diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/hooks/use-statusbar-items.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/hooks/use-statusbar-items.tsx
index 15c333a6b82..0c46c343a9b 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/hooks/use-statusbar-items.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/hooks/use-statusbar-items.tsx
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import { ContextUsagePanel } from '@/app/shell/context-usage-panel'
 import { GatewayMenuPanel } from '@/app/shell/gateway-menu-panel'
 import { Codicon } from '@/components/ui/codicon'
 import { GlyphSpinner } from '@/components/ui/glyph-spinner'
+import { TooltipDetails } from '@/components/ui/tooltip'
 import { useI18n } from '@/i18n'
 import { Activity, AlertCircle, Clock, Command, FolderOpen, Globe, Hash, Loader2, Terminal } from '@/lib/icons'
 import type { RuntimeReadinessResult } from '@/lib/runtime-readiness'
@@ -233,15 +234,27 @@ export function useStatusbarItems({
       ? `${base} · ${updateApply.stage === 'restart' ? copy.restart : copy.update}`
       : `${base}${behindHint}`
 
-    const tooltip = [
+    const tooltipPrimary = appVersion ? copy.desktopVersion(appVersion) : (sha ? copy.commit(sha) : null)
+    const tooltipDetails = [
       applying ? updateApply.message || copy.updateInProgress : null,
       !applying && behind > 0 && copy.commitsBehind(behind, branch ?? '...'),
-      appVersion && copy.desktopVersion(appVersion),
-      sha && copy.commit(sha),
+      appVersion && sha && copy.commit(sha),
       branch && copy.branch(branch)
     ]
-      .filter(Boolean)
-      .join('\n')
+      .filter((detail): detail is string => Boolean(detail))
+
+    const tooltip = tooltipPrimary ? (
+      <>
+        <span>{tooltipPrimary}</span>
+        {tooltipDetails.length > 0 && (
+          <TooltipDetails className="flex flex-col gap-0.5">
+            {tooltipDetails.map(detail => (
+              <span key={detail}>{detail}</span>
+            ))}
+          </TooltipDetails>
+        )}
+      </>
+    ) : undefined
 
     return {
       className: !applying && behind > 0 ? 'text-primary hover:text-primary' : undefined,
@@ -253,7 +266,7 @@ export function useStatusbarItems({
       // their client is behind. Listed in the menu, but locked on.
       lockedVisible: true,
       onSelect: () => openUpdateOverlayFor('client'),
-      title: tooltip || undefined,
+      title: tooltip,
       toggleLabel: copy.toggleVersion,
       variant: 'action'
     }
@@ -290,14 +303,25 @@ export function useStatusbarItems({
       ? `${base} · ${backendUpdateApply.stage === 'restart' ? copy.restart : copy.update}`
       : `${base}${behindHint}`
 
-    const tooltip = [
+    const tooltipDetails = [
       applying ? backendUpdateApply.message || copy.updateInProgress : null,
       !applying && behind > 0 && copy.commitsBehind(behind, 'main'),
-      !applying && behind <= 0 && updateAvailable && copy.update,
-      backendVersion && copy.backendVersion(backendVersion)
+      !applying && behind <= 0 && updateAvailable && copy.update
     ]
-      .filter(Boolean)
-      .join('\n')
+      .filter((detail): detail is string => Boolean(detail))
+
+    const tooltip = backendVersion ? (
+      <>
+        <span>{copy.backendVersion(backendVersion)}</span>
+        {tooltipDetails.length > 0 && (
+          <TooltipDetails className="flex flex-col gap-0.5">
+            {tooltipDetails.map(detail => (
+              <span key={detail}>{detail}</span>
+            ))}
+          </TooltipDetails>
+        )}
+      </>
+    ) : undefined
 
     return {
       className: !applying && updateAvailable ? 'text-primary hover:text-primary' : undefined,
@@ -307,7 +331,7 @@ export function useStatusbarItems({
       label,
       lockedVisible: true,
       onSelect: () => openUpdateOverlayFor('backend'),
-      title: tooltip || undefined,
+      title: tooltip,
       toggleLabel: copy.toggleBackendVersion,
       variant: 'action'
     }
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-controls.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-controls.tsx
index 7dbc9335f71..8a6449b8fbc 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-controls.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-controls.tsx
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ export interface StatusbarItem {
   onSelect?: (modifiers: StatusbarSelectModifiers) => void
   /** Keybind action id — when set, the tooltip shows the label + keybind hint. */
   actionId?: string
-  title?: string
+  title?: ReactNode
   to?: string
   variant?: 'action' | 'link' | 'menu' | 'text'
   /** Plain-text name for the bar's right-click show/hide menu. An item without
@@ -212,7 +212,11 @@ const StatusbarItemView = memo(function StatusbarItemView({
     return <>{item.render()}</>
   }
 
