diff --git a/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.test.ts b/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.test.ts
index b87bc8d9ca4d8..efc38f5ee6623 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.test.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.test.ts
@@ -158,12 +158,15 @@ function makeContext(onClose?: (context: BrowserContext) => void) {
     mainFrame: () => page,
     frames: () => [page],
     url: () => url,
+    commit: (next: string) => {
+      url = next;
+    },
     title: vi.fn(async () => "test page"),
     viewportSize: () => viewport,
     setViewportSize: vi.fn(async (size: typeof viewport) => {
       viewport = size;
     }),
-    goto: vi.fn(async (next: string) => {
+    goto: vi.fn(async (next: string, _options?: { timeout?: number; waitUntil?: string }) => {
       url = next;
       events.emit("load");
       const pending = initialNavigation;
@@ -174,7 +177,7 @@ function makeContext(onClose?: (context: BrowserContext) => void) {
     goForward: vi.fn(async () => {}),
     reload: vi.fn(async () => {}),
     emulateMedia: vi.fn(async () => {}),
-    waitForLoadState: vi.fn(async () => {}),
+    waitForLoadState: vi.fn(async (_state?: string, _options?: { timeout?: number }) => {}),
     evaluate: vi.fn(async () => ({
       url,
       title: "test page",
@@ -437,6 +440,77 @@ it.live("preview_open reports its navigation timeout instead of the request budg
   ).pipe(Effect.provide(layer)),
 );
 
+it.live.each([
+  { renderer: "idle", title: "Heavy page" },
+  { renderer: "busy", title: null },
+])(
+  "navigate returns the committed page while its load event is still pending ($renderer renderer)",
+  ({ renderer, title }) =>
+    Effect.scoped(
+      Effect.gen(function* () {
+        const { broker, tabId } = yield* ready;
+        const page = contexts[0]!.page;
+        // A busy main thread never answers title(); the status must not wait past the broker's grace.
+        page.title.mockImplementation(() =>
+          renderer === "busy" ? new Promise<string>(() => {}) : Promise.resolve("Heavy page"),
+        );
+        const heavy = "http://localhost:5173/heavy";
+        const timedOut = (method: string, timeout: number | undefined) =>
+          Object.assign(new Error(`${method}: Timeout ${timeout}ms exceeded.`), {
+            name: "TimeoutError",
+          });
+        // The document commits and parses, but a stalled subresource holds back `load`.
+        page.goto.mockImplementation(async (next, options) => {
+          page.commit(next);
+          page.emit("request", {
+            url: () => next,
+            isNavigationRequest: () => true,
+            frame: () => page,
+          });
+          if (options?.waitUntil === "load") throw timedOut("page.goto", options.timeout);
+        });
+        page.waitForLoadState.mockImplementation(async (state, options) => {
+          if (state === undefined || state === "load") {
+            throw timedOut("page.waitForLoadState", options?.timeout);
+          }
+        });
+
+        const status = yield* broker.invoke<PreviewAutomationStatus>({
+          scope,
+          tabId,
+          operation: "navigate",
+          input: { url: heavy, timeoutMs: 4_000 },
+        });
+
+        expect(status).toMatchObject({ url: heavy, title, loading: true });
+      }),
+    ).pipe(Effect.provide(layer)),
+);
+
+it.live("navigate fails when the page never commits within its timeout", () =>
+  Effect.scoped(
+    Effect.gen(function* () {
+      const { broker, tabId } = yield* ready;
+      contexts[0]!.page.goto.mockImplementation(async () => {
+        throw Object.assign(new Error("page.goto: Timeout 4000ms exceeded."), {
+          name: "TimeoutError",
+        });
+      });
+
+      const error = yield* broker
+        .invoke<PreviewAutomationStatus>({
+          scope,
+          tabId,
+          operation: "navigate",
+          input: { url: "http://10.255.255.1/", timeoutMs: 4_000 },
+        })
+        .pipe(Effect.flip);
+
+      expect(error).toMatchObject({ _tag: "PreviewAutomationTimeoutError", timeoutMs: 4_000 });
+    }),
+  ).pipe(Effect.provide(layer)),
+);
+
 it.live.each(["desktop" as const, undefined])(
   "explicit desktop targets ($0 runtime) fail without creating a server tab",
   (runtime) =>
diff --git a/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.ts b/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.ts
index a2485b30e9e36..729c139f12c4b 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/preview/ServerBrowser.ts
@@ -123,6 +123,8 @@ const EDITABLE_AT_POINT_SCRIPT = `(x, y) => {
 }`;
 const UNATTACHED_FILL_VIEWPORT = { width: 1280, height: 800 } as const;
 const NAVIGATION_TIMEOUT_MS = 15_000;
+// page.title() runs in the renderer; a busy page must not hold a status past the broker's grace.
+const TITLE_READ_MS = 250;
 const VIEWER_NAVIGATION_OPTIONS = { waitUntil: "commit", timeout: NAVIGATION_TIMEOUT_MS } as const;
 const ACTION_TIMELINE_LIMIT = 50;
 
@@ -1401,7 +1403,14 @@ const make = Effect.gen(function* () {
       })),
     };
     if (status.url === null || tab.dialog) return status;
-    return { ...status, title: (await tab.page.title().catch(() => "")) || null };
+    let timer: ReturnType<typeof setTimeout> | undefined;
+    const late = new Promise<string>((resolve) => {
+      timer = setTimeout(() => resolve(""), TITLE_READ_MS);
+    });
+    const title = await Promise.race([tab.page.title().catch(() => ""), late]).finally(() =>
+      clearTimeout(timer),
+    );
+    return { ...status, title: title || null };
   };
 
   const resolveNavigationUrl = (input: PreviewAutomationNavigateInput) => {
@@ -1419,20 +1428,22 @@ const make = Effect.gen(function* () {
     readiness: "load" | "domContentLoaded" | "none",
     timeout: number,
   ) => {
-    const navigation = tab.page.goto(url, {
-      timeout,
-      waitUntil:
-        readiness === "domContentLoaded"
-          ? "domcontentloaded"
-          : readiness === "none"
-            ? "commit"
-            : "load",
-    });
+    const startedAt = performance.now();
+    const navigation = tab.page.goto(url, { timeout, waitUntil: "commit" });
     if (readiness === "none") {
       tab.control.track(navigation);
       return;
     }
-    await navigation.catch((cause: unknown) => {
+    // Once the target commits, a stalled subresource only delays readiness; report the loading tab.
+    const ready = () =>
+      tab.page
+        .waitForLoadState(readiness === "domContentLoaded" ? "domcontentloaded" : "load", {
+          timeout: Math.max(1, timeout - (performance.now() - startedAt)),
+        })
+        .catch((cause: unknown) => {
+          if (!(cause instanceof Error && cause.name === "TimeoutError")) throw cause;
+        });
+    await navigation.then(ready).catch((cause: unknown) => {
       const message = cause instanceof Error ? cause.message : String(cause);
       if (message.includes("Download is starting")) {
         throw new ServerBrowserPage.ServerBrowserOperationError(