diff --git a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframe.vue b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframe.vue
index 23c13ae1..c1fe0e2e 100644
--- a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframe.vue
+++ b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframe.vue
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import { DEVFRAME_REMOTE_ASSETS_ERROR_MESSAGE_TYPE, REMOTE_CONNECTION_KEY } from
 import { computed, nextTick, onMounted, onUnmounted, ref, useTemplateRef, watchEffect } from 'vue'
 import { sharedStateToRef } from '../../state/docks'
 import ViewAssetsError from './ViewAssetsError.vue'
+import ViewIframeLoading from './ViewIframeLoading.vue'
 
 const props = defineProps<{
   context: DocksContext
@@ -52,6 +53,9 @@ const ADDRESS_BAR_HEIGHT = 40
 
 const isLoading = ref(true)
 const isIframeLoading = ref(false)
+// Flips true once the pane is mounted so the hide/show effect can run — a plain
+// `pane.isMounted` read isn't reactive.
+const paneReady = ref(false)
 
 // A devframe whose client assets are published as their own npm package
 // answers with a fallback page when it can reach neither a local install nor
@@ -59,6 +63,14 @@ const isIframeLoading = ref(false)
 // failure renders as a hub panel — with the install command and a retry —
 // rather than as a bare page inside the frame.
 const assetsError = ref<RemoteAssetsErrorMessage | null>(null)
+
+// The blank iframe paints white while its content loads, so a placeholder is
+// only useful when the pane steps aside (`pane.hide()`) to reveal it — the same
+// layering trick `ViewAssetsError` relies on. Show it during the initial load
+// and any hard navigation/refresh, but never on top of the assets-error panel.
+const showLoadingPlaceholder = computed(
+  () => !assetsError.value && (isLoading.value || isIframeLoading.value),
+)
 const viewFrame = useTemplateRef<HTMLDivElement>('viewFrame')
 const urlInputRef = useTemplateRef<HTMLInputElement>('urlInput')
 
@@ -236,6 +248,10 @@ onMounted(() => {
 
   if (existed)
     updateCurrentUrl()
+  else
+    // A freshly created pane is loading its initial content — reflect it so the
+    // placeholder covers the first paint, not just later navigations.
+    isIframeLoading.value = true
 
   // Listen for iframe load events
   onIframeLoad = () => {
@@ -268,12 +284,15 @@ onMounted(() => {
   })
 
   // The iframe lives in its own layer stacked over this view, so the error
-  // panel is only visible once the pane steps aside. `hide()` keeps the frame
-  // alive (and its state intact) for the retry.
+  // panel and the loading placeholder are only visible once the pane steps
+  // aside. `hide()` keeps the frame alive (and its state intact) so the content
+  // keeps loading behind the placeholder and survives a retry.
   watchEffect(() => {
-    if (assetsError.value)
+    if (!paneReady.value)
+      return
+    if (assetsError.value || isIframeLoading.value)
       pane.hide()
-    else if (pane.isMounted)
+    else
       pane.show()
   })
 
@@ -281,6 +300,7 @@ onMounted(() => {
 
   pane.mount(viewFrame.value!)
   isLoading.value = false
+  paneReady.value = true
   nextTick(() => {
     pane.update()
   })
@@ -364,9 +384,7 @@ onUnmounted(() => {
       ref="viewFrame"
       class="devframes-view-iframe relative w-full h-full flex-1 items-center justify-center"
     >
-      <div v-if="isLoading" class="op50 z--1">
-        Loading iframe...
-      </div>
+      <ViewIframeLoading v-if="showLoadingPlaceholder" />
       <ViewAssetsError
         v-if="assetsError"
         :error="assetsError"
diff --git a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.stories.ts b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.stories.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b03c5347
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.stories.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+import type { Meta, StoryObj } from '@storybook/vue3-vite'
+import { h } from 'vue'
+import ViewIframeLoading from './ViewIframeLoading.vue'
+
+// The placeholder fills its positioned parent (`absolute inset-0`), so the
+// stage mirrors the iframe view frame it renders into at runtime.
+function stage(children: any) {
+  return h('div', { class: 'relative h-100 bg-base color-base border border-base rounded-lg overflow-hidden font-sans' }, children)
+}
+
+const meta = {
+  title: 'Views/IframeLoading',
+  component: ViewIframeLoading,
+  tags: ['autodocs'],
+  parameters: {
+    docs: {
+      description: {
+        component: 'Shown over an iframe view while it loads its content. A blank iframe paints white during load, so `ViewIframe` reveals this placeholder by hiding the pane — the same layering trick as the assets-error panel. It covers the initial load and any hard navigation or refresh.',
+      },
+    },
+  },
+} satisfies Meta
+
+export default meta
+type Story = StoryObj
+
+export const Loading: Story = {
+  render: () => ({
+    setup: () => () => stage(h(ViewIframeLoading)),
+  }),
+}
diff --git a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.vue b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.vue
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..bcf5be7f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/components/views/ViewIframeLoading.vue
@@ -0,0 +1,15 @@
+<script setup lang="ts">
+// Placeholder shown while an iframe view loads its content. A blank iframe
+// paints white during load, so this is only visible once the pane steps aside
+// (`pane.hide()` in `ViewIframe`) — the same layering trick `ViewAssetsError`
+// relies on. It covers the initial load and any hard navigation/refresh.
+</script>
+
+<template>
+  <div class="devframes-view-iframe-loading absolute inset-0 flex flex-col items-center justify-center gap-2 bg-base">
+    <div class="i-ph:circle-notch-duotone animate-spin text-3xl color-faint" />
+    <div class="text-sm color-muted">
+      Loading…
+    </div>
+  </div>
+</template>
diff --git a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/stories/mock-context.ts b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/stories/mock-context.ts
index 8678bb79..98a7776c 100644
--- a/packages/hub-ui/src/client/stories/mock-context.ts
+++ b/packages/hub-ui/src/client/stories/mock-context.ts
@@ -59,6 +59,10 @@ function createMockRpc(
 
   const rpc = {
     events,
+    // Server-advertised connection metadata. Stories have no live server, so
+    // advertise the `static` backend with no `configs` — the context reads
+    // `connectionMeta.configs?.ui?...` optionally, so an empty meta is enough.
+    connectionMeta: { backend: 'static' as const },
     get isTrusted() {
       return trusted
     },