diff --git a/config.php b/config.php
index 3f56901..eb0e1be 100644
--- a/config.php
+++ b/config.php
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 <?php
 
 define('APP_NAME', 'hyprcrd');
-define('APP_VERSION', '0.9.5');
+define('APP_VERSION', '0.9.6');
 
 // Database path — writable directory, outside webroot
 define('DB_PATH', __DIR__ . '/data/hyprcrd.db');
diff --git a/public/js/modules/buckets.js b/public/js/modules/buckets.js
index 352cb0b..99f0468 100644
--- a/public/js/modules/buckets.js
+++ b/public/js/modules/buckets.js
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 // ── Bucket management ──
 
 import { $, esc, api } from './util.js';
-import { state, CARD_COLORS } from './state.js';
+import { state, CARD_COLORS, setActiveBucket, ensureActiveBucketValid } from './state.js';
 import { showDialog } from './dialog.js';
 import { pushUndo } from './undo.js';
 
@@ -123,7 +123,7 @@ async function showBucketCtx(x, y, bucket) {
                 const ok = await showDialog({ title: 'delete_bucket', message: msg, danger: true, okLabel: bucket.collab_uid ? 'Leave / delete' : 'Delete' });
                 if (!ok) return;
             }
-            if (state.activeBucket == bucket.id) state.activeBucket = 'all';
+            if (state.activeBucket == bucket.id) setActiveBucket('all');
             // Collab bucket: route through plugin so the relay is notified
             // (owner = delete for everyone; member = just leave).
             if (bucket.collab_uid && typeof window._collabBucketsDelete === 'function') {
@@ -155,7 +155,7 @@ async function showBucketCtx(x, y, bucket) {
             const ok = await showDialog({ title: 'delete_bucket', message: `Delete "${bucket.name}" and ${cards.length} card(s)?`, danger: true, okLabel: 'Delete all' });
             if (!ok) return;
             for (const c of cards) await api(`api/cards/${c.id}`, { method: 'DELETE' });
-            if (state.activeBucket == bucket.id) state.activeBucket = 'all';
+            if (state.activeBucket == bucket.id) setActiveBucket('all');
             if (bucket.collab_uid && typeof window._collabBucketsDelete === 'function') {
                 const res = await window._collabBucketsDelete(bucket.collab_uid);
                 if (!res?.ok) { alert(res?.error || 'delete failed'); return; }
@@ -188,6 +188,10 @@ const tasksFilter = $('tasks-bucket-filter');
 
 export async function loadBuckets() {
     state.buckets = await api('api/buckets');
+    // The persisted activeBucket may point to a bucket that no longer
+    // exists (deleted in another tab, removed via import, etc.). Reset
+    // to 'all' in that case before rendering.
+    ensureActiveBucketValid();
     renderBar();
     populateSelects();
 }
@@ -366,7 +370,7 @@ function renderBar() {
         pop.querySelectorAll('.bucket-tab[data-bucket]').forEach(entry => {
             const ebid = entry.dataset.bucket;
             entry.addEventListener('click', () => {
-                state.activeBucket = ebid;
+                setActiveBucket(ebid);
                 state.activeGroup = null;
                 pop.remove();
                 renderBar();
@@ -420,7 +424,7 @@ function renderBar() {
                 openSuperDropdown(t, parseInt(bid, 10));
             });
         } else {
-            t.addEventListener('click', () => { state.activeBucket = bid; state.activeGroup = null; renderBar(); window._renderBoard(); });
+            t.addEventListener('click', () => { setActiveBucket(bid); state.activeGroup = null; renderBar(); window._renderBoard(); });
         }
 
         if (isUser) {
diff --git a/public/js/modules/state.js b/public/js/modules/state.js
index faa0318..8ef7ac0 100644
--- a/public/js/modules/state.js
+++ b/public/js/modules/state.js
@@ -7,8 +7,12 @@ export const state = {
     cards: [],
     buckets: [],
 
-    // Filters & view
-    activeBucket: 'all',
+    // Filters & view — activeBucket is persisted across reloads via
+    // localStorage. Numeric ids are stringified; the special filters
+    // ('all', 'current', 'favorites', 'journal', 'none') are stored
+    // as-is. Validity is re-checked after buckets load — see
+    // ensureActiveBucketValid() below.
+    activeBucket: localStorage.getItem('hyprcrd-active-bucket') || 'all',
     activeTags: [],
     activeGroup: null,
     sortMode: localStorage.getItem('hyprcrd-sort') || 'manual',
@@ -52,6 +56,28 @@ export const state = {
 export const SORT_MODES = ['manual', 'newest', 'oldest', 'alpha', 'tag'];
 export const SORT_ICONS = { manual: 'ph-dots-six', newest: 'ph-sort-descending', oldest: 'ph-sort-ascending', alpha: 'ph-text-aa', tag: 'ph-hash' };
 
