diff --git a/get-shit-done/bin/lib/core.cjs b/get-shit-done/bin/lib/core.cjs
index 0eb9d628..e92f7491 100644
--- a/get-shit-done/bin/lib/core.cjs
+++ b/get-shit-done/bin/lib/core.cjs
@@ -112,6 +112,40 @@ function findProjectRoot(startDir) {
 
 // ─── Output helpers ───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
+/**
+ * Remove stale gsd-* temp files/dirs older than maxAgeMs (default: 5 minutes).
+ * Runs opportunistically before each new temp file write to prevent unbounded accumulation.
+ * @param {string} prefix - filename prefix to match (e.g., 'gsd-')
+ * @param {object} opts
+ * @param {number} opts.maxAgeMs - max age in ms before removal (default: 5 min)
+ * @param {boolean} opts.dirsOnly - if true, only remove directories (default: false)
+ */
+function reapStaleTempFiles(prefix = 'gsd-', { maxAgeMs = 5 * 60 * 1000, dirsOnly = false } = {}) {
+  try {
+    const tmpDir = require('os').tmpdir();
+    const now = Date.now();
+    const entries = fs.readdirSync(tmpDir);
+    for (const entry of entries) {
+      if (!entry.startsWith(prefix)) continue;
+      const fullPath = path.join(tmpDir, entry);
+      try {
+        const stat = fs.statSync(fullPath);
+        if (now - stat.mtimeMs > maxAgeMs) {
+          if (stat.isDirectory()) {
+            fs.rmSync(fullPath, { recursive: true, force: true });
+          } else if (!dirsOnly) {
+            fs.unlinkSync(fullPath);
+          }
+        }
+      } catch {
+        // File may have been removed between readdir and stat — ignore
+      }
+    }
+  } catch {
+    // Non-critical — don't let cleanup failures break output
+  }
+}
+
 function output(result, raw, rawValue) {
   if (raw && rawValue !== undefined) {
     process.stdout.write(String(rawValue));
@@ -120,6 +154,7 @@ function output(result, raw, rawValue) {
     // Large payloads exceed Claude Code's Bash tool buffer (~50KB).
     // Write to tmpfile and output the path prefixed with @file: so callers can detect it.
     if (json.length > 50000) {
+      reapStaleTempFiles();
       const tmpPath = path.join(require('os').tmpdir(), `gsd-${Date.now()}.json`);
       fs.writeFileSync(tmpPath, json, 'utf-8');
       process.stdout.write('@file:' + tmpPath);
@@ -1005,6 +1040,7 @@ module.exports = {
   withPlanningLock,
   findProjectRoot,
   detectSubRepos,
+  reapStaleTempFiles,
   MODEL_ALIAS_MAP,
   planningDir,
   planningPaths,
diff --git a/get-shit-done/bin/lib/profile-pipeline.cjs b/get-shit-done/bin/lib/profile-pipeline.cjs
index dc06592d..acfc73d6 100644
--- a/get-shit-done/bin/lib/profile-pipeline.cjs
+++ b/get-shit-done/bin/lib/profile-pipeline.cjs
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ const fs = require('fs');
 const path = require('path');
 const os = require('os');
 const readline = require('readline');
-const { output, error, safeReadFile } = require('./core.cjs');
+const { output, error, safeReadFile, reapStaleTempFiles } = require('./core.cjs');
 
 // ─── Session I/O Helpers ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────
 
@@ -333,6 +333,7 @@ async function cmdExtractMessages(projectArg, options, raw, overridePath) {
     sessions = sessions.slice(0, options.limit);
   }
 
+  reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-pipeline-', { dirsOnly: true });
   const tmpDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'gsd-pipeline-'));
   const outputPath = path.join(tmpDir, 'extracted-messages.jsonl');
 
@@ -511,6 +512,7 @@ async function cmdProfileSample(overridePath, options, raw) {
     }
   }
 
+  reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-profile-', { dirsOnly: true });
   const tmpDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(os.tmpdir(), 'gsd-profile-'));
   const outputPath = path.join(tmpDir, 'profile-sample.jsonl');
   for (const msg of allMessages) {
diff --git a/tests/core.test.cjs b/tests/core.test.cjs
index e43f53f9..68b80c96 100644
--- a/tests/core.test.cjs
+++ b/tests/core.test.cjs
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ const {
   escapeRegex,
   generateSlugInternal,
   normalizePhaseName,
+  reapStaleTempFiles,
   normalizeMd,
   comparePhaseNum,
   safeReadFile,
@@ -1315,3 +1316,51 @@ describe('findProjectRoot', () => {
     assert.strictEqual(findProjectRoot(backendDir), backendDir);
   });
 });
+
+// ─── reapStaleTempFiles ─────────────────────────────────────────────────────
+
+describe('reapStaleTempFiles', () => {
+  test('removes stale gsd-*.json files older than maxAgeMs', () => {
+    const tmpDir = os.tmpdir();
+    const stalePath = path.join(tmpDir, `gsd-reap-test-${Date.now()}.json`);
+    fs.writeFileSync(stalePath, '{}');
+    // Set mtime to 10 minutes ago
+    const oldTime = new Date(Date.now() - 10 * 60 * 1000);
+    fs.utimesSync(stalePath, oldTime, oldTime);
+
+    reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-reap-test-', { maxAgeMs: 5 * 60 * 1000 });
+
+    assert.ok(!fs.existsSync(stalePath), 'stale file should be removed');
+  });
+
+  test('preserves fresh gsd-*.json files', () => {
+    const tmpDir = os.tmpdir();
+    const freshPath = path.join(tmpDir, `gsd-reap-fresh-${Date.now()}.json`);
+    fs.writeFileSync(freshPath, '{}');
+
+    reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-reap-fresh-', { maxAgeMs: 5 * 60 * 1000 });
+
+    assert.ok(fs.existsSync(freshPath), 'fresh file should be preserved');
+    // Clean up
+    fs.unlinkSync(freshPath);
+  });
+
+  test('removes stale temp directories when present', () => {
+    const tmpDir = os.tmpdir();
+    const staleDir = fs.mkdtempSync(path.join(tmpDir, 'gsd-reap-dir-'));
+    fs.writeFileSync(path.join(staleDir, 'data.jsonl'), 'test');
+    // Set mtime to 10 minutes ago
+    const oldTime = new Date(Date.now() - 10 * 60 * 1000);
+    fs.utimesSync(staleDir, oldTime, oldTime);
+
+    reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-reap-dir-', { maxAgeMs: 5 * 60 * 1000 });
+
+    assert.ok(!fs.existsSync(staleDir), 'stale directory should be removed');
+  });
+
+  test('does not throw on empty or missing prefix matches', () => {
+    assert.doesNotThrow(() => {
+      reapStaleTempFiles('gsd-nonexistent-prefix-xyz-', { maxAgeMs: 0 });
+    });
+  });
+});