLooksTerminal(os.Stdin) {
-		return nil
-	}
-	return os.Stdin
-}
-
 func appCommandError(err error) error {
 	message := err.Error()
 	if trimmed, ok := strings.CutPrefix(message, "docker failed: "); ok {
diff --git a/internal/dockerdeploy/config_public_test.go b/internal/dockerdeploy/config_public_test.go
index 881f52ad..631f9ffc 100644
--- a/internal/dockerdeploy/config_public_test.go
+++ b/internal/dockerdeploy/config_public_test.go
@@ -1,7 +1,10 @@
 package dockerdeploy
 
 import (
+	"bytes"
 	"context"
+	"errors"
+	"io"
 	"os"
 	"path/filepath"
 	"reflect"
@@ -11,6 +14,108 @@ import (
 	"github.com/omry/reploy/internal/deploy"
 )
 
+func TestAppCommandForwardsNonterminalStdin(t *testing.T) {
+	for _, name := range []string{"pipe", "redirected input", "redirected output", "empty pipe", "closed input", "execution error"} {
+		t.Run(name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			payload := []byte("scripted input\n")
+			var input *os.File
+			if name == "redirected input" {
+				var err error
+				input, err = os.CreateTemp(t.TempDir(), "stdin")
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				if _, err := input.Write(payload); err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				if _, err := input.Seek(0, io.SeekStart); err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+			} else {
+				var err error
+				var writer *os.File
+				input, writer, err = os.Pipe()
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				if name == "empty pipe" || name == "closed input" {
+					payload = nil
+				}
+				if _, err := writer.Write(payload); err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				if err := writer.Close(); err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				if name == "closed input" {
+					if err := input.Close(); err != nil {
+						t.Fatal(err)
+					}
+				}
+			}
+			var captured, stderr bytes.Buffer
+			var stdout io.Writer = &captured
+			if name == "redirected output" {
+				file, err := os.CreateTemp(t.TempDir(), "stdout")
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+				defer file.Close()
+				stdout = file
+			}
+			originalInput, originalCommand := os.Stdin, runCurrentAppCommand
+			t.Cleanup(func() {
+				os.Stdin, runCurrentAppCommand = originalInput, originalCommand
+				_ = input.Close()
+			})
+			os.Stdin = input
+			called := false
+			executionErr := errors.New("execution failed")
+			runCurrentAppCommand = func(ctx context.Context, command CurrentAppCommandRunInputV1) error {
+				called = true
+				if ctx == nil || command.RunOptions.Stdin != input || command.TTY {
+					t.Fatal("public app command dropped stdin or requested a nonterminal TTY")
+				}
+				if command.RunOptions.Stdout != stdout || command.RunOptions.Stderr != &stderr {
+					t.Fatal("public app command replaced output streams")
+				}
+				got, err := io.ReadAll(command.RunOptions.Stdin)
+				if name == "closed input" {
+					if !errors.Is(err, os.ErrClosed) {
+						t.Fatalf("closed reader error = %v", err)
+					}
+					return err
+				}
+				if err != nil || !bytes.Equal(got, payload) {
+					t.Fatalf("stdin did not arrive unchanged through EOF: %v", err)
+				}
+				if name == "execution error" {
+					return executionErr
+				}
+				return nil
+			}
+			err := AppCommand(AppCommandOptions{Dir: appCommandStateDir(t), CommandArgs: []string{"serve"}, Stdout: stdout, Stderr: &stderr})
+			if !called {
+				t.Fatal("public app command did not reach execution")
+			}
+			switch name {
+			case "closed input":
+				if !errors.Is(err, os.ErrClosed) {
+					t.Fatalf("closed-input error was lost: %v", err)
+				}
+			case "execution error":
+				if err != executionErr {
+					t.Fatalf("execution error was replaced: %v", err)
+				}
+			default:
+				if err != nil {
+					t.Fatal(err)
+				}
+			}
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 func TestAppCommandUsesCurrentGenerationWithoutProviderBuild(t *testing.T) {
 	dir := appCommandStateDir(t)
 	originalCommand := runCurrentAppCommand