+const SPECIAL_BUCKETS = new Set(['all', 'current', 'favorites', 'journal', 'none']);
+
+/** Set state.activeBucket and persist it to localStorage so it survives
+ *  page reloads. Use this instead of `state.activeBucket = …` everywhere
+ *  except tests (tests reset directly to avoid touching localStorage). */
+export function setActiveBucket(value) {
+    state.activeBucket = value;
+    if (value == null) localStorage.removeItem('hyprcrd-active-bucket');
+    else localStorage.setItem('hyprcrd-active-bucket', String(value));
+}
+
+/** Called from loadBuckets after the fresh bucket list arrives. If the
+ *  persisted activeBucket points to a bucket id that no longer exists
+ *  (deleted from another tab, removed in import, etc.), fall back to
+ *  'all'. Special filters are always valid. */
+export function ensureActiveBucketValid() {
+    const cur = state.activeBucket;
+    if (!cur || SPECIAL_BUCKETS.has(cur)) return;
+    const exists = state.buckets.some(b => String(b.id) === String(cur));
+    if (!exists) setActiveBucket('all');
+}
+
 export const CARD_COLORS = [
     { name: 'sky', hex: '#38bdf8' }, { name: 'violet', hex: '#8b5cf6' },
     { name: 'rose', hex: '#fb7185' }, { name: 'amber', hex: '#fbbf24' },
diff --git a/public/plugins/chat/backend.php b/public/plugins/chat/backend.php
index a3ea7af..49ced16 100644
--- a/public/plugins/chat/backend.php
+++ b/public/plugins/chat/backend.php
@@ -32,6 +32,17 @@
     ");
     $db->exec("CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chat_peer ON chat_messages(peer, sent_at)");
     $db->exec("CREATE UNIQUE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chat_relay_id ON chat_messages(relay_id) WHERE relay_id IS NOT NULL");
+    // Read receipts for outgoing messages: `delivered` = recipient polled
+    // (single check), `seen` = recipient opened the thread (double check).
+    // Both filled in via /api/chat/sent receipt-poll on the relay side.
+    $cols = $db->query("PRAGMA table_info(chat_messages)")->fetchAll();
+    $colNames = array_column($cols, 'name');
+    if (!in_array('delivered', $colNames)) {
+        $db->exec("ALTER TABLE chat_messages ADD COLUMN delivered INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0");
+    }
+    if (!in_array('seen', $colNames)) {
+        $db->exec("ALTER TABLE chat_messages ADD COLUMN seen INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0");
+    }
     // Track the largest relay msg id we've ever seen (so the next poll uses since=that)
     $db->exec("
         CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS chat_state (
@@ -115,7 +126,7 @@ PluginManager::instance()->onApiRoute(function (string $route, string $method) {
         $peer = trim((string)($_GET['peer'] ?? ''));
         if ($peer === '') chatJson(['error' => 'peer required'], 400);
         $db = Database::connect();
-        $stmt = $db->prepare('SELECT id, direction, body, sent_at, is_read FROM chat_messages WHERE peer = :p ORDER BY id ASC LIMIT 500');
+        $stmt = $db->prepare('SELECT id, direction, body, sent_at, is_read, delivered, seen FROM chat_messages WHERE peer = :p ORDER BY id ASC LIMIT 500');
         $stmt->execute(['p' => $peer]);
         chatJson(['messages' => $stmt->fetchAll()]);
     }
@@ -164,10 +175,12 @@ PluginManager::instance()->onApiRoute(function (string $route, string $method) {
         $resData = json_decode($response, true);
         $relayId = isset($resData['id']) ? (int)$resData['id'] : null;
 
