diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-slic-docker-image.yml b/.github/workflows/publish-slic-docker-image.yml
index 7bc5945..d4b0327 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/publish-slic-docker-image.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-slic-docker-image.yml
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ on:
 
 jobs:
   publish-slic-image:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    runs-on: ${{ matrix.runner }}
     permissions:
       contents: read
       packages: write
@@ -18,6 +18,15 @@ jobs:
       matrix:
         # The php_version is the docker tag from https://hub.docker.com/_/php/tags
         php_version: [ '7.3', '7.4', '8.0', '8.1', '8.2', '8.3' ]
+        arch: [ 'amd64', 'arm64' ]
+        # Add runner and platform info for each architecture
+        include:
+          - arch: amd64
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+          - arch: arm64
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
@@ -46,9 +55,8 @@ jobs:
             type=ref,event=branch
             type=ref,event=tag
             type=semver,pattern={{raw}}
-
-      - name: Set up QEMU for multi-platform builds
-        uses: docker/setup-qemu-action@v3
+          flavor: |
+            suffix=-${{ matrix.arch }},onlatest=true
 
       - name: Set up Docker Buildx
         uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
@@ -61,11 +69,46 @@ jobs:
           push: true
           tags: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.tags }}
           labels: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.labels }}
-          # Use the faster registry cache.
-          cache-from: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-php${{ matrix.php_version }}
-          cache-to: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-php${{ matrix.php_version }},mode=max
+          # Use the faster registry cache with platform-specific caching
+          cache-from: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-php${{ matrix.php_version }}-${{ matrix.arch }}
+          cache-to: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-php${{ matrix.php_version }}-${{ matrix.arch }},mode=max
           build-args: |
             PHP_VERSION=${{ matrix.php_version }}
             NODE_VERSION=18.17.0
             NVM_VERSION=v0.40.1
-          platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64
+          platforms: ${{ matrix.platform }}
+
+  create-slic-manifest:
+    needs: publish-slic-image
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      packages: write
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        php_version: [ '7.3', '7.4', '8.0', '8.1', '8.2', '8.3' ]
+    steps:
+      - name: Log in to the Container registry
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          registry: ghcr.io
+          username: ${{ github.actor }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+
+      - name: Create and push multi-arch manifest
+        run: |
+          # Determine the tag based on the event type
+          if [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == "refs/heads/main" ]]; then
+            TAG="edge"
+          elif [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}"
+          else
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/heads/}"
+          fi
+          
+          IMAGE_BASE="ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}-php${{ matrix.php_version }}"
+          
+          # Create multi-arch manifest
+          docker buildx imagetools create -t "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}" \
+            "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}-amd64" \
+            "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}-arm64"
diff --git a/.github/workflows/publish-wordpress-docker-image.yml b/.github/workflows/publish-wordpress-docker-image.yml
index 122e8ce..3d6d3a1 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/publish-wordpress-docker-image.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/publish-wordpress-docker-image.yml
@@ -10,26 +10,77 @@ on:
 
 jobs:
   publish-wordpress-image:
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    runs-on: ${{ matrix.runner }}
     permissions:
       contents: read
       packages: write
     strategy:
       matrix:
-        wp_version: [ '6.2' ]
-        php_version: [ '8.0', '8.1', '8.2' ]
         include:
-          # No WordPress image for version 6.2+ and PHP 7.3: use the latest 5.9 version.
-          # This version is NOT updated in the containers/wordpress/Dockerfile for back-compatibility.
+          # WordPress 6.2 with PHP 8.0, 8.1, 8.2 - both architectures
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.0'
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.0'
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.1'
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.1'
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.2'
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
+          - wp_version: '6.2'
+            php_version: '8.2'
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
+          # WordPress 5.9 with PHP 7.3 - both architectures
+          - wp_version: '5.9'
+            php_version: '7.3'
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
           - wp_version: '5.9'
             php_version: '7.3'
-          # No WordPress image for version 6.2+ and PHP 7.4: use the latest 6.1.1 version.
-          # See containers/wordpress/Dockerfile for the wp-cli update to version 6.2.
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
+          # WordPress 6.1.1 with PHP 7.4 - both architectures
           - wp_version: '6.1.1'
             php_version: '7.4'
-          # Use the latest 6.5 WordPress version for PHP 8.3.
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
+          - wp_version: '6.1.1'
+            php_version: '7.4'
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
+          # WordPress 6.5 with PHP 8.3 - both architectures
+          - wp_version: '6.5'
+            php_version: '8.3'
+            runner: ubuntu-latest
+            platform: linux/amd64
+            arch: amd64
           - wp_version: '6.5'
             php_version: '8.3'
+            runner: ubuntu-24.04-arm
+            platform: linux/arm64
+            arch: arm64
 
