diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index f3cf7cc..8ae7986 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@ set(NOVA_LIBRARY_INSTALL OFF CACHE BOOL "Enable library installation targets")
 set(NOVA_BACKEND_VULKAN ON CACHE BOOL "Enable Vulkan backend")
 # set(NOVA_BACKEND_WEBGPU ON CACHE BOOL "Enable WebGPU backend")
 
+set(NOVA_USE_VOLK ON CACHE BOOL "Use volk for Vulkan function loading")
+
 add_compile_definitions(
 	NOVA_VERSION_MAJOR=${PROJECT_VERSION_MAJOR}
 	NOVA_VERSION_MINOR=${PROJECT_VERSION_MINOR}
diff --git a/engine/CMakeLists.txt b/engine/CMakeLists.txt
index 832bb1c..283046e 100644
--- a/engine/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/engine/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -1,6 +1,8 @@
 # Copyright (c) 2025, Jayden Grubb <contact@jaydengrubb.com>
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
 
+include(FetchContent)
+
 set(NOVA_ENGINE_SRC
 	core/debug.cpp
 	graphics/context.cpp
@@ -31,7 +33,21 @@ if (NOVA_BACKEND_VULKAN)
 	target_sources(nova PRIVATE ${NOVA_VULKAN_SRC})
 	target_compile_definitions(nova PRIVATE NOVA_BACKEND_VULKAN)
 	target_include_directories(nova PRIVATE ${Vulkan_INCLUDE_DIRS})
-	target_link_libraries(nova PRIVATE Vulkan::Vulkan)
+
+	if (NOVA_USE_VOLK)
+		FetchContent_Declare(
+			volk
+			GIT_REPOSITORY https://github.com/zeux/volk.git
+			GIT_TAG f30088b3f4160810b53e19258dd2f7395e5f0ba3 # 1.4.328.1
+		)
+		FetchContent_MakeAvailable(volk)
+
+		target_compile_definitions(nova PRIVATE NOVA_USE_VOLK)
+		target_include_directories(nova PRIVATE ${volk_INCLUDE_DIRS})
+		target_link_libraries(nova PRIVATE volk::volk)
+	else()
+		target_link_libraries(nova PRIVATE Vulkan::Vulkan)
+	endif()
 endif()
 
 set_target_properties(nova PROPERTIES
diff --git a/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.cpp b/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.cpp
index fc242ba..5ca4504 100644
--- a/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.cpp
+++ b/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.cpp
@@ -4,6 +4,10 @@
  * SPDX-License-Identifier: BSD-3-Clause
  */
 
+#if defined(NOVA_USE_VOLK)
+	#include <volk.h>
+#endif
+
 #include <vulkan/vulkan.h>
 
 #include <format>
@@ -13,6 +17,14 @@
 
 namespace nova::gfx {
 
+VulkanContext::VulkanContext() {
+#if defined(NOVA_USE_VOLK)
+	if (volkInitialize() != VK_SUCCESS) {
+		throw std::runtime_error("Failed to initialize volk");
+	}
+#endif
+}
+
 API VulkanContext::get_api() const {
 	return API::VULKAN;
 }
diff --git a/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.hpp b/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.hpp
index cbd095a..53cb814 100644
--- a/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.hpp
+++ b/engine/src/backends/vulkan/context.hpp
@@ -14,6 +14,8 @@ namespace nova::gfx {
 
 class VulkanContext final : public IContext {
   public:
+	VulkanContext();
+
 	API get_api() const override;
 	std::string get_api_name() const override;