diff --git a/.changeset/quiet-scaffold-output.md b/.changeset/quiet-scaffold-output.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..eac9325
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/quiet-scaffold-output.md
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+---
+"@marko/create": patch
+"create-marko": patch
+---
+
+Run the scaffold's install and git steps quietly behind the progress spinner. The noisy internals — pnpm's ignored-builds notice, esbuild's postinstall, the confirmation re-install, husky's `.git can't be found`, and git probes like `fatal: not a git repository` — are no longer printed. Install output is surfaced only when it genuinely fails.
diff --git a/packages/create/src/cli.ts b/packages/create/src/cli.ts
index d2b2f01..d7b00be 100644
--- a/packages/create/src/cli.ts
+++ b/packages/create/src/cli.ts
@@ -98,31 +98,30 @@ export async function run(options: CliOptions): Promise<void> {
   }
 
   const spin = p.spinner();
-  let spinning = false;
+  spin.start("Setting up project");
+  let installLog = "";
 
   const result = createProject({ ...options, name, template });
-  result.on("download", () => {
-    spin.start("Downloading app");
-    spinning = true;
-  });
-  result.on("install", (installer: string) => {
-    if (spinning) {
-      spin.stop("Downloaded app");
-      spinning = false;
-    }
-    p.log.step(`Installing dependencies with ${color.cyan(installer)}`);
-  });
-  result.on("install-error", (installer: string) =>
-    p.log.warn(
-      `${color.cyan(`${installer} install`)} did not finish cleanly. Your ` +
-        "project was still created — you may need to install dependencies manually.",
-    ),
+  result.on("download", () => spin.message("Downloading app"));
+  result.on("install", (installer: string) =>
+    spin.message(`Installing dependencies with ${installer}`),
   );
-  result.on("init", () => p.log.step("Initializing git repository"));
+  result.on("install-error", (_installer: string, log?: string) => {
+    installLog = log ?? "";
+  });
+  result.on("init", () => spin.message("Setting up git repository"));
 
   try {
     const { projectPath, installer, installed, scripts } = await result;
-    if (spinning) spin.stop("Downloaded app");
+    spin.stop("Project created");
+
+    if (!installed) {
+      p.log.warn(
+        `${color.cyan(`${installer} install`)} did not finish cleanly — you ` +
+          "may need to run it yourself.",
+      );
+      if (installLog.trim()) p.log.message(installLog.trim());
+    }
 
     // `<pm> run <script>` is valid for npm/pnpm/yarn/bun alike.
     const script = scripts.dev ? "dev" : scripts.start ? "start" : undefined;
@@ -138,7 +137,7 @@ export async function run(options: CliOptions): Promise<void> {
         .join("\n")}`,
     );
   } catch (err) {
-    if (spinning) spin.stop("Failed to create project", 1);
+    spin.stop("Failed to create project", 1);
     p.cancel((err as Error).message);
     process.exitCode = 1;
   }
diff --git a/packages/create/src/create.ts b/packages/create/src/create.ts
index 5b45290..a085c63 100644
--- a/packages/create/src/create.ts
+++ b/packages/create/src/create.ts
@@ -12,7 +12,7 @@ import { join, resolve } from "node:path";
 import { downloadTemplate } from "giget";
 
 import { detectInstaller } from "./env.js";
-import { exec } from "./exec.js";
+import { exec, type ExecError } from "./exec.js";
 import { initGitRepo } from "./git.js";
 
 export const DEFAULT_TEMPLATE = "basic";
@@ -78,8 +78,8 @@ async function create(
   const { scripts } = await rewritePackageJson(projectPath, name);
 
   emitter.emit("install", installer);
-  const installed = await install(installer, projectPath);
-  if (!installed) emitter.emit("install-error", installer);
+  const { installed, log } = await install(installer, projectPath);
+  if (!installed) emitter.emit("install-error", installer, log);
 
   await initGitRepo(projectPath, emitter);
 
@@ -191,27 +191,36 @@ async function rewritePackageJson(
   return { scripts: pkg.scripts ?? {} };
 }
 