     steps:
       - name: Checkout repository
@@ -58,9 +109,8 @@ jobs:
             type=ref,event=branch
             type=ref,event=tag
             type=semver,pattern={{raw}}
-
-      - name: Set up QEMU
-        uses: docker/setup-qemu-action@v3
+          flavor: |
+            suffix=-${{ matrix.arch }},onlatest=true
 
       - name: Set up Docker Buildx
         uses: docker/setup-buildx-action@v3
@@ -73,10 +123,52 @@ jobs:
           push: true
           tags: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.tags }}
           labels: ${{ steps.meta.outputs.labels }}
-          # Use the faster registry cache.
-          cache-from: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-wp-${{ matrix.wp_version }}-${{ matrix.php_version }}
-          cache-to: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-wp-${{ matrix.wp_version }}-${{ matrix.php_version }},mode=max
+          # Use the faster registry cache with platform-specific caching
+          cache-from: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-wp-${{ matrix.wp_version }}-${{ matrix.php_version }}-${{ matrix.arch }}
+          cache-to: type=registry,ref=ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}/cache/slic-wp-${{ matrix.wp_version }}-${{ matrix.php_version }}-${{ matrix.arch }},mode=max
           build-args: |
             PHP_VERSION=${{ matrix.php_version }}
             WP_VERSION=${{ matrix.wp_version }}
-          platforms: linux/amd64,linux/arm64
+          platforms: ${{ matrix.platform }}
+
+  create-wordpress-manifest:
+    needs: publish-wordpress-image
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    permissions:
+      contents: read
+      packages: write
+    strategy:
+      matrix:
+        # Match the unique combinations from the build matrix
+        include:
+          - php_version: '8.0'
+          - php_version: '8.1'
+          - php_version: '8.2'
+          - php_version: '7.3'
+          - php_version: '7.4'
+          - php_version: '8.3'
+    steps:
+      - name: Log in to the Container registry
+        uses: docker/login-action@v3
+        with:
+          registry: ghcr.io
+          username: ${{ github.actor }}
+          password: ${{ secrets.GITHUB_TOKEN }}
+      
+      - name: Create and push multi-arch manifest
+        run: |
+          # Determine the tag based on the event type
+          if [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == "refs/heads/main" ]]; then
+            TAG="edge"
+          elif [[ "${{ github.ref }}" == refs/tags/* ]]; then
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/tags/}"
+          else
+            TAG="${GITHUB_REF#refs/heads/}"
+          fi
+          
+          IMAGE_BASE="ghcr.io/${{ github.repository }}-wordpress-php${{ matrix.php_version }}"
+          
+          # Create multi-arch manifest
+          docker buildx imagetools create -t "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}" \
+            "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}-amd64" \
+            "${IMAGE_BASE}:${TAG}-arm64"
diff --git a/changelog.md b/changelog.md
index a8dfd35..20d1bf6 100644
--- a/changelog.md
+++ b/changelog.md
@@ -4,6 +4,13 @@ All notable changes to this project will be documented in this file.
 The format is based on [Keep a Changelog](https://keepachangelog.com/en/1.0.0/),
 and this project adheres to [Semantic Versioning](https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html).
 
+# [2.1.2] - 2025-11-13
+- Change - GitHub Actions workflows now use native ARM64 runners (`ubuntu-24.04-arm`) instead of QEMU emulation for multi-platform builds, to reduce build times.
+- Change - Optimized Dockerfile layer ordering to improve cache hit rates - local config files moved to end to prevent invalidating heavy system installation layers.
+- Change - Added BuildKit cache mounts for apt package installation and PHP extension compilation, to reduce subsequent build times.
+- Change - Added `IPE_CACHE_DIR` environment variable to cache PHP extension downloads and compiled artifacts across builds.
+- Change - Implemented platform-specific registry caching (separate caches for amd64/arm64) to prevent cache conflicts and maximize reuse.
+
 # [2.1.1] - 2025-11-04
 - Change - Optimize docker builds and workflows for slic and WordPress containers.
 
