diff --git a/src/contexts/RoutesProvider.tsx b/src/contexts/RoutesProvider.tsx
index 34810750..b1233bd7 100644
--- a/src/contexts/RoutesProvider.tsx
+++ b/src/contexts/RoutesProvider.tsx
@@ -61,6 +61,7 @@ export default function RoutesProvider({ children }: Readonly<Props>) {
               : toUpdate.access_control_groups ??
                 route.access_control_groups ??
                 undefined,
+            skip_auto_apply: toUpdate.skip_auto_apply ?? route.skip_auto_apply ?? true,
           },
           `/${route.id}`,
         )
@@ -94,6 +95,7 @@ export default function RoutesProvider({ children }: Readonly<Props>) {
           masquerade: route.masquerade,
           groups: route.groups || [],
           access_control_groups: route?.access_control_groups || undefined,
+          skip_auto_apply: route.skip_auto_apply ?? true,
         })
         .then((route) => {
           mutate("/routes");
diff --git a/src/interfaces/Route.ts b/src/interfaces/Route.ts
index 1e13c0cc..e459dbff 100644
--- a/src/interfaces/Route.ts
+++ b/src/interfaces/Route.ts
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@ export interface Route {
   groups: string[];
   keep_route?: boolean;
   access_control_groups?: string[];
+  skip_auto_apply?: boolean;
   // Frontend only
   peer_groups?: string[];
   routesGroups?: string[];
diff --git a/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodeDropdownButton.tsx b/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodeDropdownButton.tsx
index e259fa3f..905f7c7a 100644
--- a/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodeDropdownButton.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodeDropdownButton.tsx
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ type Props = {
 
 export const ExitNodeDropdownButton = ({ peer }: Props) => {
   const [modal, setModal] = useState(false);
-  const hasExitNodes = useHasExitNodes(peer);
+  const exitNodeInfo = useHasExitNodes(peer);
   const { permission } = usePermissions();
 
   return (
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ export const ExitNodeDropdownButton = ({ peer }: Props) => {
         disabled={!permission.routes.create}
       >
         <div className={"flex gap-3 items-center w-full"}>
-          {hasExitNodes ? (
+          {exitNodeInfo.hasExitNode ? (
             <>
               <IconCirclePlus size={14} className={"shrink-0"} />
               <div className={"flex justify-between items-center w-full"}>
diff --git a/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodePeerIndicator.tsx b/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodePeerIndicator.tsx
index 931195d7..05612e58 100644
--- a/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodePeerIndicator.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/exit-node/ExitNodePeerIndicator.tsx
@@ -8,18 +8,22 @@ type Props = {
   peer: Peer;
 };
 export const ExitNodePeerIndicator = ({ peer }: Props) => {
-  const hasExitNode = useHasExitNodes(peer);
+  const exitNodeInfo = useHasExitNodes(peer);
 
-  return hasExitNode ? (
-    <FullTooltip
-      content={
-        <div className={"text-xs max-w-xs"}>
-          This peer is an exit node. Traffic from the configured distribution
-          groups will be routed through this peer.
-        </div>
-      }
-    >
-      <IconDirectionSign size={15} className={"text-yellow-400 shrink-0"} />
+  if (!exitNodeInfo.hasExitNode) {
+    return null;
+  }
+
+  const tooltipContent = exitNodeInfo.skipAutoApply === false
+    ? "This peer is an auto-applied exit node. Traffic from the configured distribution groups will be routed through this peer."
+    : "This peer is an exit node. Traffic from the configured distribution groups will be routed through this peer.";
+
+  return (
+    <FullTooltip content={<div className={"text-xs max-w-xs"}>{tooltipContent}</div>}>
+      <IconDirectionSign 
+        size={15} 
+        className={`shrink-0 ${exitNodeInfo.skipAutoApply === false ? "text-green-400" : "text-yellow-400"}`} 
+      />
     </FullTooltip>
-  ) : null;
+  );
 };
diff --git a/src/modules/exit-node/useHasExitNodes.tsx b/src/modules/exit-node/useHasExitNodes.tsx
index e99b967d..5b6ed712 100644
--- a/src/modules/exit-node/useHasExitNodes.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/exit-node/useHasExitNodes.tsx
@@ -3,7 +3,12 @@ import { useLoggedInUser } from "@/contexts/UsersProvider";
 import { Peer } from "@/interfaces/Peer";
 import { Route } from "@/interfaces/Route";
 
