diff --git a/.github/workflows/compile.yml b/.github/workflows/compile.yml
index 0905bdae2..77b90a82b 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/compile.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/compile.yml
@@ -20,6 +20,9 @@ jobs:
     steps:
       - name: Check out repository code
         uses: actions/checkout@v4
+        with:
+          # Git history is needed for `git describe` in the build to work.
+          fetch-depth: 0
 
       - name: Install packages (Linux)
         if: startsWith(matrix.os, 'ubuntu-')
diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 875aba775..d575b07f8 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -12,7 +12,8 @@ if(POLICY CMP0135)
     cmake_policy(SET CMP0135 OLD)
 endif()
 
-project(sail_riscv)
+include(cmake/project_version.cmake)
+project(sail_riscv VERSION ${sail_riscv_cmake_version})
 
 set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD 17)
 set(CMAKE_CXX_STANDARD_REQUIRED TRUE)
diff --git a/c_emulator/CMakeLists.txt b/c_emulator/CMakeLists.txt
index f3c072dab..a05177a02 100644
--- a/c_emulator/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/c_emulator/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
+# make version available to emulator
+configure_file(version.h.in version.h @ONLY)
+
 set(EMULATOR_COMMON_SRCS
     riscv_callbacks.cpp
     riscv_callbacks.h
@@ -16,6 +19,7 @@ set(EMULATOR_COMMON_SRCS
     riscv_softfloat.h
     config_utils.h
     config_utils.cpp
+    version.h
 )
 
 add_executable(sail_riscv_sim
@@ -51,6 +55,8 @@ target_include_directories(sail_riscv_sim
         "${CMAKE_CURRENT_SOURCE_DIR}"
         # So `riscv_sail.h` can find `sail_riscv_model.h`.
         "${CMAKE_BINARY_DIR}"
+        # So `riscv_sim.cpp` can find `version.h`.
+        "${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}"
 )
 
 # TODO: Enable warnings when we use the #include trick
diff --git a/c_emulator/riscv_sim.cpp b/c_emulator/riscv_sim.cpp
index bb894a40f..351db000d 100644
--- a/c_emulator/riscv_sim.cpp
+++ b/c_emulator/riscv_sim.cpp
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@
 #include "rvfi_dii.h"
 #include "default_config.h"
 #include "config_utils.h"
+#include "version.h"
 
 enum {
   OPT_TRACE_OUTPUT = 1000,
@@ -34,6 +35,7 @@ enum {
   OPT_VALIDATE_CONFIG,
   OPT_SAILCOV,
   OPT_ENABLE_EXPERIMENTAL_EXTENSIONS,
+  OPT_PRINT_VERSION,
   OPT_PRINT_DTS,
   OPT_PRINT_ISA,
 };
@@ -111,6 +113,7 @@ static struct option options[] = {
     {"rvfi-dii",                       required_argument, 0, 'r'                },
     {"help",                           no_argument,       0, 'h'                },
     {"config",                         required_argument, 0, 'c'                },
+    {"version",                        no_argument,       0, OPT_PRINT_VERSION  },
     {"print-default-config",           no_argument,       0, OPT_PRINT_CONFIG   },
     {"validate-config",                no_argument,       0, OPT_VALIDATE_CONFIG},
     {"trace",                          optional_argument, 0, 'v'                },
@@ -270,6 +273,9 @@ static int process_args(int argc, char **argv)
       }
       break;
     }
+    case OPT_PRINT_VERSION:
+      printf("%s\n", SAIL_RISCV_VERSION);
+      exit(0);
     case OPT_PRINT_CONFIG:
       printf("%s", DEFAULT_JSON);
       exit(0);
diff --git a/c_emulator/version.h.in b/c_emulator/version.h.in
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f88677dab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/c_emulator/version.h.in
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+#pragma once
+
+#define SAIL_RISCV_VERSION "@sail_riscv_git_version@"
diff --git a/cmake/project_version.cmake b/cmake/project_version.cmake
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..366531025
--- /dev/null
+++ b/cmake/project_version.cmake
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+# Set a default version for archive builds that do not have
+# git history.  Increment this appropriately at tag-and-release time.
+set(archive_build_version "0.7.0")
+
+# Sets GIT_EXECUTABLE
+find_package(Git)
+
+if (Git_FOUND)
+  # We could remove --tags if we started annotating the release tags.
+  execute_process(
+    COMMAND ${GIT_EXECUTABLE} describe --tags HEAD
+    RESULT_VARIABLE git_error
+    OUTPUT_VARIABLE git_describe
+    OUTPUT_STRIP_TRAILING_WHITESPACE
+  )
+else()
+  set(git_error TRUE)
+endif()
+
+if (git_error)
+  message(STATUS "Failed to run git describe: ${git_error}")
+
+  set(sail_riscv_git_version   ${archive_build_version})
+  set(sail_riscv_cmake_version ${archive_build_version})
+else()
+  # `git describe` cannot directly be used as a CMake VERSION argument
+  # for project() due the trailing commit hash failing CMake's semver
+  # format check.
+  #
+  # We could directly set PROJECT_VERSION to ${git_describe}, but that
+  # makes it incompatible with CPack in case we decide to use it.
+  # https://gitlab.kitware.com/cmake/cmake/-/issues/16716#note_956803
+  #
+  # Instead, parse the version components for CMake and CPack, and use
+  # git_describe for the simulator --version.
+
+  if (git_describe MATCHES "^([0-9]+)\\.([0-9]+)(-.*)?$")
+    set(v_major ${CMAKE_MATCH_1})
+    set(v_minor ${CMAKE_MATCH_2})
+  else()
+    message(FATAL_ERROR "Cannot parse git describe output: ${git_describe}")
+  endif()
+
+  set(sail_riscv_git_version   ${git_describe})
+  set(sail_riscv_cmake_version "${v_major}.${v_minor}")
+endif()
+
+# Log versions in the build log.
+message(STATUS "Building versions: ${sail_riscv_git_version} (git), ${sail_riscv_cmake_version} (cmake).")