diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index fead6c4..49b2e2a 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1054,7 +1054,9 @@ Things I chose while building, with the reasoning:
     rounded glass panel inset from the viewport edges, so the ice scene shows around it; deck cards
     are 24px-radius glass panels with a secondary Study CTA and quiet metadata. Headings are
     semibold with tighter tracking. Nested glass (chips, inputs) is more opaque but never adds a
-    second blur layer.
+    second blur layer. The collapse/expand arrow keeps one home — the rail's top-right corner in
+    both states (it used to become a nav row in the middle of the icon column when collapsed,
+    which read as the control jumping around); collapsed, the brand mark leads the icon column.
 23. **One fixed ice scene instead of per-page blobs.** The decorative background used to be
     rendered inside the content column, so on wide screens it was clipped into a visible hard edge.
     It now lives in a single `position: fixed` layer (`.ice-scene`, `z-index: -1`, pointer-events
diff --git a/components/Sidebar.tsx b/components/Sidebar.tsx
index 787ca9f..9263d8a 100644
--- a/components/Sidebar.tsx
+++ b/components/Sidebar.tsx
@@ -90,47 +90,57 @@ function NavContent({ collapsed = false }: { collapsed?: boolean }) {
     </button>
   );
 
+  const brandMark = (
+    // eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element -- static app icon, no optimisation needed
+    <img
+      src="/icons/icon-192.png"
+      alt=""
+      aria-hidden
+      className="size-7 shrink-0 rounded-lg shadow-[0_1px_3px_rgb(14_21_40/0.35)]"
+    />
+  );
+
   return (
     <div className="flex min-h-0 flex-1 flex-col">
       {/* brand ---------------------------------------------------------- */}
-      <div className={cn("mb-1 flex items-center", collapsed ? "justify-center" : "justify-between")}>
-        <Link
-          href="/"
-          className={cn("nav-row gap-2.5", collapsed ? "w-auto px-2" : "flex-1")}
-          aria-label={t("header.home")}
-          title="Freezmo"
-        >
-          {/* eslint-disable-next-line @next/next/no-img-element -- static app icon, no optimisation needed */}
-          <img
-            src="/icons/icon-192.png"
-            alt=""
-            aria-hidden
-            className="size-7 shrink-0 rounded-lg shadow-[0_1px_3px_rgb(14_21_40/0.35)]"
-          />
-          {!collapsed ? (
-            <>
-              <span className="text-[15px] font-semibold tracking-[-0.01em] text-[var(--text)]">Freezmo</span>
-              {IS_DEV_INSTANCE ? (
-                <span className="rounded-md border border-amber-400/60 bg-amber-400/15 px-1.5 py-0.5 text-[10px] font-bold uppercase tracking-wide text-amber-700 dark:text-amber-300">
-                  DEV
-                </span>
-              ) : null}
-            </>
-          ) : null}
-        </Link>
+      <div className={cn("mb-1 flex items-center", collapsed ? "justify-end" : "justify-between")}>
         {!collapsed ? (
-          <button
-            type="button"
-            onClick={() => sidebarCollapse.set(true)}
-            aria-label={t("sidebar.collapse")}
-            title={t("sidebar.collapse")}
-            className="grid size-8 place-items-center rounded-lg text-[var(--text-subtle)] transition hover:bg-[var(--hover)] hover:text-[var(--text)]"
+          <Link
+            href="/"
+            className="nav-row flex-1 gap-2.5"
+            aria-label={t("header.home")}
+            title="Freezmo"
           >
-            <ChevronLeftIcon className="size-4" />
-          </button>
+            {brandMark}
+            <span className="text-[15px] font-semibold tracking-[-0.01em] text-[var(--text)]">Freezmo</span>
+            {IS_DEV_INSTANCE ? (
+              <span className="rounded-md border border-amber-400/60 bg-amber-400/15 px-1.5 py-0.5 text-[10px] font-bold uppercase tracking-wide text-amber-700 dark:text-amber-300">
+                DEV
+              </span>
+            ) : null}
+          </Link>
         ) : null}
+        {/* One home for the arrow: the rail's top-right corner in both states.
+            It used to swap between the brand row and the middle of the icon
+            column, which read as the control jumping around. */}
+        <button
+          type="button"
+          onClick={() => sidebarCollapse.set(!collapsed)}
+          aria-label={collapsed ? t("sidebar.expand") : t("sidebar.collapse")}
+          title={collapsed ? t("sidebar.expand") : t("sidebar.collapse")}
+          className="grid size-8 shrink-0 place-items-center rounded-lg text-[var(--text-subtle)] transition hover:bg-[var(--hover)] hover:text-[var(--text)]"
+        >
+          {collapsed ? <ChevronRightIcon className="size-4" /> : <ChevronLeftIcon className="size-4" />}
+        </button>
       </div>
 
+      {/* collapsed: the brand mark leads the icon column ------------------ */}
+      {collapsed ? (
+        <Link href="/" className="nav-row mb-3 justify-center px-2" aria-label={t("header.home")} title="Freezmo">
+          {brandMark}
+        </Link>
+      ) : null}
+
       {/* new deck: a quiet row, not a competing primary button ---------- */}
       <Link
         href="/create"
@@ -162,20 +172,6 @@ function NavContent({ collapsed = false }: { collapsed?: boolean }) {
         {!collapsed ? <span className="flex-1 truncate text-left">{t("chat.nav")}</span> : null}
       </Link>
 
-      {/* The expand control sits outside the swappable section, so it stays
-          reachable when the chat list replaces the deck navigation. */}
-      {collapsed ? (
-        <button
-          type="button"
-          onClick={() => sidebarCollapse.set(false)}
-          aria-label={t("sidebar.expand")}
-          title={t("sidebar.expand")}
-          className="nav-row mb-1 justify-center px-2"
-        >
-          <ChevronRightIcon className="size-4" />
-        </button>
-      ) : null}
-
       {/* On the Chat route the chat list takes the deck navigation's place. */}
       {onChat ? <SidebarChatSection collapsed={collapsed} /> : null}
 
diff --git a/public/sw.js b/public/sw.js
index 02404c3..481f390 100644
--- a/public/sw.js
+++ b/public/sw.js
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@
  *
  * Bumping CACHE_VERSION is how a new deploy invalidates old assets.
  */
-const CACHE_VERSION = "freezmo-v40";
+const CACHE_VERSION = "freezmo-v41";
 const SHELL_CACHE = `${CACHE_VERSION}-shell`;
 const ASSET_CACHE = `${CACHE_VERSION}-assets`;