-        // Store the outgoing message locally so the UI can render it immediately
+        // Store the outgoing message locally so the UI can render it
+        // immediately. relay_id is the relay's autoincrement id; the
+        // receipt-poll matches against it to update delivered/seen state.
         $db = Database::connect();
-        $db->prepare('INSERT INTO chat_messages (peer, direction, body, relay_id, sent_at, is_read) VALUES (:p, "out", :b, NULL, datetime("now"), 1)')
-            ->execute(['p' => $peer, 'b' => $body]);
+        $db->prepare('INSERT INTO chat_messages (peer, direction, body, relay_id, sent_at, is_read, delivered, seen) VALUES (:p, "out", :b, :rid, datetime("now"), 1, 0, 0)')
+            ->execute(['p' => $peer, 'b' => $body, 'rid' => $relayId]);
         chatJson(['ok' => true, 'id' => (int)$db->lastInsertId()]);
     }
 
@@ -218,7 +231,58 @@ PluginManager::instance()->onApiRoute(function (string $route, string $method) {
         }
         if ($maxId > $since) chatSetState('last_relay_id', $maxId);
 
-        chatJson(['ok' => true, 'new' => $newCount]);
+        // ── Receipt poll for our SENT messages ──────────────────
+        // Pulls fetched/seen state for everything we've sent. Updates
+        // local outgoing rows by relay_id. Uses an independent `since`
+        // cursor so we keep getting state changes even on rows we
+        // already saw before.
+        $sentSince = (int)chatGetState('last_sent_relay_id', 0);
+        $ch2 = curl_init(rtrim($r['url'], '/') . '/api/chat/sent?since=' . $sentSince);
+        curl_setopt_array($ch2, [
+            CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
+            CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
+                'X-Relay-User: ' . $r['user'],
+                'X-Relay-Key: ' . $r['key'],
+            ],
+            CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 10,
+        ]);
+        $resp2 = curl_exec($ch2);
+        $st2 = curl_getinfo($ch2, CURLINFO_HTTP_CODE);
+        curl_close($ch2);
+        $receiptUpdates = 0;
+        if ($st2 === 200) {
+            $sentData = json_decode($resp2, true) ?: [];
+            $receipts = $sentData['receipts'] ?? [];
+            $sentMaxId = (int)($sentData['max_id'] ?? $sentSince);
+            $upd = $db->prepare('UPDATE chat_messages SET delivered = :d, seen = :s WHERE relay_id = :rid AND direction = "out"');
+            foreach ($receipts as $rcpt) {
+                $upd->execute([
+                    'd' => (int)($rcpt['fetched'] ?? 0),
+                    's' => (int)($rcpt['seen'] ?? 0),
+                    'rid' => (int)$rcpt['id'],
+                ]);
+                $receiptUpdates += $upd->rowCount();
+            }
+            // Cursor only advances when EVERY row's state is final (seen=1).
+            // Otherwise we need to keep re-polling those rows for updates.
+            // Cheap implementation: if every row in this batch is seen, bump
+            // cursor to maxId; else keep polling from the lowest non-seen id.
+            $allSeen = true;
+            $minPending = $sentMaxId;
+            foreach ($receipts as $rcpt) {
+                if ((int)($rcpt['seen'] ?? 0) !== 1) {
+                    $allSeen = false;
+                    if ((int)$rcpt['id'] - 1 < $minPending) $minPending = (int)$rcpt['id'] - 1;
+                }
+            }
+            if ($allSeen && $sentMaxId > $sentSince) {
+                chatSetState('last_sent_relay_id', $sentMaxId);
+            } else if (!$allSeen && $minPending > $sentSince) {
+                chatSetState('last_sent_relay_id', $minPending);
+            }
+        }
+
+        chatJson(['ok' => true, 'new' => $newCount, 'receipts' => $receiptUpdates]);
     }
 
     if ($route === '/api/chat/read' && $method === 'POST') {
@@ -228,6 +292,28 @@ PluginManager::instance()->onApiRoute(function (string $route, string $method) {
         $db = Database::connect();
         $db->prepare('UPDATE chat_messages SET is_read = 1 WHERE peer = :p AND direction = "in" AND is_read = 0')
             ->execute(['p' => $peer]);
+
+        // Tell the relay this peer's messages have been seen by us so the
+        // peer's next /api/chat/sent poll picks up the double-check state.
+        $r = chatRelaySettings();
+        if ($r['url'] && $r['user'] && $r['key']) {
+            $ch = curl_init(rtrim($r['url'], '/') . '/api/chat/seen');
+            curl_setopt_array($ch, [
+                CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
+                CURLOPT_POST => true,
+                CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS => json_encode(['peer' => $peer]),
+                CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
+                    'Content-Type: application/json',
+                    'X-Relay-User: ' . $r['user'],
+                    'X-Relay-Key: ' . $r['key'],
+                ],
+                CURLOPT_TIMEOUT => 5,
+            ]);
+            curl_exec($ch);
+            curl_close($ch);
+            // Failures are silent — the user already saw the messages
+            // locally, the relay state is just lagging.
+        }
         chatJson(['ok' => true]);
     }
 