-async function install(installer: string, cwd: string): Promise<boolean> {
+async function install(
+  installer: string,
+  cwd: string,
+): Promise<{ installed: boolean; log?: string }> {
+  const run = () =>
+    exec(cwd, installer, ["install"], { shell: true, capture: true });
+
   try {
-    await exec(cwd, installer, ["install"], { shell: true });
-    return true;
-  } catch {
+    await run();
+    return { installed: true };
+  } catch (error) {
     // pnpm exits non-zero when it blocks a dependency's build scripts. The
     // vite-based templates rely on esbuild's, so approve just esbuild — pnpm
     // writes nothing and no-ops if esbuild wasn't actually installed — then
     // re-install to confirm that was the only problem. Any other package
     // manager (or a genuine pnpm failure) is a real error.
-    if (installer !== "pnpm") return false;
-
-    try {
-      await exec(cwd, installer, ["approve-builds", "esbuild"], {
-        shell: true,
-      });
-      await exec(cwd, installer, ["install"], { shell: true });
-      return true;
-    } catch {
-      return false;
+    if (installer === "pnpm") {
+      try {
+        await exec(cwd, installer, ["approve-builds", "esbuild"], {
+          shell: true,
+          capture: true,
+        });
+        await run();
+        return { installed: true };
+      } catch {
+        // Fall through and report the original install failure.
+      }
     }
+
+    return { installed: false, log: (error as ExecError).output };
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/packages/create/src/exec.ts b/packages/create/src/exec.ts
index 1e904a9..4195bca 100644
--- a/packages/create/src/exec.ts
+++ b/packages/create/src/exec.ts
@@ -8,31 +8,52 @@ export interface ExecOptions {
    * use it with internally-controlled arguments.
    */
   shell?: boolean;
+  /**
+   * Capture stdout/stderr instead of inheriting them. The combined output is
+   * attached to the rejection as `ExecError.output` so callers can surface it
+   * only when something actually goes wrong.
+   */
+  capture?: boolean;
+}
+
+export interface ExecError extends Error {
+  output?: string;
 }
 
 /**
- * Run a command, inheriting stdio so its output is visible to the user.
- * Resolves on a `0` exit code and rejects otherwise.
+ * Run a command to completion. Resolves on a `0` exit code and rejects
+ * otherwise. Inherits stdio by default; pass `capture` to buffer it instead.
  */
 export function exec(
   cwd: string,
   bin: string,
   args: string[],
-  { shell = false }: ExecOptions = {},
+  { shell = false, capture = false }: ExecOptions = {},
 ): Promise<void> {
   return new Promise((resolve, reject) => {
+    const stdio = capture ? "pipe" : "inherit";
     const child = shell
       ? spawn([bin, ...args].join(" "), {
           cwd,
           shell: true,
-          stdio: "inherit",
+          stdio,
           windowsHide: true,
         })
-      : spawn(bin, args, { cwd, stdio: "inherit", windowsHide: true });
+      : spawn(bin, args, { cwd, stdio, windowsHide: true });
+
+    let output = "";
+    if (capture) {
+      child.stdout?.on("data", (chunk) => (output += chunk));
+      child.stderr?.on("data", (chunk) => (output += chunk));
+    }
 
     child.once("error", reject).once("close", (code) => {
       if (code) {
-        reject(new Error(`${bin} ${args.join(" ")} exited with code ${code}`));
+        const error: ExecError = new Error(
+          `${bin} ${args.join(" ")} exited with code ${code}`,
+        );
+        error.output = output;
+        reject(error);
       } else {
         resolve();
       }
diff --git a/packages/create/src/git.ts b/packages/create/src/git.ts
index 7027e0b..14b7ac2 100644
--- a/packages/create/src/git.ts
+++ b/packages/create/src/git.ts
@@ -35,7 +35,10 @@ export async function initGitRepo(
   }
 }
 
-const git = (cwd: string, args: string[]) => exec(cwd, "git", args);
+// Capture git's output so internal probes (e.g. `rev-parse` printing
+// "fatal: not a git repository") don't leak to the user.
+const git = (cwd: string, args: string[]) =>
+  exec(cwd, "git", args, { capture: true });
 
 async function tryGit(cwd: string, args: string[]): Promise<boolean> {
   try {