-export const useHasExitNodes = (peer?: Peer) => {
+export interface ExitNodeInfo {
+  hasExitNode: boolean;
+  skipAutoApply?: boolean;
+}
+
+export const useHasExitNodes = (peer?: Peer): ExitNodeInfo => {
   const { isOwnerOrAdmin } = useLoggedInUser();
   const { data: routes } = useFetchApi<Route[]>(
     `/routes`,
@@ -11,9 +16,17 @@ export const useHasExitNodes = (peer?: Peer) => {
     true,
     isOwnerOrAdmin,
   );
-  return peer
-    ? routes?.some(
-        (route) => route?.peer === peer.id && route?.network === "0.0.0.0/0",
-      ) || false
-    : false;
+  
+  if (!peer || !routes) {
+    return { hasExitNode: false };
+  }
+
+  const exitNodeRoute = routes.find(
+    (route) => route?.peer === peer.id && route?.network === "0.0.0.0/0",
+  );
+
+  return {
+    hasExitNode: !!exitNodeRoute,
+    skipAutoApply: exitNodeRoute?.skip_auto_apply,
+  };
 };
diff --git a/src/modules/peer/PeerNetworkRoutesSection.tsx b/src/modules/peer/PeerNetworkRoutesSection.tsx
index 7da2d8a7..99329f65 100644
--- a/src/modules/peer/PeerNetworkRoutesSection.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/peer/PeerNetworkRoutesSection.tsx
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ type Props = {
 
 export const PeerNetworkRoutesSection = ({ peer }: Props) => {
   const { peerRoutes, isLoading } = usePeerRoutes({ peer });
-  const hasExitNodes = useHasExitNodes(peer);
+  const exitNodeInfo = useHasExitNodes(peer);
   const { ref: headingRef, portalTarget } =
     usePortalElement<HTMLHeadingElement>();
 
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ export const PeerNetworkRoutesSection = ({ peer }: Props) => {
           </div>
           <div className={"inline-flex gap-4 justify-end"}>
             <div className={"gap-4 flex"}>
-              <AddExitNodeButton peer={peer} firstTime={!hasExitNodes} />
+              <AddExitNodeButton peer={peer} firstTime={!exitNodeInfo.hasExitNode} />
               <AddRouteDropdownButton />
             </div>
           </div>
diff --git a/src/modules/routes/RouteAutoApplyCell.tsx b/src/modules/routes/RouteAutoApplyCell.tsx
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..bfa3490d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/modules/routes/RouteAutoApplyCell.tsx
@@ -0,0 +1,53 @@
+import { ToggleSwitch } from "@components/ToggleSwitch";
+import React, { useMemo } from "react";
+import { useSWRConfig } from "swr";
+import { usePermissions } from "@/contexts/PermissionsProvider";
+import { useRoutes } from "@/contexts/RoutesProvider";
+import { Route } from "@/interfaces/Route";
+
+type Props = {
+  route: Route;
+};
+
+export default function RouteAutoApplyCell({ route }: Readonly<Props>) {
+  const { permission } = usePermissions();
+  const { updateRoute } = useRoutes();
+  const { mutate } = useSWRConfig();
+
+  const isExitNode = useMemo(() => route.network === "0.0.0.0/0", [route]);
+
+  const isChecked = useMemo(() => {
+    // Checked means Auto Apply is ON, which maps to skip_auto_apply === false
+    return route.skip_auto_apply === false;
+  }, [route]);
+
+  const update = async (checked: boolean) => {
+    // When toggled ON (checked === true), we want skip_auto_apply = false
+    const nextSkipAutoApply = !checked;
+    updateRoute(
+      route,
+      { skip_auto_apply: nextSkipAutoApply },
+      () => {
+        mutate("/routes");
+      },
+      checked
+        ? "Auto Apply was enabled for the route"
+        : "Auto Apply was disabled for the route",
+    );
+  };
+
+  if (!isExitNode) return null;
+
+  return (
+    <div className={"flex items-center"}>
+      <ToggleSwitch
+        checked={isChecked}
+        size={"small"}
+        onClick={() => update(!isChecked)}
+        disabled={!permission.routes.update}
+      />
+    </div>
+  );
+}
+
+
diff --git a/src/modules/routes/RouteModal.tsx b/src/modules/routes/RouteModal.tsx
index 2763fa99..1a167624 100644
--- a/src/modules/routes/RouteModal.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/routes/RouteModal.tsx
@@ -227,6 +227,7 @@ export function RouteModalContent({
   const [enabled, setEnabled] = useState<boolean>(true);
   const [metric, setMetric] = useState("9999");
   const [masquerade, setMasquerade] = useState<boolean>(true);
+  const [isForced, setIsForced] = useState<boolean>(true);
 
   const isNonLinuxRoutingPeer = useMemo(() => {
     if (!routingPeer) return false;
@@ -304,6 +305,7 @@ export function RouteModalContent({
         masquerade: useSinglePeer && isNonLinuxRoutingPeer ? true : masquerade,
         groups: groupIds,
         access_control_groups: accessControlGroupIds || undefined,
+        skip_auto_apply: !isForced,
       },
       onSuccess,
     );
@@ -718,6 +720,20 @@ export function RouteModalContent({
               helpText={"Use this switch to enable or disable the route."}
             />
 