diff --git a/public/plugins/chat/chat.css b/public/plugins/chat/chat.css
index 75f2167..0a302ca 100644
--- a/public/plugins/chat/chat.css
+++ b/public/plugins/chat/chat.css
@@ -170,6 +170,9 @@
     white-space: pre-wrap;
     line-height: 1.4;
     border: 1px solid var(--t-border);
+    /* Pick up the user's card-radius design token so chat bubbles look
+       consistent with the rest of the surface (sharp / rounded / pill). */
+    border-radius: var(--ui-radius-card, 0px);
 }
 
 .chat-bubble.in {
@@ -192,11 +195,25 @@
     color: var(--t-dim);
     margin-top: 2px;
     font-family: var(--t-font-pixel);
+    display: flex;
+    align-items: center;
+    gap: 4px;
 }
 
 .chat-bubble.out + .chat-bubble-time { align-self: flex-end; }
 .chat-bubble.in + .chat-bubble-time { align-self: flex-start; }
 
+/* Read receipts: clock = sent (relay not yet acked), single check =
+   delivered (recipient polled), double check = seen (recipient opened
+   the thread). Single/double share the same icon size as the timestamp. */
+.chat-receipt {
+    font-size: 11px;
+    line-height: 1;
+}
+.chat-receipt.pending   { color: var(--t-dim); }
+.chat-receipt.delivered { color: var(--t-muted); }
+.chat-receipt.seen      { color: var(--t-accent); }
+
 #chat-thread-form {
     display: flex;
     align-items: center;
diff --git a/public/plugins/chat/chat.js b/public/plugins/chat/chat.js
index 39428f2..c21a7f5 100644
--- a/public/plugins/chat/chat.js
+++ b/public/plugins/chat/chat.js
@@ -231,9 +231,18 @@ function renderThread() {
     if (!wrap) return;
     wrap.innerHTML = currentMessages.map(m => {
         const cls = m.direction === 'out' ? 'out' : 'in';
+        // Read receipts for outgoing messages: single check = recipient
+        // polled (delivered), double check = recipient opened the thread
+        // (seen). Incoming messages get no icon.
+        let receipt = '';
+        if (m.direction === 'out') {
+            if (Number(m.seen)) receipt = '<i class="ph ph-checks chat-receipt seen"></i>';
+            else if (Number(m.delivered)) receipt = '<i class="ph ph-check chat-receipt delivered"></i>';
+            else receipt = '<i class="ph ph-clock chat-receipt pending"></i>';
+        }
         return `
             <div class="chat-bubble ${cls}">${escapeHtml(m.body)}</div>
-            <div class="chat-bubble-time">${escapeHtml(formatChatTime(m.sent_at))}</div>
+            <div class="chat-bubble-time">${escapeHtml(formatChatTime(m.sent_at))}${receipt}</div>
         `;
     }).join('');
     // Scroll to bottom
@@ -330,6 +339,7 @@ async function pollOnce() {
         const res = await hyprcrd.api('api/chat/poll', { method: 'POST' }).catch(() => null);
         if (!res?.ok) return;
         const newCount = res.new || 0;
+        const receiptUpdates = res.receipts || 0;
         if (newCount > 0) {
             await loadConversations();
             // If we're inside a thread for any peer, refresh + auto-read it
@@ -340,6 +350,10 @@ async function pollOnce() {
             }
             // Blink if the flyout is closed
             if (!isOpen()) startBlink();
+        } else if (receiptUpdates > 0 && isOpen() && currentPeer) {
+            // No new incoming, but receipts (delivered/seen) changed for
+            // our outgoing — refresh the thread so the check icons update.
+            await loadThread(currentPeer);
         } else if (initialPollDone === false) {
             // First poll: refresh badges in case we have unread from a previous session
             await loadConversations();
diff --git a/relay/inc/bootstrap.php b/relay/inc/bootstrap.php
index f29ffe4..070c0ee 100644
--- a/relay/inc/bootstrap.php
+++ b/relay/inc/bootstrap.php
@@ -180,6 +180,16 @@ $db->exec('CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS chat_messages (
     FOREIGN KEY (sender_id) REFERENCES tenants(id) ON DELETE SET NULL
 )');
 $db->exec('CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chat_recipient ON chat_messages(recipient_id, fetched, id)');
+// Read receipts: `fetched` (already present) is "delivered" — set when the
+// recipient polls /api/chat. `seen` is "seen" — set when the recipient
+// opens the thread with the sender via POST /api/chat/seen. The sender
+// learns both states by polling GET /api/chat/sent.
+$chatCols = $db->query('PRAGMA table_info(chat_messages)')->fetchAll();
+$chatColNames = array_column($chatCols, 'name');
+if (!in_array('seen', $chatColNames)) {
+    $db->exec('ALTER TABLE chat_messages ADD COLUMN seen INTEGER NOT NULL DEFAULT 0');
+}
+$db->exec('CREATE INDEX IF NOT EXISTS idx_chat_sender_state ON chat_messages(sender_id, id)');
 