diff --git a/containers/slic/Dockerfile b/containers/slic/Dockerfile
index e509342..8ba0bd6 100644
--- a/containers/slic/Dockerfile
+++ b/containers/slic/Dockerfile
@@ -13,6 +13,15 @@ ARG TARGETPLATFORM
 
 SHELL ["/bin/bash", "-eou", "pipefail", "-c"]
 
+# -------------------------------
+# Environment variables
+# -------------------------------
+# Disable AVIF for GD https://github.com/mlocati/docker-php-extension-installer#configuration
+ENV IPE_GD_WITHOUTAVIF=${IPE_GD_WITHOUTAVIF}
+ENV NVM_VERSION=${NVM_VERSION}
+ENV NVM_DIR=/usr/local/bin/.nvm
+ENV IPE_CACHE_DIR=/tmp/ipe-cache
+
 # -------------------------------
 # WP-CLI & PHP extension installer
 # -------------------------------
@@ -21,20 +30,19 @@ ADD https://github.com/mlocati/docker-php-extension-installer/releases/latest/do
 
 RUN chmod a+rx /usr/local/bin/wp /usr/local/bin/install-php-extensions
 
-# Disable AVIF for GD https://github.com/mlocati/docker-php-extension-installer#configuration
-ENV IPE_GD_WITHOUTAVIF=${IPE_GD_WITHOUTAVIF}
-RUN install-php-extensions xdebug pdo pdo_mysql mysqli zip uopz pcntl sockets intl exif gd
-
 # -------------------------------
-# NVM environment variables
+# PHP extensions (heavy compilation step with cache mount)
 # -------------------------------
-ENV NVM_VERSION=${NVM_VERSION}
-ENV NVM_DIR=/usr/local/bin/.nvm
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/tmp/ipe-cache,sharing=locked \
+    install-php-extensions xdebug pdo pdo_mysql mysqli zip uopz pcntl sockets intl exif gd
 
 # -------------------------------
-# Dependencies for NVM & general builds
+# System dependencies (with cache mount for speed)
 # -------------------------------
-RUN apt-get update && \
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/var/cache/apt,sharing=locked \
+    --mount=type=cache,target=/var/lib/apt,sharing=locked \
+    rm -f /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/docker-clean && \
+    apt-get update && \
     apt-get install -yqq --no-install-recommends \
         ca-certificates curl git zip unzip iproute2 \
         libnss3 libnspr4 libdbus-1-3 libatk1.0-0 libatk-bridge2.0-0 \
@@ -66,25 +74,7 @@ RUN set -eux; \
     node -v; npm -v
 
 # -------------------------------
-# PHP uopz extension & XDebug
-# -------------------------------
-COPY ./docker-php-ext-uopz.ini /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d/docker-php-ext-uopz.ini
-COPY ./xdebug-on.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on
-COPY ./xdebug-off.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off
-
-RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off && \
-    chmod -R a+rwx /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d && xdebug-off
-
-# -------------------------------
-# Composer 1 & 2
-# -------------------------------
-COPY --from=composer1 /usr/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer1
-COPY --from=composer2 /usr/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer
-
-RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer1
-
-# -------------------------------
-# Slic user & fixuid
+# Slic user & fixuid setup
 # -------------------------------
 RUN groupadd -g 1000 slic 2>/dev/null || true && \
     useradd -u 1000 -g 1000 -m -s /bin/bash slic 2>/dev/null || true && \
@@ -95,22 +85,37 @@ RUN groupadd -g 1000 slic 2>/dev/null || true && \
     esac && \
     curl -SsL https://github.com/boxboat/fixuid/releases/download/v0.6.0/fixuid-0.6.0-linux-$FIXUID_ARCH.tar.gz \
         | tar -C /usr/local/bin -xzf - && \
-    chown root:root /usr/local/bin/fixuid && chmod 4755 /usr/local/bin/fixuid && \
+    chown root:root /usr/local/bin/fixuid && \
+    chmod 4755 /usr/local/bin/fixuid && \
     mkdir -p /etc/fixuid
 
