diff --git a/frontend/app.js b/frontend/app.js
index 2217bce..093f9af 100755
--- a/frontend/app.js
+++ b/frontend/app.js
@@ -2625,6 +2625,40 @@ function importBackup(e) {
   e.target.value = '';
 }
 
+// ============================================================================
+// Build-tag polling — detect server restarts / new deploys (WEB mode only)
+//
+// The server stamps every response from GET /api/version with a `buildTag`
+// that is stable for the lifetime of the process (changes on restart/deploy).
+// We baseline the tag on first fetch; any subsequent change means new code is
+// live and we surface the existing update banner so the user can reload.
+// ============================================================================
+
+let _knownBuildTag = null;
+
+async function checkBuildTag() {
+  try {
+    const res = await fetch('/api/version', { cache: 'no-store' });
+    if (!res.ok) return;
+    const data = await res.json();
+    const tag = data.buildTag;
+    if (!tag) return;
+    if (!_knownBuildTag) {
+      _knownBuildTag = tag;   // baseline on first successful fetch
+      return;
+    }
+    if (tag !== _knownBuildTag) {
+      _knownBuildTag = tag;   // update so we don't show the banner twice
+      showUpdateBanner();
+    }
+  } catch { /* network error — try again next interval */ }
+}
+
+function pollBuildTag() {
+  checkBuildTag();
+  setInterval(checkBuildTag, 5 * 60 * 1000);   // recheck every 5 minutes
+}
+
 // ============================================================================
 // PWA — service worker registration and update banner (WEB mode only)
 // ============================================================================
@@ -2720,6 +2754,7 @@ async function boot() {
 
   // Register service worker + ping server with fingerprint (WEB mode only)
   registerServiceWorker();
+  if (WEB) pollBuildTag();
   if (WEB) {
     fetch('/api/user/sync', {
       method: 'POST',
diff --git a/server/server.js b/server/server.js
index 325c82d..830038d 100644
--- a/server/server.js
+++ b/server/server.js
@@ -30,6 +30,10 @@ const PORT        = parseInt(process.env.PORT || '3000', 10);
 const APP_VERSION = process.env.APP_VERSION || '1.0.0';
 const YTDLP       = process.env.YTDLP_PATH  || 'yt-dlp';
 
+// Stable tag for this server process — changes on every deploy/restart.
+// The frontend polls /api/version and reloads when the tag drifts.
+const BUILD_TAG = process.env.BUILD_TAG || Date.now().toString(36);
+
 const SEARCH_LIMIT  = 25;
 const CHANNEL_LIMIT = 60;
 
@@ -119,7 +123,15 @@ app.use('*', logger());
 // ============================================================================
 
 // GET /api/version
-app.get('/api/version', (c) => c.json({ version: APP_VERSION }));
+// Returns version string + a build tag that changes on every server restart/deploy.
+// Clients poll this to detect when a new build is live and prompt a reload.
+app.get('/api/version', (c) =>
+  c.json(
+    { version: APP_VERSION, buildTag: BUILD_TAG },
+    200,
+    { 'Cache-Control': 'no-store, no-cache, must-revalidate' }
+  )
+);
 
 // GET /api/search?q=<query>
 app.get('/api/search', async (c) => {