 // Collaborative buckets: shared among multiple tenants. Each bucket has one
 // owner and a membership set. Buckets persist (not ephemeral) since they are
diff --git a/relay/inc/routes/chat.php b/relay/inc/routes/chat.php
index ba742d6..76edd97 100644
--- a/relay/inc/routes/chat.php
+++ b/relay/inc/routes/chat.php
@@ -1,7 +1,14 @@
 <?php
 // Chat routes (client API only):
-//   POST /api/chat       — send a chat message to {recipient}
-//   GET  /api/chat?since=N — pull all chat messages addressed to me with id > N
+//   POST /api/chat              — send a chat message to {recipient}
+//   GET  /api/chat?since=N      — pull all messages addressed to me (id > N)
+//   GET  /api/chat/sent?since=N — pull state updates (delivered/seen) for
+//                                  *my* sent messages with id > N. The
+//                                  sender uses this to learn read receipts
+//                                  without needing a backchannel.
+//   POST /api/chat/seen {peer}  — mark every message FROM peer TO me as
+//                                  seen. The sender's next /api/chat/sent
+//                                  poll picks the new state up.
 //
 // Same decrypt-reencrypt hop as messages.php: arrives encrypted with the
 // senders client secret, stored at-rest under the inter-tenant key, returned
@@ -80,3 +87,46 @@ if ($route === '/api/chat' && $method === 'GET') {
     }
     jsonResponse(['messages' => $out, 'max_id' => $maxId]);
 }
+
+// ── GET /api/chat/sent ─────────────────────────────────────────
+// Returns the receipt state (fetched/seen) for messages the caller has
+// sent. Body is intentionally NOT included — the sender already has the
+// plaintext locally; the relay only echoes the state flags so the sender
+// can render check / double-check on the right messages.
+
+if ($route === '/api/chat/sent' && $method === 'GET') {
+    if (!$clientTenant) jsonResponse(['error' => 'unauthorized'], 401);
+    $since = (int)($_GET['since'] ?? 0);
+    $stmt = $db->prepare('
+        SELECT id, recipient_id, fetched, seen, created_at
+        FROM chat_messages
+        WHERE sender_id = :s AND id > :since
+        ORDER BY id ASC
+        LIMIT 1000
+    ');
+    $stmt->execute(['s' => $clientTenant['id'], 'since' => $since]);
+    $rows = $stmt->fetchAll();
+    $maxId = $since;
+    foreach ($rows as $r) {
+        if ((int)$r['id'] > $maxId) $maxId = (int)$r['id'];
+    }
+    jsonResponse(['receipts' => $rows, 'max_id' => $maxId]);
+}
+
+// ── POST /api/chat/seen ────────────────────────────────────────
+// Body: { peer: "<sender_username>" }. Marks every message that the
+// peer sent to the caller as seen=1. Idempotent — safe to call on
+// every thread open.
+
+if ($route === '/api/chat/seen' && $method === 'POST') {
+    if (!$clientTenant) jsonResponse(['error' => 'unauthorized'], 401);
+    $input = json_decode(file_get_contents('php://input'), true) ?: [];
+    $peer = trim((string)($input['peer'] ?? ''));
+    if ($peer === '') jsonResponse(['error' => 'peer required'], 400);
+    $db->prepare('
+        UPDATE chat_messages
+        SET seen = 1
+        WHERE recipient_id = :r AND sender_username = :p AND seen = 0
+    ')->execute(['r' => $clientTenant['id'], 'p' => $peer]);
+    jsonResponse(['ok' => true]);
+}