+# -------------------------------
+# Composer 1 & 2 from multi-stage builds
+# -------------------------------
+COPY --from=composer1 /usr/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer1
+COPY --from=composer2 /usr/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer
+
+# -------------------------------
+# Local config files (moved late for better caching)
+# -------------------------------
+COPY ./docker-php-ext-uopz.ini /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d/docker-php-ext-uopz.ini
+COPY ./xdebug-on.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on
+COPY ./xdebug-off.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off
 COPY ./fixuid.yml /etc/fixuid/config.yml
 COPY ./.bashrc /home/slic/.bashrc
 COPY ./.bashrc /root/.bashrc
 COPY ./bashrc_scripts.sh /home/slic/bashrc_scripts.sh
-
-# Ensure NVM directory is owned by slic
-RUN chown -R slic:slic $NVM_DIR
+COPY ./slic-entrypoint.sh /usr/local/bin/slic-entrypoint.sh
 
 # -------------------------------
-# Entrypoint
+# Final permissions & setup
 # -------------------------------
-COPY ./slic-entrypoint.sh /usr/local/bin/slic-entrypoint.sh
-RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/slic-entrypoint.sh
+RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off \
+             /usr/local/bin/composer /usr/local/bin/composer1 \
+             /usr/local/bin/slic-entrypoint.sh && \
+    chmod -R a+rwx /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d && \
+    chown -R slic:slic $NVM_DIR && \
+    xdebug-off
 
 ENTRYPOINT ["/usr/local/bin/slic-entrypoint.sh"]
 
diff --git a/containers/wordpress/Dockerfile b/containers/wordpress/Dockerfile
index 9beb80b..27c0a87 100644
--- a/containers/wordpress/Dockerfile
+++ b/containers/wordpress/Dockerfile
@@ -4,26 +4,44 @@ ARG WP_VERSION=6.1
 
 FROM wordpress:${WP_VERSION}-php${PHP_VERSION}-apache
 
-# Add all remote tools in one layer.
+# -------------------------------
+# Environment variables
+# -------------------------------
+ENV IPE_CACHE_DIR=/tmp/ipe-cache
+
+# -------------------------------
+# WP-CLI & PHP extension installer
+# -------------------------------
 ADD https://github.com/mlocati/docker-php-extension-installer/releases/latest/download/install-php-extensions /usr/local/bin/
 ADD https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wp-cli/builds/gh-pages/phar/wp-cli.phar /usr/local/bin/wp
 
-# Consolidate chmod and the slow xdebug install into one layer to make cacheable.
-RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/install-php-extensions && \
+# -------------------------------
+# PHP extensions (with cache mount)
+# -------------------------------
+RUN --mount=type=cache,target=/tmp/ipe-cache,sharing=locked \
+    chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/install-php-extensions && \
     chmod a+rx /usr/local/bin/wp && \
     install-php-extensions xdebug
 
-COPY xdebug-on.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on
-COPY xdebug-off.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off
-
-# Consolidate all xdebug configuration and permissions into one layer.
-RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off && \
-    xdebug-off && \
-    chmod -R a+rwx /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d
-
+# -------------------------------
+# WordPress version update (PHP 7.4)
+# -------------------------------
 # No image for WordPress 6.2+ is available for PHP 7.4.
 # If PHP_VERSION is 7.4, update WordPress to 6.2 using wp-cli.
-# This layer is kept separate as it's conditional and should run last.
+# This runs before COPY so changes to scripts don't invalidate this layer.
 RUN if echo "${PHP_VERSION}" | grep -q '^7.4'; then \
     wp --allow-root --path=/usr/src/wordpress core download --version=6.2 --force; \
     fi
+
+# -------------------------------
+# Local config files (moved late for better caching)
+# -------------------------------
+COPY xdebug-on.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on
+COPY xdebug-off.sh /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off
+
+# -------------------------------
+# Final permissions & setup
+# -------------------------------
+RUN chmod a+x /usr/local/bin/xdebug-on /usr/local/bin/xdebug-off && \
+    chmod -R a+rwx /usr/local/etc/php/conf.d && \
+    xdebug-off
diff --git a/slic.php b/slic.php
index 667df87..f2fcb0a 100644
--- a/slic.php
+++ b/slic.php
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@
 ] );
 
 $cli_name = 'slic';
-const CLI_VERSION = '2.1.1';
+const CLI_VERSION = '2.1.2';
 
 // If the run-time option `-q`, for "quiet", is specified, then do not print the header.
 if ( in_array( '-q', $argv, true ) || ( in_array( 'exec', $argv, true ) && ! in_array( 'help', $argv, true ) ) ) {