diff --git a/cmd/welcome/main.go b/cmd/welcome/main.go
index c8fa9e2..88fd7ed 100644
--- a/cmd/welcome/main.go
+++ b/cmd/welcome/main.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package main
 
 import (
 	"bytes"
+	"encoding/json"
 	"errors"
 	"fmt"
 	"os"
@@ -9,13 +10,17 @@ import (
 
 	"git.tilde.town/tildetown/town/invites"
 	"git.tilde.town/tildetown/town/stats"
+	"git.tilde.town/tildetown/town/towndb"
 	"github.com/charmbracelet/lipgloss"
 
 	_ "embed"
 )
 
+// TODO add logging like the signup tool has
+// TODO consider merging adduser, usermod, and createkeyfile into single createuser helper to limit sudoers list
 // TODO move magic key machine to static page
 // TODO link to code of conduct as part of the form and ask if they agree
+// TODO add alerts for new users (mailing list post, irc post, etc(?))
 
 //go:embed welcome.txt
 var welcomeArt string
@@ -130,14 +135,11 @@ if you end up very stuck, you can email root@tilde.town .`, data.Username))
 
 	fmt.Println(s)
 
-	// TODO mark invite as used
-	// TODO invoke helper to add user to town.db
+	// TODO burn invite
 
 	return nil
 }
 
-// TODO add logging like the signup tool has
-
 func createUser(data newUserData) (err error) {
 	cmd := exec.Command("sudo", "/usr/sbin/adduser", "--quiet", "--disabled-password", data.Username)
 	if err = cmd.Run(); err != nil {
@@ -160,7 +162,22 @@ func createUser(data newUserData) (err error) {
 		// TODO log this. no reason to bail out.
 	}
 
-	// TODO any alerts
+	cmd = exec.Command("sudo", "/town/bin/registeruser")
+	tu := towndb.TownUser{
+		Username: data.Username,
+		Emails: []string{
+			data.Email,
+		},
+		State: towndb.StateActive,
+	}
+	var out []byte
+	if out, err = json.Marshal(tu); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("could not serialize user data: %w", err)
+	}
+	cmd.Stdin = bytes.NewBuffer(out)
+	if err = cmd.Run(); err != nil {
+		return fmt.Errorf("register user failed: %w", err)
+	}
 
 	return nil
 }