diff --git a/RECIPE-API-CHANGELOG.md b/RECIPE-API-CHANGELOG.md
index 08ef328a..0c98a33e 100644
--- a/RECIPE-API-CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/RECIPE-API-CHANGELOG.md
@@ -1216,3 +1216,9 @@ dependency to `do_rootfs_postprocess` shall now be changed to run after `do_root
 
 To easily select rootfs features from a local conf that should only apply to the image
 recipe, we provide the `IMAGE_ROOTFS_FEATURES`.
+
+### Replace isar-exclude-docs with rootfs feature exclude-docs
+
+The `isar-exclude-docs` package provided mechanisms to remove documentation from
+the rootfs. This has been replaced by the `exclude-docs` rootfs feature. The
+`isar-exclude-docs` package should no longer be used.
diff --git a/meta-isar/conf/local.conf.sample b/meta-isar/conf/local.conf.sample
index 6e1e1546..a984e28f 100644
--- a/meta-isar/conf/local.conf.sample
+++ b/meta-isar/conf/local.conf.sample
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ CONF_VERSION = "1"
 
 #
 # The default list of extra packages to be installed.
-IMAGE_INSTALL = "hello-isar example-raw example-module-${KERNEL_NAME} enable-fsck isar-exclude-docs samefile hello isar-disable-apt-cache cowsay example-prebuilt"
+IMAGE_INSTALL = "hello-isar example-raw example-module-${KERNEL_NAME} enable-fsck samefile hello isar-disable-apt-cache cowsay example-prebuilt"
 
 #
 # Container and WSL machines don't need example module and enable-fsck.
@@ -164,6 +164,10 @@ IMAGE_INSTALL:remove:wsl = "example-module-${KERNEL_NAME} enable-fsck"
 IMAGE_INSTALL:remove:qemuamd64-sb = "example-module-${KERNEL_NAME}"
 IMAGE_INSTALL:append:qemuamd64-sb = " example-module-signed-${KERNEL_NAME}"
 
+#
+# Exclude documentation files from the image
+IMAGE_ROOTFS_FEATURES += "exclude-docs"
+
 #
 # Uncomment this to disable cross-compilation support
 #ISAR_CROSS_COMPILE ?= "0"
diff --git a/meta/classes-recipe/rootfs.bbclass b/meta/classes-recipe/rootfs.bbclass
index f7822351..771d9b2e 100644
--- a/meta/classes-recipe/rootfs.bbclass
+++ b/meta/classes-recipe/rootfs.bbclass
@@ -41,6 +41,7 @@ ROOTFS_BASE_DISTRO ?= "${BASE_DISTRO}"
 # 'populate-systemd-preset' - enable systemd units according to systemd presets
 # 'clean-apt-credentials' - remove apt auth credentials written by ISAR_APT_CREDS
 # 'clean-dpkg-config' - remove ISAR-specific dpkg configuration files from the rootfs
+# 'exclude-docs' - exclude most documentation files from the rootfs
 
 # convenience variable to enable all features needed for a reproducible rootfs build
 ROOTFS_FEATURES_REPRODUCIBLE = " \
@@ -312,6 +313,37 @@ rootfs_configure_apt() {
 EOSUDO
 }
 
+rootfs_exclude_docs_drop() {
+    if [ -d '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/man' ]; then
+        find '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/man/' -mindepth 1 ! -type d -delete
+        find '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/man/' -depth -mindepth 1 -type d -empty -delete
+    fi
+    if [ -d '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/doc' ]; then
+        find '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/doc/' -mindepth 1 ! -type d ! -name "copyright" ! -name "changelog.*" -delete
+        find '${ROOTFSDIR}/usr/share/doc/' -depth -mindepth 1 -type d -empty -delete
+    fi
+}
+
+ROOTFS_CONFIGURE_COMMAND += "${@bb.utils.contains('ROOTFS_FEATURES', 'exclude-docs', 'rootfs_configure_exclude_docs_filter', '', d)}"
+rootfs_configure_exclude_docs_filter() {
+    run_privileged_heredoc <<'EOSUDO'
+    set -e
+    mkdir -p '${ROOTFSDIR}/etc/dpkg/dpkg.cfg.d'
+    cat > '${ROOTFSDIR}/etc/dpkg/dpkg.cfg.d/55isar-exclude-docs' << 'EOF'
+path-exclude=/usr/share/man/*
+path-exclude=/usr/share/doc/*
+path-include=/usr/share/doc/*/copyright
+path-include=/usr/share/doc/*/changelog.*
+EOF
+
+EOSUDO
+    # drop docs from bootstrap
+    run_privileged_heredoc <<'EOSUDO'
+    set -e
+    ${rootfs_exclude_docs_drop}
+EOSUDO
+}
+
 ROOTFS_CONFIGURE_COMMAND += "rootfs_disable_initrd_generation"
 rootfs_disable_initrd_generation[weight] = "1"
 rootfs_disable_initrd_generation() {
@@ -583,6 +615,14 @@ rootfs_postprocess_clean_dpkg_config() {
     run_privileged find "${ROOTFSDIR}/etc/dpkg/dpkg.cfg.d" -type f -name '*isar*.cfg' -delete
 }
 
+ROOTFS_POSTPROCESS_COMMAND += "${@bb.utils.contains('ROOTFS_FEATURES', 'exclude-docs', 'rootfs_postprocess_exclude_docs', '', d)}"
+rootfs_postprocess_exclude_docs() {
+    run_privileged_heredoc <<'EOSUDO'
+    set -e
+    ${rootfs_exclude_docs_drop}
+EOSUDO
+}
+
 ROOTFS_POSTPROCESS_COMMAND += "${@bb.utils.contains('ROOTFS_FEATURES', 'clean-pycache', 'rootfs_postprocess_clean_pycache', '', d)}"
 rootfs_postprocess_clean_pycache() {
     run_privileged find ${ROOTFSDIR}/usr -type f -name '*.pyc'       -delete -print
diff --git a/meta/recipes-support/isar-exclude-docs/isar-exclude-docs_0.2.3.bb b/meta/recipes-support/isar-exclude-docs/isar-exclude-docs_0.2.3.bb
index a5aa06f4..5b641fba 100644
--- a/meta/recipes-support/isar-exclude-docs/isar-exclude-docs_0.2.3.bb
+++ b/meta/recipes-support/isar-exclude-docs/isar-exclude-docs_0.2.3.bb
@@ -14,3 +14,7 @@ do_install[cleandirs] += "${D}/etc/dpkg/dpkg.cfg.d/"
 do_install() {
     install -v -m 644 "${WORKDIR}/${BPN}" "${D}/etc/dpkg/dpkg.cfg.d/99${BPN}"
 }
+
+do_prepare_build() {
+    bbwarn "This package is deprecated. Use the corresponding exclude-docs rootfs feature instead."
+}