-  const tooltipLabel = item.actionId ? <TipKeybindLabel actionId={item.actionId} text={item.title} /> : item.title
+  const tooltipLabel = item.actionId ? (
+    <TipKeybindLabel actionId={item.actionId} text={typeof item.title === 'string' ? item.title : undefined} />
+  ) : (
+    item.title
+  )
 
   const content = (
     <>
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-visibility.test.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-visibility.test.tsx
index 9d334a0330d..f48a0ff0a11 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-visibility.test.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/app/shell/statusbar-visibility.test.tsx
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ import { MemoryRouter } from 'react-router-dom'
 import { afterEach, beforeAll, describe, expect, it, vi } from 'vitest'
 
 import { StatusbarControls, type StatusbarItem } from '@/app/shell/statusbar-controls'
+import { TooltipDetails } from '@/components/ui/tooltip'
 import {
   $statusbarHiddenIds,
   $statusbarVisible,
@@ -55,6 +56,32 @@ function openContextMenu(target: HTMLElement) {
 }
 
 describe('statusbar item visibility', () => {
+  it('groups version-tooltip details below its primary label in one panel', async () => {
+    bar([
+      item('version-client', 'v1.2.3', {
+        title: (
+          <>
+            <span>Hermes Desktop v1.2.3</span>
+            <TooltipDetails className="flex flex-col gap-0.5">
+              <span>Commit abc1234</span>
+              <span>Branch ethie/hermes-version</span>
+            </TooltipDetails>
+          </>
+        )
+      })
+    ])
+
+    fireEvent.pointerMove(screen.getByRole('button', { name: 'v1.2.3' }), { pointerType: 'mouse' })
+
+    const tooltip = await screen.findByRole('tooltip')
+    const label = tooltip.firstElementChild
+
+    expect(tooltip.textContent).toBe('Hermes Desktop v1.2.3Commit abc1234Branch ethie/hermes-version')
+    expect(label?.classList.contains('bg-foreground')).toBe(true)
+    expect(label?.classList.contains('flex-col')).toBe(true)
+    expect(screen.getByText('Commit abc1234').parentElement?.classList.contains('text-background/65')).toBe(true)
+  })
+
   it('hides the route/toggle items out of the box and keeps status items', () => {
     bar([
       item('cron', 'Cron'),
diff --git a/apps/desktop/src/components/ui/tooltip.tsx b/apps/desktop/src/components/ui/tooltip.tsx
index 9ac1e9d1f57..f9d43a2ce35 100644
--- a/apps/desktop/src/components/ui/tooltip.tsx
+++ b/apps/desktop/src/components/ui/tooltip.tsx
@@ -96,11 +96,9 @@ function TooltipContent({
   return (
     <TooltipPrimitive.Portal>
       <TooltipPrimitive.Content
-        // Transparent, width-capped wrapper. The visible chip is the inner inline
-        // span so `box-decoration-break: clone` gives a marker-style background
-        // that hugs EACH wrapped line (bg only on the text, ragged right — no
-        // rectangular dead space). No fade transition — once the hover delay
-        // elapses the chip appears at once.
+        // Transparent, width-capped wrapper. The visible panel is the inner span
+        // so all lines share one stable background. No fade transition — once
+        // the hover delay elapses the panel appears at once.
         // pointer-events-none: the tip must never steal hover/clicks from the
         // chrome underneath (titlebar tools, adjacent tabs, etc.).
         className={cn('pointer-events-none z-(--z-over-modal) w-fit max-w-64 select-none', className)}
@@ -108,14 +106,9 @@ function TooltipContent({
         sideOffset={sideOffset}
         {...props}
       >
-        {/* bg-foreground/text-background auto-inverts per theme. leading-normal
-            keeps lines readable; py-1 makes the cloned line-boxes overlap just
-            enough to read as one continuous fill (no gaps between lines). */}
-        {/* [&>*]:!inline-flex: a block-level label child (e.g. `flex`) collapses
-            this inline decoration's geometry, so Radix measures a zero-size chip
-            and parks an empty rectangle in the corner (#62022). Force any direct
-            child inline-flex so every call site stays safe. */}
-        <span className="box-decoration-clone inline bg-foreground px-1.5 py-1 text-[11px] font-bold leading-normal text-background [font-family:Arial,sans-serif] [&>*]:!inline-flex">
+        {/* bg-foreground/text-background auto-inverts per theme. A column keeps
+            primary text and optional detail rows aligned inside one panel. */}
+        <span className="inline-flex max-w-full flex-col items-start gap-1 bg-foreground px-1.5 py-1 text-[11px] font-bold leading-normal text-background [font-family:Arial,sans-serif]">
           {children}
         </span>
       </TooltipPrimitive.Content>
@@ -198,11 +191,16 @@ function TipHintLabel({ text, hint }: TipHintLabelProps) {
   return (
     <span className="inline-flex items-center gap-2">
       <span>{text}</span>
-      <span className="opacity-55">{hint}</span>
+      <TooltipDetails>{hint}</TooltipDetails>
     </span>
   )
 }
 
+/** Muted secondary content inside a tooltip. The caller owns its layout. */
+function TooltipDetails({ className, ...props }: React.ComponentProps<'span'>) {
+  return <span className={cn('text-background/65 font-normal', className)} {...props} />
+}
+
 interface TipKeybindLabelProps {
   /** Keybind action id — pulls the label from i18n AND the combo from the store. */
   actionId: string
@@ -229,6 +227,7 @@ export {
   TipKeybindLabel,
   Tooltip,
   TooltipContent,
+  TooltipDetails,
   TooltipProvider,
   TooltipTrigger
 }