+            {exitNode && (
+                              <FancyToggleSwitch
+                  value={isForced}
+                  onChange={setIsForced}
+                  label={
+                    <>
+                      <IconDirectionSign size={15} />
+                      Auto Apply Route
+                    </>
+                  }
+                  helpText={"Automatically apply this exit node to your distribution groups. This requires NetBird client v0.55.0 or higher."}
+                />
+            )}
+
             {!exitNode && (
               <RoutingPeerMasqueradeSwitch
                 value={masquerade}
diff --git a/src/modules/routes/RouteTable.tsx b/src/modules/routes/RouteTable.tsx
index b01683af..64e941c8 100644
--- a/src/modules/routes/RouteTable.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/routes/RouteTable.tsx
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import { GroupedRoute, Route } from "@/interfaces/Route";
 import RouteAccessControlGroups from "@/modules/routes/RouteAccessControlGroups";
 import RouteActionCell from "@/modules/routes/RouteActionCell";
 import RouteActiveCell from "@/modules/routes/RouteActiveCell";
+import RouteAutoApplyCell from "@/modules/routes/RouteAutoApplyCell";
 import RouteDistributionGroupsCell from "@/modules/routes/RouteDistributionGroupsCell";
 import RouteMetricCell from "@/modules/routes/RouteMetricCell";
 import RoutePeerCell from "@/modules/routes/RoutePeerCell";
@@ -77,6 +78,15 @@ export const RouteTableColumns: ColumnDef<Route>[] = [
     },
     cell: ({ row }) => <RouteAccessControlGroups route={row.original} />,
   },
+  {
+    id: "skipAutoApply",
+    accessorKey: "skip_auto_apply",
+    header: ({ column }) => {
+      return <DataTableHeader column={column}>Auto Apply</DataTableHeader>;
+    },
+    cell: ({ row }) => <RouteAutoApplyCell route={row.original} />,
+    sortingFn: "basic",
+  },
   {
     id: "group_names",
     accessorFn: (row) => {
@@ -104,6 +114,10 @@ export default function RouteTable({ row }: Props) {
       desc: true,
     },
   ]);
+  
+  const hasAtLeastOneExitNode = useMemo(() => {
+    return row.routes?.some((route) => route.network === "0.0.0.0/0");
+  }, [row.routes]);
 
   const data = useMemo(() => {
     if (!row.routes) return [];
@@ -144,6 +158,7 @@ export default function RouteTable({ row }: Props) {
           domains: false,
           domain_search: false,
           network: false,
+          skipAutoApply: !!hasAtLeastOneExitNode,
         }}
         setSorting={setSorting}
         columns={RouteTableColumns}
diff --git a/src/modules/routes/RouteUpdateModal.tsx b/src/modules/routes/RouteUpdateModal.tsx
index 5b18d425..4324e31a 100644
--- a/src/modules/routes/RouteUpdateModal.tsx
+++ b/src/modules/routes/RouteUpdateModal.tsx
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ import { Tabs, TabsContent, TabsList, TabsTrigger } from "@components/Tabs";
 import { Textarea } from "@components/Textarea";
 import { DomainsTooltip } from "@components/ui/DomainListBadge";
 import { getOperatingSystem } from "@hooks/useOperatingSystem";
+import { IconDirectionSign } from "@tabler/icons-react";
 import { cn } from "@utils/helpers";
 import { uniqBy } from "lodash";
 import {
@@ -193,6 +194,7 @@ function RouteUpdateModalContent({ onSuccess, route, cell }: ModalProps) {
   const [masquerade, setMasquerade] = useState<boolean>(
     route?.masquerade ?? true,
   );
+  const [isForced, setIsForced] = useState<boolean>(route?.skip_auto_apply === false);
 
   // Refs to manage focus on tab change
   const networkRangeRef = useRef<HTMLInputElement>(null);
@@ -257,6 +259,7 @@ function RouteUpdateModalContent({ onSuccess, route, cell }: ModalProps) {
         masquerade: useSinglePeer && isNonLinuxRoutingPeer ? true : masquerade,
         groups: groupIds,
         access_control_groups: accessControlGroupIds || undefined,
+        skip_auto_apply: !isForced,
       },
       (r) => {
         onSuccess && onSuccess(r);
@@ -456,6 +459,21 @@ function RouteUpdateModalContent({ onSuccess, route, cell }: ModalProps) {
               }
               helpText={"Use this switch to enable or disable the route."}
             />
+
+            {isExitNode && (
+                              <FancyToggleSwitch
+                  value={isForced}
+                  onChange={setIsForced}
+                  label={
+                    <>
+                      <IconDirectionSign size={15} />
+                      Auto Apply Route
+                    </>
+                  }
+                  helpText={"Automatically apply this exit node to your distribution groups. This requires NetBird client v0.55.0 or higher."}
+                />
+            )}
+
             {!isExitNode && (
               <RoutingPeerMasqueradeSwitch
                 value={masquerade}